Narcotics Anonymous World Convention, San Antonio

Four days later, I'm still buzzed (forgive the crass metaphor, I'm talking about a natural high) about our show at the 32nd World Convention of Narcotics Anonymous in San Antonio, TX last Thursday night. We played for a huge crowd of amazingly attentive, positive people who were there to celebrate their liberation from drug addiction, and the energy that came back to us from the audience was like nothing I've ever experienced before. To give an example, we played "Funky Like Dyke" from East End Avenue, and there's a part in the song where I try to coax the crowd to sing the chorus with us by singing "I want to get" and then holding the mike out to the crowd for them to yell, "funky!!!" It usually takes a few times for me to do this before the crowd gets the idea. But in San Antonio, they practically knocked me over the first time I held the mike out to them. Amazing.

We opened for a group that has to be among the greatest live bands I've ever seen, Ozomatli. They play an infectious and creative mix of lots of styles--reggae, hip-hop, R&B, and salsa--but their real forte is live performance. If they are ever anywhere near you, don't miss them.


We had some help on this one from some good friends. Tony Janflone, Jr., who used to live in San Antonio, played guitar with us. I've admired Tony's guitar playing for a long time, and I've helped Tony out a few times with a benefit he does every year for the Fraternal Order of Police in Washington, PA. We had been looking for an opportunity to do a gig together with my band for a while, and when Lenny opted out of this one, it seemed like a perfect match. I'm glad Tony was able to join us. Anyone who has ever heard Tony play won't be surprised to hear that he was on fire during the entire set. Here's a photo of Tony with his lovely wife Kay:

Dave Dodd wasn't able to take all the necessary time off from work, so we had Tony's drummer, Jack Mrozowski, play drums with us. And the groove was definitely there! Here's a photo of me and Jack before the show discussing the nutritional composition of the Oreos he is holding in his left hand:

Joe Herndon also did not think it prudent to travel to San Antonio within a week of Sofia's due date, so Jamie Moore played trumpet with us. Here's Jamie with Jimmy Britton and Eric DeFade.


Good pictures, eh? Jimmy's brother, who lives in San Antonio, took them. Here are some more:

Jimmy and Paul Thompson (bass)

Me with my road manager/sound man/spiritual advisor Pete "Timothy" Leary

Me at sound check with da horns. That's Rick Matt on the left.

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New Article in Valley News Dispatch

Rex Rutkoski wrote a great article previewing yesterday's Labor United Celebration concert in Apollo, PA. The article requires registration, but the form is simple to fill out.

I prefer doing interviews these days because they're now usually conducted by email. This prevents misquotes, which used to drive me crazy, and it also enables me to be more thoughtful about my answers to questions.

Rex is a real pro who has been writing about me for about 30 years. Really...

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