Audrey

“I’ll take you there” sings Mavis Staples, famously, and she did – it was a soulful, happy place. The minimalist backup band, guitar-bass-drums, was outstanding – filling the space with energy. We especially loved Rick Holstrom, a blues guitar player. He made his Telecaster sing in every way it should, extracting a series of tasty, and thrilling tones. The church is still in Mavis Staples; we felt we were in a wonderful Sunday gospel service, with Mavis ever urging our spirits higher. The surprise song of the set was the Talking Heads cover, Slippery People ( “What’s a matter with him? He’s alright.”" ) It fit perfectly. “Friendship” was also a touching song. ...

Dance we must, as the motown groove of San Francisco favorite “Pride and Joy” is undeniable! And dance we did, all night long, with our friends Mike and Fong. The packed house brought out every 55 year old in Menlo Park California who isn’t afraid to boogie. When they band closed with “Shout!” it was quite entertaining to look around and see everyone (including us) complaining that we can’t “get a little bit softer now; get a little bit lower now”—our knees hurt! ...

Fred Armisen introduced his show as “comedy for musicians” - and indeed, it featured lots of funny talk about music. An evening with Fred Armisen is a bit more like hanging out with a slightly off-kilter, ironic cousin than it is like traditional standup comedy. He did impressions of punk rock in every country across the world. He put trotted out a bass guitar and chomped on the headstock, which turned out to be a brownie. He played a great sounding Rickenbacker bass for a bit. Sitting at the drums, he did impressions of every punk rock band stretching across two decades. He’s smart and funny, and got us home in time for bed on a school night. ...

Walking into the newly remolded Guild in Menlo Park, we thought “we must know people here.” The crowd, how to put it? The crowd wore its age as well as we do. Petty Theft had a great reputation as a Tom Petty cover band, and they delivered. We had a lot of fun dancing to the endless string of greatest hits. It’s great to have a venue so near our house with music we enjoy. And yes, we did know people there – Audrey’s ex-husband Raphael and his wife Stephanie! ...

The historic 6th and I Synagogue provided a beautiful setting for a stunning set by Julian Lage and his trio, featuring bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Dave King. Words that come to mind to describe the music: virtuoso, intricate, emotive, warm, engaging. What we all noted after the set was how much fun the band was having, and we were having fun right along with them. Before the set, I snapped this photo of the wonderous dome above us. ...