- Folk
From 1999 until 2009, I lived in the Washington DC area, where I put together a band called "Jack Couldn't Make It", consisting of Andy "The Spider" Breslin, my harmonica playing-songwriting partner in crime. Rick "The Iceman" Kanton, a faithful friend, talented songwriter and versatlle singer and multi-instrumentalist who made anyone he played with sound better, and "Fiddlin' Phil" Swaby, who does things with a fiddle/violin that ought to be illegal, and quite possibly are, in several states.
Several other member have come and gone over time, and none of us ever reached fame and fortune...But if you ever find yourself standing on a corner in D.C., and the wind blows just right, you just might hear whispers of a band, forever in search of Jack.
The Iceman called me one night to meet him for a last minute gig at a small bar. Just him and me. We always bring "shaky eggs", 'cause they help distract kids when we're doing cafes...So there we were, jamming along, with the eggs on the edge of the stage, when a blonde took one of the eggs and just started shaking it for all it was worth. She was young. She was cute. She was drunk. Eventually, a guy, I think it was her brother, came along and convinced her that it was time to go. She waved as her brother led her out....Two minutes later, she came back in, walked right up to the stage, and pulled her shaky egg out from under her tee-shirt where it had been nestled in her bra. She gently set the egg down as her brother once again came in and guided her to the door.
The night we had to end a show early because the Iceman and I got into a huge fight over who would get custody of a "shaky egg".
Due to a resounding level of mediocrity, when it comes to musicianship, I have had a love/hate relationship with every instrument I've ever owned. Any details beyond that, are strictly between me and my therapist.
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