2020/10/17
Three soccer games + three basketball games + two concerts = perfect fall weekend.
Secret Sound w/ guests Bill Bonacci & Joe Boris @ Asbury Elks
Knowing that we had a busy sports weekend with the kids, I had no intention of going to this or any other show this weekend but woke up on a sunny autumn day with no plans and no good reason not to make any. Add four o’clock shows to the list of things I love about the New Normal, this one was tailor made for a jam packed family day. A local gig at the now familiar Asbury Elks Lodge, this one featured Secret Sound, a local band with a funk-sided lean that I’d be seeing for the first time. Joined by guests Bill Bonacci (guitar/vocals) of Stella Blues Band, Waynard Scheller (keyboards) of Rainbow Full of Sound, and Joe Boris (mandolin) of One-Eyed Jacks, the Jersey Shore provided another day of delightful Dead tunes, this time colored by the funky flare of Kevin Hill and Secret Sound. Shoutouts also to the rhythm section of Dave Ferrara (bass) and Brett Smith (drums) who may or may not be in Secret Sound but a cursory Google search revealed no band website or any other discernible way for me to verify this information (tsk, tsk).
I started my day on the hill, sitting with a group of friends and soaking up the day’s last rays as “I Shall Be Released” began. “Oh The Wind and Rain” followed and then “Ramble On Rose”, all three of which may or may not have been good. Although I wasn’t up front as per usual, something was off about the sound so I got up to dance and investigate and sure enough, the PA was off. Wait, what?!? I let the band know and they got it squared away pretty quickly so halfway through the “Ramble on Rose” things started to look up.
In almost all cases, I prefer the Jerry Garcia version of everything. No love lost, however, for Bob Dylan or the countless other artists covered with regularity by the fat man. Yet, there are a few originals that are as good or better than Garcia’s version and Little Milton’s “That’s What Love Will Make You Do” falls in that category. On the heels of Bonacci’s eerily similar Garcia-esque tone and Hill’s propensity for funk, yesterday’s version played homage to both versions and stands up as one of the first set’s highlights. “China Cat Sunflower” was good enough to engage and even though I distinctly heard “I Know You Rider” jams, this was the second “China Cat” in three days that ended somewhere other than “Rider” as the jam took a hard right into “Going Down The Road Feeling Bad”.
“Tore Up” was a real slobberknocker, but what could have been the song of the day had its flow interrupted when Hill saw fit to petition the audience if anyone wanted to come on stage and share a good breakup story. I get it, a story about lost love, but I just don’t ever need to see that in the middle of a killer fucking song! After several moments of bad stories, there was a glorious finish that was completely lost on me as I had already disengaged to take a pee and took the rest of the set from my chair. Too bad, that was a really good song squandered.
As second sets are wont to do, this one had some serious fire including my third “Shakedown Street” in eight days. A real heater even if they botched the climax, I thought I heard some “Simple” teases from Ferrara’s bass while Scheller’s keys added some unique funk to the stew, just as they did all night long. Things were getting good as the band detoured through James Brown’s “Papa Don’t Take No Mess” before a tight segue into “Help On the Way”. This shit got nuts before it, too, took an unexpected turn, this time ditching the “Slipknot” > “Franklins” for “After Midnight” > “Eleanor Rigby” > “After Midnight” and then back into “Help”. Okay, that was legit and highly worthy of the day’s highlight reel.
Hill then queried his mates, “What should we play next?” and drummer Brett Smith suggested “Chalkdust Torture”. I did all I could to coax it out of them but Hill just wasn’t having it as a smoking hot “Loose Lucy” ensued. “Folsom Prison Blues” preceded a ridiculous bass-led “Feel Like A Stranger” that featured some of the best crowd dancing I’ve seen in quite some time, maybe ever — thank you, Isaiah! Scarlet Begonias” > “Johnny B. Goode” wrapped up a pretty great afternoon and early evening close to home as the Jersey shore just continues to deliver. With the exception of a particular ten day stretch last year that featured shows by Grateful Shred, Melvin Seals & JGB, two turns with Bob Weir & Wolf Bros., JRAD, and Cosmic (yeah, that was a good run), I don’t think I’ve seen this much live Dead since the summer of ‘95.
13,980 steps that weren’t on the schedule when I woke up and I still got home by 8:15. Whoop. Overall, it was a great show and I’d like to see a little more of some of these guys.
Setlist …
Set One: I Shall Be Released, Oh The Wind and Rain, Ramble On Rose, That’s What Love Will Make You Do, China Cat Sunflower > Goin’ Down the Road Feeling Bad, Tore Up
Set Two: China Doll, Shakedown > Papa Don’t Take No Mess > Help On The Way > After Midnight > Eleanor Rigby > After Midnight > Help On The Way, Loose Lucy, Folsom Prison Blues, Feel Like A Stranger, Scarlet Begonias > Johnny B. Goode
2020/10/18 Mike Jaskewicz, Fall Jamboree @ Allaire State Park, Wall, NJ
On Sunday morning after only my second yoga session in five months, schedules collaborated to allow me to sneak over to Allaire State Park between youth soccer games for a forty-five minute acoustic set by Mike Jaskewicz. I seriously can’t imagine a better fall weekend than the one I had. I literally had no plans to see music all weekend and ended up with two local shows, one at 11:00 am (!) and another at 4:00 in the afternoon. I’m not happy about anything Covid-related but I have accepted this new (hopefully temporary) reality and all its silver linings. Add daylight shows that start on time to the mix!
Arriving just as the National Anthem kicked off the day’s festivities, I settled in with Mike’s family and a small crew of loyal friends as the set opened with the live debut of “Just A Dream”. The rest of the set would feature five of eight songs on Crooked Tree, Jaskewicz’ first album that was released just last week.
A simple sun soaked stage surrounded by woods, grassy plains, and the occasional train horn, I get the feeling sets like this will figure heavily in Jaskewicz’ future. If you’ve had the chance to meet Mike or maybe just to listen to the words of his songs, then you know that this is a guy who trusts his path. Literally standing in front of a Crooked Tree, there couldn’t have been a more idyllic setting for this singer-songwriter on a creative bender that has been turning out songs at a pace rivalling the clip at which autumn trees shed their leaves. Look no further for proof of his creative binge than the fact that “Stars In Your Eyes”, the penultimate song in the set, was literally written the previous night.
It felt really good to lie in the grass and take it all in.
Setlist …
Just A Dream, What Am I, Say Goodbye, War That Can’t Be Won, Slow Burn, Crooked Tree, Stars In Your Eyes, Falling In Your Eyes