Saturday, August 13, 2011
Roswell Coffeehouse
Roswell, GA
Roswell Coffeehouse was a bit of a haul but it proved to be very much worth it. This was a really cool lil coffeehouse just off of 400 in Roswell with huge and gorgeous outdoor stage with plenty of room and electricity. I was floored when I got there. I got my stuff unpacked, set up and was brought a delicious cup of coffee by the barista. One of the odd things about this gig was that there was nobody present that I knew before this night except for my lovely wife. This was a very much intentional move on my part though.
I didn’t tell anyone about this show because in all honesty, I just wanted to put myself back where I sometimes feel the most challenged and that’s to try and win over an audience of people I don’t know. In all honesty, it took me about 3 songs to get into my groove because after 2 or 3 songs, nobody seemed to even see that I was there. All it took to change things up was a dirty look from my wife to play with some gusto and for me to remember just why I do this. All of the sudden I felt a surge of energy (maybe it was the 2 coffees) and all of the sudden people started looking up. They clapped and laughed at my stories, left tips and even took a bunch of my free download cards for my album. I felt like I was engaging them and giving them a good show. This was also the first time in ages that I had to do a “two set” show. This really gave me the opportunity to challenge myself by pulling out songs that I hadn’t played in forever and a day. Surprisingly songs like “Rainsville”, “Jennifer” and “Weather Worn Highways” felt really fun to play and sounded like I just played them a day or so before. This was what, in my opinion, made the show for me and made it a truly fun experience. It was like getting to see old friends again after not seeing them for a long time.
The night came to an end very quickly. It’s amazing how fast two hours goes by. I’m glad I had this opportunity to challenge myself yet I still feel that my focus is slipping. I’m not as engaged and focused on doing the solo stuff like I was. This is how I know that it’s time for a change. It’s time to shake things up and fall in love with my art all over again. More to come on that though. I have one more booked show for 2011 and then that’s it. For how long? Who knows but new adventures lie ahead for me. I can feel it.
