Travel – Page 18 – Keith Robertson

Week in Review – November 5, 2017

Lots of good music and entertainment this week.

It started with a nice surprise on Wednesday night when my friend Kevin invited me to join him at an event his company was hosting at ATT Stadium (home of the Dallas Cowboys). I wasn’t sure what to expect when I met up with Kevin at the Gaylord Texan hotel in Grapevine. Apparently the “Royal Treatment” is what I should have been expecting. Our bus had an escort of four police motorcyclists who sped us through busy traffic and intersections over to the stadium in record time. Upon arrival we were whisked up to one of the luxury boxes for a drink and pictures with the Cowboys cheerleaders. Then it was down to the field for dinner and an excellent concert by Aerosmith. We were supposed to have pictures taken with Steven Tyler but their flight was delayed and they had to go directly on stage. I heard all of my favorites from their catalog – Dream On, Walk This Way, and Sweet Emotion. It was a huge langiappe when the Cheerleaders joined the band onstage for “Walk This Way”. A very pleasant evening all around with the highlight being taking a picture with Emmitt Smith (running back for the Cowboys with three Superbowl rings) and Cheerleaders. Thanks for thinking of me Kevin!

On Friday we flew to Nashville for a weekend with Denny and Anne. Festivities got off to a great start with lunch at Pinewood Social which is an old building converted into a bowling alley and really excellent restaurant. It was a good scouting visit as we’re planning on visiting there for an evening when we have a work trip to Nashville later in the month.

A pleasant walk down the riverside took us to Broadway. This is the main street in Nashville for music clubs and bars. There are about 3 or 4 blocks which are solid music clubs enabling one to stroll along and stop into whichever place sounds best. I had met a guy at the Aerosmith event who gave me his favorites. We mostly followed his recommendations with one addition and that worked out very well. First up was the Acme feed store with a very pleasant rooftop bar looking over the river.

Rooftops seem very popular in Nashville – many places had them and a lot of the hotels had rooftop pools. Not sure I’d enjoy them in the heat of the summer but for our visit they were very pleasant. The unscheduled stop was at the Bootlegger’s Inn where the musician playing attracted us in. He did great covers of Chris Stapleton songs and a few Johnny Cash songs at Anne’s request. From there we went to a place called Nudie’s which is not what it sounds like – just another music bar with a high ceiling and an extended length Cadillac complete with cowhide seats and longhorns on the front grille mounted above the stage.

The evening entertainment was Anders Osborne and Jackie Greene at the City Winery. Two of my favorite singer songwriters in an excellent listening room environment. We enjoyed a couple of flatbreads for dinner after recovering from “the burning menu incident”. What happened you ask? Well, let’s see…one of our party placed a menu on top of a candle. What’s that burning smell we wondered? Root cause was identified just as an employee came sprinting towards us from the back of the venue. No harm done and a great way of introducing us to our neighbor, William “Billy” Robertson. It turns out Billy had enjoyed dinner at the Millhouse in Stewarton a few weeks previously and has a family home near Dunlop. What a very small world. For those of you not familiar with the Millhouse, it’s a restaurant and bar about a quarter of a mile from the house where I grew up in Stewarton, Scotland.

As we exchanged stories, I learned that Billy had also made a visit to Portpatrick, a small seaside village on the West coast of Scotland near Stranraer. We used to go there as a family on a regular basis when we had a caravan in Glenluce. I remember walking along the cliffs, looking at the lifeboats, and enjoying ice cream cones. Back to the music now. I had seen Jackie Greene several years ago in California and enjoyed his blues piano playing and so hoped he was going to have a piano in addition to his guitar. Turns out he had a very nice grand piano and sounded great on some of his classic songs. I believe Anders Osborne is best in a quiet setting on the acoustic guitar and really enjoyed his songs as well. Here are short videos of both and the encore of “Break Down” – another in the recent series of Tom Petty tributes.

Brunch on Saturday morning was at Husk and everyone enjoyed the meal and setting of the restaurant in an old Victorian house with its own herb and vegetable garden very much. The smoked trout deviled eggs were a definite stand out.

After brunch I made a quick trip to a mall to pick up some work clothes. I hadn’t planned on going from Nashville directly to New York for work and so had to do some emergency shopping. After that fun excursion I met back up with the crew, who had been through the Johnny Cash museum, on Broadway. We decided it was too busy and noisy for us old folks during the day and so headed to Jack White’s Third Man records where an album for Jack and Mason was purchased and from there to the rooftop bar at the Thompson hotel in the “Gulch” area that we had enjoyed on our previous visit.

The Butcher and Bee was our dinner destination and we tried a speakeasy style place for a drink before dinner. Rosemary is a lovely bar and patio in what looks like a small house at the end of a quiet street – all except for the large bouncer checking identification on the porch. I highly recommend Rosemary and the patio out back to anyone visiting Nashville. The walk to Butcher and Bee was the perfect length to finish working up our appetite. Food and drinks were very good with highlights being braised lamb and seabass dishes. The food came out in a somewhat random order with some entrees before some appetizers were ready and dessert after our coffees were finished but we enjoyed it nonetheless. The East Nashville neighborhood where these establishments are located seems to be a very up and coming part of town with a lot of great looking restaurants. It reminded me quite a bit of the Bishops Arts district of Oak Cliff in Dallas.

Sunday got off to a reasonably slow start and we all certainly enjoyed the extra hour gained from the clocks “falling back”. Anne suggested the Hillsboro Village neighborhood for brunch and so that’s where we headed. There were several places to choose from including Biscuit Love which always has a very long line and must be good. Some of our group weren’t feeling like standing in a line and were ready to eat so we opted for Jackson’s and a decent brunch. Part of the strategy in selecting this area near Vanderbilt University was a potential trip to the Parthenon. Timing didn’t work out but a very kind Uber driver gave us a tour of Centennial Park on our way back to the hotel. The Parthenon is a full scale replica of the Athenian original and was created for the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exhibition. It includes a 42 foot tall statue of Athena just as in the original. The park housing all of this seems to have a lot to offer with amphitheaters, Shakespeare in the Park, art exhibits, dancing classes and lots of open space for other activities.

As the time for airport runs loomed closer, Anne did some gift shopping and the rest of us relaxed watching the Saints football game. I made the first airport trip for my 4pm flight but shouldn’t have bothered as it was close to 7pm before it left due to air traffic weather delays in New York. This did allow me to watch most of the Cowboys versus Atlanta Falcons. How did that finish up, you ask? Well…with another excellent Cowboys win over a team with a great record. It wasn’t too late when I arrived at my New York hotel and as I reflected on the weekend I was yet again amazed at how much fun and action ends up getting packed into a weekend with the Ogans.

This piece of art from the hotel room sums up my thoughts on the weekend and music very nicely. Tennessee Williams was spot on I think.

I have a couple of langiappes if you made it this far this week. A pretty view of the fall colors as we arrived in Nashville and a video from the Aerosmith concert of “Dream On” with Tyler and Perry posing on top of the white grand piano.

Week in Review – October 29, 2017

The highlight this week was a weekend in San Diego to visit Campbell and hang out with Kris and Cat who were celebrating Kristina’s birthday. We arrived on Friday afternoon and relaxed by the pool with books until Kris and Cat arrived. Dinner was at Seersucker in the Gaslamp district and it was fun to observe all the folks out enjoying the evening in their Halloween costumes. The fantastic Whiskey House was an after dinner drink stop on the way back to the hotel. Kristina had quite a time selecting a scotch from the extensive menu of over 1,000 choices.

The afternoon on Saturday was spent exploring the Pacific Beach area. A quick google search of “Best beach bars in San Diego” led us to the Lahaina Beach House which had a great patio right by the boardwalk with great views of the beach and the ocean. Again we enjoyed the people watching of folks with crazy Halloween costumes on for an early Saturday afternoon drink. A ramble along the boardwalk continued to provide entertaining sights including a gaggle of roller blading “Ducks” from Oregon. We laughed as the last rollerblader bringing up the rear had “Robertson” on the back of his jersey. There were several beach cottages and hotels along the boardwalk that we noted for future visits. After a snack at the Firehouse restaurant it was time to head back to the hotel to meet up with Campbell and Molly. The Firehouse food was very good with oysters, char-grilled Brussel sprouts and an excellent ceviche.

The perfect bite – ceviche and char-grilled brussels

Campbell and Molly met us for a very enjoyable dinner at Roy’s which backs up to the Marriott hotel pool on the marina side. We sat outside and enjoyed the gorgeous evening weather and views of the marina. I had the San Diego sea bass and Diana the shellfish combination. Everyone seemed to enjoy their food very much. Campbell and Molly headed off to celebrate Halloween with friends and we made a trip to the Nolen rooftop bar in the Gaslamp district. This was a very fancy rooftop with great views of downtown San Diego and again lots of Halloween costumes.

Sunday morning brunch was planned at World Famous in Pacific Beach which Will recommended as having excellent lobster Benedict. Shortly before departure they called to say that their block was having a power outage and they wouldn’t be able to do breakfast. Plan B was the Harbor breakfast restaurant in Little Italy and it was a very well received alternative. Diana had the lobster Benedict and I had a spicy Italian sausage omelet (when in Rome and all). After brunch Campbell was able to introduce Molly to his Granny and Grandpa over facetime.

Kris and Cat headed to the airport and Diana and I watched the first half of the Cowboys game at the pool bar and then did the same. We watched most of the remainder of the game in the airport lounge and then got the final victory score on the plane right before takeoff – a 33 to 19 win over the division rival Washington Redskins.

On the music front, we lost Fats Domino this week at the age of 89. Fats and Louis Armstrong were responsible for putting New Orleans so firmly on the world musical map. Here’s a performance he did at the New Orleans jazzfest in 2001 that sums up everything that’s so amazing about that festival.

I can remember first hearing Fats Domino on the jukebox at the student union on the Heriot Watt Riccarton campus in 1981. Somebody in that student union really liked “Blueberry Hill” because I don’t remember a time that I was in there when it didn’t eventually come on the jukebox. It’s amazing how many huge hits Domino had in the early fifties. Here’s my favorite. That’s Herb Hardesty with the excellent saxophone part – we saw him perform with Dr. John at Tipitina’s just before his passing last Christmas.

My current book is too fat to travel with so I started “Dirt Road” by James Kelman, who was born and lives in Glasgow but has taught at both the University of TX in Austin and at San Jose State University. The book follows the travels of a Scottish father and son who go to visit the father’s brother in Mississippi. I’m really enjoying the tale so far and particularly the son’s descriptions of the American musical styles he encounters. There’s a great scene where he joins in on accordion with a Zydeco band and plays Scottish jigs for the Louisiana crowd.

McD gave me a gift of the new Tom Hanks book, “Uncommon Type”, this week. I haven’t started it but chuckled at the continuing antique typewriter theme. The reviews are very good and I’m looking forward to pulling this one out of my growing “to be read” stack.

Here’s the langiappe for this week if you made it this far:

Q: What do you call the combination of a Scotsman and an Italian?

A: A scallion

Just the kind of silly joke that I enjoy and courtesy of Cat in San Diego.

Week in Review – October 8, 2017

I’m quite late with this posting as some of my free time this week was spent helping with this high school project for Advanced Placement Government:

“The essay should address the historical evolution of the two major parties, changing viewpoints, and targeted voters by demographic (Age, Income, Education, Gender, Race, etc.). Also, you should include each party’s position on the following topics: abortion, social security, the economy, gun control, immigration, gay rights, and health care. Be sure to address the geographic nuances within the party. You will find that in some cases, there are differing views even within the party.”

I learned quite a bit in the process including that the original Democratic Party had conservative views and the original Republican Party was the liberal one. Their positions started to flip in the late 1800s. Now back to the update on activities and highlights from last week.

Tuesday through Friday were spent in New York in a workshop with Microsoft at our Wall St office. On the flight to New York I read an interesting article in the American Way magazine about new restaurants in the Finnieston region of Glasgow, “Glasgow moves beyond haggis and deep-fried pizza, Finnieston is revitalizing the Scottish city’s culinary reputation”. The pictures of the food, particularly from “The Gannet”, looked very good but I do take umbrage with the implication of the title of the article that Glasgow hasn’t had some excellent restaurants for many years now.

https://americanwaymagazine.com/glasgow-moves-beyond-haggis-and-deep-fried-pizza

The movie “Baby Boss” provided some excellent light entertainment on the flight. Something about the combination of a baby in a suit and Alec Baldwin’s voice had me laughing a lot.

On Tuesday evening I made a return visit to Birdland to see Ron Carter’s Great Big Band. This was a 17 piece big band that sounded excellent. Ron Carter is 80 years old and looks and carries himself like a man 20 years younger. His dexterity on the double bass at his age is phenomenal as demonstrated in this short video.

Carter has played on more than 2,000 albums including my favourite Miles Davis recordings and with Cannonball Adderley, Bill Evans, B.B. King, and Dexter Gordon. The song I enjoyed the most was “Caravan” by Duke Ellington. It evokes a picture of a line of camels crossing the Sahara desert and arriving in a town bazaar with snake charmers and the like.

Here’s another short video with the great Freddie Hendrix on trumpet.

The trombones in the big band had a gorgeous lush legato tone that blended with the rest of the band beautifully. They made me think of a concert by Don Lusher that I saw in Kilmarnock many years ago and his gimmicky tune “The Typewriter”. I found a video of it and teased McD with it since she had enjoyed the “California Typewriter” movie so much a few weeks ago.

Wednesday evening brought a rare treat – a night out with my friends Ron and Tim. Tim and I used to work with Ron and hadn’t seen him in a couple of years (other than on FaceTime during our irregular “strategy sessions”). Tim had suggested to Ron a couple of days before my visit that he join us in New York and by some magic Ron was able to pull off a trip from Los Angeles in very short order. We met at Jim Brady’s Pub and I enjoyed a very good shepherd’s pie. Ron and I then reminisced with a wander through some of our old haunts from a few years ago. What a pleasant evening catching up!

Bruce Springsteen just started a 4 month run on Broadway with a one man show creatively titled “Springsteen on Broadway”. It’s presented in a very small theater with just Bruce, a guitar, and a piano and includes a lot of storytelling about his life and song inspirations. It was preview week when I was there and I strongly considered trying to attend. I waited until an hour before show time and ticket prices hadn’t quite fallen into what I deemed an affordable range. Maybe on my next visit they’ll be more reasonable but I don’t hold out a lot of hope.

Plan B for Thursday night was a visit to the City Winery to hear Joshua Davis. We first visited a City Winery in Nashville and thought it was a great venue. The New York incarnation is a bit different with a more open feel with windows to the street and a smaller menu. The wine list, menu, seating and sound were all excellent. We had seen Joshua Davis on “The Voice” and enjoyed his laid back vocal style. Here’s his blind audition with a great song choice:

I forgot to mention that I was looking to have a drink before the concert and did my usual Yelp – Nearby Bars and Restaurants routine. The closest was a cocktail bar that sounded really good and I started walking in that direction. On arrival I realized this great sounding place was housed in a hotel owned by our senescent twitter troll who poses as a national leader. Did a quick about face and found a much less pompous place on the corner that was playing “Simple Man” at loud volume – much better.

I enjoyed the show and particularly his tribute to Tom Petty who had passed away unexpectedly a few days earlier. Here’s Joshua’s cover of “Time to Move on” from Petty’s excellent Wildflowers album.

Thinking of Tom Petty took me back to listening to his “Southern Accents” album in our flat in the Meadows region of Edinburgh while studying for final exams in the spring of 1985. I couldn’t get enough of the wah-wah guitar riff in “Don’t Come Around Here No More”. We were fortunate to see him at the New Orleans jazzfest a few years ago and enjoyed a rundown of the greatest hits with some interesting covers including “Traveling Light” by J.J. Cale. It must have been a good cover if my aging brain cells have retained the memory this long.

Diana’s foot is healing a bit but she still can’t walk very far and certainly not downhill. To get her out of the house for a while after my New York absence we had “Coffee, Crossword, and Quiche with Keith” at Filtered coffee in downtown McKinney. I should mention that McD beat me on the crossword two days in a row this week – completely unacceptable.

Cole Beasley – star of the game with 2 touchdowns

Sunday started well with a delicious brunch at Zin Zen – they started weekend brunch recently and we hadn’t tried it. The omelet and breakfast pizza with fried eggs and sausage were both very good. I plopped down on the couch after that to enjoy the Cowboys and Packers football game. The first 58 minutes of the game were good from a Cowboys fan perspective but the last 2 minutes were very annoying as Aaron Rogers marched his team down the field for a winning touchdown. Our defense made it way too easy for him with Sean Lee (star middle linebacker and captain) out injured.

Week in review – September 10, 2017

Tuesday through Thursday of this week was spent in New York in meetings with Microsoft. Their offices are next to Times Square which is filled with hustle and bustle at all hours of the day and night. The view from the conference room included the New York Times building and huge TV screens with advertisements and breaking news – quite distracting. I stayed at a hotel called The Sanctuary which is at 47^th Street and 8^th Avenue – half a block off Times Square but a quiet and modern boutique hotel which was a nice find.

On Tuesday night I made a repeat visit to Birdland jazz club having enjoyed it so much a few weeks ago. I enjoyed the NYT crossword before the show and a nice dinner during.

The music was by the Steve Kuhn trio which featured Steve Kuhn on piano, Steve Swallow on bass, and Joey Baron on drums. Steve Kuhn made his initial name playing piano with jazz legends like John Coltrane, Stan Getz, and Chet Baker. Steve Swallow is a wizard on the bass and a very well respected jazz composer. He has played in the Stan Getz and John Scofield bands. Joey Baron is one of my favorite jazz drummers – he brings a huge positive energy and excitement to his nuanced playing and is always completely in tune with the other personnel in the ensemble. I saw him play with Bill Frisell at the Blue Note a couple of years ago for the first time and was very impressed.

Here are a couple of videos of the show that highlight Steve Swallow and Joey Baron’s skills.

Wednesday was a full day of meetings and then a family style Italian dinner at Tony di Napoli’s restaurant on 43^rd Street. The food was good and we got to share a number of Italian classics – veal Saltimbocca, penne pasta a la vodka, eggplant parmigiana and the like. After dinner I took my boss and a colleague from California to the Stinger bar in the Intercontinental hotel that Mc D and I discovered on our last trip for the excellent “Smoking Sipper” cocktail.

Thursday was another full day of meetings and then travel back home. Thankfully all travel both ways was smooth and uneventful. I even had the seat next to me vacant on the flight home which is quite unusual for a Thursday night when all the consultants are usually traveling home.

Much of Friday was spent working from AutoHans while Penelope was attended to. She needed an oil change and new brakes. I did find a very nice neighborhood bistro only a five minute walk from the garage called Astoria. I was able to sit outside in the nice summer transitioning to autumn weather and enjoy lunch, the newspaper, and good coffee.

On Friday night we watched a documentary about the Chinese-American artist Tyrus Wong who created the sketches that were the original inspiration for Bambi. Tyrus lived to be 106 and endured all kinds of discrimination during his lifetime but never stopped creating excellent art. Late in life he studied library books about Chinese kite making and created some amazing flying machines. A recommended documentary for sure.

Saturday was a very pleasant day – not too hot and no humidity. So I sat outside and finished the book “Bruno, Chief of Police” by Martin Walker. This was a light, quick and thoroughly enjoyable read. Martin Walker was born in Scotland and moved to the Perigord region of France in 2006. He published the first Bruno novel in 2007 and has been pumping out a new one each year since. I enjoyed the local village characters and the food and wine descriptions – life in St Denis sounds perfect.

Here’s how Martin Walker describes Bruno:

“Bruno cooks, he hunts, he builds his own house and grows his own food. He organizes the parades and festivities and fireworks displays and keeps order in his fictional home town of St Denis. A pillar of the local tennis and rugby clubs, he teaches sports to the local schoolchildren.

Bruno finds lost dogs, fights fires, registers births and deaths, and enforces the parking regulations. But he maintains a sophisticated intelligence network to outwit the interfering bureaucrats of the European Union in far-off Brussels. The country folk of the Perigord have been making their foie gras and their cheeses and sausages for centuries before the EU was ever heard of, and see no reason to bow to its rules and regulations now.”

An article in the newspaper this week had the phrase “topsy turvy” in it. I had a flashback of about 50 years and a book called “Topsy Turvy Land” that I loved – all about a world that was upside down for the people who lived in it. I tried to find some pictures of the pages online but didn’t find anything that looked like that book – maybe it’s still in the attic in Stewarton.

For dinner on Saturday night we were joined at the Cowboys Club by Patty and Brent. With the cooler weather we were able to enjoy coffee and dessert on the lovely patio. Everyone was excited for the start of the football season on Sunday and the Cowboys versus Giants game on Sunday night.

The Cowboys had a nice 19-3 victory over the New York Giants on Sunday night to open the season. Highlights were an amazing one-handed behind the shoulder circus catch by Cole Beasley and Jason Witten setting the franchise all-time receiving record by passing Michael Irvin’s 11,904 yard total and scoring a touchdown doing it.

Jason Witten sets all time Cowboys receiving record

“Southern Blood” by Greg Allman got a posthumous release on Friday. I’ve listened to it a couple of times now and it is my favorite release of this year by far. Greg’s voice has a frail, less gravelly quality to it that lends even more poignancy to songs like “Going, Going, Gone”. The arrangements and musicianship are excellent throughout.

I heard the song “Jealous Moon” by Hayes Carll and it really caught my attention. I’ve seen him listed on the schedule at several of our local music clubs – Dan’s Silverleaf, the Kessler, and Poor David’s Pub – but hadn’t heard any of his music. We’ll have to give him a try next time.

Week in Review – August 21, 2017

The last of our three consecutive weeks of travel took us to New York to accompany Clorinda on her visit to watch our niece, Sophia, perform in an off Broadway play. We arrived a few hours before Clorinda and visited the “Black Tail” restaurant in Battery Park. This is run by the folks who have the “Dead Rabbit” close to my work office in the Wall Street area – it was named the best cocktail bar in the world and so we had high hopes of “Black Tail”.

The cocktail menu was very cleverly constructed as a multi chapter novel and had lots to choose from. My favorite was the “Doctor Zhivago”. The place had a Cuban theme including décor and menu options. A highly recommended stop for a great craft cocktail and good views of the Statue of Liberty from outside.

For Friday lunch we tried “Craft”, a restaurant by the celebrity chef Tom Collichio. They have a 3 course prix fixe lunch menu that we all thoroughly enjoyed. The duck liver mousse appetizer was a highlight. Clorinda enjoyed tasting the desserts. The restaurant had a nice relaxed feel while the food and service were very well done.

On Saturday we took Clorinda to the top of the Empire State Building. Diana sprung for VIP tickets and we avoided the very long lines for the elevators. The views were quite spectacular and everyone enjoyed the visit very much. The ladies opted for a pedi-cab ride back to the hotel. It’s been about 25 years since I was up in the Empire State Building – the last time was on a work trip from San Antonio to install computer systems in Pennsylvania. That was the same trip that I surprised my Uncle Scott and Aunt Evelyn at the Ottsville Inn.

Clorinda went to watch Sophia’s first performance on Saturday night and so we tried a restaurant that Diana had picked from those participating in New York restaurant week named “Batard”. This was our best dining experience in a long time. The place is located in Tribeca and has one Michelin star (not that you would know from their advertising or menus – it’s just a small award in the window). We had foie gras and steak tartare to start and both were phenomenal. Then duck and lamb to follow – Diana’s lamb was the best I’ve tasted. The service and atmosphere were just what we like. We’ll certainly be back as soon as we can.

After dinner we tried to go to Small’s tiny cellar jazz club but it was full and so we opted for the late show at the Village Vanguard. This is the place that I like to go to on Monday night when they have the Vanguard orchestra. On Saturday they had a three piece band without any names I recognized and a “special guest”. The guest turned out to be Joshua Redman – perhaps the best living saxophonist. We both really enjoyed the show and Diana was able to share some of her left over champagne with the star of the show and his friends.

All three of us attended the matinee of Sophia’s show titled “Show and Tell” on Sunday. The show was very well done – particularly considering the short rehearsal time the kids from all over the country had together. Sophia had one of two leading parts and so we got to enjoy a lot of her singing and acting.

A picnic in Central Park was our plan for Sunday afternoon. We got off to a dodgy start as the subway train didn’t stop where we expected at 81^st street and our next option was 125^th street in Harlem. We quickly came back down to Columbus Circle on the next train, picked up some sandwiches and headed into the south area of the park for our picnic. A short ramble after lunch took us past the carousel, baseball fields and “Library Walk” which features statues of both Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott.

Birdland jazz club was our destination on Sunday evening. We saw the Birdland Latin Jazz Orchestra which was in the midst of a five week Sunday residency. The music was excellent – mambo and salsa style and the band was very well rehearsed and together. Here’s a video of the rhythm section getting a workout. I hadn’t been to Birdland before and was very pleasantly surprised by the white table cloths, food, service, sound and room to move around the tables.

After the show we stopped into a cocktail bar in the Intercontinental hotel across from the club. The craft cocktail performance making the “Smoking Sipper” was quite something as was the presentation. We met a few interesting characters at the bar – a former McKinsey consultant from Dallas and a couple from Canada who had owned and worked in the “Horseshoe” – apparently the most famous music club in Canada. The club owner was named “X-Ray” and told us a story about the Rolling Stones playing his 180 person club.

Travel home for us on Monday was smooth (after the horrible traffic into LaGuardia airport with the construction) but Clorinda didn’t fare so well with multiple cancelled flights and redirection to Cleveland rather than Akron. It was very late when she finally arrived at her destination in Wooster, Ohio.

I finished the book “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles this week. Amusingly the lady across the aisle from me on our flight home was reading the same book and was at about the same place. We had a nice chat about how much we were both enjoying being transported to Russia in the early 20^th Century. The book details the exploits of Count Alexander Rostov after the Russian revolution and his “house arrest” in the Metropol hotel. The Count spends more than 40 years in the hotel and finds ways to pass his time, ultimately becoming the head waiter of the excellent restaurant in the hotel. This was a very interesting view into a period and location in history that I don’t know a lot about. A couple of favorite quotes:

“his fingers were half an inch longer than the fingers of most men his height. Had he been a pianist, Andrey could easily have straddled a twelfth. Had he been a puppeteer, he could have performed the sword fight between Macbeth and Macduff as all three witches looked on. But Andrey was neither a pianist nor puppeteer – or at least not in the traditional sense. He was the captain of the Boyarsky, and one watched in wonder as his hands fulfilled their purpose at every turn.”

“As the willow studied the Count, he noted that the arches over her eyebrows were very much like the marcato notation in music – the accent which instructs one to play a phrase a little more loudly. This, no doubt, accounted for the willow’s preference for issuing commands and the resulting huskiness of her voice”

I heard the song “Senor Blues” by Taj Mahal this week and was taken with its combination of jazz and blues – particularly on the piano part. Some research showed this to be the 36^th album from Taj Mahal, released in 1997, and with the fabulous Jon Cleary (an Englishman who has lived in New Orleans for many years that I’ve had the pleasure of listening to several times) on piano.

The oldest of nine children, Taj Mahal was born in Harlem to a gospel-singing schoolteacher mother and a West-Indian born composer-arranger father who was a big jazz fan. So from his youth Taj Mahal was immersed in the music which would become his career. He writes that his father had a short-wave radio, and when young Taj was growing up, he was able to tune in to styles from all over the world. Later, his heroes would be American blues masters like Mississippi John Hurt, Sleepy John Estes, Big Mama Thornton, plus rock & roll pioneers like Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry. In his college years at the University of Massachusetts, before his graduation in 1964 with a degree in animal husbandry, Taj had an R&B band playing on campus. Then he turned professional after graduation, co-founding a group with fellow blues aficionado (and one of my most favorite guitar players) Ry Cooder called The Rising Sons.

Having finished my book on jazz, I picked up a new “car book” – the book I keep in the car for a quick and light read if I stop for coffee or have to wait for someone or something for a few minutes – titled “The Olivetti Chronicles – Three Decades of Life and Music” by John Peel. Peel was a late night Radio 1 DJ in England when I was growing up and I love the walks down memory lane that his short stories provide. Here are a couple of snippets:

From “Kenny Dalglish” in the Guardian, 12 August 1994

“Of course, we were well aware of Kenny’s abilities long before he came to Anfield. I stood on the Kop for his first home game and we warmed to him in a way that we had never really warmed to Keegan. The most impressive of his abilities in those early matches was the way he seemed to know where every player was at all times. Even a superb Liverpool squad, by far the greatest team the world has ever seen, took a few weeks to catch up with Kenny’s speed and anticipation”

From “Tubular Bells” in The Listener, 7 June 1973

“With Tubular Bells we have a record that does quite genuinely cover new and uncharted territory. Without borrowing anything from established classics or descending to the discords, squeals and burps of the determinedly avant-garde, Mike Oldfield has produced music which combines logic with surprise, sunshine with rain. In the process of so doing he plays a bewildering range of musical instruments without ever playing merely for effect.”

Finally, a couple of other songs I heard this week and really enjoyed. A cover of “Hey Joe” by Jerry Douglas, the amazing dobro player from Nashville.

And a song from the upcoming release from “The War on Drugs”. I’m looking forward to listening to the whole album.

Week in Review – August 15, 2017

Our second of three consecutive travel weekends is behind us now. We arrived in San Francisco on Saturday afternoon and headed straight down to Redwood City, in our very loud and flashy rental car, for my niece (I can now officially call her that) Olivia’s 10^th birthday. The party was finishing up when we arrived but we did get to enjoy Marco’s hand crafted Tiki bar. I got to learn a new card game from Gianluca and we had a nice visit with Marco and Julie. When we checked into our usual room in Pacifica, I gave Clorinda her gift of some “exquisite” plates (causing Diana to sneeze “sycophant”) I had picked out for her at the Tablas Creek winery in Paso Robles.

On Sunday we headed down to Silicon Valley to catchup with family and friends. Diana had lunch with her friend Aimee and I had a delicious lunch with Finn at the Straits Café. Their roti prata bread with curry dipping sauce is something I had missed. After lunch Finn and I met my friend Sean for a good blether.

Then Sean joined us at Kristina and Cat’s home for dinner. He enjoyed discussing Cat’s new track racing car with him. Dinner had a Greek theme with lamb, Greek salad, dips, and excellent potatoes. As usual there were lots of laughs and entertaining stories. Rather than make the long drive back to Pacifica, we ubered over to the Toll House in Los Gatos to spend the night.

Monday started with brunch with Campbell and Molly at the Los Gatos café and their fluffy soufflé omelets. It was very nice to get to catch up with Campbell and Molly – we hadn’t seen Campbell since the wedding and Molly since our sailing trip in San Diego. We made our leisurely way back up to Pacifica via Half Moon Bay where we stopped into Sam’s Chowder House for chowder and a lobster roll for lunch. That was followed by coffee and a crossword at It’s Italia (where we had Diana’s 50^th birthday dinner). We finished up with dinner at Adamo and Amy’s house.

Tuesday started with overdue workouts (Diana’s first time at the 24 hour fitness in Pacifica). In the afternoon we made the drive down to Saratoga for a pre-concert dinner at the Basin. Dinner was very good – particularly Diana’s scallops.

Then the main excuse for the visit to California – Willie Nelson at the Mountain Winery. I wasn’t sure what to expect from an 84 year old country singer but was extremely impressed – Willie sang and played the guitar very well. He didn’t hide behind any backup singers or guitarists at all – it was all him out front with minimal backing. His older sister, Bonnie (86), played the piano. Here are a couple of highlights from the show. He opened with Whiskey River, then highlights for me including Georgia, Always on My Mind, and On the Road Again.

The Mountain Winery venue is one of my very favorites with great sound, views, and setting. We’re going to try and pick one concert each year to attend here.

Wednesday morning involved babysitting Massimo and Luciano for an hour or so before heading to the airport for a quick unpack, wash, and pack again for New York. Thankfully they were both well behaved and easy to handle.

I really enjoyed the movie “Hidden Figures” on the flight home. It’s about female African American mathematicians and their contributions to the early NASA flights. Highly recommended.

I heard an interesting version of “Apache” by “The Incredible Bongo Band” this week – reminded me of the trip to Zin Zen with the Halls and the Shadows covers played by the local band.

Week In Review – August 7, 2017

This was the first of three weekends of travel in a row. We flew to San Luis Obispo to visit Diana’s stepson John, his wife Madison and their family. Our arrival was delayed as we missed our connection in Phoenix so didn’t get in until late evening on Friday. We’re so spoiled by being able to take a direct flight to almost anywhere from Dallas.

John and Madi picked us up at the airport and drove us to our hotel, “The Carlton”, in downtown Atascadero. I kept thinking of the dance on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air show that the character Carlton does. This is a very small downtown but has most everything you could need – a good hotel, a great bakery and several very good cocktail bars. We enjoyed the dive bar, “Whiskey and June”, for a nightcap after arrival.

Saturday started with coffee and a very buttery and delicious croissant from the Back Porch bakery. Then we enjoyed a lovely brunch at the “Kitchenette” in nearby Templeton.

Then it was off wine tasting in the Paso Robles wine country. Diana had organized a large van through Uber that worked out very well. John, Madi, and her parents, Tad and Terri, joined us. First stop was the Tablas Creek winery where Tad had arranged a private barrel room tasting for us. We liked a few of the wines but nothing jumped out and grabbed us. Our hostess was a wine student at Cal Poly who really knew her stuff and could answer all of Tad’s various questions with ease. Madi wasn’t dealing with the twisty roads too well and so we chose close wineries for our next stops. I was amazed at how mountainous the region was – much more varied than Napa valley and more difficult to navigate.

Next stop was Adelaida and we all agreed that this was our least favorite stop – sweet and fruity wines for the most part. The views from the mountaintop were very good with a straight line view to the Hearst ranch where the famous castle sits. We finished up at McPrice Myers which was the smallest and friendliest of the wineries. Our hostess invited us to bring in our meat and cheese and enjoy it on the counter during the tasting. I made friends with the house Westie. A couple of the wines at this stop were quite pleasant.

We headed back to Atascadero to relieve the babysitters who had been watching John and Madi’s kids – Ben and Lilly. They are quite busy and time consuming for sure – both being under the age of two. John had been smoking a brisket for 12 hours or more and we enjoyed it for dinner in the garden of Tad and Terri’s house with a nice breeze and a great view over the valley.

Sunday had a lazy start with breakfast at the Back Porch bakery and then hanging around outside at Tad and Terri’s home reading and enjoying Bloody Mary’s and bagels and lox. In the evening John and Madi took us over to Morro Bay on the coast for dinner. The water front looks directly out on Morro Rock, a 581 foot volcanic plug that is connected to shore by a causeway. It is the last peak of the Nine Sisters which extend from San Luis Obispo to Morro Bay. It was named by Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo (a Portuguese explorer) in 1542 – “Morro” in Spanish translates as crown shaped hill.

We had appetizers at 3 different places that were quite different and enjoyed them all. Tognazzini’s was our first stop where we had oysters and calamari on the deck with a good country singer for entertainment. Next was Morro Bay Wine Seller where champagne flights were sampled by all but me along with the “ultimate” crostini and some very pleasant live music. We captured this silly boardwalk picture on the walk to the final progressive meal stop at Windows on the Water where I sampled some yummy risotto. Some shuffle board and pool at Whiskey and June and then it was off to bed.

Travel home on Monday was smooth with no delays and actually arriving home a little early.

I finished the book “Swing Time” by Zadie Smith this week. The British author writes about friendship between two girls growing up in a poor part of London. One of them goes on to dance on the stage in London while the other works for a pop star and travels the world. A key theme is the attempts by the pop star to create a school in Africa and the challenges that ensue. The book was very well reviewed and was a quick read but didn’t really do a lot for me. Some of the references reminded me of things I had forgotten all about – “I ventured into the kitchen to get two beakers of Ribena”, “I sometimes sang for him – the theme tune to “Top Cat”” – now I can’t get that tune out of my head.

In the credits for “Moonglow”, Michael Chabon comments on enjoying music from “A Winged Victory for the Sullen” while writing the book. This is interesting and relaxing music that would be helpful background music while concentrating. It’s kind of a cross between Keith Jarrett’s Koln concert and Brian Eno’s ambient music.

This thought sent me off to listen to the Koln concert again and I came across an excellent TED talk explaining how Jarrett wasn’t going to perform that night because the wrong piano was delivered. It was too small for the 1,400 seat hall and unplayable in the high register. The seventeen year old promoter convinced him to go ahead and he had to improvise around all the flaws of the piano. I had never heard this story before – I just really enjoyed the concert. Amazing what a challenge can bring out in a world class musician.

Two other songs really caught my attention this week. “I’d Rather Go Blind” by Julie Rhodes showcases a powerful new voice and some excellent guitar. This song was written by Ellington Jordan and first released by Etta James in 1967. I’ve listened to a few versions including this one, Beyonce, and Joe Bonamassa and definitely prefer the Julie Rhodes rendition.

The next is “Tell Me” by Meena Cryle. I found this because she also does a version of “I’d Rather Go Blind”.

Week in Review – July 15, 2017

Last weekend we enjoyed a few days in California. There was a special treat for me in the fridge at Clorinda’s house – dark chocolate covered pistachios with a special message on the bottom, “For Keith, but Clorinda tasted”. Diana’s still searching for her special treat. I was able to reciprocate with some handmade ginger flavored chocolate hearts that were well received.

During a dinner at Adamo and Amy’s home, a local policeman showed up to return a sign that had been stolen from Gypsy Hill and spotted in a yard in town. Luciano took advantage of the visit to enjoy his first experience in a police car with the lights on.

The sunsets from Amy and Adamo’s home can be quite spectacular – even more so now that some trees have been trimmed back.

On Sunday I had a very enjoyable lunch at Santana Row catching up with Finn while Diana met up with her girlfriends for “Sip and Dip” at Kristina and Cat’s home. Finn shared his website which showcases some of his graphic design and mobile application work – finnrobertsondesign.com. He’s working on finding the perfect job match in this field just now. I met up with the crew at Kristina’s and we enjoyed a lovely dinner and sharing stories with her Mom. We spent the night in Los Gatos and I was able to visit some favorite old haunts – Carry Nations pub, The Great Bear coffee shop where we met up with Los Gatos Amy, and The Los Gatos Cafe for breakfast (and a special carrot and walnut left over treat for Clorinda).

On Tuesday we met up with a couple of friends of D’s from Australia – Renee and Daniel. Renee taught Alicia dance and singing when she was in Australia many years ago and has since married Daniel. They walked across the Golden Gate Bridge; we met them on the far side, and took them up to the top of the Marin Headlands for the best view of San Francisco.

From there we headed to lunch at a restaurant in Sausalito called Bar Bocce – an excellent recommendation from Amy that included a small beach and bocce court. Good food, great company, and excellent views.

Then it was back over the bridge for a tour of the city that included Coit Tower, North Beach, downtown, the very touristy Pier 39 (with only a few sea lions in residence), and dinner at The Slanted door in the Ferry building.

Golden Gate Bridge from Coit Tower as the fog rolls in

Creative plating of Slanted Door Spring Rolls and Peanut Sauce by Keith

This weekend was mostly spent relaxing after the trip. We did see the movie “The Hero” on Saturday afternoon and both enjoyed it very much. It’s by a director named Brett Haley and starts Sam Elliot as an aging Western movie star. We looked up other movies by the same director and found “I’ll See You in My Dreams” – a similar movie starring Blythe Danner and Sam Elliot.

Dinner on Saturday night was at Wasabi with Patty and Brent. This is the sushi and Japanese restaurant that I first experienced with the Halls and loved. My second visit was just as good as the first. After dinner we walked over to Zin Zen where The Three Amigos band was playing. McD demonstrated her varied dance moves with Patty and some new friends that shared her exuberant dancing approach.

During the trip to California I was able to finish the book, “Two and Two, McSorley’s, My Dad, and Me” by Rafe Bartholomew. This is a very enjoyable read about the oldest continually operating bar in the United States and a father and son who have both worked there for many years – several together. Lots of insights into the operation of the unique bar are offered along with a lot of commentary on working together with one’s Dad. I was interested to read that the bar did not close down during Prohibition but was first closed during Hurricane Sandy. This reminded me of my experience trying to recover connectivity for AIG’s employees stranded at home during Sandy. This while all of the New York based team was completely offline due to lost electricity and connectivity. Not something that I hope to have to do again in my IT career.

A favorite music discovery this week was the album “The Convincer “ by Nick Lowe in 2001. I’ve always enjoyed his music and witty lyrics and this album contains a solid dose of both.

I’ve also been loving the new song “Java” by Stanton Moore’s band from their upcoming tribute to the late Allen Toussaint. The musicians are all stars, the arrangement excellent, and all backed by the incredible drumming of Stanton Moore. I was reminded of the first time I heard him – Levon Helm’s band was playing at jazzfest and Levon came out from behind the drums to sing a couple of songs. Stanton Moore took over at drums and I asked Denny who that amazing new drummer was. I was an immediate fan and have enjoyed several performances by Moore’s bands Galactic and his eponymous trio since.

Week in Review – May 21, 2017

The week started out with us picking up Diana’s new ride – a triple black (paint, upholstery, and wheel rims) VW Passat. She seems to be enjoying it so far but always missing the convertible top.

The crew at the Portside Lounge Tiki bar

My bachelor party with the boys in New Orleans kicked off on Thursday afternoon. We had a drink at a brand new bar named the Portside Lounge which had a tiki bar theme and some great beverages.

Dinner was at DTB (Down the Bayou) on Oak Street – another newly opened spot – Denny keeps his eyes and ears open for anything new popping up in his city. DTB is billed as a modern Creole Cajun restaurant and menu choices included crispy duck confit, cornmeal gnocchi, and mushroom boudin balls. Another great find by Mr. Denny.

The first of four excellent musical experiences followed dinner – we saw Reckless Kelly perform at Tipitina’s. This was a country rock band with a bit of an Irish flavor that we all enjoyed – including Timmy (a rare moment when he wasn’t complaining about our musical choices being too “esoteric”). We were able to see the newly awarded Anders Osborne plate on the pavement outside Tipitina’s in recognition of his contributions to New Orleans music.

Jack and Mason (perhaps with prompting and supervision from Anne) like to install obstacles for me when we head out in the evenings. This time it was a blowup Grinch hanging from the shower rod to greet me as I returned to the cottage.

Friday kicked off with lunch at Gallatoire’s on Bourbon Street. This is an old school New Orleans restaurant with white table cloths and tuxedoed waiters. Friday lunch is a highlight of the weekly social calendar for NOLA movers and shakers. The mayor and his entourage were waiting with us in the bar for their table – we posited that they might be celebrating the smooth removal of the last of the confederate statues (General Lee from Lee Circle). Alex, Gary, and Thom joined the usual quartet of me, Denny, Sean, and Tim. The food, company, service, and atmosphere were all excellent.

Excellent seafood appetizer at Gallatoire’s

The afternoon was consumed by a ramble through the French Quarter and taking in the local sights. Sean and I headed over to the Maple Leaf for some excellent late night music while the rest of the boys got some sleep.

Denny and “Good Lord” Alex engaged in a strategic discussion on the French Quarter Ramble

Saturday got off to a reasonably slow start. We had planned to participate in a bicycle pub crawl associated with the Bayou Boogaloo festival that we were going to in the evening but didn’t make it in time. We did, however, meet up with the cyclists at the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club where we enjoyed the third excellent musical performance. The Showtime Brass band put on a great early afternoon show.

Next stop was Rosedale for some lunch. This very unassuming restaurant (looks like a shack from the outside) is part of the Susan Spicer empire and the food was certainly up to her very high standards.

Rosedale – nothing very impressive on the outside

After lunch we headed to the Bayou Beer Garden to relax before heading into the Boogaloo music festival.

Only Sean and I ended up going to the festival and enjoyed a performance from Chris Thomas King before the heavens opened and we headed for the exit and cover.

We decided we were too old to get drenched to see Cracker close out the evening. Just as we exited, I got a call from Denny saying he was at the Cracker stage and had come out to surprise us. It didn’t take much to convince him to head home as well and we avoided having to call an Uber.

As always, it’s painful to leave New Orleans to travel back to the “real world”.

Week in Review – May 7, 2016

This was looking like the first time in several years that we would skip the New Orleans jazzfest. Then Diana suggested going in on the Tuesday between jazzfest weekends to catch some of the night time shows and attend the festival on Thursday (the quietest day of all seven). She checked the cost of flights (much less expensive than anticipated), called Denny to make sure the cottage was available, and we were all set.

New Orleans and Webster St welcomed us on Tuesday afternoon and we settled in Chez Ogan for drinks and an excellent dinner of crab salad and shrimp and goat cheese enchiladas from Chef Denny and Sous Chef Anne.

Wednesday got off to a slow start but quickly picked up speed in the early afternoon with a late lunch at Boucherie on Carrolton St. Look at this amazing soft shell crab – we all agreed it was one of the best we had ever tasted.

While enjoying lunch, Denny did his typical research work and found a unique show happening at 4pm at Bud Rip’s. This is a dive bar in the Marigny and the Morning 40 Federation was performing. The music was like a modern day Iron Maiden – very heavy and very loud with a lot of changing time signatures and keys. Diana enjoyed her Rose wine from a “backpack can”. I found the music sounded best from about a block away outside the bar.

While the rain storm held off we decided to check out Chazfest. This is a very small festival held in a couple of back yards and designed as an antidote to the large and expensive jazz festival. It’s named after Washboard Chaz who we did see performing there. The highlight was the Valparaiso Men’s Chorus doing their sea shanty sing along routine. This is always one of Denny’s favorites as you can tell. A completely unique and unexpected afternoon treat for sure.

Chazfest was followed by a quick stop at Kebab for falafels and sandwiches. Then home to regroup before the Piano Summit show at Snug Harbor.

The heavens opened on the drive to Snug Harbor and our Uber driver did a great job of navigating the flooding streets. Snug Harbor is a tiny jazz club on Frenchmen Street in the Marigny. It was one of the first venues on this street which used to be an out of the tourist area music area. Sadly it has recently become more and more of a known attraction for tourists. We got great seats in the upstairs balcony where we were able to see Joe Crown’s fingers floating across the keys as he presented a beautifully varied set of New Orleans piano classics. Tom McDermott followed him and while he was technically amazing I didn’t enjoy his set as much. Marcia Ball gave her usual excellent performance of boogie woogie piano with the highlight being her rendition of our favorite Delbert McClinton song, “Sending Me Angels”. The finale was all 6 hands on the piano at the same time as the three performers took turns sitting on the piano stool, playing the bass line, and playing the soprano part – very entertaining and fun.

Thursday was jazzfest day and we had agreed on a late start around 1pm. I had an interesting experience putting on my Crocs to head out to the muddy field – apparently they can shrink up to 2 sizes when left out wet in the sun – sure enough they had been rinsed off and left in the sun prior to packing. This meant a trip to the shoe store on the way to the festival and a lot of hilarity about “did you put them in the dryer?”. We rendezvoused with Alex, Tom, Gary and the crew at Liuza’s by the track and then headed in. Each year there is a guest country at the fest that shares their music, culture, and traditions. This year was Cuba.

The best days at the festival are those when you really have no agenda – nobody you really must see and have to fight in early to box out a space. We saw the Iguanas at Fais Do Dos, New Orleans Nightcrawlers (my highlight) at the Heritage stage, Herb Alpert in the Jazz tent, 10 mins or so of Widespread Panic on the Acura stage, a couple of minutes of Tower of Power on the Congo Square stage and then finished up with Darius Rucker on the Gentilly Stage (Diana’s highlight as evidenced by her happy music face).

The girls managed to work in oysters at the paddock and trips into the CD/Vinyl tent for better champagne than was on sale at the normal booths.

The food tents are equally as impressive as the music. We like to go back to the “trio” of offerings that we had at our first jazzfest. It’s hard to choose the most delicious between the crawfish sack, beignet, or oyster pattie.

We finished the evening off at a new place called the Beer Garden on Freret street – delicious food all around.

On Friday we had our typical leaving day brunch with Denny and Anne. This time at a new restaurant for all of us called “Cavan”. This was inside an old house with antique fixtures and décor. Again the food and drinks were delicious. So many fantastic and unique restaurants in this town and so little time. Back to McKinney and the ongoing home repairs from the hail storm. We had hoped they would be mostly complete while we visited New Orleans but a storm on Wednesday slowed things down by a couple of days. I woke on Saturday to nail guns on the roof above my head and then a generator right outside the bedroom window.