It's been eight months since my last Open Mic Report, that of 04-17-07.   When I recently saw that my friend Doug Irwin had posted a year-end update on his MySpace page, I decided to stop procrastinating and instead post some type of update of my own.   So, with Steely Dan playing in the background as accompaniment to my blogging effort, here goes...   Since my last Open Mic Report, I've made ten Open Mic appearances spanning six towns in two states.   Below is a listing of what I played when and where, along with any special recollections...

Tuesday, 07-03-07:       Coffee Works Roastery & Cafe,     Voorhees NJ         I played Pink Floyd's "The Thin Ice" and Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues."   A funny note about this appearance, I played the country/folk "Folsom" on a nylon-stringed classical guitar, since that is the guitar I had in my hands from the prior song.

Tuesday, 08-21-07:       Studio LuLoo,     Haddon Township NJ         I played Carulli's "Allegretto" and Pink Floyd's "The Thin Ice."   This was my first performance at Studio LuLoo... but by no means my last.

Tuesday, 09-04-07:       Studio LuLoo,     Haddon Township NJ         I played Carcassi's "Etude in A minor" and my own original tune "Fear the Silence."   A funny note about this appearance, "Etude in A minor" was actually delivered in G minor, since I plucked the song out on my Oriskany baritone guitar, which was tuned down a whole step from "regular" guitar tuning.   A nice note about this performance, I recall that my friend Mr. Ron complimented me afterwards on "Fear the Silence," noting that he found the lyrics to be deep and that he dug them.

Friday, 10-05-07:       Cool Beans Coffee & Tea,     Bellefonte PA         I'm pretty sure I played Carulli's "Allegretto" and my "Variations on a Theme by Metallica."   I remember being very frustrated to have missed about half of the open mic due to car troubles earlier in the day.   Missing half of friend Jim Colbert's open mic was even more painful for me given that my prior attempt to attend his open mic -- on Friday February 16th -- had failed entirely due to a combination of winter storms and a truck crash shutting down four major Pennsylvania highways, in turn stretching a trip that should have taken no more than five hours, into an ordeal spanning nearly twelve hours.   Note to self:  Dude, next time you want to attend Jim's open mic, leave Jersey in the morning, EARLY in the morning!

Tuesday, 10-09-07:       Studio LuLoo,     Haddon Township NJ         I played just one tune, my own original song "E-Blue."   Notable about this appearance, LuLoo house guitarist Steve Goldstein played lead for me, at my request.   Steve is a great player and it was cool to have him contribute to one of my own tunes.

Tuesday, 10-23-07:       Studio LuLoo,     Haddon Township NJ         I played the John Henry Hopkins tune "We Three Kings" followed by Pink Floyd's "The Thin Ice."   I seem to recall having some vocal pitch issues on the start of "We Three Kings," but finding my way much better on "The Thin Ice."

Tuesday, 10-30-07:       Bus Stop,     Pitman NJ         I played Pink Floyd's "The Thin Ice," Carulli's "Allegretto," and the John Henry Hopkins tune "We Three Kings."   This was my first appearance at Bus Stop open mic in quite some time, and I found the experience very enjoyable.   Notable about this appearance, it was on this night that I met two nice fellow players, Will Bozarth and Chris Burke, for the first time.

Thursday, 11-01-07:       Barrington Coffee House,     Barrington NJ         For my first open mic appearance at BCH in a long LONG time, I played Pink Floyd's "The Thin Ice" and the John Henry Hopkins tune "We Three Kings."   I recall that this was a strong performance, and a well-received performance.   Thanks to host and new owner Scott Trifeletti for welcoming me back to the house.

Thursday, 11-15-07:       Barrington Coffee House,     Barrington NJ         I played "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," and my medley of Pink Floyd's "Vera" and "Is There Anybody Out There."   Notable about this performance is how badly I crashed and burned on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," in contrast with how well I then succeeded on the follow-up piece.   With "God Rest Ye," the audience seemed disinterested from the start, and that disinterest probably added further to my nervousness given the difficulty level of the song over the other Christmas classic in my repertiore, "We Three Kings."   I limped through "God Rest Ye" -- at one point I blatantly stopped it, and restarted it, but never really hit my stride with it -- and then, wanting badly to redeem myself for my second number, went to my go-to-in-a-bind material: Pink Floyd.   And redeem myself I did; from the first sung note, I had the room at attention, and I held them all the way through "Is There Anybody Out There," including my recently extended solo section which wasn't in Floyd's composition.   Note to self:  Next time, dude, start with the Floyd!

Saturday, 11-24-07:       Coffee Garden,     Audubon NJ         For my first performance at Coffee Garden open mic I played Carulli's "Allegretto," Carcassi's "Etude in A minor," Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues," and Bruce Springsteen's "State Trooper."   Since I was playing my baritone guitar that night, "Etude in A minor" was once again delivered in G minor.   At my request, talented friend Johnny Elliott sat in to play lead guitar on "Folsom" and "Trooper."