Last Thursday at the Over the Moon show I met Kathy and she invited me to be the feature at the open mic she runs in Northwood. I remember thinking to myself “I hope it’s not further north than Pittsfield.”* She told me about the Woods Grille and their open mic and the folks and the great food and it happened to work out perfectly since my show at Riley’s in Milford got canceled for tonight.
At this point of this tour, there’s a section of Route 13 that goes from Lunenburg thru Townsend center (with it’s 20 mph exchange) into Mason/Brookline/Milford, NH that I feel I have been on nearly every day for the past week and a half.
I mean, it’s a nice ride. Totally Americana with the big old New England farmhouses and Townsend Center which looks like it could be cast in a Hallmark movie.** The ride to Northwood is also incredibly beautiful. I wish I could drive and take pictures because it is all New England rock walls, farmland, old barns seemingly held up by faith and small town stores. I’ve been in California a long time and our stuff goes back all the way to like 1955. The old houses here are from the 17 and 1800s and the rock walls even longer.
We get to the Woods Grille and when I walk inside I’m greeted by some folks that are expecting me. Which is odd as I have never been here before. I have to apologize right here that I didn’t retain all the names of everyone. Some folks even mention reading my tour diary. (!?!?)
Mom and I sit down with Kathy and meet her partner and the Doctor Jack with the Martin D-41 from the other night is also here and already I feel at home. This is a very friendly open mic but a very loud room which makes hearing the performers somewhat of a challenge. Sometimes folks are singing very quietly so you really have to strain to hear as it is a busy restaurant.
We settle down with our burgers, Mom with the All-American and me with a mushroom swiss and this place, one of their unique things is no fries - they do tater tots with dipping sauce. I’m on board because you know what? Wherever and whatever is the specialty of the place - that’s the thing you get.*** A guy at the counter recommends the garlic aioli dipping sauce and I think that needs to be a new rule - if someone next to you recommends a certain thing from that place, get it, it’s gonna be good.
We are not disappointed at all. Fantastic burger and the tots dipped in sauce ~ perfection.
Before I continue, I have to say, I love open mics. I know a lot of songwriters that don’t dig them and I get that too. They can be challenging rooms and with the quick changeover from performer to performer, if you’re not comfortable with just getting up and letting it fly, it can be really nerve-wracking. I do enjoy them though, not just for performing but because you get to see folks that, most likely, you have never heard before. I tend to like originals over covers more but I’m not an elitist by any stretch.
And everyone has their own bag of tricks, what they do, what they’re comfortable sharing and it is truly special. It's easy to throw criticism from the cheap seats - but your opinion ain't worth a damn if you're not willing to get up there and be that vulnerable.
Dr. Jack gets up with his beautiful D41 and he tells me that he was friends with Gordon Lightfoot for 50 years and he definitely picked up a thing or two from that dude. Kathy and her partner start off the night with some nice harmony singing and strumming. Another woman joins a guitar player and plays flute and bass flute. Have you ever seen a bass flute? It was amazing. There were two dudes playing PRS acoustics! Another guy with a 1936 Gibson that was the model before the J45 was invented and he sang some blues and it sounded great. Another guy with a mid 60s Gibson that you could see where his fingers have been scratching the top for decades and it’s the kind of authentic “relic” job that some guitar player would pay thousands for.**** And he had the softest voice that I kept straining to hear. He played “Ferry cross the Mersey” and my Mom sang along word for word and then he played another Jerry and the Pacemakers song. I didn’t know I knew two J&tPM songs but this guy did.
I get up and play and it sounds good on stage. Again, it is a loud room and I can tell folks are listening but the room volume does dissuade me from playing any quiet numbers as I would just get drowned out. I keep it rocking and it goes well.
All these folks seem to know each other and they are welcoming to me too. I’m asked if I will be back next week, if I’m local, and I’m even told of some other open mics in the area. Then the owner gets up and she reads a poem entitled “Woman” and you can tell that this poem really means something to her that she has decided to stand up and read it to a roomful of people. That's amazing.
I don’t know why more folks don’t go out to see live local music. I really don’t. Especially when it’s this easy to do. Whoever you are - you live near some place that has live music or an open mic. Go listen to some stuff. I guarantee you that whatever you hear locally is going to be more authentic and real than anything pre-packaged you'll see on some singing tv show. Will you love it all? No, not remotely. But you will hear real people singing their soul and if you're lucky, you'll hear something totally new that you will love.
/gets off soapbox
I gots to sleep. Tomorrow night I’m in Somerville, MA and playing with some bands that are very much not like what I do at all. I’m excited to get my mind blown by new music.
xo
~Bobbo
*Technically speaking it is not further north but it also isn’t any closer.
**This is not an insult to Hallmark movies or Townsend center. It is exceptionally picturesque. If you saw Danica McKellar walking through Townsend center sipping a hot chocolate next to some dude with a five o’clock shadow you would think “Oh, she’s moved back to her hometown for Christmas and that guy absolutely has at least one dog and a cute little girl and no wife.”
***Tracy and I refer to this as the “Applebee's Rule” because you know if you go to Applebee's and get a burger, you’ll be fine but if you go to Applebee's expecting sushi or seafood - you’re gonna be disappointed. Wherever you are - get what they do best and you’ll always be happy.
****You know what? I’ve danced around this forever and I don’t really care what guitar you play but buying a “relic’d” guitar is silly. Just buy a guitar and play the hell out of it. Love it, keep it with you. Don’t buy a guitar that looks like you’ve played it for years and played the hell out of it. Fake authenticity. Blerg. Oh and if you don’t know what a relic’d guitar is - it’s the same concept as spending more money to buy jeans that already have the holes in the knees.