Lucky Lounge and the Gypsies

I love how the basic motif of the Lucky Lounge is varied by other circumstances. This week we have Rick, Fleet, and Bill visiting, with the aim of seeing Birelli LaGrene playing. Of course we had to begin the evening at the Lucky, with Ian, or should I say Mac, and the Bump Band. Conni Hancock came last night, her first time ever, and since Fleet was here, his sister Shawn and her friend Frances came too.
While I'm watching, I try to memorize the goofy little things Mac does, but they are so ephemeral. Random comments, the cheesy chords, theatrical yet random gestures...
You really have to be there.
Mark Andes was all in black.
This morning I'm thinking of one song, Lately I've been leaning in the wrong direction...though I try to lead a normal life...as God is my witness, I'm high on his hitlist...tonight...
They also did Lucky...so lucky...it's never enough...
We could only do one set because we had to go to the concert at 8:00. Naturally the concert was late starting. If we had been in faster mode, we could have caught the whole show and jetted over to Hogg in time. But there was a long walk to the car, certain activities preceding, the search for parking at UT. Another walk. Then the other carload thought we were going to Bass, so if they hadn't had extra time, they would not have made it.
So we went from Brit rock to gypsy music, just like that. First up was Birelli, whom the boys wanted to see because of his incredible guitar playing. His violinist was just as incredible. But after that Taraf Haidouks came on, and things got really trippy. I don't know how they say that name. The guy introducing said it, but so fast. It did not sound like Tariff Hay-dooks. They were a large group of men, all dressed in clothes that looked like the 40's or at latest the 50's here. And not in a campy way, just remarkably drab. They had 3 accordions, 3 violins, a flute of sorts, a clarinet, a bass, a cymbalum. The best part was in the middle when they sang in some Eastern European language, Romanian, I guess, as they are all from there. It was so surreal, the wonderful indifference to language.
Rick says there is a movie, Latcho Drom, about the gypsies, that is almost all music.
A note, May 12 is Mac's birthday and a special Thursday at the Lucky Lounge.

April 14,2005

Finally we got back to the Lucky Lounge. St. Patrick's was quite a wonderful night and kept me going for a while. The very next Thursday, Don didn't feel good, and I was still high on the memory. The next Thursday, he was out of town, then the next Thursday Ian and the Band were out of town.
Last night we found orange barrels set up all around the block where we usually park, the four sides of the abandoned Intel building. A couple of cars had parked on our usual side, undeterred by the orange barrels. Those barrels are a puzzle. They were unaccompanied by any sign, but you would think they were there to stop people parking. But why? People are still going to walk and drive by it. We've had a few laughs at the rotting boardwalk on the 5th St side. If the whole thing is such a hazard, they ought to do more than put orange barrels around it. Of course, the barrels are a cheap non-solution. A real solution would cost plenty.
We noticed people walking toward downtown carrying folding chairs, blankets and such. That was worrisome, suggesting some big gathering we weren't aware of. We did find parking a couple of blocks farther out, by La Zona Rosa, which hadn't yet opened for the evening. When we got to the park, we saw that Alamo Drafthouse had set up an inflatable movie screen, and the crowd was already gathering. I saw a brown dog scratching the ground aggressively, presumably because of the other dogs accompanying their owners. I saw a family on a blanket, the mom feeding the baby. It was a charmingly Austin scene on a perfect April evening.
We were a little late in getting out. Christian was sick with his poison ivy and didn't go diving, so I had dilly-dallied. When we got to the Lucky, the band was in full break mode, and they didn't go onstage for a good 20 minutes. I think Ian was a bit hoarser than usual and was maybe taking it easy.
It was a normal half-show in most ways. We didn't hear Whatcha Gonna DO 'Bout It, or Lucky, but they did some of the other usuals. Somebody yelled out Green Onions and darn if they didn't do it. Somebody had a birthday, and they did Happy Birthday. Ian closed the show with Little Girl, dedicated to his daughter and 2 granddaughters. Aw!
Mark Andes looked great. Sometimes he laughs as if there is a joke in the music. Scrappy Jud's jeans were very split, so much that his knees were totally sticking out. Ian requested a Guinness when the set was nearly over.
As we walked through the lovely twilight, we went by the crowd gathered at the park for the movie. When we were nearly to the car, we met a small car with two occupants who looked at us hopefully. We're leaving, I told them, if you're looking for a spot. They whipped around to guard their find, giving us a wave as we left it to them.
My guess, they were going to the movie.