A message from Mundo, and other stuff

From an email I got from Mundo regarding his Hot Club of Las Vegas:

This Thursday we are playing a concert at the Henderson Events Plaza,(Water Street District) starting at 8:00 pm. This part of their "Thursday Night Live!" concert series that the City of Henderson's cultural arts department throws every year. It's our first time there, and from what we hear the amphitheater and atmosphere in the water street district is a great hang. Also Mickey Alvarado will be playing percussion with us. For more info check out this link: www.hendersonlive.com/calendar. We'd love to see you there!

Mahalo- Mundo
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Also, note that I've put up a permanent "Friends of Santa Fe" links column on the right so you can easily check out who among our posse is playing where ongoing. I'm always afraid I'm gonna miss touting somebody's gig, but, as much as I try to keep up with all of our peeps, I'm not the unpaid local nightlife reporter, and I would never mean to inadvertently slight anyone. If you are among the Santa Fe extended family and want on the list, send me an email with your link information.

- BobbyG
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COMMENTARY

Good riddance.

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THURSDAY UPDATE

Hello Everyone!!

Tommy Alvarado here to remind you of the Slick Willie Orchestra performance tonight at Louis Fish Camp in the Townsquare Shopping complex located at 6605 Las Vegas Blvd. South. Next to Frye's Electronics in front of the Rave movie theater. Times are 6:30 to 10:30pm. The featured vocalist is none other than RONNIE ROSE. Come hear him put his spin on some of the best blues in town.
For more info please go to:

www.myspace.com/fishcamplasvegas
8 piece blues band with horns to please your dancing feet.

Also don't forget that SWO is performing every tuesday nite at the Square Apple. 10pm till 1:30. 1000E Sahara Ave. between Maryland Pky. and Paradise. Call 702 650 0432.
www.thesquareapple.com

- Tommy Alvarado
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BTW, Tommy Alvarado's cell number has changed, he informs me. Click his "Sweet Willie Orchestra" of his main MySpace link to contact him for it.
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INTERESTING EMAIL FROM A HIGH SCHOOL CLASSMATE

I got notified the other day via a shotgun FYI email that one of my old friends Louie, with whom I played football for four years at Somerville High School in NJ ('60-'64) had just died. Well, a few sad replies subsequently flew back and forth among the list, and I got this:

Hi, Bobby. I didn't really know Lou in SHS but I knew who he was (kinda the same situation with you, for that matter). I remember that he seemed like a really nice guy. Sorry to hear about his passing, but I guess people my age need to start getting used to that kind of news. :-(

Bruce and Bill were just here last week for a visit. I'm in the woods about an hour from Seattle. They mentioned that they'd seen you recently; Bill left me a huge file of his photos, which include some of you, but I haven't had time to look at them yet. Bruce and Bill were my roommates in a house in Branchburg in '72-'73. I told at least one of them this before, but I don't know if it ever got back to you:

You were a big inspiration to me back in the summer of '64 (most likely; it could've been '63). I was staying in Manasquan for the summer but went down to Seaside for a day with a couple of friends. We walked by the Chatterbox and heard the band, looked inside, and I recognized you. At that time in my life, I couldn't imagine anything cooler than playing in a rock n roll band at the shore (come to think of it, I still can't), and there was this guy from my own high school doing it! I decided I wanted to do that too.

I'd taken piano lessons as a kid but had quit in my early teens. I started practicing again, learned how to play by ear, joined a band my first year in college, and have been at least a weekend warrior ever since. There were a couple of multi-year stints when I tried to make a living at it, but eventually had to go back to the day job.

Now I'm about to try it again, supplemented this time by my meager pension and Social Security. My computer-nerd job is being outsourced to India later this year. Times have changed so much that at age 61 I can't get a decent day job - everything I've been doing for the past 20 years is now done offshore - but I can still get a band gig. Cover bands around here are full of old geezers. I have 4 gigs this weekend. Go figure...

Talkin' 'bout My Generation, indeed! ;-)

Van
SHS Class of '65

I never knew. Wow. Below, a pic of the old "Chatterbox" on the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, LOL!

I wrote a bit about those days last fall in the blog. Click the link and scroll down.