With Dreams in Their Eyes...

This is a follow up to the last post, "Adventures In Country." It's also 2 separate stories in one, with the same conclusion.
First, I want to say that my band the Carpenter Ants did a superb job yesterday on all fronts. The performance for the St.Albans Library was a huge help to my boss Toni and our staff. Our Summer Reading kickoff did so in grand fashion. When I finally reached home last night I had gotten 12 e-mails from patrons saying how great and professional that they thought that we were, and how much they had a wonderful time.
At the second gig, I looked out a number of times and saw Ron Sowell's face and I could tell that he was extremely pleased with how well we do what we do, and before and after the performance, Jeff told me that he really dug us and wants to make a few trips to Charleston to play with us.

In the previous post I wrote that Jeff Stevens who is a Nashville songwriter, didn't know us from a hole in the wall, but wanted to have good musicians back him up to do his show. Well as it turns out, my bassist Ted Harrison not only knows him but also auditioned to be the bassist in Jeff's original band when he lived in West Virginia. Ted told me that things didn't quite work out but that Jeff and the other members of the band were completely nice and professional about their parting of ways...to which I say, lucky me, because Ted is mine now !!
At both performances yesterday, I spent alot of time just observing people. So much of how we feel is written on our faces, that it's probably more telling than sitting and talking to someone. There were alot of children and older people checking us out, both with same same intensity.
Many of the older folks were blown away with Michael's guitar playing and his ever present Steve Ferguson inspired nuances. A number of times I saw people pulling out their cell phones and calling their friends to tell them that they'd better get there because they were missing something special.
When I watched the youngsters, they seemed to be facsinated by the fact that wow, right in my own backyard we have people that are this good, this is something that I can aspire to.
To say the least I was just overly proud of my boys, and I was equally proud of Ron, Jeff and my boss Toni.
In the grand scheme of things we are all trying our best to bring something worthwhile to people...joy. Jeff drove here all the way from Nashville to play in front of a handful of people, and although it was a very worthwhile cause, there were still only a scant few people at best. Everybody involved though, gave their best. There were also a group of teenaged ladies who sang 4 songs from a CD that Ron produced that is helping to bring attention to the plight of young Appalachian women and girls who suffer abuses of all kinds... I was especially proud of that effort.
The one thing that I observed in abundance yesterday were people with alot of dreams in their eyes. Those who were in attendance were lilted by all of the great music and stories that they heard, and it catapulted them to better places. To me that is the catalyst for the life that we want. To be in a world where we can lay on the grass like I used to in my backyard in the Bronx growing up, like I saw so many do yesterday, watch the big cottony clouds roll by and just dream.

This post is dedicated to Jeff Stevens, keep on keeping on, your music and your wonderful outlook will put West Virginia on the world stage for the right reasons.
To Ron Sowell, your persistence and close attention to detail will be more help then you can dream of...God bless you.
To The St.Albans library staff, you all have no idea how proud I am of what you do everyday for our community; with little or nothing but hard work and diligence.
To the Carpenter Ants, when I die I want to be buried with our CD's in my casket because even in Heaven I want people to know the good work that you've done on this Earth.
To Randy Gilkey (my keyboardist) welcome home, you have been sorely missed.