Friday, August 22, 2008

Music Shows On The Horizon

MY wife is really into the Olympics and I'm not so for the last week or so I've had a lot of unsupervised time. For the most part I've been a good boy. I've listened to music, read books, got on the computer, watched a little television, or stared into space. Last night, however, I had the deep realization that I am very happy today is Friday. After I read the newspaper I stretched out on my couch and within minutes I was out like a light! For approximately two hours I was lost in a dream marathon. It was one of those deep, out of this world kind of naps where the accumulated fatigue of the week took over and when I woke up I didn't what day it was, what time it was, and I really wasn't sure what planet I was on. I'm happy to report that I woke up back on earth. I must have found my way back through the correct time portal so I am here today.

Saturday morning I am meeting someone for breakfast. Who? I am meeting Katie. Who is Katie? Well, I have mentioned her before in my daily thoughts. Katie was my girlfriend in the summer of 1970. Although Katie and I reunited a few years ago through email, we have not seen one another in 38 years! 1970 is a little blurry to me looking back from 2008. I don't think Katie and I were the romance of the century but we were 19 years old, young, carefree, and had little responsibility. At age 19 we were old enough to have some freedom from our parents but still young enough to not be filled with worries, concerns, and obligations. We were young hippies so we focused on fun and much of the summer was spent attending various musical events. I did talk to Katie on the telephone earlier this week and she still sounded like that 19 year old girl I remember from 1970. I am a lot older now and so is she but I bet there will be a lot of laughter on Saturday morning.

I've got some big musical events coming in October. Sometime between now and then I might need to get a job as a Wal-Mart greeter or as that person in Fazoli's that hands out extra breadsticks so I can pay for all of this. My first event is David Byrne. He is most famous as the founder and leader of a band called Talking Heads. Sometime in the 80's David Byrne was on the cover of Time magazine as rock and roll's "Renaissance Man". He received this honor because he is talented in so many areas but especially in the creation eclectic music. My next musical event is called "Experience Hendrix". It will be at the Center for the Arts. It is a concert where a group of famous musicians play the songs of Jimi Hendrix. I saw the real Jimi Hendrix twice. The first time was in 1968 with my friend, Tom, at the Cincinnati Gardens. We both got in a little trouble because we cut school, picked up our girlfriends, and drove to Cincinnati in my 1962 VW. The parents weren't too happy the next day. It was a very expensive concert. The tickets were $5.00 a piece. I still have mine. The next time I saw Jimi Hendrix, Tom was there again and so was Katie. It was 1970 and we were at the Atlanta Pop Festival. We were there with 500,000 other hippies. Two of the musicians that will be at the "Experience Hendrix" tribute are Mitchell and Billy Cox. These are the men that played drums and bass with Hendrix at that 1970 show as well as a small show the year before called Woodstock. Also playing at the "Experience Hendrix" show are Buddy Guy, the great bluesman, Kenny Wayne Shepard, a young white guy that can really play the blues, David Hidalgo and Cesar Rojas of the band Los Lobos, and Hubert Sumlin who is another blues giant that played with Howlin Wolf and Muddy Waters and Chris Layton who played with Stevie Ray Vaughn. I can't wait for this night!Speaking of rock and roll, Chloe is spending the night on Saturday. She will work me like a mule.

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