Mushroom Studio

yeah i know

i think, perhaps, i may have seen one of the best live show spectacles of my life. this is coming from a lady who's first teenage CONCERT was The Who. Here i sit in neutral TO ruminating..feeling slightly the way i felt when i had to leave that Who concert on (yes) a Magic Bus tour. Driving away from the *magic* in 1989. It couldn't get lamer. Back to the future, i got to see RICK WHITE (Elevator To Hell, Elevator Through, Elevator, eric's trip) perform NIGHTS IN WHITE SATIN (prior to that a sweet treat solo performance by *rick* who is one of the most amazing looking people on the planet. i would consider taking the time to do a drawing of him - he's that interesting looking. i would care that much about the subject matter to sit down and re-teach myself how to draw which is what i do every single time i sit down to draw) and Tara joined him to do a POPPY FAMILY cover 'BLOOD FROM BONE'. i almost passed out. but the main squeeze is $100 or One Hundred Dollars

Influences:

• Gordon Lightfoot
• George Jones
• The Sadies
• Dolly Parton
• Don Williams
• Doug Paisley

Led by a new young Lady of Rock for real - Simone Schmidt. she's got the joplin, i swear it. But a Joplin that is contained and in control. You can see that in the live show (it doesn't translate so much in the quiet acoustic recordings). She has everyone in the room in the palm of her hand. totally commanding, totally in charge. a killer voice, a killer delivery, killer ALL.
It is always good to see all band members completely in the pocket during a live show - as opposed to a band ruined by tour.

After they blew all of our minds (her band of several men - including a pedal steel guitarist doing things i've never dreamed could from...a pedal steel guitar is a good indicator of the band sound we're talking about here) with their set - $100 took a 15 minute break and came back with all star-studded out-of-handness: introducing various TO musicians from the house of all sorts. One maniac singer (??) showed up at the last minute (still taking his bag off his back) to do his tune and kicked all the bottles and glasses on stage GG Allin style breaking enroute into our psychic space..shards everywhere (which reminds me - i was so into the show i was chewing on a straw and chipped off a piece of second to front tooth. yes. that good)...the Awesome just didn't stop. How do i explain it? A cover of seger's NIGHT MOVES, four ladies all in black evening wear singing back-up, 9, 10 musicians on stage...but the NIGHT MOVES. I was almost in tears, shards of glass from ducts. almost. And i sure as certain called out, "BRAVO" several times over, hands clapping like an entertained queen at an opera.

i couldn't stay for the party any longer. I made my choice. I made my choice awhile back. almost a year ago. I rode katie's bike home because it's beauty sleep i choose. the party isn't worth it.
it knocks years off of your life. i have too much work to do. so much so that it will span several more decades.

remember this for yourself, if you like.

PS i spent my afternoon in the mushroom studio (by katie leaman) more on this! it's outstanding. I get to sit inside her mushroom studio near St. James' cathedral on King Street. I did some art and some craft - made some gold circles, used some silver pencil crayons, wrote the words 'hey baby, you've got the love i like'...wrote the words "I'm free!" (which is how i felt riding the bike past all the businessmen on King Street today and for once in my life i did not feel guilty about this), worked over some collages ('a shadow of your former self'). that's how i roll. i usually close the book and maybe 15% of my art sees the light of day.

xo smooch.
PS i found an old Family Ties episode with Crispin Glover ! Yah! jackpot...he plays one of alex's buddies. I love that show. It's hilarious. Especially the dad - and of course, APKeaton/MJFox's excellent comedy (physical at times, even).
and this is a favourite with "Cousin Kenneth" played by Joshua Miller - the kid from River's Edge...also a Crispin Hellion Glover vehicle. Yay coinky dinks...