Maddy's BBQ/Atlanta, GA

I checked out the Thursday evening blues jam at Maddy's BBQ in Atlanta, GA this week. Hosted by a guitar player "Chicago Joe" and his band, this jam was like no other I've ever been to. Joe, as I was to learn, is a guitar teacher and has his students show up for the first hour of the jam to play. I was expecting a boring hour listening to these high school age kids, but that was not the case. These kids were very good players, polite and ready to play with their peers or any of the older folks like myself. Make no mistake here, I enjoyed every song that I drummed behind some of these young musicians. It was a real treat. Here is a great example of someone that is really keeping the blues alive, passing it on and developing these kids to be the next generation of players..........WOW! My hat is off to you Chicago Joe.

Fireflys BBQ/Framingham, MA

Last Wednesday I was back at the blues jam/open mike in Framingham. Since space for the musicians here is very tight, I brought along my cocktail set. I had a wonderful time being the "house drummer" playing with a bunch of different folks...some blues, pop, folk and country music. Since this is a lower volume gig I don't even think I played with a regular pair of drum sticks all night. Brushes and "Hot Rods" were in order tonight and blended well with what was going on musically. Always a good musical vibe here and Bruce Marshall the host kept everything moving right along with no breaks in the music. Bruce by the way has a new solo CD out "Restless Soul". I heard a couple of tunes from it tonight-great stuff-worth checking out.