YA BLEW IT!
Seriously, it was such a fun evening. Playing with Terry Lawless, professional musician extraordinaire (check his resume at www.terrylawless.com) - brings out an additional something with the band.
How he finds time to sit in with us is one of the universe's most mysterious questions, but we won't argue or spend too many brain cells seeking the answer - we know a good thing when we got it, and this is one we got, however sporadically.When you see his resume and "real" job, you'll see what I mean.
So what makes it so much fun? Well, let's start by stating the obvious - he's a terrific musician, great keyboard, sax and flute player, and has a seemingly limitless knowledge of bands, artists, songs, styles....we've yet to trip him up, and we've thrown a few curve balls his way. Example: Diana Krall's version of I'm Just a Lucky So and So, a Duke Ellington song. He nailed the piano solo first time, never having played it with us. Got the nuances, lifted our version to another level. And this, after he tried to play coy. "I'm really not a piano player..." he said just prior to the performance. uh huh, sure, we believe you. NOT.
So ok, we've established he can play. Let's talk about creativity. Last night, we pulled out our rocked-up version of The Fixx's One Thing Leads to Another. We added a big-heavy-distortion-guitar-boffo-ending to it because, well, I like big-heavy-distortion-guitar-boffo-endings. Last night, we gave Terry the nod to jump in the mayhem and go nuts. He did alright. In a way we would have NEVER expected.
He pulled out his flute.
Suddenly, we got "Jethro Tull meets The Fixx, Funk:30 style". Brilliant! On top of a chugging bass and drums, with a feedback laden guitar adding a wierd chordal background, Terry took off and just nailed it. What I would give for a bootleg recording!
But you know what? All of this is great and fine. What REALLY sets TL (as we affectionately call him) apart is so simple:
He's just a good guy. Full of humor. Full of support. Always open, sincere, and helpful. He is, in the truest sense, a pleasure to be around. We are better players, and better people, for having hung out with him in the limited time we have had.
If you get a chance to check him out either with other local bands (he sits in with a couple others, too), or hear his contributions with bands in the Major Leagues of Rock n Roll, do it. You won't be disappointed.
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