That Other Day I Was Spontaneous ~ Joey DeGraw at The Bitter End

Sometimes, you can get a cab right away in New York.  Sometimes, you have to work for it.  After the concert at Central Park's SummerStage, it wasn't that easy.  But with the number of people pouring out of the Park at the same time, it was no wonder.  Eventually, the four of us piled into the cab that stopped and for some of us, it was the first time we'd sat down in about 7 hours.  When a New York City cab feels that comfortable, you know you're a little tired.

We'd just seen Andrew McMahon, Matt Nathanson and Gavin DeGraw play to a sold out audience on a beautiful summer evening. We'd waited in line since noon for the 6 PM concert to be assured of the front row.  We were riding that well-known post concert high and now were on our way to The Bitter End for more because no one wanted this night to be over just yet.  Joey DeGraw was holding another "open rehearsal" tonight and although it would be tight making our connections to buses and trains, we decided we had to go.  Phyllis and I had had a good time last week listening to Joey and I wasn't sure when I'd have this chance again.  


I think it was about 10:30 or so when we got there.  Joey had tweeted that he was going on at 10:30 but we knew from last week that that start time was unlikely.  There was another band on stage when we arrived.  We grabbed a table at the end of the room and ordered drinks.  Our friends from Buffalo arrived shortly and so there were six of us waiting for Joey to start.  It was beginning to look like he'd take the stage at midnight and three of us had connections to make around 1 AM.  Phyllis reluctantly left to get the train, Victoria left to make her bus and then decided to stay and I looked at Kim and said, "I'm crashing with you tonight."  

It was around midnight when Joey took the stage with Andy Clayburn, Benny Landa, Phil Cimino and Drew Mortali.  They sang the same songs as last week but in a more cohesive set.  Joey has a rich, dark quality to his voice, maybe the slightest of rasp creeping in.  Andy and Benny's backing vocals are tight.  The lyrics make sense and are thoughtful.  The band meshes seamlessly and seems to have such a good time performing together.  

Like last week, there appeared to be quite a few family and friends in attendance, including younger brother Gavin.  This week, Joey asks Gavin to join him in a song. It doesn't take arm twisting to get Gavin to sing.  This may have been the highlight of our very long day ... seeing these two brothers together, talented and original musicians and obvious supporters of each other, enjoying performing together.  It was definitely a moment for us to remember.  (I know some have had this same good fortune to be present when they've played together; this was a first for me and my friends.)  To say we appreciated the opportunity would be an understatement--it was pretty thrilling.  So what did they play?  Well, I'm "running out of youth" and I'd had a drink or two but I'm pretty sure it was Another Mistake.  Correct me if I'm wrong ...

Joey played few more songs and they finished with Highway to Hell, sharing the stage, this time with a young woman who wasn't introduced; it seemed she was a friend.  Another wonderful set; the perfect finish to our perfect (and long) day. We hung around for a few minutes, finishing drinks and settling the check.  I said hello to Andy and Joey as we left.  We said good-bye to our friends and went our separate ways in the night, knowing that most of us would see each other again Friday night and a couple of us Saturday night too.

Kim and I took a cab to her neighborhood and, having eaten nothing since the hot dog vendor in the early afternoon, stopped off at a nearby diner.  There is nothing so satisfying as a diner at 2 AM, is there?  We enjoyed the comfort food, trading impressions of the day, reliving our favorite moments and reflecting on the blessing of the friends we've met through this music.  It was about 3 AM when we walked around the corner to her place and I settled in on the couch for a couple of hours of sleep before finally getting the 7 AM bus back to the suburbs.  I was due in my office at 8.

Let the record reflect I was only 15 minutes late.

~~~~~

Someone uploaded some videos from last week's "open rehearsal:"

Easier Said Than Done (written with Tom Petty)
Miracle of the Mind