My Time Behind Rock-Star Shades

I was a rock star Sunday morning, ever so briefly.

This past Sunday was the 7^th Annual Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. This is among the annual events that commemorate the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. The organizers have local bands perform at different spots along the course to entertain runners, spectators, and volunteers.

Now, Ben and I have been working on an acoustic set since late last year and have actually had a gig. I got an email from Ben while I was visiting Brother Dave, asking if I was interested in doing music for the marathon. I’m the first to admit to being a ham, so I eagerly agreed.

However, by the time I responded, the Ben’s concept had shifted. He had also contacted a group he does rock music with – The Space Heaters – and asked if they were available and interested. The regular rhythm guitarist was out of pocket, so I stood in for him. I don’t know that many could hear my non-amplified (but miked) guitar over everything else, but strumming gave me something to do when I wasn’t singing.

We were told to be at the site – about six blocks from the finish line – around 6:30 a.m. Runners were expected to be coming around the spot around 7:30. Now, I’m an early bird – but even I think 6:30 a.m. is rather early.

It took at least 20 minutes for bleary-eyed musicians to agree on where to set up the gear. Then, about 30 minutes to set up. By the time we had set up, the first runner came by. So, that hour for set up was a good idea.

We played mostly oldies: Great Balls of Fire, Like a Rolling Stone, Lucille, and Fortunate Son. I sang lead on Mr. Tambourine Man and All Along the Watchtower. We hadn’t rehearsed the latter; it’s something I played to cover while the lead guitarist replaced a broken string. Since “Watchtower” is basically 2-3 chords (simplest way to play it is with Am and F), it was a good filler. I also filled time by playing harmonica between each of the three verses.

Guess I did OK. When we were done, Ben said, “We’re definitely adding that one to the set list.”

We did a couple more songs, then it was time for me to sing The Mighty Quinn. I started to tear into it – like Dylan did at the Isle of Wight concert – and suddenly, my mind went blank. For the life of me, I could not remember the first verse.

Next thing we knew, the power was gone.

Did I mention that the site was a car dealership? Specifically, a Jaguar dealership? Did I mention that no one met us to tell us where we could plug in?

There two outlets outside the display room, and we had plugged into one of those. Hard to believe we had blown a fuse. Surely, a Jaguar dealership can afford to pay it’s electric bill.

Anyway, that was my brief moment as a rock star. It was fun, and I hope I can do it again.