If You Stick Around Long Enough...

... the improbable will happen to you. This was the case this week when Just Friends played Knoebel's Amusement Resort Thursday. When I was in the eighth grade at St. Catherine's, there were a few high-functioning kids who formed a band called The Invaders. One of the guitar players was a distant cousin of mine named Pat McCann, who went on to play in a band called Coventry and later Rudy Kazootie (don't hold me to the spelling.) I always wanted to be able to play in a band with Pat, and this week I got the chance. He sat in on bass while Mark Evans did a time-share dealie in New Mexico. We had a great time at Knoebel's. Many of you are old enough to remember when Hershey Park was not one word and it was a real park. That's how Knoebel's is. We got soaked to the bone during the loadout, but it was still a great time. Thanks to our family and friends who stopped by, including Dave and Kathy, Bill and Ginny, Peggy Davis, and our very own Parker Kenyon.

Friday night was a rehearsal for the next iteration of The Durable Goods, with Alex Harden on bass, JF's drummer John Wilson on drums, and Joreen and I. We're doing some of the sixties stuff we did at the benefit last year, but the real thrill for me was doing a few of my new songs. I finally heard "Busted Heart" the way I heard it between my ears. Muy cool.

Last night, Just Friends with Pat McCann on bass and Chris Novak on sound played the Minnequa, a private club in Shippensburg. This is an odd little venue which supports live music, although getting the crowd to dance, clap and interact is a bit like herding cats. They sit there all night and look at you, and then at ten of twelve they start going nuts and yelling for encores. Go figure. Anyway, it was a good gig, especially for Joreen and I because we indulged ourselves in a little rock and roll fantasy. The Minnequa is right across the alley from a hotel called Shippen Place. Rather than make Joreen play 5:00 Mass, zip down the road, play four hours, drive home, get up and play Mass at 9:00 a.m., we just get a room. That way we finish playing, have a nightcap, get a good night's sleep, do the continental breakfast and go from there. It's a business expense, a mini-vacation, whatever you want to call it. We even talk about throwing the TV out the window, although we never do it.

Today was the feast of the Assumption, and Fr. Sullivan had an amazing homily about St. Catherine Laboure laying her hands in the lap of the Blessed Mother. This guy can really preach. The hymns were pretty sweet, too, once I got some feelings back in my hands. They felt like oatmeal this morning, but I still managed to get a few hymns out of them tonight. Music is the best.

Now we have some down time until September with Just Friends. I'm going to try to get a recording together of some new songs and work on some new arrangements for Vince and Jim. We're starting to really get a sound. It's all good.