Guster & Brett Dennen

October 19, 2007

Guster


Brett Dennen



Guster at the Culture Room

Guster & Brett Dennen

The morning after Greg’s birthday extravaganza, Kathy & I headed up US1 towards Ft. Lauderdale. We were joining our friends Nadene, Trevor, Melissa & Rhett to attend a Guster & Brett Dennen show at a club called the Culture Room. After a brief stop at the Sawgrass Mills mall where we did a bit of shopping, we headed over to the Holiday Inn at Lauderdale by the Sea where we checked in, took a quick beach stroll and then prepared to head over to the Culture Room.

Kathy, Nadene, Trevor, Melissa & Rhett

After a quick meal at Pizza Rustica, we joined the long line outside the club waiting for the doors to open. I’d been to the club some years back to see Concrete Blonde and was amazed at what a great job has been done renovating what was once a seedy hole in the wall. It’s actually quite nice and there was plenty of room once we got inside.



We are big fans of both Brett Dennen and Guster, in fact it was the third time seeing each of them in the past year. Brett opened the show with a decent performance but it wasn’t as good as either of our previous shows. Maybe he was just slightly off, but I wasn’t blown away like I’d been previously. Thankfully Guster’s performance more than made up for any letdown.
It was great to be able to see Guster in such a small intimate venue. If you are not familiar with their music, you should try to get to see them sometime. Original members Adam Gardner, Ryan Miller and Brian Rosenworcelin, along with relative newcomer Joe Piscapia, play a unique style of music, often utilizing acoustic guitars along with hand driven percussion and three part harmonies that are rare in rock music.





The show was great, they were in a great mood, happy to be taking a break from a College tour and be playing in an actual bar. Ryan took full advantage, downing the better part of a bottle of whiskey in the final third of the show, after seeking approval from the crowd of course. The set was long and included just about every Guster hit you might have wanted to hear. They were also very amusing and funny, joking with the crowd, letting the crowd sing part of their encore during “2 Points For Honesty” and allowing drummer Brian to sing a hilarious off-key version of the theme from the TV show Cheers. It was a great, great show.

Brian sings Cheers theme.



Afterwards, we hung around the bar drinking and both bands came out and hung with us, which was kind of cool. It was much less the rockstar/fan relationship and more just hanging out and talking to the few people who remained after the show was over. My guess is most of the attendees had already been picked up by their parents since we were in the older third of the audience. It’s too bad because people are missing out on two of the most clever, talented and enjoyable bands around.

Michael & Kathy w/ Brett Dennen

Nadene w/ Guster's Ryan




Brian sings!

http://www.guster.com/

http://www.cultureroom.net/

Happy Birthdays!!

October 19, 2007





Happy Birthdays!!



Greg with his fav present!!

There must be something about October, we seem to be celebrating an abundance of birthdays of late and this week there were a couple more that we are recognizing. First off we want to wish my mother, Marta Blades a very happy birthday! I won’t reveal her actual age, but will offer that she remains one of the most vibrant and energetic people I know of any age and for her birthday present, Kathy & I are flying her down next month to attend the Miami Book Fair with us once again. Happy Birthday Marta!





Trevor & Nadene



Another friend of ours, Greg Elliot also celebrated his birthday this month with a fun party at the upstairs bar at Bagatelle restaurant. It was a fun gathering of friends Greg was reportedly somewhat reluctant to acknowledge his birthday, but it turned out to be a pretty good time and my guess is he appreciated the gathering. We didn’t stay too late (unlike some rumor has it), because we had to be up early the next morning to drive up to Fort Lauderdale to attend a concert.







Sadly the week wasn’t all parties and concerts. On Wednesday, I attended two memorial services for departed friends. I think it is the first time that I’ve ever had a double funeral day and I hope it is the last. The morning found me at a packed St. Paul’s church on Duval Street for the services for Bill Ford who passed away at the age of 93 last week. It was a beautiful religious mass with hundreds gathered to recall the life of one of the icons of Key West. Bill & Fran Ford have served as role models to myself and countless other people concerned about their community and the environment.

The second memorial was held an hour after sunset at Mallory Square for another familiar Key Wester, “Blue” Lou Feinberg. Lou played music here for years, he was here 16 years ago when I arrived and played at many venues including Mallory Square, The Schooner Wolf and Blue Heaven restaurant. (He was the first musician ever booked at Blue Heaven) Lou’s memorial was as totally different from the beautiful, structured ritual that was Bill’s as could possibly be, yet each was incredibly moving representing two sides to the coin that is life in Key West. I’ll miss them both.

Martha & David

October 12, 2007

Martha & David



Kathy & I had the good fortune to attend the wedding of our good friends Martha Resk & David Dlugitch last weekend here in Key West. The wedding was held on the same weekend in October (Columbus Day) of our own wedding, four years ago. Their wedding was held on the lawn at Truman’s Little White House, with a dinner inside the house and the reception back on the lawn.





Having known Martha since 1993, I can easily say that she has never been happier or more relaxed than she has been since she met David. They are a perfect complement to each other and as nice a couple as you are likely to encounter. The wedding was an intimate gathering of family and old friends and Kathy & I felt honored to be included.

Kathy, Greg & Bud

Scott, Martha & Michael

It was also really fun, we got to see some old friends and meet a lot of new ones. It always surprises us to meet people from Key West that we have not met somewhere before, especially if they have been here for any length of time. It was especially nice to see Scott Boykin back in Key West. Currently living in Miami, Scott, Martha, I and a few others once were regularly seen at assorted bars about town when we weren’t out saving the coral reef, and the occasion of Martha’s wedding was a great opportunity for a mini-reunion.

First Dance

David, Kathy & Jack



The wedding was beautiful, the dinner wonderful and the reception went by far too quickly..We had a great time dancing to the classic styling’s of Key West legend Robert Albury, an inspired choice for a wedding band.

Sunday morning, we joined the wedding party for brunch at Croissants de France on Duval Street. A driving rain couldn’t dampen the spirits or the delicious food as we hung out with Martha & David & their family prior to their departure to Mexico for their honeymoon.

David, Martha & Scott


On a sad note, a dear friend of all of ours, Bill Ford passed away this week at the age of 91. Bill and his wife Fran served as role models to Martha, Scott, I and every other environmentally conscious resident of the Keys. Their tireless activism and love for their community has been a blessing for Key West. Bill’s compassion, humor and ability to recall and explain his seemingly endless knowledge of the Florida Keys and its history, culture and environment will be dearly missed. Our deepest sympathy goes out to Fran Ford and the entire Ford family.