Spring hasn't quite committed to the Tri-Valley yet, and neither have the businesses of Blacksmith Square committed to outdoor performances.
It was my second visit to an open mic at Swirl on the Square, and gas-powered flames on the brick plaza were leaping in wind-blown gusts of welcome heat, but open mic goers weren't having it. A bustle of guitar cases maneuvered through the door of Swirl on the Square, where Gabe Duffin was setting up his sound system indoors, under Swirl on the Square's front window.
As per the last time, Gabe Duffin's house band was setting up to kick things off: Alex Upper on rhythm guitar, Biff Schaffer on cajon, and Brad Herbert on bass guitar.
It's certainly true that some songs get played more often than others, and there are times when that can feel tedious — but when Gabe's nylon-string melody came in over the band's very serviceable acoustic version of "Hotel California," I felt a smile pull at the corners of my mouth and contentedly settled into singing along with the rest of the room.
Music, even songs we have heard innumerable times, often has a way of surprising us, again and again.
The band's next two songs managed the same trick with similarly familiar material: "Stand By Me" and then "Any Day Now."
The second slot was yours truly. Feeling a healthy set of lungs, I belted out the Lightholder Soul Band song "Think of You," followed by an older rockabilly tune of mine, "Right or Wrong," then dipped deep into the archive for "Fascination Blind."
As I stepped offstage, a recently familiar face greeted me on his way up: it was Todd Tramblie! Just over 48 hours earlier we'd met each other at the Bazaar Cafe Thursday Open Mic in the city — what I hadn't learned at the time is that we're both Fremont boys.
Todd's first song had a line that stuck with me: "Once upon a time my mom told me, 'Don't try to please everybody.'" He followed it by inviting Brad back up on bass and Gabe Duffin on lead to help out with "Unchained Melody" and then "God Knows Why" by Kid Rock.
James Coon greeted the crowd with some stories from his recent travels: "I just returned from three weeks in Europe and got to play a little place right by the Thames…man." He took a moment to reflect before putting his twelve-string guitar to task in a punk-inflected original, "Ain't Gonna Promise You More." James made good use of Biff on cajon for his first two songs, but the last settled into a nice 6/8 for a sentimental solo piece whose title I didn't catch.
Up next was the Tri-Valley's biggest Gram Parsons fan and renowned mixer of cocktails: Bob Boice.
He kicked things off with "Asleep at the Wheel," followed by "Hickory Wind," and finished with Rosanne Cash's "My Baby Thinks She's a Train."
Nadia was up next, backed by Steve Faria. "I've done this song here before, 'The Motel Song,'" she began, before finger-picking her way into the familiar opening:
"It's like I told you: only the lonely can play."
Her next song was a sultry interpretation of "Spooky."
Biff and bassist Mike Gordon then joined Steve and Nadia to romp through their final number: The Who's "Magic Bus."
A couple took the stage next. The woman made the introductions: "I'm Jeanine, this is Mark, and together we're 'J & Me.'" Their first piece was Tom Waits' "The Heart of Saturday Night," which filled the room with lovely dynamic drops and Mark's excellent five-finger work keeping things moving. The song was so well received that a voice rang out over the applause: "That's it — I'm quittin' the business!"
The couple's next was Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind," and they finished with a sassy blues number.
Local hero Frankie Bones was up next, saying, "I hate following those good acts!" His first was Lyle Lovett's 1988 classic "If I Had a Boat," and the receptive crowd sang along:
"We could all together Go out on the ocean, Me upon my pony on my boat."
"I didn't know much about the Grateful Dead until I met my wife."
"I did that!" crowed Chessa from the back of the room.
Grinning, Frankie replied, "So this is one Jerry Garcia did — it's called 'The Deal.'" Frankie's final song was an original: "She's Trouble and Blues."
John Robertson was up next. "When Buddy Holly died, they went into his room and found tapes of what he was working on…and did a horrible job with them, burying everything in overdubs. In any case, this is his — it's called 'Learning the Game.'"
As that finished, John said: "This is an original I wrote — I guess it's a drinking song, but it's more about depression. It's called 'Irish Whiskey Blues.'" As the last chord of that clever tune faded, he set up his next song with a grin:
"I like to say I wrote this one in 1937 with Robert Johnson — his name is Robert Johnson and mine is John Roberts," before swinging into the blues-inflected "Irresistible Charm."
Brian McMillin took the stage next and announced his set with a note of meta-awareness: "This is a cover of a cover." He then played Bon Jovi's "It's My Life," followed by Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams."
Ray Gordon took the mic next to deliver Gordon Lightfoot's "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" and Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" — a pairing that covered more nautical distance and more philosophical ground than anyone had a right to expect from a single open mic slot.
Harmonica player Dirty Dug was the last performer on the list. Gabe Duffin picked up his cerulean Telecaster, Brad grabbed his bass, and with Biff back on the cajon, Dug leaned into his harmonica and vocals to deliver a gritty little set of blues numbers to cap off the afternoon.
But not so fast: "We got a late comer," Gabe called over the mic. "Elle!"
I had met Elle at the Pinot's open mic a month or two earlier and was excited to hear her play again. "This is a song for anyone who's ever had someone destructive in their life and just wanted to change them," she said — before playing "Let It Go" and following with "Love Is Bigger Than Blood."
Before things truly came to a close, Gabe Duffin called me up to sing "a good Irish song." I did my best to back him up — and more specifically to crack him up — on "Dirty Old Town," which was good fun. (Gabe completely lost it when I meowed into the mic at one point.)
The Swirl Acoustic Open Mic w/Gabe Duffin is a warm, welcoming afternoon of music anchored by a tight house band and a host who clearly loves what he does. Whether Spring decides to show up for the outdoor version or not, it's worth a trip to Blacksmith Square.
Click on any photo in this post to see the full, uncropped version.
