this monday at the hideout

It's me and Buddy Mondlock, a dear old friend who sings and writes so, so well. Buddy's aesthetic is on the surface quite different from mine, soft and gentle and pretty, if that doesn't sound unintentionally damning. All that reflects the fact that his social network includes guys like Pierce Pettis and that he's been in a band with Art Garfunkel. Art Garfunkel! But -- as I sit here going over the songs of his we're planning to do Monday, I'm struck by how much harshness and sorrow there is in them. Also, much delicacy of metaphor and a light touch with firm meanings -- the songs can lead you to where you might feel like being led the day you happen to be listening. I'm blown away by that particular skill! Buddy, I might mention, has some personal history with Garth Brooks, and we're going to play a tune they wrote together on Monday. I think it's the first and last Garth Brooks tune of my residency, if not my life. Anyway, it's been terrific and intense woodshedding Buddy's music, and I hope you'll come out.