I should have gone to REI

I'm outfitting for a season of adventure touring and camping aboard my steel horse and wanted to hit REI this evening before Falls Church. But I left work late and headed straight for some Pad Thai and New Orleans funk. I should have gone to REI, and then home.

Ya gotta love the Junkyard Saints.

A seven-piece band that oozes New Orleans party attitude -- blending funk, swing, Latin, R&B, with some old-school zydeco. They performed at the Wammies this past Monday night and had the house a rockin'. But you can't take a group of seven, reduce 'em to four, and expect the same energy level and vibe.

Especially not at Bangkok Blues. I used to be a fan of the small Thai joint in Falls Church. Let a Blues loving -- Strat playing -- long haired -- big smiling -- guy named Chai -- from Thailand -- in the restaurant biz, get his mother in the kitchen to whip up some tasty eats, and book hot bands to fill the stage. Instant hang-out joint.

That was a few years ago before management and menu changes, and biz practices that have pushed away many of the good performers. Read what the musicians are saying in this forum on the DC Blues Society website.

I'm not certain if I'll go back to Bangkok Blues -- perhaps to catch Robert Lighthouse -- but that would be the only reason.

About the Junkyard Saints performance. Like I said earlier, the vibe was missing. Sure, the small dance floor was full -- but it's the same faces that you see in all the joints with a dance floor. They are not fans of the performers -- just fans of dancing. The size of the room limited the Saints tonight. They need space to let their music catch fire. Throw some sawdust on the floor, crank up the amps, and add their horn section. Get a hundred sweaty bodies gyrating to their funky beat and the party won't stop.




Band Leader Brian Simms (lead vocal, keyboard, accordion) knows his craft but he was rushing a few songs this evening.


There was no fire in Bangkok. No gyrating bodies in heat. At times I had the feeling that Simms was going through the motions with one eye on the clock. When you're doing a cover of a Dr. John, or Van Morrison, you should let the words hang in the air for a moment while your hands caress the piano keys. Not drive ahead to the next lyric and chord change. By 10:30 pm the dancers were happy, the Saints were packing up and I was heading for the highway.

Highlight of the night: Made it home in time to watch Shizuka Arakawa float to Gold and Sasha Cohen smile.

-30-

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