The Tractor Tavern in Seattle is a great venue – great atmosphere, great sound, great staff. Many of our favorite bands have played there. We played at the Tractor in 2005 with Baby Gramps and the Kitchen Syncopators. We were so happy to be back.
I’ve said this before, but one of my favorite things about being in a touring band is playing with other awesome bands I might not otherwise get a chance to hear. We shared the evening with two such bands – The ‘Verb and Marshall Scott Warner.
The ‘Verb played instrumental surf rock, dressed in suits and shredded their instruments. Marshall Scott Warner is “the singing drummer”, and he and his band played some of the best original rockabilly I’ve heard. Since we have elements of surf rock and rockabilly in our sound, we fit into the line-up well.
There was a terrific crowd there, especially for a Tuesday night. We had some good friends show up – Laura and Diane (who are currently living in Seattle), my friend Lisa Shoemaker, her dad and her sister Laura. Lisa has been traveling the world for a year, exploring textiles in other countries. She had just gotten in from Japan the day before! I had no idea she’d be there. Laura Shoemaker lives in Seattle. Their dad lives in Mills River, NC. It sure was a treat to have sweet people we know at the show.
We really enjoyed playing. People danced. My voice was mostly back, so I was able to sing. The experience of being sick on this tour has gave me the opportunity to be grateful for things I normally take for granted, like being able to sing. I am so glad that I am better! And I am glad to be on a sunny summer tour on the west coast. We couldn’t have asked for a better gig to start it off with.
