More Slam Dates + GPB has OPENED!!

Greetings everyone.

Cam's Tie Trio
We've got a few more dates scheduled for the Slam! We'll be playing December 7th & 28th. On the 7th, I'll be coming immediately from 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'. We're staying in the rotation of house bands for the Slam. I'm stoked. This gig is where I can stretch my legs and flex different muscles.

Specifically, since the music is 'free' and based off of interaction with the poets, this is a different skill set. I love it. Notes don't matter, all that really matters is helping convey the message and feeling of the poems. Pretty hip eh?

The different muscles-I am leading this trio. That is extremely different for me. I'm most accustomed to blending into the wood work while playing and well-blending into the wood work even more off stage. So, I'm actually leading vs. just following. It's a nice change, but I like it. Thus far, we've done an arrangement I did of 'Come Together' by the Beatles. I am working on an arrangement of a song I wrote. The working title of the song is 'Choking Hazard'.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes has Opened!
Ok, GPB has opened!! Our opening night was November 19th. I'm excited to see where this show will go. Thus far, we've earned a Jeff Recommendation. We're running Friday thru Sunday till February 1st. Friday & Saturdays at 8PM and Sundays at 3PM.

Update about the Parade. Care of a recording session, the band is not required/needed for the parade!! This is a relief to me. The idea of taking a bass outside in less than 40 degree weather is even less appealing than just being outside in less than 40 degree weather.

More Gigs
I've signed on to do 2 more theater shows.

The first one starts the first week of March and will run from March 9th to April 19th 2009. Another Friday-Sunday gig. However, Sundays will be at 7PMish, so I can't do the Slam during that time period. I'm doing 'Evita' with Theo Ubique in Rogers Park. This is a different format than the other shows I've done, it's a cabaret setup in a smaller venue.

I'm stoked-I'm working with Ryan Brewster for this show, the location is great, and the people are supposed to be amazing. I mention the Ryan Brewster comment because he is who I did 'My Fair Lady', 'Damn Yankees', and he plays in my trio. Definately a guy that I enjoy working with. The biggest change with 'Evita' compared to the rest of the shows I've done is that it's an electric bass gig. Yeah-I'll go from playing my New Standard Cleveland to more than likely my StingRay5. It shall be a blast. I love playing the Cleveland, but I know that the Ray5 would love to come out to play more.

More on the location, if you know me, you know that I also live in Rogers Park. The commute time for this show will be 10-15minutes each way max. That makes me so excited. My commute time for 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' is just under 2 hours each way. No offense to those guys, but having a 10minute commute sounds amazing. I'll be able to just walk to the venue. For a CTA reference, if I was to take the train to the theater, I'd be walking to the other end of the platform without boarding the train. That's how close it is to where I live.

The second show is also with Ryan Brewster. We're doing 'Sunday in the Park with George' with Big Noise Theatre Company. The show is running April 24th to May 17th, 2009. This will dovetail extremely tightly with 'Evita'. I think tech week will be the week immediately following the closign of 'Evita'. I believe the performances are in Des Plaines while the rehearsals are in Winnetka.

all the best.

Week 2 of Slam Band + GPB Tech

Hey everybody,


The Green Mill and the Uptown Poetry Slam
This will be week 2 of leading the house band for the Uptown Poetry Slam at the Green Mill. The name of the band is 'Cam's Tie Trio'. Show up to the Slam to learn what it means. This week, we're debuting an arrangement I did of The Beatles 'Come Together'. I'm excited for others to hear it. It's the first arrangement I've had performed.

Sunday 6:45PM we start with some preshow music, 7PM the Open Mic, 8PM Featured Guests, 9PM THE SLAM! $6 cover, 21+. Hosted by Poetry Slam Founder Marc Smith (SO WHAT!). We're confirmed to play Nov 9th and Nov 16th. I'm hoping that Marc extends us and that GPB is less than 2.5hrs long so that I can keep this gig.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes at Circle Theatre in Forest Park
We start tech week on Monday. I'm excited. I worked with the Music Director, Allison Kane, on a Monday Nights New Voices event. This will be our first show together and I'm stoked. I love meeting and working with new people-especially when they work differently than those that I am familiar with. From our talks, I will be reading chord charts for this show!! This makes me happy as I can walk my own lines vs. reading the written ones and then rewriting them. We're also performing in one of the Thanksgiving Parades that will be broadcast on WGN. Pretty hip to me.

all the best.