It's just another weekend for me and the ANB at one of our regular old places, The Ranch Saloon. I know you've seen me play here many, many times but some of you never seem to tire of the great food and lovely ladies.
I had a big project at work on Friday so I didn't get to sneak out as early as I usually do to drive down to The Ranch and load in. But I got there in time to plug my stuff in before the doors opened. Here's Arnie giving me a warning.
John finishes setting up his orchestra's worth of keyboards and sound modules. That's our sound guy extraordinaire, Mark, one of the best in the business. Don't tell him I took this picture. He doesn't like having his picture taken.
Here's John all set up, ready for a little sound check. It was a very short sound check since we were just here rehearsing on Tuesday and the board saves all of our settings. Sweet.
Jason makes some final tweaks not only to his drums but to all the electronics he also uses.
Here's my ugly mug in front of the dance floor after a mad dash from the office to the honky tonk.
Just in case you missed it, this is one of the coolest mirror balls you'll ever see.
Yes, mirror tiled Telecasters spinning above the dance floor. It's just too hick for the room.
Hey, how about a quick tour of the place?
It's time for the lads to have supper. Arnie and I both decided on the "coma" burger and chopped salad.
Here's mine.
After supper we go over some tunes, tell stories, talk about the future, etc. Here's Amanda, Randy, and Arnie.
Randy brought his modified Strat tonight to accompany his steel. He really is an excellent guitar player, and bass player too.
John is looking quite dashing in his Scully shirt. Since John and I both have a couple of the same shirts we have to coordinate.
Here's a picture I like to call "Beauty and the Beast, and the Drummer".
Candy is fitting in so well with the band, and this is just the second gig she's done with us. Randy is loving working with her too.
Have we started yet? I can't tell. It looks like Arnie is tuning.
Something is happening! The dance floor is jumping!
Oh my! I'm having so much fun that my rig has caught fire!
It's picture time! Stop the presses! Lock down the dance floor!
Another semi-action shot from the perspective of the bass player. I'm back on the hi-hat side this weekend.
John is to my left and the rest of the band is to my right.
Me and this guy, you know. It's a rhythm section thing.
We continue having fun all through the evening.
It was a good Friday night, a busier Friday than we normally have especially since the Coachella festival is happening this weekend.
These ladies were out celebrating a birthday.
The line dancers always have their fun.
Our dear friend Melanie was back in town for the weekend. She saved me a two-step. When she finished her doctorate she moved to North Carolina to practice psychology but came back this weekend to visit.
And we're back on stage for one more set.
Here are some action shots, ripped from the pages of Facebook.
Crystal will be filling in for Amanda on Saturday. I should remind you that you can watch all the bands at The Ranch live streaming at Live Stream THE RANCH Saloon starting at 8pm on the West coast.
When I arrived on Saturday evening the line dance lesson was in full swing. It looks like it's going to be a really good night. All the reservations were sold out.
Tonight I had a couple of my favs, the Buffalo Chicken sandwich and the beet salad. The eats are really good around here.
The remote is on the table because we were watching the hockey game on the TV in the green room. (The Ducks lost again at home tonight.) After supper it's time to play and sing.
Here's Candy. Crystal joins us tonight. She did a really great job tonight, even in her "delicate" condition. She's due in August.
Crystal sang her heart out and danced all around the stage. I think she was having fun.
I caught John as he's trying to grab a different sound from one of his keyboards.
Crystal sings some more.
Johnny found his sounds and away he goes.
Crystal had quite a few family and friends here tonight. I think she enjoyed singing for them.
I grab a cold one on a break and watch the line dancers put on a floor show.
Then we're back on stage for another set.
On the last break the two-steppers are still dancing around the floor while the DJ plays.
Did you notice the decibel meter on the sound board? It's less than 80db. Wow!
Crystal had to leave a little early and missed the last set. But Candy and the lads carried on. Jason sings a song using his Garth Brooks-like headset mic.
We play until 12:30AM and then pack up our gear while the DJ keeps the line dancers on the floor.
It was a really good weekend and lots of fun was had by all. Me and the ANB don't have another gig until Friday (4/20), a new club for us near Canyon Lake. It's supposed to be a nice room, we've all heard good things about it. I don't think that room has a big budget so we might just be a quartet of hairy-legged guys. It will be an adventure. Thanks for looking at my gigs. See you soon!
Thank you for your indulgence,
BassCliff
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