reading material; hyperventilating

now that it looks like the DDs maybe are cooking with gas again, i'll list some past articles about us. The 1st quite, quite generously compared me to johnny johnson & wanda; the 2nd to johnny cash (Good Lord!); the 3rd is about 1st record/concert; the 4th is a review that cut us down to size. the 5th is my interview with phil alvin, fun for blasters & phil-atics like me cause it's uncut & therefore gives you a little window into a big, screwy mind. (i chatted with him at a recent blasters show at el cid & don't even remember what we talked about because all i could think was, "he's talking to me! oh my lord!!!"), but he gave me a hug & a peck on the cheek & DO remember THAT!!! then jerry, who's played drums with the blasters for over 10 yrs, said, "oh, jen. he's just a GUY," & boy i felt rightfully dumb.) here are the articles: El Beasto fanzine interview (in spanish, with some cool pix! get a literal translation thru babelfish & enjoy the hilarity), elbeasto.com/fanzine/index.htm (path: Entrevistas, Dusk Devils); Tollbooth emag interview, www.tollbooth.org/2003/features/ddevils.html ; My 1st record/concert, www.sofein.com/ (go to march 05); Rockmag (Norwegian) review, www.rockmag.org/duskdev.html ; phil alvin interview, http://www.theblackboardfreepress.com/200411/music2.html ... i'll write more later about double-d developments. i better stop cause i might hyperventilate from the thrill of how good my band sounds right now. (this happened the other night after practice.) we're moving up many  notches musician-ship wise with our new band mate. a good memorial day weekend to all!

R&R & R&R

this has nothing to do with rock & roll, but has been my obsession since after the sat night show up north. all went well, but then a fight broke out after i left. (sing: "it was a knock-down drag out, you gotta find a place to hide!!") cattie looked great & i whooped it up by having a puff off a cherry-flavored cigar after our set. then home along dark 99 (though the moon was full) to dog & kitty and the next day i did nothing but eat crepes with wonderful chestnut spread (pictured) & surf for music on amazon.com, not capable of much else, & grateful i had the luxury of a sunday off to R&R. even today, i feel a little groggy... guess educator hours & musician hours don't jibe 'less you're hearty as a sailor, and that ain't me! cool bands i heard... 16 horsepower & detroit cobras... also liked a few cuts on "blastered," a tribute to downey's finest, plus dock hobbs, cleo brown, big joe durkin (thanks for the tip, vince!).

cattie show 5/21; blablablablabla

cattie's bd party will be this sat, may 21, in fresno ca usa at club fred. (go to www.cattieness.com for a flyer) ... cattie ness & the revenge (i'm a revenger for this show) will play with deadbolt and the graveside rockers. it's a rock- & psychobilly show, except our set also will feature some honky-tonk (i get to be don rich on vocals -- yippee!!), a fats domino new orleans roll, and a bit of jerry lee, if my hand doesn't explode from the keyboard pounding. i play through the pain!! the music overrides the suffering usually, anyhow. :)
fun yesterday going down to smellay to practice with the southland branch of the band (fabi, jose, & their conversations about roosters and chickens) at a lock out in monterey park, right by one of those majestic clay-colored bridges in that part of town. rode down with cattie & john, listening to jimmy & johnny, ernest tubb, warren smith, stuff like that. we didn't get to eat at phillipe's, but to bypass dodger stadium traffic drove by union station , so my memories of lostangeles kicked in anyway and i was ok with plain old whatever-we-could-find road food. (not too hard these days, with the influx of suburbia eliminating the blank spots along I-5 from sta clarita to bkfld!) memories-- sometimes memories (different from fantasies or pipe dreams) are nearly as good as the real thing, i think.
a few weeks back, i got a beringer keyboard amp/PA for what seemed a bargain, so now if i can get my hands on a semi-decent mike (mine was stolen a few years back), i'll be in bizness. hard for me to be portable, and i've been called a "luddite" where gear is concerned, but i sure like this new piece of equipment and the idea that i don't have to rely on others for sound.
but don't ask me about how it works and all that! there seem to be two schools (gearheads and non); i'm just not into 99% of gear and probably never will be. however, i do like the look of the fender rhodes (action's not so good, though, i hear) and i used to have a wurlitzer that i could kick myself for trading... though i hear the blazers are currently using it, which certainly means it's being well used!
for me, too much gear can be a cover-up for lack of ability... i speak from experience here! i've had my own lack of ability disguised plenty of times with effects! really, though it's better to go bare, since you never know what equipment will be available, plus is seems somehow more honest -- also, there's the portability issue! (that said, i have to add that the "slap back" effect is purty cool.)
in an earlier band, i tried playing bass for a while (easier to carry than an electric piano), but the music just wasn't happening for me. it's much better now, playing the music i've always loved. so, all fired up from yesterday, i say if any musicians read this and live in the california latitudes between bakersfield and ventura, email me! let's play some music sometime. it's fun to play with different people and i just love playing, not a lot of talking, just music and energy. it's part of what makes life worth living, in my book.