CONCERT SEASON...

Happy Easter, all of you within earshot (or eyeshot). A TV news report has advised there are more calories in the ears of a chocolate rabbit than most other parts. Obviously, that was essential information, or they wouldn’t have devoted time to it on the TV news with everything else that’s going on.

As this is written, drummer Chris is still in intensive care, and I understand it’s been touch and go. He’s reportedly still not allowed visitors. Doug Rowland, the drummer from “Lannie and the Instigators,” the other band on the billing for the April 24 concert, volunteered to fill in for Chris (and I’ll make him an “I Am Not Chris” T-shirt for the occasion). He’s coming out from Portland to pick up setlists and CDs Monday, and we’ll plan on practicing this weekend.

It may not be that much of a change. “Lannie and the Instigators” is (as I expected) a rock band, and Doug says he’s a perfectionist, too. I warned him that what I write is mostly country music, but it don’t sound like country music when the band gets done with it. I have a feeling that’ll still be the case.

It is time—already—to start organizing Summer Concert Season. Nothing with the band will happen before mid-June, to give John time to finish the city budget. We wanted to do another “Failed Economy Show” benefit for the Food Pantry in June (that’d probably be the third Saturday—the square dance club already has the City Hall Dance Floor reserved for the second and fourth Saturdays), and I am assuming we’ll be on the agenda at Garibaldi Days the last weekend in July (I’m on the entertainment committee this year). Both those are freebies.

I’d like us to be playing at the Bay City Centennial celebration Labor Day weekend (whether or not it’s a paying gig), and I’d like to do a Garibaldi Museum concert again—ideally, on a weekend when there’s less competition than we had last time.

And there’s the Bay City Arts Center. I reviewed their draft 2010 budget, and it’s got a line item for another “Joe Wrabek concert”—as a semi-major fund-raiser, in fact. (We didn’t generate them near that much money last year. Do we have that big a reputation now?) Both the Museum and Arts Center would be paying gigs, which would be neat. That is rather more than the one gig a month we did in 2009. There’s the album to finish, too. I wonder for how much of that we’re going to need a substitute drummer.

“Me gigs,” too. I need to fit into the schedule a Southern Oregon Songwriters Assn. concert—either August 20 or 27 (the only two concert dates they’ve got this year). What I’ve done in the past is round up an impromptu band of people I know down in southern Oregon, who are familiar with the material, and practice beforehand if we can. I’d like to do that again. I do not know if the 2nd Street Market in Tillamook will be contacting me about playing there (the building’s supposed to be open for business by July); I do have my doubts. That’s one gig that would be fun to do with a partner. So would the Neskowin School Harvest Festival (in late September/early October); that was normally my last performance of Concert Season, but it didn’t happen last year because they never called. I could probably get myself or the band inserted into their schedule if I worked at it.

I have had a couple of years where I was playing somewhere every single weekend during Concert Season, and it would be nice if 2010 were another one of those years. It is not like I’m doing anything else important.

Joe