Most Surreal Night I’ve Had in a While
Amanda’s parents named her after a Don Williams song (called Amanda) and she likes to listen to it when she’s bummed out. Well for Valentine’s Day, I thought it would be “cool” to learn the song and play it for her. Fortunately for me, country is about as technical as punk, and the song contains a whopping three chords, played in the exact same order for the entire length of the song, which took me about two minutes to figure out. I also lucked out because Don Williams has a vocal range of about five full steps, so I could handle the lyrics as well. Not so fortunately, Valentine’s Day fell flat on its face and long story short, the opportunity never arose to play it for her.
Fast forward a couple days (to last night), and we’re getting ready to go out for a friend’s birthday. We were meeting them at a bar across town, and we decided to make our way there by hitting a couple other bars on the way. Well at our second bar, a couple were playing live music. The woman had an incredible voice and was singing classic rock tunes while her husband played along on guitar. At one point the idea hit me to ask them if I could briefly commandeer a guitar and perform her song for her there, but that would be crazy! The great thing about alcohol, however, is it opens paths for you to try new things! You know, like suicide. So we were just about to take off, and I thought “Now or never”, and told Amanda “Umm…hold on for a sec. I wanna go talk to this band”. I walked up to them, waited for them to finish their song and they asked me if I had a request.
“Yeah…I actually have a very strange request…You wouldn’t happen to know “Amanda” by Don Williams, would you?”
The guitar player knew OF the song, even commenting that he loved it, but didn’t know how to play it.
“Oh, it’s super easy. A, D, A, E. Repeat. Over and over.”
I explained that it was sort of a special song to my girlfriend, but didn’t hint that I wanted to actually perform it myself.
The singer then asked me to hum a couple bars and I “sang” the first couple lines to them. She goes “Well, you’re doing such a good job, why don’t YOU just sing it?”
I told them that was exactly what I had in mind, and asked if I could borrow a guitar. She handed me hers and set the mic in front of me. As I slung the guitar over my shoulder, I glanced up at Amanda who had this look on her face like “Oh my god…”. Now, I’ve never EVER sang in front of an audience, so I had some disclaimers. I grabbed the mic and said “Umm…I don’t really sing. *Strums chord* Or play guitar.” That’s a GREAT way to preface a live performance, by the way. The vocalist asked me what I DO play, and I told her I pretend to play bass. I then reminded the other guitar player “A, D, A, E. 3/4″ and he started strumming. I joined in on my guitar, closed my eyes, pretended it wasn’t actually happening, and sang a Don Williams song to this whole bar. Well mostly Amanda, but there was a bar of people there, too.
Despite the bar’s confusion, there was applause, and after the song the vocalist took her mic and guitar back, gave me a huge hug, and I started to walk back to my seat, expecting to leave. But she stopped me. “Oh no, you’re not done yet.” Terrified she was going to make me sing more songs, I only froze, not responding. She then pulled a wooden box up and says “You ever play a brazilian drum?” Interested, I started to walk back to where they were and she says “It’s just like playing a bass”. What she SHOULD have said was “It’s just like playing Taiko Drum Master”, because it’s just like playing Taiko Drum Master, and I totally fucking wail at Taiko Drum Master. She straddles the box, his the middle with her palm and says “Here’s your bass”, then, slapping the rim, says “Here’s your snare”. I sat down, she told me the name of a song I’ve never heard before, and says “Just feel it”. They start playing, and I slapped along on a big wooden box. It was actually a lot of fun. When the song was over, she goes “Let’s hear it for Bill!”, there was cheering and I stood up to leave and she says “Nah, stick around”.
I’m not kidding you, two and a half hours later, I’m still slapping this goddamn box to The Doors, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Janis Joplin, Fleetwood Mac, and a godzillion other covers while mystery free drinks were placed at my feet. We actually got people dancing, including Amanda, and it was generally just a really good, if surreal, time. We never made our friend’s birthday. Afterwards, the woman gave me their number and address, told me when they practiced, and told me to stop by and “jam” with them “on bass or whatever”. Fucking weird. Oh, and my hands hurt like a bastard today.
February 17th, 2007 at 11:16 pm
You’re a gigantic tool. Oh, and the next time I’m at a fucking art show, and a fucking idiot shows up and talks shit about you. Maybe you’ll understand where I’m coming from when I want to break fucking faces in. Maybe not, maybe you’ve gone soft. I have a piece of shirt on our dining room wall that says otherwise. haha.
February 18th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Wow thats cool man i kind freaked out at the art show but you had a good time thats cool
February 18th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
How do you freak out at an art show
February 18th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
You have an asshole show up and you restrain yourself from shoving your fist down his throat. Plus I get uneasy around large groups of people. Anxiety or something. Also, when they charge 2.50 for a cup of PBR, alcoholics tend to get angry.
February 18th, 2007 at 10:03 pm
You are such a badass
February 19th, 2007 at 1:38 am
well with all that aside congratulations to Chuck Bass and Cameron
February 19th, 2007 at 7:12 am
Indeed. It was a neat thing. So is Bill playing a box with old people.
February 19th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
Oh Yeah and BILL
February 19th, 2007 at 5:02 pm
Did you sing falsetto like when we’re in the car?
February 19th, 2007 at 5:04 pm
Why did Justin and Shawn freak out at the art show?
February 19th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
Did you sing falsetto like when we’re in the car?
Haha, didn’t think to, no. That would have been incredible.
Why did Justin and Shawn freak out at the art show?
Who knows what those guys’ problem is.
February 19th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
Blacks were there
February 19th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Justin, you’re such a dick. haha. I think I know what my problem was. Your very pretty shirt, while you ran around at an exhibit for pictures, taking pictures!!! HOMO!!! OHHHH SNAP.
February 19th, 2007 at 11:38 pm
Haha Chuck asked me to take photos of his exhibition, you dick.
February 20th, 2007 at 12:23 am
Chuck is that shallow that he needs pictures of his pictures? and epiphanies, What a joke.