i haven't broken a string during a gig in years. that is until these last two gigs.

i broke my third string in the middle of 'just like you' in sacramento and again at uncommon ground in chicago this past friday night during 'long island sound.' in sacramento it was in the middle of the set and i managed to change it whilst singing leonard cohen's 'halleluja' as phil putnam (www.philputnam.com) accompanied me on his piano. in chicago we were at the end of the set and we ended up closing with 'captain sutter' sans guitar (so, just congas and violin) it ended up being pretty rad, though i don't think i'll set out to do that again anytime soon.

busting a string is never the end of the world, but it sure changes the axis a bit. when it happens the tension of the neck changes and the entire intonation of the guitar and remaining set of strings is slightly off and everything goes out of tune. you're thrown off, the song is thrown off and it sucks.

right after college i played in a duo for a glimpse of a moment with a chap named brian mcknight (i can't find his music myspace, but i'll add it later.) and he had a theory that i now subscribe to that you only really break strings in performance when something isn't right. you're either nervous or ill at ease in some way and the symbiotic relationship with your instrument is broken. it's almost the instrument's way of telling you that you're not treating it quite right.

had it not happened during back to back gigs i wouldn't be writing this. but as it has, i'm slightly unnerved by it. and i'm going to have to get to the bottom of it.

This is what's in my iTunes playlist this month:

Meaning - Gavin DeGraw (Chariot Stripped Version)
Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones
If I Had A Boat - Lyle Lovett
Snow (Hey Oh) - Red Hot Chili Peppers
One Man Wrecking Machine - Guster
Hollywood Chain Gang (Live) - Tony Lucca
Cannonball - Damien Rice
Beautiful World - Colin Hay
God Gave Me Everything - Mick Jagger
Good Vibrations - Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch*
Resurrection - Common
The Question - Common & Mos Def
Got - Mos Def
Everything I Have Means Nothing To Me Now - Bob Schneider
Laid - James
Hide and Seek - Imogen Heap
I'll Fix You (Live) - Coldplay
Cruz - Christina Aguilera
Killer Queen - Queen
Tangerine Speedo - Caviar
Cry Me A River - Justin Timberlake
Bullets - Bob Schneider
Omaha - Counting Crows
Sorry I Am - Ani DiFranco

* Don't judge! The rhythm is his occupation!

Friday morning, February 16th, 2007.

I took La Cienega to LAX from Valley Village to pick up my friend/navigator/roadie, Alex on our way up north to Sacramento for the gig at The Fox & Goose. All is well, except that Alex's flight, like mine, left Chicago at 6am and he, unlike me, had chosen not to sleep the night before. So Alex already has a solid 30 hours of awake time under his belt. Which we felt was a strong foundation for ensuing hijinks and ballyhoo. We were off.

We tore out of Los Angeles via the 405 (and by 'tore' I mean inching along at a scorching 15 mph in Friday morning traffic) and made our first stop in the lovely town of Gorman, California where there exists a Carl's Jr., a lovely looking establishment with the name of 'Brian's Diner' and from all we could tell, that was it. We went with CJ's as it's fine nostalgia from our California upbringing and they don't have it in the Midwest. (They have Hardee's but it's not the same) I ate too much.

After Gorman we continued on up I5 for a few more hours until we came to Harris Ranch and the universally accepted halfway point between LA and Sacramento. The Harris Ranch Inn is known for its steak. And it gets its steak because the ranch itself is home to more cows in one location than you will see anywhere else (250,000). I would also like to point out that it is also more cows than you will SMELL anywhere else. Should you find yourself taking this stretch of I5 an any point in your travels, here's a handy travel tip for you: switch your vents to 'recirc' as soon as you catch a glimpse of the Harris Ranch on the horizon and don't switch back until you see signs for Fresno. Your olfactory senses with thank you.

We stopped for gas in Diablo Hills, which was just weird. There really isn't a better way to describe it except weird. (The weirdest part: on the drive back. Diablo Hills wasn't there. No lie. Weird...) (additionally, I don't actually know if this ghost town was called Diablo Hills or Diablo Dunes or what...I couldn't confirm it on a map later because again, it's not there... the gas station itself wouldn't let me use an ATM or credit card so I don't even have the proper receipt or digital record of the transaction...weird.)

We pulled into Sacramento in good time. Checked into our hotel (our room had a lovely view of downtown Sacto including one of the most interesting attractions in the city, The Crest Theater) and had some refreshments in the lobby bar with Alex's sister. After Alex and she went off to dinner, I made my way upstairs to gather my gear for the show, then it was off to the Fox & Goose to meet up with Phil Putnam, an old friend from high school who is now nurturing a budding career as a singer/songwriter in Sacramento and San Francisco.

The Fox & Goose is a fine establishment. The sound was great and the room was incredibly friendly (and they boast a tasty menu of scotch's and fine beers, including Young's Chocolate Stout). So many people I hadn't seen in years, some in over a decade, made it out and gave a hugely warm reception for both Phil and I. Phil laid out an awesome set and then I had a wonderful time playing my first gig in my hometown since moving to Chicago in 1995. It could not have been better.

(See the entry about breaking strings for an interesting anecdote from this show)

The next morning Alex and I got an early start and for good reason. After a wrong turn near Fairfield, CA and a subsequent stop at Fairfield’s BK Lounge, (and Alex's first experience vomiting out of a moving car...) Alex and I found ourselves in two and a half hours of traffic from Oakland to the bay bridge. Slow enough to drive a man crazy and we were nearly driven so. Luckily we had Hilary Duff's Most Wanted record on repeat to get us through it... No lie. Pop music elitists we are not.

After finding our hotel on the embarcadero we suited up for our old friend T-Bone's wedding. T-Bone pulled out all the stops, not only did she have Blue Label on the menu, but she hired The Cheeseballs as the wedding band. "Northern California’s best 70's, 80's, 90's and beyond cover band." As weddings go, this was an awesome party!

Sunday morning we took the 101 south out of san fran until we got to Morgan Hill where we found a very fine little breakfast place by the name of Denny's. I had something called the all-american slam breakfast and Alex enjoyed a bowl of vanilla ice cream and sides of bacon and sausage. Yum!

We cut over the hills through Gilroy (the garlic capital of California, nay the world!) to get back to I5 as taking 101 all the way back down to LA didn't seem too practical.

After a couple more days in LA (including an INSANE evening parting at the Knitting Factory which will need to wait for another entry) Alex and I boarded our flight back to the Midwest and a plunge in temperature. I have to assess that after a little over a week, three great shows, and a little over 1200 miles, my first California mini-tour was a success. I can't wait to do it all over again in 2008.