Gilley's Las Vegas, 6/4-5/21

Hello dear friends!

Today was a travel day for me and Johnny Magic Fingers. We like getting up here the day before so we can be well-rested for the soundcheck and gig on Friday night. I don't like driving half a day then setting up and playing right away. I'm getting too old for that.

For this gig I brought my JBS and PB5. (In gig bags!) I also brought a little Fender Sidekick to use as a practice amp. We like to rehearse in the room while we're here.



The trash bags you see are covering some gear @G19Tony and I will be using for some extra-curricular activities this weekend. It'll be a blast.

I left earlier than I usually do on a Thursday because I wanted to be settled in my room before our regular Zoom GTG with the members of the "He-Man Guitar Haters Club". The traffic was pretty light and I made good time. I love the desert geology and topography.



I saw 113 degress across the desert. I was going to take a picture of the big thermometer in Baker but I missed it. Big Betsy is just sipping fuel on this trip. I have the cruise control set for 71 because my speedometer reads 1mph slow.



Johnny Magic Fingers and I had been talking off an on during our drive. Turns out he left just after I did. I told him, "Hey, I'm at marker 109." He said, "I just passed 106." We decided to meet up at the rest stop twenty six miles past Baker. John had been drinking too much ice tea and I needed to stretch my legs anyway.



Not too far from the state line, in the middle of this beautiful desert is this monstrosity.



When we arrived at Treasure Island, John and I were given rooms on the third floor next to each other. Mine was right across the lobby from the spa. I thought this room would be noisy from all the foot traffic but it hasn't been so far.



Here's my clean, functional room after the charming bell person delivered my gear, and I tipped her a fin.



In the meeting last night I showed the gang a live shot of the view from this room. It's not the best view I've ever had.



But at least this view is comp'd. I'm not complaining. After our Zoom GTG (Thanks guys!) John and I went across the street looking for a good meal. Mrs. BassCliff said I didn't have to eat in the Sad Cafe all weekend. Than you, my dear!



We ended up having fajitas at this place because the menu looked good and they had big margaritas.



After eating and drinking too much we dropped in the saloon to say "Hi". The bluegrass band had finished playing but the place still had a really good crowd. The management is meeting today to decided whether or not to open the dance floor for the weekend. Here's a picture from behind the sound booth.



At about 3pm this afternoon I will slide down the elevator to the saloon for our soundcheck. I hope the rest of the crew is on time, they rarely are. But I'm not complaining, much.

I'll post up a few pictures after all the ruckus settles down tonight. Thanks for coming along with me. I hope your gigs are going well.

Hello honky tonk! How I've missed your neon lights!



I hopped up on stage and set up my rig. The tuner is mine, the DI is not.



Drummer Dave gets settled behind the house kit. Dave usually brings his snare and cymbals to this gig. But I didn't notice a cymbal bag. Maybe he got lazy and just brought his snare.



Paul arrives late. But he's not the last.



Dave gives me a big thumbs up because our fearless leader has arrived. Arnie gave me a call as he was pulling in so I could meet him with a cart to haul his gear. He's only an hour and a half late for load-in.



Johnny and I are chomping at the bit.



Look at that! It's a dance floor! I haven't seen one of those in over a year.



To make sure the dance floor is ready, the tech runs the Zamboni over it.



Soundcheck was our usual soundcheck. Some folks were late, there were glitches, etc. We were able to play about half of two songs then had to call it because the bluegrass band starts at 5pm. They got very little soundcheck but they are here a lot and their mix is already saved. Sorry about that. It wasn't my fault. We moved our stuff out of the way to give their acoustic four piece enough room.



I hadn't eaten all day so I made my way to the Sad Cafe. (That sounds like a country song.)



This was actually pretty fresh. I had chicken, fish, grains, applesauce, yogurt, and a couple of roasted peppers that made my eyes water. Yum! (It tasted better than it looks.)



On the way back to my room I stopped in to check out the bluegrass band. They are really good, they play well with nice vocal harmonies. I met Keith, the banjo player earlier during our soundcheck. Maybe tomorrow I'll try to meet their bass player. I couldn't stay til the break tonight.



I had to run an errand to pick up some needed supplies. On the way back I thought I'd show you the front door of Gilley's that faces the Strip.



You can't see my room from here because the window is at the bottom of those trees.



I was hoping to see @andysvec play tonight after my gig but I have to get up early in the morning and I need my wits about myself. I'm getting too old to stay out that late. We'll see.

OK, more pictures to come. Thanks for looking! 

I've got time to toss up a few pictures from Friday night before I have to get ready for the show tonight. @arbiterusa, I'm going direct and using my IEM. The house sound guys are pretty good. They supply the wireless pack and iPad to mix our own ears. It's a real cushy gig for me.

This weekend I brought the JBS and PB5, a couple cables, a tuner, and that's all.



The DJ got the growing crowd warmed up for us.



Johnny Magic Fingers and I are about to make some noise.



There he goes! John rips off his big boogie-woogie number.



We package ourselves as an "instant country band". Just add beer.



Did Hank do it this way?



Maybe Arnie is telling Dave how Hank did it.



Look at that! The dance floor is full! Bright smiles! Happy faces! Wow!



The band bellies up to the bar on break. That's Mrs. Drummer.



Liz was so happy to see us she poured me a shot of whiskey.



The crowd was roaring. The bull was really busy too.



Funny story about these two. The young lady on the left reached up onto the stage to look at Arnie's set list. Arnie put his boot on top of the list. Wanting to be nice I said, "Hey! I'll show you mine!" Then I realized what I had said. I told her, "I'm sorry!" She said, "No, you're not!"



Now I've got to freshen up and slide downstairs. It's going to be a hoot!

It's a little slow at work this morning so let me finish up last weekend. Where did we leave off?

@G19Tony and I had planned some extracurricular activities for Saturday morning. He has quite a nice little collection of instruments at his place. I just love this little red Squier. You also see his Glarry on the stand to the right. That's a nice ax too.



After Tony and I had our fun I headed back to my humble abode.



I met friends for a late lunch and we enjoyed sushi. This is a rainbow roll and a spicy tuna roll. How's that Bill?



Before the gig I stopped by the Sad Cafe for a salad. I remembered to "check my appearance".



I arrived at the honky tonk to find the band in setup mode. There was a different soundman tonight. Daniel wasn't here but we've worked with Bob before. He was able to figure out Daniel's setup. Those two have worked together for years but Bob has not been working at Gilley's for the past year. That's OK. He's moving on to bigger and better things.



Here's our first set with a note to remind me about making a special announcement for a newlywed couple. The mother of the bride had approached me before we started. We were going to dedicate a song to them. The fourth song into the set I made my big announcement and invited the couple to the dance floor. They were nowhere to be found. I guess they couldn't wait and had gone on up to their room.



Here's a couple of nice looking Scully shirts.



Paul was having fun this weekend.



Dave is almost ready to have fun.



Johnny looks out across the room as his tickles the ivory.



Arnie and Paul do some guitar pickin' and fiddle sawin'.



On a break Dave visits Mrs. Dave. Debbie and her husband, also Dave, are friends in town celebrating their 29th wedding anniversary.



It was a boot scootin' time in the saloon.



Yes, a good crowd all night long. People miss this.



Uh oh, here's comes trouble!



This is one of the new Gilley servers of a non-specific gender (am I still allowed to say "Gilley Girl"?) This is Angelica (pronounced Ann-gel-leak-a). She is a sweet gal, kind enough to take a selfie with the old country bass player.



After we said goodnight to the honky tonk I had every intention of posting up some pictures. But after editing and resizing and uploading and having one more Lagunitas Super Cluster, I was fading fast. Since I had to drive home in the morning I decided to post these later. You know, cause I'm old.



Yep, I'd had a full day. That's one tired old country bass player.



I was able to hit the road about 9:30am, expecting a boatload of traffic. But it wasn't bad at all. Here's the new Raiders stadium. It looks kind of like a space ship.





I'll be right back to finish my commute. Thanks for looking!

Mostly my commute looks like this.



The big thermometer at Baker indicated a chilly 97 degrees. I guess the "June gloom" is keeping us cool.



Traffic wasn't bad at all until I got to Victorville and headed down over the Cajon Pass.



But all-in-all, this was one of the quickest commutes back from Vegas I've ever had, only four and a half hours. It usually takes between five and seven hours, depending on whether or not it's a holiday weekend.

For the next two Saturdays we have private events with a special guest. Yes! Amanda will be back in town working with us. How about that? Then we'll be back at Knott's Berry Farm on Saturdays for the rest of the summer through Sept. 4th, with a few other events here and there during the week. I think I'm going to have to retire soon so I can play all these gigs.

Thanks for coming along. God bless you all.



Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff