A Break in the Action

Larry the Cat

Christmas in Gettysburg

It's almost Christmas and things have been a bit quiet this month, gig-wise. That's a good thing! You see, that's Larry, my youngest cat, sleeping in my guitar case. That means I have my guitar out and I'm writing songs and practicing. I've written three new songs this month and finished up a couple of old ones I've stalled on. 

Songwriting isn't a linear process. For me, it usually starts with a concept or phrase that rings in my brain. Somehow, a melody or way of singing the phrase is suggested in the writing of it, then I build a chorus that works with it. In my song, "TropiGal," for instance, I was trying to decide who TropiGal is. "She's TropiGal." So, what kind of things define someone who calls herself "TropiGal?" It seemed to me that she's a free spirit who's "heart belongs to the open seas" and that "She's gonna soar on the ocean breeze." She lives and breathes life on the shore. "Salty air and the sun is all she needs." 

 The next step is harder: come up with verses that support the chorus. Just like writing a short story, a song is a story put to music. It has to go somewhere. My next step was to come up with vignettes of women who are in the world and what brings out their inner "TropiGal," the "every woman working hard all around the world." The song finally calls out to the free spirit in all TropiGals to find their expression, find their beach. "Swimming free in the clear blue water. Living life as one of Neptune's daughters." 

While I was growing up, we spent at least a week at the shore every summer, usually in Wildwood, NJ. My mother in particular always felt drawn to the ocean. I feel the same way. I have to have that time by the ocean, by the water, to feel complete each year. With 2013 on the way I'm looking forward to letting "TropiGal" out as much as possible.

See you somewhere down the End of the Road,

Dani

MOTM 2013 Post Mortem Pt. 3: The Weekend and Home

Saturday morning dawned beautifully (duh! Key West!) and once again, guitar on my back, I pedaled off to play. Thanks to Jerry Diaz I got to play at the Zonta Walk/Run, an annual 5K that provides FREE mammograms to under insured and uninsured women in Key West, along with him and John Reno. I loved spending my morning with these two great musicians and watching the runners and walkers arrive. The event is held at Salute's on the Beach right on Higg's Beach and is a really fun way to spend your Saturday morning at MOTM.

From there I rode back down to United, made a left toward Duval and got some breakfast with friends at Croissants de France. Then I headed back up to Duval for a gig at the Speakeasy Inn & Rum Bar with the Blue Hen Parrot Head Club of Delaware. Cheryl Housman joined me again on pans and we played outside on the patio. Good friends were also there to listen and relax on the beautiful porch and a few folks stopped by including Steve Tolliver and Sam Rainwater, who pulled out his ukulele and strummed along from the street! It ended up being a nice, intimate time with some great folks who are now great friends.

With my gig ending at 1pm I had to beat it over to the Casa Marina for the Trop Rock Music Association award ceremony. I was nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year and for the Horizon Award, which is like best upcoming artist. It was fun being backstage again with lots of the musicians, friends and support staff. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. I didn't win either award but was thankful for the consideration and that a large number of people heard a short clip of "TropiGal."

I left the Casa and headed back to T's Bistro & Bar (which, by the way, is directly across the street from the Speakeasy Inn) for another showcase. This one was hosted by Jim Hill and Tim Dee who are musicians who live in the Keys. The Blue Hens were there, too! It was great to see them again and I was delighted they came back to hang out with me. After this showcase I was free to do what I wanted for awhile and that's just what I did.

Sunday was also wide open for me. Yeah! A BREAK! A bunch of us jammed at the Wicker Guesthouse pool including Steve Buenzow, Cheryl, Renn Loren, Rick Schettino and Chris Rehm. The weather was beautiful (Key West!), the pool was perfect and so was the beer. Later that evening, Janene and I headed to the Conch Republic Seafood Company for nourishment and to see Don Middlebrook. Don had me play a couple of songs during one of his breaks and then we stayed for the rest of the show. Janene and I struck out for Duval to head for the drag show at 801 Bourbon.

On the way, we talked to Captain Josh who told me to come over to Willie T's to play Monday afternoon with him and Captain Nick. Shortly after, disaster struck! Walking our bikes around Sloppy Joe's, I stepped off the curb to go around the crowd that had piled up on the sidewalk. Suddenly my right ankle flexed and I landed on my left knee in the gutter. The GUTTER! People called my name, lifting me up and righting me. Grace Swinford, Elliot Feldman and others were there from the Naples PHC and very quickly took care of me, cleaning my knee, applying a large band-aid and handing me a beer. It was a bit of a shock with the pain in my knee and the blood running down my leg. After resting a bit and assuring everybody I was ok, Janene and I walked up Duval. She went to the drag show, I went to find more band-aids and something to clean my knee, then back to my room to rest.

Monday morning was Breakfast Club with the Hanover Area Parrot Head Society, one of the parrot head clubs I belong to. We had a blast eating at Schooner's Wharf and quaffing our favorite Breakfast Club beverage, the Screwmosa. A tradition is that a bag of markers is brought and we "decorate" each other and ourselves. If you see photos of me on Facebook and my left leg looks like a mess, that's the magic markers. That afternoon, with my leg covered in marker and stickers,  I joined the Captains Josh and Nick for music at Willie T's. It was quite a jam!

Tuesday came and Cheryl and I hit the road toward Ft. Lauderdale. It's always difficult to say goodbye to Key West and each time I go it's that much harder. After being there for over a week, I had become acclimated, feeling like I belonged there. Driving away from Key West through the keys was beautiful and sad at the same time. We had lunch at Geiger Key, thanks to the recommendation of a friend. After a great ride and lots of girl talk we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale at the airport and flew back to cold, blustery Baltimore. It took me a few days to feel "normal."

Since then, I think often of this past MOTM. I have a lot of pictures and mementos, some in my hands, some in my heart. I've written two songs since then that were inspired by my trip. I hope to get back to the Keys and the little island town of Key West soon. In the meantime, I'm working on songs for a new CD and thinking ahead to MOTM 2013: "Bring Back The Magic."

See you at the End of the Road,

Dani

MOTM 2013 Post Mortem Pt. 2: The Madness Continues

Wednesday dawned early and, of course, I didn't sleep very well. That's the story of my life these days. My dad doesn't sleep well, my grandmother doesn't sleep well, so I guess it runs in the family.

The reason I had to get up early for MOTM was that my dear friend Loren Davidson was kind enough to invite me to participate on his Catamaran Concert Cruise. 
http://www.catamaranconcerts.com/

It was a morning cruise, starting at 9am, and included Blood Marys and complimentary snacks. Chris Rehm also was aboard along with Renn Loren, a Trop Rocker from Norway! We had a nice group of folks aboard who enjoyed our "music in the round" style of playing and story-telling. They day dawned bright and warm and the water was reasonably calm with no evidence that a hurricane had gone through. On the water! What a great way to start the day.

After the cruise (as far as I can remember) I went from party to party, stopping at Dante's, then the Smokin' Tuna, wandering here and there. I played at Green World Gallery at 4pm, enjoying the company of Artist Koz and the gang and hamming it up for the web cam. It was very nice of the Young Rebel Goombas and other friends to drop in for a bit. Swim Skinny stopped by with Tom Johnson who joined me on guitar, playing lead parts and filling in nicely. Tom is on my CD playing ukulele on "Quiet Cove."

Thursday was a busy day with the Tropical Songwriters in Paradise songwriter showcase at T's Bistro & Bar on the 1100 block of Duval. I had the opportunity to perform and just enjoy lots of songwriters I had and had not heard live. Key West Chris, the organizer and host, kicked the afternoon off followed by Renn Loren, then Cheryl Housman joining me on pans. C.W. Colt followed us, my good friend John Friday along with Captain Nick, Swim Skinny and Tom Johnson, The Young Rebel Goombas and many more played into the night. The whole thing can be viewed here, recorded for posterity by Sound Man from Hell and MC for the event Gary W. Ek (from 104.9 the X "Key West Rocks!"): 

 
I couldn't stay until the end. John Friday and I had a sunset cruise to play and sunset was on the way! I feel lucky that I got to do two cruises with great friends, one in the morning, one at night, in such a beautiful place. The passengers and crew were incredible, enjoying the music, margaritas and the magic of the sunset over Key West Bight. It was an incredible night, great weather and we had a blast!

When I first got to Key West, I didn't have much going on Friday. How quickly that changed! While I was on my way to the Catamaran Concert with John, Jim Hoehn pedaled up on his bike, the pair of us on bikes, guitars slung on our backs, and asked me if I had time to do a set during his Friday night gig with "Jersey" John Hanney at Pearl's Patio on United St. I said, "Yes," of course. 

By the way, at this point my batteries were beginning to run a bit low. Between the lack of quality sleep and the constant movement, exhaustion was setting in. I know this is the case for a lot of the musicians playing at MOTM. There is not much time to chill, if you don't take it. I was running on adrenaline, caffeine and the energy provided by others most of the week. At one point I fell off my bike (not drunk!). I don't know who was following me with the ball bat but I had a lot of bruises. I also had a pretty good tan which I attribute to the walking and biking I did all week.

Back to the story! On my way to Pearl's I stopped at the Rum Barrel to hear Mike Mangum with Steve Hauser on electric. I did a few songs after the amazing young Fletcher Martin, having fun with Steve accompanying me as well. Then I made a beeline for Pearl's, Jim and John already in full tilt. Pearl's has a nice, intimate atmosphere and the most delicious quesadillas and a great bar by the pool. Dianne "greenwoman" Wickes, Marc and Tammy Hollander and many other friends were there. Jim had me do two sets, for which I was grateful. 

From Pearl's I rocketed down to the Casa Marina for the All Star Jam, kind of an open mic but you get to play with a band. I love playing with a band! I can't say that enough. Sunny Jim, Tom Becker, and more, jamming poolside. It was fun to see Howard Livingston, Jerry Diaz, Dennis McCaughey and many others back stage. I had my two songs and took off. Being the new kid on the block here it was a rush to have this opportunity. Thank you, Jerry Diaz, for the invitation. 

Next up: The Weekend