Palace Station gig May 24th

The Healing is back!

Below, the vibe onstage summed up in five shots.

This time, the numerous audio bugs that had been plaguing the setup had been thoroughly hammered out earlier in the week, and the mix, while still in need of a bit of tweaking here and there, was well under control. It's complicated. No small task to get all that stuff neatly patched together, lined up/synch'd, and balanced in one hour. Below, the backstage board. It takes the myriad lines and sends everything to the FOH. It's mounted vertically on the wall backstage off to the right over by the dressing room. Cramped back there.

This time, the cats were able to launch on time, and the groove was in the pocket right away. Jerry was pickin' his tunes carefully, given the fact that he's got three subs and Lenny has been sick with a terrible throat all week (Dr. Lenny did, however, show up at the end to throw down some harmonies and steps). Jerry opted to bring things in with selections low-hanging-fruit such as the Earth, Wind, & Fire Medley, and "Wishing Well," but later they ranged far afield, throwing down new originals such as "Love Jungle" and "When The Curtain Goes Up."

It was a fun evening. No stress this time on stage, and the crowd is building nicely. They were way into it. Below, some random shots...

Below, Michito Sanchez in the house! Michito will sub for Gabe tomorrow night at The Palms. Gabe and Rochon will be doing a show up in Logan, Utah with Donny and Marie. Filling in for Rochon -- doing 4 songs each in succession -- will be Ian Martin, bassist from the Barry Manilow show, Keith Nelson ("Lion King," formerly with Gordie Brown and the Steven Lee Group), and our own bro' Blazin' Bass Blaise Sison!

Above, subbing for Danny, our esteemed brother Tom DeLibero.

Below, Gil came out for a trumpet ride in "San Diego" that fried so hard it had people jumping up in a mass howling cheer.

Below, likewise for Michael Gonzales' synth ride in "Take My Heart Away." It was awesome.

Above, I call this my "Blue Man LaMarca" shot, LOL!

See y'all tomorrow night at The Palms. Free show, 10:30 pm. John Wedemeyer will again open for Jerry on guitar.

CODA: BUTT, BUTT, BUTT...

I'll let Jerry and Lenny tell ya the legacy story on this, LOL! Can you tell which tush is which Lopez brother?

FYI, OUR BRO' JOEL RICHMAN

One of my favorite drummers in town, Joel Richman, has started a blog for drummers, at eatdrums.blogspot.com. Check it out.
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HONORING THOSE WHO SERVED US AND PAID WITH THEIR LIVES

It's not just a three-day party weekend replete with Dollar Daze sales. I never forget that.

[MSBNC] Laura Youngblood, widow of U.S. Navy Petty Officer Travis L. Youngblood, touches his gravestone in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery during the Memorial Day weekend in Arlington, Va., on Sunday, May 24. Youngblood died of wounds received in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in July of 2005 in Iraq.
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