MUMBO JUMBO – June 2011
June 17, The Smokin’ Tuna Saloon Grand Opening!
A Great Old Guitar Rises From The Ashes!
The Summer Tour Heads Out West!
It’s a beautiful early summer Maine evening and the sun is setting amidst some late arriving grey clouds, casting an eerie bluish light over Boothbay Harbor. I’m holed up here in this quaint harbor in an amazing cottage locally referred to as The Bridge House. This classic old shanty is perched alone in the middle of the harbor on a wooden footbridge that connects one side of the harbor to the other, and is as close to living on a boat as one can get. There was a fresh 25 to 30 knot northwest wind here today and because the old house sits a on a set of pilings, the place shudders, shakes, creaks and moans like an old wooden schooner at sea! As the sun sets and the temperature drops into the 50’s, I’m preparing to put some wood and old newspapers into the old pot bellied stove and settle into a night of songwriting!
I’m here for a week thanks to the hospitality of my good friends Allan and Pam, the proprietors of the legendary Pepe’s Café in Key West. I was looking for a quiet place to write and they were kind enough to let me use this great house. It’s perfect because there are no distractions here except the sheer beauty of the place! It’s pre tourist season and there is no TV in the house and I’ve been leaving the phone and laptop in the car, desperately trying to coax my brain into creating three or four new songs this week. A lot of time is spent staring at the legal pad and praying that the fingers find some magic chords that sound like a song, but not too much like one of the millions of other songs already written! Not an easy task, but as someone recently commented, “It beats roofing!”
THE SMOKIN’ TUNA SALOON OPENS ITS DOORS on June 17!!
While I have been touring and writing, my friends and partners Charlie and Eddie have been in Key West working tirelessly to get the Smokin’ Tuna afloat! There are hundreds of details to be tended to when opening a large bar and restaurant like this, but Charlie has assured me we will be open come hell or high water on Friday, June 17. I hesitate to use the term high water during the first month of hurricane season in Key West, but if you are anywhere near Cayo Hueso, please come in to see the new place! Dave Edmisten and I will be performing the first week we are open and then Dave joins guitarist extraordinare Chris Clifton at the Tuna, June 23 through June 30. Chris, one of the finest guitarists you’ll ever see, will be returning to play in the Keys for the first time in several years!
We are going to start off with a pretty simple, temporary food menu to get us through the summer, then swing into our full blown menu in the fall. In the meantime “The Tuna” will feature great live music, super drinks, a variety of quality smokin’ merchandise and a great staff! In addition to our regular entertainment schedule, we have already lined up some special music events for the coming months and will be announcing those soon.
I’ve been on the road for a month and greatly looking forward to seeing the place myself! I understand it’s undergone a bit of a transformation! See you there ON JUNE 17th.
The Smokin’ Tuna merchandise shop isn’t open yet; however, we’d like to offer my email subscribers the opportunity to purchase one of the first limited run T-shirts! If you’re interested, please email: SmokinTunaKW@aol.com!
THE OLD LOWDEN GUITAR SINGS AGAIN!
Thanks to the extraordinary work of Bobby Doolittle and his staff at Crossroads Music in Hanover, Massachusetts, my old Lowden Guitar is back in hand and sounding amazing. This is the instrument that inspired the guitar duet I wrote with Peter Mayer, “Rosewood and Cedar.” Peter and I have the exact same instruments which were built in Northern Ireland over 20 years ago by the famous Irish Luthier, George Lowden.
Through the rigors of the road and the extreme heat and humidity of Key West, my Lowden’s bridge had separated from the top a half dozen times over the years, eventually damaging the cedar top and the supporting bridge plate, requiring either a brand new top or at the very least, major surgery! Hearing the prognosis, I immediately called on Dr. Doolittle at Crossroads, as he had already successfully performed brilliant reconstructive surgery on another very expensive guitar of mine.
I left the guitar in Bob’s hands last year and when we opened the 2011 tour in Taunton, Mass, last month, there was Bob with the Lowden! I popped it out of the case 20 minutes before showtime and it felt and sounded so good acoustically, I plugged it in, did a quick sound check and played it the entire show!!
Bob, an amazing guitarist and bassist in his own right, is also one of the savviest technical guys I know and I often rely on his advice on sound equipment and PA systems and have purchased various pieces of gear from Crossroads over the years. You can call them at 781 -826-1619 or email at feedback@crossroadsmusic.ws if you need any expert advice!!! Thanks Bob!!
SUMMER TOUR HEADS WEST!
After playing opening The Smokin’ Tuna, June 17 through the June 22, I head out west to play some solo shows in New Mexico, Arizona, Oregon, Idaho, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa, before rejoining Dave in the Chicago area! Check the web site for details!!
As always, thanks for listening!!
Scott Kirby
Copyright Scott Kirby 2009. All rights reserved. www.scottkirby.com
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