Open Road: Tales of a Travelin' Musician
Entries tagged "NYC"
Giggin' on the Lower East Side
Posted on 03/03/11 in Travels
Today has been one of those remarkably exhausting days, whereupon, I know that if I just close my eyes, I will drift off into a blissful and satifsying sleep that will last until mid-morning. I left 90 minutes late for New York City, delayed by the need to finish some client contracts for upcoming wedding gigs and follow up on some booking confirmations. @Reb_Rambles was kind enough to lay out a feast of scrambled eggs with spinach, mushrooms and goat cheese, a bowl of oatmeal with cinnamon grapes and honey, and a hot mug of organic, fresh ground, french-pressed coffee with organic cream. With her vittles stored in my mighty (and every-expanding stomach), I hit the road at 12:30pm, needing to arrive in NYC no later than 5:15pm.
The drive was thankfully uneventful aside from an ominous sky above Sout-east Jersey that passed before I came over the Goethal's and Verrazano Bridges into Brooklyn. I could have kicked myself for getting gas at The Chespeake House in Maryland. It was thirty-cents a gallon cheaper in Jersey, and they provide mandatory full service. I alwasy tip the gas guys, and I tip extra when they clean the windshield and check my oil. No one checked my oil or cleaned my windshield today, and I had timed the consumption of my second coffee wrong. If I had waited to Jersey I would have been fine, but by the time traffic halted on the BQE five miles from the Manhattan Bridge, I had to pee like Secretariat after the Triple Crown. Luckily, traffic began moving, and I was able to pull into the pole position (i.e., "very front") parking space in front of The Rockwood Music Hall by 4:30pm--well enough in time for my 6:00pm set.
I decided to take a stroll through the Lower East Side. I love Orchard and Ludlow Streets--visiting my old haunts from my drunken 20's--Motor City Bar and Local 136 were two of my favorite places to commit atrocities, and they continue to look sinful and provocative. I headed down Delancey St. for a look up at the bridge against the clear blue sky, and then headed back toward Houston. Walking up Houston, I saw a sign for Illy Coffee, my favorite. Gaia Italian Cafe was on the Southern Side of Houston (SoHo, if you're cool) and between Norfolk and Essex Streets. I headed down the stairs and entered a blazingly warm bistro cafe, replete with Milanese decor. Gaia, the sweet Italian gal that runs and owns the place from whence it gets its name, gave me a large Illy on the house since I was playing up the road. I tipped her with the few bucks I had had ready for the gas guys in Jersey. Then is was back up Houston, past Katz's Deli, and around Allen St. again to the Club.
By now some friends had arrived, and I started sound check. It was going to be a light turnout, but I was thrilled to see my cousin Joanna had shown up with her friend, Lacey, from CollegeHumor.com. Apparently, I am still funny to college kids, and this is a good thing (I hope ;-). Half way through my set, I elected to play another one of my new songs, "I Don't Wanna Make a Baby, Baby," and I think it may have annoyed a few of the ladies in the audience. NYC and DC are not the same, and what works great in one town doesn't always work great in another. I recovered quickly though with a stellar version of "Another Monday" followed by "Break Me Down." By then, the venue was packed with the fans for the act that would follow me, a talented, beautiful, vivacious singer-songwriter originally from MD named Johanna (not to be confused with my aforementioned cousin Joanna who is also beautiful and vivacious). In typical NYC fashion, the room, in spite of being packed to the gills with another artist's fans, was entirely silent for my ballad. I closed out with "It's About Time" and got folks singing and clapping. Unfortunately, I think I could have played better. I was exhausted from the four hour drive and jittery on stage from the three or four huge cups of coffee that day.
Still, Johanna and her fans were awesome. I stuck around for her intimately quiet and sardine-packed set. She really has a great following in NYC, and she is willing to do some shows here with me in town. I am excited about that. I am also excited that I sold some CDs last night and continue to do well in front of a NYC audience. That was my third show at Rockwood, and I am already looking forward to my next gig in Manhattan on Wednesday, March 23 at Session 73 on The Upper East Side.
The night ended with my favorite Lower East Side Tradition, burgers and fries at the illustrious Piano's Bar on Ludlow (upstairs room is best for dining w/ live music). Then, my buddy Mike agreed to split the cost of a drive back to DC, which saved me considerable money on gas and tolls. A round trip drive to NYC costs about $120. Time to hit the sack and get that sleep I talked about thirty minutes ago . . .
Comments (2)
Posted by black rolex gmt on 04/17/12
Posted by Nicoleta on 03/03/11
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