Bonamassa band continued

Woke Up Dreaming was where the knotheads made their alcoholic presense felt, but the crowd around them shushamed (fugawi word) them into compliance, veteran Bonamaniacs that we are.  The master plays and we are stunned by his skill, and I for one, at his mastery of DYNAMICS. 

It does an old funky doctor good to experience a scorched earth performance that does not rely solely on a full blast frontal assault; something that those who were overserved missed until we (the crowd & Joe) captured their full attention.  heh heh…

When the crowd finally got quiet during Joe’s solo in If I Ever Get to Heaven, you know the part where he holds the never ending note waiting for that sublime feedback rocket launch, you could have popped popcorn in that microwave silence.  The tension was ELECTRIC.

When he stepped off mic and sang from center stage, we white knuckled the seats and held our breath.  This band is so tight and so in tune with the boss, they never miss a cue.  So they ended that tune and brought the house down on our ears.  We COULD NOT stay in our seats.

I lost track of the ensuing musical madness.  Joe did a coupla encores.  I can’t give an exact set list.  One of These Day’s I’ll remember it all…or not.  They went through all the medley tunes and my poor son was bug eyed trying to piece together all the songs and riffs that he heard in one ten minute tribute to head-banging & butt-kicking; the best of the rest.

At one point Something caught caught my eye (ear) and I was instantly carried back to the insanity of life on the road.  I won’t go into it here, but I will say that I’m glad that I’m not the equipment rental guy who has to figure out how to make a couple of those rigs fit for duty for the next customer.

And NO the band didn’t trash the equipment.  Don’t even think it.  The fact is however that the Bonamassa Band takes no prisoners.  They play hard.  They play loud.  They give no quarter.  They are not a bar band.  They are here to convert the unwashed heathens, the uninitiated.

Joe was thin and fit and wearing a suit (actually a blue velvet blazer and grey slacks.)  We can be proud.  In a moment’s conversation after the Cocoa show he stated quite plainly that even if there were 600 committed fans at a show and one new fan made, that fan is important and that show was a success.  Hope you don’t mind me sharing that Joe.  I think it’s important.

As a matter of fact I might just offer my services to you, Joe, when you are doing your “meet and greet.”  I, for one, have thought that people in a state of excitement might need a friendly reminder to keep things short and sweet and simple. 

“Thank you for the experience, Joe.”
“Thank you for coming to see me.”
“Will you sign this?  Sure…  NEXT!” 

Oh well, it’s not a perfect world.  A pretty female (with a bat) would probably serve you better than a 6′6″ ugly in that regard.  JUST KIDDING!

My drummer son said Bogie was one of the most amazing drummers he had ever seen.  When I asked him why he grinned and said “He can count to four!”  (Inside joke)  I allowed that we could probably set our heartbeat to Brother Bowles. 

Rick stopped briefly what he was doing to speak to my family.  Thank you mate.  Love You!  My old buddy Carmine wouldn’t hardly speak to me because he couldn’t take his eyes off my wife. hmmmm come to think of it, she didn’t talk to me either. hmmmm

My daughter said Wow they rock hard!  My guitar playing son (the Stoic) was amazed beyond description and spent most of the morning asking me questions about theory and what makes it Rock?  and what makes it Blues?  What about this or that scale?  I’ve created a monster.

I saw Ken and Susan there and many others.  I saw an old friend from the old neighborhood and she couldn’t believe that I was alive, sane, and a father.  Seeing her and her husband was an unexpected thrill.  Ah the world of Joe.

With the exception of the hesitancy of the new LP to feedback on cue through that two head stack he was using for the Fla mini-tour, I really couldn’t tell a BIG difference in Joe’s sound last night and that $40 million stack he was using last time.  The tube screamer was working fine.

Joe made a very nice reference to being real glad he interrupted his schedule to come to Florida and we are all extremely grateful he did.  So Thanks for that Joe.  AND…

Thanks for being the dedicated musician, performer & businessman that you are.  I ain’t kidding.

Much Love

Take me back…live music that’s good

Once again the Bonamassa Band has demonstrated their mastery of blues rock musical presentation. 

From the opening strains of Bridge To Better Days, as tension builds, and we begin our transition into this music, this phenomonon called Joe, to the crash of Bogie’s cymbals, Carmine’s thundering bass, Rick’s soaring keys and the hammer between the eyes of a wide open LesPaul that only Joe can make sound like that…we submit. 

Wait back up a day…

When I entered the hall in Cocoa on Thursday I knew we were in trouble.  I looked at Joe doing a sound check.  I looked at the room we were in…60′ wide and 300′ long with a low ceiling and I thought in terms of unprintable language.  I waved at Joe, he spoke and I spoke with the guys for a minute and then got out of the way.

Oh me of little faith.  The sound crew pulled it off.  They came, they listened (saw), they conquered.  By the second third of the set, they had done the impossible.  The instruments had become defined.  The vocals were front and center and the volumes had equalized.  A testament to the professionalism of each and every person involved.  Many a naddering nabob would have said “It’s the room!” and went out for a cigarette.

These guys are spectacular.  They not only work hard, they get it done.  There is a difference.

Now we’re in J-ville and the light’s are flashing and the musical onslaught has all the hair on my old punkin head standing at a 45 degree angle backwards.  MsTia is all aglow and my 3 kids are sitting there with their mouths open.  From the opening notes the transformation is complete.  We are in the most beautiful old school theater in this end of the state and the Bonamassa Band has us in the palm of their hand. 

With the exception of some illegitimate offspring that were obviously the result of a drunken merger between homeless alkies and junkie street walkers, as a crowd we behaved appropriately.  Loud and enthusiastic, but quiet when Joe shushed us. 

As the last strains of Bridge faded, the minor tones of So Many Roads swelled and Otis Rush somewhere…smiled.  The Sig LP cried and sparkled and Joe sang his a$$ off again.

Mountain Time saw the Giglioti Red Tobacco Sunburst and my guitar playing, joe college son’s eyes got rather large.  I grinned to myself and Joe took us to another time and place.  Nice modality on the opening to that one. 

The quilt top Custom came out for the next two.  The old shouting, stomping, hard rocking, marching in my seat, Another Kind of Love slid effortlessly into Sloe Gin, with Rick Melick, the consummate professional, transforming the atmosphere with flawless keyboard work, as the mood went dark and the crowd cried with Joe: “I’m so damn lonely, I ain’t even high…”.  What a tone Joe squeezes outa that Custom guitar.

When we couldn’t cheer anymore, the (Tak?) came out of Dave’s hands and around Joe’s neck and the flood waters rose.  I was floating over the levee in Nawlehns and there was High Water everywhere.  When I finally got ahold of my woman I begged her to come home but with a warning..”cause if you can’t treat me no better, it’ll be Your Funeral, My Trial.

The blues wore me out by then.  Tia liked the sound of that acoustic.  Yes I said, young Joey B makes that old $5 garage sale throwaway sound purty good.  I got the elbow for that one.

I will finish this up in a later post, y’all.  I”VE BEEN SUMMONED!

MuchLove

Big Jeff’s Bail Out Plan

We should jail all the SOB’s that are responsible for this Wall Street mess.  That’s my money (and Yours) that they want to wash their dirty laundry in.

This is the gun we should use to BBQ them with.  Sent to me by JR in South Florida, Super Tailgater who uses Big Jeff’s Gourmet BBQ Sauce for his savory grilling needs.  You can join the elite corp of BBQers here.

You will have bragging rights.  Guaranteed!

MuchLove

BigJeffJones

The economy is great!

We did the first day of the craft show on Main Street Deland, FL selling and demoing Sweet and Sassy Salsa  and only the walking dead appeared; on gurneys and in wheelchairs…with empty pockets! 

One poor sob (a young, good looking, able bodied man, not in a wheelchair) was embarrased to tell me he did not have $25 in pocket.  The day after payday?  So I wondered “…why are you wandering around on the street at a craft fair?  Why don’t you have a booth or at your job or hustle or sumpn?”

So all the vendors blamed the economy, you know, the price of gas for the fact that the unwashed masses are not spending money buying their trinkets.  I just laughed out loud.  I’ll tell you why.

Last month we were at the high dollar mall in Orlando/Sanford with the girls volleyball team.  Some of the mom’s were doing that parrot thing.  “Oh the economy is so bad…”  Stop I said, right now, and look around you.  Like this car? $70,000.  How about this one? $45,000.  And I went on & on.

10,000 cars at (let’s lowball it) $40,000 apiece.  $400,000,000…400 million dollars in one hundred acre parking lot!  The economy is not bad.  The money has not disappeared.  It has moved.  It’s not gone.  The press is screaming about the disappearing middle class.  What they are not telling us is that 2/3 of them are moving to the upper class.  I will go with them.  I am one of us.

So I refuse to be a parrot for bad news or a herd animal led to slaughter by the government or the clergy.  I give money to the WoundedWarriorProject.  I don’t do fear.  I create, I share, and I pray to the Almighty for the strength to do his will and I use the brain he gave me, so I work.  How about you?

So I will not be there next year because my upscale customer is not there.  Many of those vendors will change nothing, stay right where they be at and cry the blues because making a change (hustle) is too much work.

The only one that got it right was my identical twin Jimbo Bob Billy Ray’s woman Paura in the next booth over when she said “We don’t have the right goods for this crowd…what can we sell them?”

Ms Tia said, “Metamucil, so they can move their bowels.”  Now that’s funny.

Floyd Miles

I guess I’m spoiled.  I can’t seem to shake the feeling that Daytona Beach has slipped into the abyss.  It happens to me a lot anymore.  Ever since I stopped drinking almost a quarter of a century ago, I’m less willing to settle.

Floyd sang his heart out, even though he was not feeling super duper.  I think his sugar was slightly outa whack.  He is a phenomonal soul man; a true entertainer.  He had 2 guitars, bass, drums and a horn section.

So BigJeff…why so grumpy?  The mix was terrible for one thing.  The bass was so loud and boomy that it was headache material, and I’m a bass player for God’s sake.  There was obviously some tension on stage, although it wasn’t obvious to anyone but me.  None of my friends noticed.  But Floyd himself wasn’t loud enough. 

When I briefly spoke to Jerry (lead guitarist) he didn’t want to say.  But his brother the bassman was not there having just received a new kidney. 

I won’t complain about my aches & pains anymore…

So I really should know better, it was a free concert after all and nobody was fighting, but there was too many reminders for me of a whole lifestyle I have abandoned.  When I’m by myself I can move among the dregs of society without a second thought.

I was however with the best looking female there and she was distracted by a 300 lb. scantily clad, drunken woman gyrating on the walk next to us smoking a cigarette and trying to seduce an equally drunk tatooed biker with no teeth.

Ewwwww, gross.

The wonderful thing was the crowd was mixed racially, mostly older and the dregs, though present, were not the defining factor.  The drummer kept it all together. The horns were cooking and the affection between Big Floyd Miles and Jerry Henby (lead guitarist) was obvious.

They ended with “Going Back To Daytona” and the whole world danced in front of the stage.  It was a smoking finale and a reminder of the great R&B talent of the local soul great who taught Greg Allman how to sing the BLUES!

PEACE!

Apology from Jet Blue

All I get I reckon, is a “sorry bout that” which really means go kiss yourself.  7-10 days before they tell me they have no control over the weather…like I do.

Dear Mr. Jones,

Thank you for your email to JetBlue regarding your recent experience. We appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns.

Please accept our most sincere apologies for the challenges and frustrations you encountered as a result of your flight being cancelled due to severe weather impacting the eastern flight corridor.  We also apologize that the customer service you received at the airport failed to meet your expectations.

JetBlue has a team dedicated to making the decision which delayed or cancelled flights will receive compensation per the Bill of Rights. When compensation is determined, a notification is sent to the customer via email or by regular mail. This information should be received in the next 7-10 days. If you do not receive compensation notification from JetBlue, your flight(s) did not qualify for compensation.

Please remember that the Bill of Rights compensates for controllable irregularities, such as maintenance cancellations or delays and crew unavailability (not due to weather-event related disruption). Weather and Air Traffic Control delays are not something we have control over; therefore, compensation is not offered in these circumstances as per the Bill of Rights.

To view our Bill of Rights in its entirety, including the explanation of Controllable and Uncontrollable Irregularities, please click on the link below:

http://www.jetblue.com/about/ourcompany/promise/index.html

We hope you will consider JetBlue for your travel plans in the future.

Sincerely,

Jenny
Customer Commitment Crew
JetBlue Airways
Crewmember 52341

An abomination airline

I went to Boston to play a gig with my brother.  It was fabulous until…

Here’s what I wrote the airline in question after being delayed:

I was told at the curbside baggage check that the flight was cancelled.  They could not
tell me when or why.  When I got inside the Floor agents had no idea what was to be done.  I was
rudely told to stand in line and wait my turn.  There were at least 1000 angry people in line.  When
I got to the desk, over 90 minutes later, I was told that the flight I was to be transferred to was
full (She lied to me!) and I was forced to make a decision on the spot about Tuesdays flight.  I
have missed a day’s work, forced to stay another night, forced to take public trans in an unknown
city and forced to stay in a siblings house overnight unplanned & uninvited.  I kept my cool in
Logan airport becaquse the ticket girls did the best they could.  But I am IRATE.  ******* owes me
an explanation and a full refund.  I will not fly you again if you do not handle this properly. 
Rude Floor agents, mis information and mismanagement.  I await your response before I tell all I
know what happened.  There is no EXCUSE for this.

the sound and the fury

Ain’t it great  
it’s double-oh-8 
From up the Yukon to the southern states 
From across the pond and further east 
to the neon home of the Hollywood beast 
 
A force is channeled you know it’s true 
Feel the love, feel the blues. 
 
Stand in line 
Blow your mind 
He’ll send a chill right up your spine 
More than fret work, a movable feast 
Sung from the heart, to say the least 
 
A force is channeled you know it’s true 
Feel the love, feel the blues. 
 
Wrote this song 
didn’t take too long 
Didn’t come from bottle, pipe or bong 
From British blues to East Bay grease 
The borders we cross will never cease 
 
A force is channeled you know it’s true 
Feel the love, feel the blues. 
 
BJJ the FDOL 
 
Happy New Year, one and all!

Happy New Year!

I’m going to brag on my wife.  Better yet, here she is, sporting her Rollins College shirt.After all this time.  I haven’t made her mad enough to leave for more than an hour or two.  Thanks for the love, you fine thing.  Happy New Year, one and all. 

Music in our blood:

Just goes to show you what I know.  not so much.

Played music in my garage/studio with my 18 year old son on guitar and my 16 year old son on drums last night.  We were just making up stuff and then we settled into a groove of 4 chords.  It was kinda hard rockish at first, then I started funking up the bass with some starts and stops and Sean the younger got this wicked thing going with his right foot.  Ryan the mayor settled into this very straight time crunch thing on his guitar and it was OK, so I thought.  Nothing special…Wrong!

Ms.Tia came in when we finally quit and said, “That was awesome!”  She is surrounded by musicians all the time.  She is just not that distracted by any of it.  So high praise, indeed.

And it’s nothing I could push any of them into doing.  I’m the OLD MAN, boring and set in his ways and judgemental about the younger generation of spoiled rotten, self indulgent, ipod listening, no working, no driving, text messaging, sissified tweety birds that can’t even pay their own way. 

So I said to them, “Yeah boys, that was real good, for whatever that’s worth.”  So they got this wierd look on their faces and the older one says, “Quite a bit, suprisingly.”  The younger just broke into this s**t eating grin. “oh yeah,” he said. 

I almost lost it.  I’m getting soft. 

My daughter is playing boogie woogie holiday music on the piano as I post.  I am grateful to God and a proud & happy man.

So how many of you musicians have musicians in the family?  Do you jam with them?  I wanna know!

 Merry Christmas to all!

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