Are You Dave?

It’s been a while! With so much competition in town (Music for Aardvarks, Preschool of Rock, Kidville, etc.) my name apparently hasn’t been circulating as much as it used to. So it was nice to hear, even though the lady got my name wrong at first.

The setup: Sitting down for lunch at Anthony David’s, our local hangout. To my right sat a bunch of moms, neighbors of ours and alumni of Music Together, having a chat. Behind me was a table full of new mommies, cradling infants and eating their salads one-handed. One of the Alumni Moms stops at the New Mommy table on her way out, and says “you guys need to take music class with this guy, he’s great.” Sweet, and a little embarrassing. So then I turn around and explain that I teach Music Together, and one of the moms asks “Oh, are you… Dan?”

Oh well. Close enough.

Hats off to Jerry Needel, a fellow PSU alum who lives here in Hoboken. In the wake of the awful scandal at Penn State this fall, he gave the world his vision of the largest alumni philanthropy in the world, in support of victims of abuse. More here. Support RAINN! I’ve ordered my shirt, have you?

That’s right, I’m a Guitar Bar All-Star now! I’ve been teaching “Sonic Uke” at the Guitar Bar, Jr. for almost a year. In that time I’ve meet some of the other mega-talented musicians who make up the GB family, and when Jim Mastro (owner, boss, all-around hep cat) mentioned they were doing an all-Bob-Dylan show I was eager to participate.

It wasn’t as easy as all that - I never made it onto the official e-mail list, if indeed there was one, and didn’t get clued in to rehearsals. Other stuff was going on so I kind of wrote it off, saying “I’ll do the next one.” But on Tuesday Jim texted me, would I be interested in doing “Subterranean Homesick Blues” at the show? I shot back an affirmative, before fully realizing what I lyrical nightmare I was in for. 48 hours to memorize four verses of Dylan at his wordiest.

I never found out just WHY I got the last-minute call to do that song… maybe someone else was scheduled to do it, but his brain exploded. Sometime on Wednesday, feeling a little burnt but able to sing the first two verses almost perfectly, I texted Jim. “My brain is full. Is this what the ’60s felt like?”

By Thursday afternoon I had three verses down but I knew I was never going to nail the fourth. So I printed a cheat sheet in a big font and sent a message to Jim to make sure there was a music stand at the show.

What can I say about rockin’ out with the likes of the All Stars? It’s a Bucket-List experience. Keith Hartell, to single one out, knows every every lyric to every song and can play them all on any instrument you care to hand him. He’s the organizer of the All-Stars and plays bass, mostly. Then there’s Boo Reiners, who can light a fire just by looking at a guitar, mandolin or fiddle. Not to mention Jim Mastro, 80s pop star, side-man to Ian Hunter and even Robert Plant. And there I was, fast-mumbling my way through an iconic Dylan classic with these cats.

“Subterranean Homesick Blues” doesn’t have a guitar solo, but wedged between Jim and Boo, how could I not step back and let ‘em take one? That’s the kind of group it is, just point your chin at someone and he (or she) will rip into a solo that peels the paint from the walls, or lay on a harmony that makes angels weep. It’s rhythm-guitarist heaven, let me tell you. (And a far cry from the Fuzzy Lemons!)

Next up, a Neil Young night! I’ve already dibs’d “Harvest Moon,” maybe I’ll get to do another track or two as well. Can’t wait!

As part of a fund-raiser for her daughter’s school, Dana booked the Lemons at Ben & Jerry’s in Hoboken. It’s always a sweet gig, no pun intended (well, maybe a little). We did it as an unplugged trio, Dana, Chris and myself rocking out on the patio at sunset. Playing with a smaller band for a smaller audience actually creates a lot of freedom for improvisation and experimentation. For example, halfway through “Jump in a Puddle” I decided to make it into a freeze dance! Yet another example of how comfortable we’ve all become as a band, how easily we can communicate with one another and take the music to new places.

Look for us at Ben and Jerry’s again when the weather warms up!
~ Dave

Trick or Treat, part deaux! We performed our Halloween set at the Elks for the annual Garden Street Music bash, and it was a great time, as always! Each year, we share the stage with GSM’s students, and watching the teen and pre-teen rockers is a real treat. (Especially since many of them used to be in my Music Together class!)

One particular highlight stands out: A dance class had been working on “The Time Warp,” and was going to dance to a playback, but we had it on our set list so they got up and danced along to us instead!

In lieu of payment for this show, we’ve got credit for studio time with Dan. Sometime in the winter or spring we’ll be going back into the studio to record a new album! I can’t wait!

~ Dave

For a week leading up to today, we’ve been hearing about Hurricane Irene, coming straight up the coast and down our throats. My family and I jumped in a rental SUV and headed north to upstate NY and VT, on an already-scheduled vacation. We drove out a couple of days early, because we didn’t want to be trapped in town if there was flooding and damage that blocked roads. It turns out Hoboken didn’t have any problems that it doesn’t have during a regular rainstorm (but several towns in upstate NY and VT were hit hard).

Folks all around me in Hoboken felt the affects of today’s earthquake, but I didn’t feel a thing. Which is disappointing to me (not that I wish it had been worse, mind you), and frankly worrisome. I mean, buildings were shaking! Am I really so out of it?

And now for a complete change of pace: The Gordys!

I LOVE doing these shows. The rehearsals leading up to them can be murder (and I apologize to the whole band for losing my cool more than once), but the shows themselves are always magical. Barbara recalls: “We had the best weather ever, Pier C park wasn’t a construction site, and the sound guys were awesome.”

This year’s line-up included Rob Harari, Joe Harari, Pamela Strell, Howard Olah-Reiken, Donna Coney Island, Barbara Arnett, and Justin Michael, with guest star Dave Plotka making a special appearance. The Gordys: The Next Generation also joined us, as Genevieve Harari sang a Plain White T’s song with Coby Strell on piano, and some of the other kids singing backups.

This year’s biggest challenge: “Paradise by the Dashboard Light.” We pulled it off!

Local mom Susan Chait designed this year’s t-shirt and it looks fabulous.

The full set list:
Girlfriend - We opened with Matthew Sweet’s 3-chord rocker, and I dedicated it to Geri Fallo.
Is She Really Going Out With Him? - Howard rocked this one.
Paradise by the Dashboard Light - Still can’t believe we nailed it.
No One Is To Blame - A gorgeous ballad from the 80s, sung by Pamela.
Shipping Off To Boston - Barbara led this scorching instrumental form the Dropkick Murphys.
Something So Strong - I led this folk-rock classic from Crowded House.
Nowhere Man - Howie led us in this song’s thick, rich harmonies.
The Only Living Boy in New York - Barbara didn’t know when she picked this song that it’s one of my favorites from Simon and Garfunkel.
Down on the Corner - A classic jam tune, hard to believe we’ve never done it before!
Walk Like an Egyptian - More 80s grrrl power!
Ziggy Stardust - I didn’t nail all the lyrics but we had a lot of fun blasting this one out.
Here Comes Your Man - I busted out my electric 12-string for this alt-pop gem.
Wanderlust King - Joe led us on this wild journey a la Golgol Bordello.
Rat Race - Anti-establishment ska (is there any other kind?) with Rob on lead vocals.
Isn’t She Lovely - Rob again, singing a stripped-down Stevie Wonder classic.
I Wish - More Stevie Wonder, a workout for bass hero Justin.
1, 2, 3, 4 - Genna led this gorgeous little Plain White T’s ditty.
Shadows In The Rain - Justin’s other selection, a rocked-up Sting classic featuring Pamela.
Just Won’t Burn - Pamela ripped this Susan Tedeschi blues number to shreds.
Plus, we did a quick version of our ever-popular Klezmer set, let by Barbara and her rockin’ accordion.

After the show we had drinks and food at Hudson Tavern, where we proclaimed Donna an official member of the Gordys. I’m already hearing tunes that I want to try next summer….

My other annual show at the Shipyard is always a treat. My fellow teachers are always energetic and animated, and they love to harmonize. Even the simplest songs become masterpieces when you add rich harmonies. This year, I joined my fellow teachers Leslie, Marina, Bill, and our old friend Catherine Moon to put on a fun-filled show for our hometown crowd.

Our annual Shipyard show was, as always, an enormous party! There was the usual Great Wall of kids at the front of the stage, and the usual admonitions from the band to (a) keep little hands to themselves, and (b) be careful not to fall down the steps. But no one needed us to make a Lost Child announcement this year (it’s happened in the past).

Ben & Jerry’s sponsored the show, but new rules set by the Shipyard folks prevented them from actually selling ice cream that night. Very disappointing, but at least we had a smart-looking banner to hang behind us on the stage.

And we didn’t get rained on until after the show, when we were loading the van. Bonus!