The Southside of 2012

It's almost over. It's been a good year for us below the Mason/Dixon line. We got a new kitchen and deck. Kathy received a prestigious award as well as taking on a new job. I got a new job and continue my studies at AACC. We got Third Dog (okay, maybe it hasn't all been good), and I went to some great live music shows.

The most recent show I attended with MJ (and maybe the last show we'll see this year) Was last night. I've been aware of Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes for years but never really took much notice. It turns out it was my loss. After being on the road for 40 years, they still put on a hell of a show. I was surprised when the band took the stage last night just after 8:00pm. Eight big pieces including a killer horn section made up a sax player, a trumpet player and a trombone. These cats could swing.

Johnny was not what a  I expected either. He played the part of the dynamic front man but looked more like a math teacher (and I know math teachers). He was only too happy to share the spotlight with this well seasoned band especially the keyboard player who sang a few songs himself. Everyone but the drummer sang back up vocals which gave a lot of the tunes some wonderful smooth harmonies that can sometimes be hard to reproduce in a live setting. They played for almost two and a half hours straight and rocked the mostly gray haired crowd way past our bedtimes.