Open Mic at The Alley. Jan 24, 2023.

I missed writing an entry on Tuesday after the open mic, so let’s see if I can recall all the juicy details two days later in the wee hours of the morning.

Nope. I can’t. More coffee needed. I’ll make a start, though.

The Alley is fast becoming a routine for me, and I for it. You know this is the case when the familiar faces start to ask, “What was your name, again?” Probably heard it 10 times. It’s strange how people follow similar timing on stuff like that, independently. Says something about human nature and social mores. Like, somewhere there’s the unspoken rule that if you see a person regularly under similar circumstances enough times - say, three - you should learn their name and this time really try to remember it. I feel the same pulls, too. So, this night was relearn-everyone’s-name night all around. Good times!

Anyway, that’s just an observation. My luck of the draw was bottom of the barrel this night. There were 12 performers, and I drew number 12. Meaning, I was last to pick my 15 minute slot. Usually that means I’d have to wait until 9:45 or 10PM to play, and so I was getting ready to just call it quits but decided I’d see what times everyone took first. Miraculously, no one wanted to go first so that slot was open. And within minutes I was on stage. Luck turns around with a little patience sometimes.

I use these open mics to get to know my songs again and practice doing things that scare me. So, I decided to play a song I haven’t played on stage in probably 10 years: Safe From the Day.

The Alley seems to really like my instrumental playing, and I wanted to work on my singing, so this is a song that delivers both. It’s too hard to play and sing at the same time in parts, so I flub it and hope no one notices there is a missing guitar line in there.

This song went only OK. Signing in public still makes me nervous and my throat tends to close up big time, leaving me without pitch control and a growly tone. But, I eeked it out and people got the gist.

Mostly, I was thinking about the next song. I had just started writing it the night before, and felt like it was held together with glue sticks. But, this is what I was saying about practicing doing things that scare me. It’s an instrumental I wrote while thinking about all the tragic mass shootings over the weekend. It felt like each time I picked up my phone this weekend, there was an alert about yet another event in a truly American endemic. I won’t go long on the topic here (those who know me know it’s hard for me to stop once I start), but I’ll just say I struggle to find words to describe how much it upsets me that this keeps happening. So, this song is extremely somber and frustrated. I’ll do a recording of it someday when it’s ready.

On a “lighter” topic (which is saying something), the final song at an open mic in late January had to be Resolutions:

Since my voice felt unstable, I decided to sing this one in its original key with a capo on the 5th fret instead of the 8th fret. Lower is better, I thought. This was a mistake, haha. I never quite found my footing and warbled through it. People still enjoyed it and listened intently (which is wild in a bar), but I couldn’t help feeling disappointed afterward.

Next week, Tricia and I are going to a songwriter’s group on Tuesday evening in Longmont which we’re excited about. Just have to write a brand new song before then 😵‍💫.