Post by Gene on May 24, 2010 16:14:39 GMT -5
Long time no hear!
I didn’t have much going on in April, so I opted out of sending an update. But I sure have a pile going on now! My summer is going to end up being pretty busy, especially August. Here’s a few of the dates I’ve got coming up, minus the private parties:
FRI, MAY 28: Northern Lights Recreation, Harbor Springs, 8pm-12
SUN, JUN 13: Douglas Lake Bar, Pellston, 6pm-9
FRI, JUN 18: Northern Lights Recreation, Harbor Springs, 8pm-12
SUN, JUN 27: Douglas Lake Bar, Pellston, MI 6pm-9
The really big deal is Northern Lights in Harbor Springs, which is a new venue for me. They are famous for having some of the best acts in the area, so I consider it an achievement of sorts to be playing there. I always love playing in Petoskey anyway, since that town really advertises and reveres its live music, but what’s even better is that Northern Lights has a big ski crowd in the winter, and it would do me well to make an impression with this place that also hires acts during my slow months. The pressure is on to bring my A-game to this one, for sure!
Douglas Lake Bar is no surprise, since I’m well-liked there, but I do enjoy it every time. This little lakeside place out in the woods, a few miles east of the Pellston airport, is quite a kept secret; Great “loggy” atmosphere, food and people. I got a $100 bill in my tip jar there once; Hopefully that will repeat itself this year!
This run-up to summer has been unusual compared to most years. A couple things I got used to relying on, like playing at Mackinaw Crossings, and playing somewhere on Mackinac Island, did not come through this year, since they had some changes in direction. Also, most venues seemed more late than usual in squaring this up, so I was getting a little concerned with my skimpy-looking summer schedule coming into April. But, as they say, when one door closes, another opens, and it all did flood in later, and everything ended up just fine. In fact, I ended up turning down a lot of things, just to not feel TOO busy!
On the bright side, I will be playing two MORE new places repeatedly in the coming summer, being Mackinac Grille in St. Ignace, and The Islander in Hessel. I’ve learned that these little rural places are very tough to get a first chance in if you haven’t lived there all your life. And, how experienced or good the act is doesn’t seem a really high priority for them, so I often find myself at a disadvantage to get a chance with places like this. Them finally loosening their closed doors to me after years of trying was a nice surprise. I’ll make sure to not let them down!
I attended only the Open Mic at the Village Inn in St. Ignace, twice, during the spring. It’s fun, but it’s starting to feel redundant there, since there’s seldom a new act that comes in to keep things interesting. That usually spells death in the novel, fickle entertainment biz, but there’s talk of still keeping it going throughout the summer. I sure hope it flourishes; Maybe the new season will bring in some different audiences and other summer workers who could shake it up a bit. That’d be great to see. Also, I suspect guys like Cedar Straits, me, and other regulars, are going to be pretty busy with their summer paying gigs to bother coming much anymore. I hope the changes translate to it being a better thing, rather than a worse thing.
I TRIED to attend an Open Mic at Mulligan’s in Cheboygan, and catch a solo acoustic guy from Marquette at another time, too, but both were cancelled in favor of the hockey quarter-finals that the Red Wings were playing in. That burned me a bit, since I have to drive almost 20 miles one way, and I usually take off a couple hours from work the next day to sleep in over it. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way that whenever going to any scheduled thing there, check the papers for any sporting event of moderate importance, and, always have a back-up plan!...
I did get to catch Brian Koehler last week at Mulligan’s, though. He’s from Mount Pleasant, and I suspect he’s a friend of Nate King, who went to college there and runs the Open Mic at Mulligan’s (when they have it). He was a decent singer, and his song selection was loaded heavily toward acoustic “standards”, but he did throw in a few recent surprises that were entertaining. His guitar playing and tone were below average for the number of guys I’ve seen doing this, though, and sometimes it sounded like he was trying to learn things for the first time on the spot. A solo guy’s crowd rapport can sometimes make up for all of this, but I don’t think he reached enough in this department, either, to bring up his overall “score”. I consider Nate a friend and all, and I really wanted to like Brian, but in all honestly, I didn't think he was ready to play at Mulligans.
Went to another Cedar Straits gig at the casino, too. Attendance was thin, but it was Tuesday. They are really racking up a lot of local gigs in St. Ignace. (It's like I was telling you about living in a little rural place all you life: It definitely helps in getting the gigs!...) They sound a little more polished each time I hear them, and might be ready to expand their radius soon.
I got a chance to have a dinner at the Southwoods in Petoskey. (I always try to patronize places that help the live music scene, and it helps that the food is good, too!...) I caught an electric guitar and keyboard duo there, which was kind of mellow and “loungey” for my tastes, but okay. Sorry, the name escapes me. They've landed Hipps 'N' Ricco and their full band project Charlie's Root Fusion to play there quite a bit, which is probably the hottest live act going right now. This place is really making a big impression as a hot live music place on Saturdays, since they have more mellow music at 3pm and then a full dance band at 9pm, both. If you live near there, or even if you don’t, make sure you reward this behavior with your occasional patronage!...
Personal life is great. My older daughter Dana is home from college, and she’s working as a cashier at Glen’s, which is one of the better summer jobs in the area, for sure. My younger daughter Andrea will work at McDonald’s again, and that’s great, too. We’re turning into one of those families where we all work and sitting down to a dinner all together is rare. It is what it is... I’m looking into a digital camcorder to buy, for family purposes, and to eventually market my music side-business with it, since that seems to be the latest rage on how you this, nowadays. If you have any knowledge on this complex topic, I sure would appreciate the advice!...
That’s about it for now. ‘Til later,
–Gene.
I didn’t have much going on in April, so I opted out of sending an update. But I sure have a pile going on now! My summer is going to end up being pretty busy, especially August. Here’s a few of the dates I’ve got coming up, minus the private parties:
FRI, MAY 28: Northern Lights Recreation, Harbor Springs, 8pm-12
SUN, JUN 13: Douglas Lake Bar, Pellston, 6pm-9
FRI, JUN 18: Northern Lights Recreation, Harbor Springs, 8pm-12
SUN, JUN 27: Douglas Lake Bar, Pellston, MI 6pm-9
The really big deal is Northern Lights in Harbor Springs, which is a new venue for me. They are famous for having some of the best acts in the area, so I consider it an achievement of sorts to be playing there. I always love playing in Petoskey anyway, since that town really advertises and reveres its live music, but what’s even better is that Northern Lights has a big ski crowd in the winter, and it would do me well to make an impression with this place that also hires acts during my slow months. The pressure is on to bring my A-game to this one, for sure!
Douglas Lake Bar is no surprise, since I’m well-liked there, but I do enjoy it every time. This little lakeside place out in the woods, a few miles east of the Pellston airport, is quite a kept secret; Great “loggy” atmosphere, food and people. I got a $100 bill in my tip jar there once; Hopefully that will repeat itself this year!
This run-up to summer has been unusual compared to most years. A couple things I got used to relying on, like playing at Mackinaw Crossings, and playing somewhere on Mackinac Island, did not come through this year, since they had some changes in direction. Also, most venues seemed more late than usual in squaring this up, so I was getting a little concerned with my skimpy-looking summer schedule coming into April. But, as they say, when one door closes, another opens, and it all did flood in later, and everything ended up just fine. In fact, I ended up turning down a lot of things, just to not feel TOO busy!
On the bright side, I will be playing two MORE new places repeatedly in the coming summer, being Mackinac Grille in St. Ignace, and The Islander in Hessel. I’ve learned that these little rural places are very tough to get a first chance in if you haven’t lived there all your life. And, how experienced or good the act is doesn’t seem a really high priority for them, so I often find myself at a disadvantage to get a chance with places like this. Them finally loosening their closed doors to me after years of trying was a nice surprise. I’ll make sure to not let them down!
I attended only the Open Mic at the Village Inn in St. Ignace, twice, during the spring. It’s fun, but it’s starting to feel redundant there, since there’s seldom a new act that comes in to keep things interesting. That usually spells death in the novel, fickle entertainment biz, but there’s talk of still keeping it going throughout the summer. I sure hope it flourishes; Maybe the new season will bring in some different audiences and other summer workers who could shake it up a bit. That’d be great to see. Also, I suspect guys like Cedar Straits, me, and other regulars, are going to be pretty busy with their summer paying gigs to bother coming much anymore. I hope the changes translate to it being a better thing, rather than a worse thing.
I TRIED to attend an Open Mic at Mulligan’s in Cheboygan, and catch a solo acoustic guy from Marquette at another time, too, but both were cancelled in favor of the hockey quarter-finals that the Red Wings were playing in. That burned me a bit, since I have to drive almost 20 miles one way, and I usually take off a couple hours from work the next day to sleep in over it. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way that whenever going to any scheduled thing there, check the papers for any sporting event of moderate importance, and, always have a back-up plan!...
I did get to catch Brian Koehler last week at Mulligan’s, though. He’s from Mount Pleasant, and I suspect he’s a friend of Nate King, who went to college there and runs the Open Mic at Mulligan’s (when they have it). He was a decent singer, and his song selection was loaded heavily toward acoustic “standards”, but he did throw in a few recent surprises that were entertaining. His guitar playing and tone were below average for the number of guys I’ve seen doing this, though, and sometimes it sounded like he was trying to learn things for the first time on the spot. A solo guy’s crowd rapport can sometimes make up for all of this, but I don’t think he reached enough in this department, either, to bring up his overall “score”. I consider Nate a friend and all, and I really wanted to like Brian, but in all honestly, I didn't think he was ready to play at Mulligans.
Went to another Cedar Straits gig at the casino, too. Attendance was thin, but it was Tuesday. They are really racking up a lot of local gigs in St. Ignace. (It's like I was telling you about living in a little rural place all you life: It definitely helps in getting the gigs!...) They sound a little more polished each time I hear them, and might be ready to expand their radius soon.
I got a chance to have a dinner at the Southwoods in Petoskey. (I always try to patronize places that help the live music scene, and it helps that the food is good, too!...) I caught an electric guitar and keyboard duo there, which was kind of mellow and “loungey” for my tastes, but okay. Sorry, the name escapes me. They've landed Hipps 'N' Ricco and their full band project Charlie's Root Fusion to play there quite a bit, which is probably the hottest live act going right now. This place is really making a big impression as a hot live music place on Saturdays, since they have more mellow music at 3pm and then a full dance band at 9pm, both. If you live near there, or even if you don’t, make sure you reward this behavior with your occasional patronage!...
Personal life is great. My older daughter Dana is home from college, and she’s working as a cashier at Glen’s, which is one of the better summer jobs in the area, for sure. My younger daughter Andrea will work at McDonald’s again, and that’s great, too. We’re turning into one of those families where we all work and sitting down to a dinner all together is rare. It is what it is... I’m looking into a digital camcorder to buy, for family purposes, and to eventually market my music side-business with it, since that seems to be the latest rage on how you this, nowadays. If you have any knowledge on this complex topic, I sure would appreciate the advice!...
That’s about it for now. ‘Til later,
–Gene.
