I finally figured out that it has been since September that the KRB played The Ranch. We were fortunate that a lot of our friends came out on a Friday night. We were told that it was a busier Friday night than what's been normal lately. I thought that was pretty cool.
When I got to the club I immediately went to the green room to put my ROCKSTAR in the well-stocked 'fridge.
Then I went out front to grab a picture of the band while they were setting up.
While I was there our favorite server, Katie, walked by (with her hair down!) and she indulged me with a picture.
I headed back to the stage to plug in. Here's a shot from the monitor console. You can see our wireless IEMs.
The FOH guy, Mark, we love Mark, even has our names on them.
Here Mark is taking care of Hal, our new-ish keyboard player.
You might've noticed that Mario no longer has the big drum shield in front of his kit. Mark, in his infinite wisdom and continual research, found a secret weapon.
You see that cloth taped to the snare and the kick drum? It's amazing that little strip of cloth soaks up so much sound from the bottom of the snare that, as long as you're not a POUNDER, the drum shield can be done away with and it doesn't get too loud. Pretty cool.
Here is my trusty Carvin LB76 and my backup Guild Pilot 5-string in front of that beautiful, but unused, GK rig.
No, there are no amps being used on stage this weekend. We are all going direct and using IEMs.
Here's Hal doing a little soundcheck.
Hal will be doing most of our gigs with us for the near future since Jeff's health doesn't allow him to gig any more. Hal is a great player and sings OK but, you know, it's just not the same. We still have our fun.
Speaking of which, Heather, the entertainment manager, and Katie were both visiting us in the green room and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity for a photo. They are both real sweethearts and take great care of us.
Pretty soon it's supper time. Watch out for those forks! This is the salad course.
Since I had a big lunch, I munched on a couple of salads. On the left is the beet salad and on the right is the chopped kale salad. Tomorrow I'll have something more interesting.
Here's my amp-selfie as the crowd does its last line dance before we start.
Heather takes a picture with Art, Daniel, and Kelly just before she announces us.
Here's the first set and my IEM pack. I'm mix 5.
Here's an action shot.
The dancers love their Cowboy Cha-cha.
April and her friend are showing off their mad line dancing skilz.
And we're just getting started! Here are a bunch of random pictures taken by staff, action shots of the crowd and the band. This really is a fabulous stage.
A couple of my two-step buddies, Megan and Amber with their friends.
Art, Daniel, and Kelly putting on the show.
The rhythm section lays it down.
Hal tickles the ivories.
Kelly and her new frilly boots. I think the whole band should get some.
Art and Kelly having fun.
Daniel on the mic! He's doing a great job grabbing harmony parts that Jeff used to sing.
There were lots of birthdays in the house last night. Mariam, Yoshi, and Rose celebrated with an electric slide.
Uh oh, the bass player is singing again.
Mario has really been playing with a relaxed intensity. I love it and I'm trying to emulate it. He makes me want to be a better bass player.
I think this is toward the end of the night. Is Mario looking a little tired, or bored?
The same goes for Daniel, but Art still has his grin.
Kelly still has sparkle.
When I arrived at The Ranch on Saturday evening I was hungry. Here's the steakburger I had for supper. Not pictured is the beet salad I also enjoyed.
Here's my nightly amp-selfie while the crowd does one more line dance before we start.
Mario says, "I don't know what to do!" when I take his picture. I guess I've taken too many picture of him.
Kelly has a 'Pat Benatar' thing going on tonight. She looks really rock-n-roll.
Heather, the entertainment manager, joins me for an amp-selfie. Cool!
Heather also wanted a picture with the whole band, which she posted to the Friendface. She really helps to make this place fun to play, so professional yet so personable.
I got another picture of Daniel singing "Devil Went Down To Georgia".
Hal is working into the group very nicely, picking up on all the little details more and more with each performance.
I know I'm singing "Love Train" right now because there's a conga line going. It's what they do.
Another action shot of the band from Heather. Thanks Heather!
Kelly is out front while the crowd two steps.
You can tell by the decibel meter that we are really getting rowdy. It's almost 90db!
Towards the end of the night Kelly gives me a cute smile.
Here's the view from my mic just before we start the last set on a Saturday night. It's still a pretty good crowd watching the line dancers.
Then Saturday comes to a close and we have to pack it up.
I asked Mark, the FOH guy, to give me a recording from the board on my thumbdrive. He gave me the full streaming video feed from the night. I guess I'll have to post some video once I get it edited a bit. It was a fun weekend. It's been a while since we've played all night in a honky tonk. It seemed like a long night be we had a ton of fun.
Here's a couple of video clips.
It was a fun weekend back at The Ranch in Anaheim CA. The owner, Andrew Edwards, is a warm, friendly person who helps make it fun to play at this terrific venue. Thanks for looking!
Thank you for your indulgence,
BassCliff
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