There's a thing around here and it's called "Lopez Time." People are usually at least an hour late, never on time ever. People seldom show up early to anything. Events are planned around that "Lopez time." The second installment of the Home on the Grange Concert Series had people showing up a full 40 minutes early. Something that I hadn't planned on but was nice to welcome. The folks that showed up that early were the guitar and mandolin players that knew exactly what they were in store for; two first class pickers that they didn't want to miss a beat of. They wanted the front row and they got it! Other folks arrived close to show time and on the predictable 'late' Lopez Time. Everyone got a good seat.
Wowsers, Zowsers... what a good show! Man could these guys play! Mixing tempos and dancing around each other with hot licks and great grooves that dashed around the globe in a musical infusion. The sound was great dialed in by my friend Bruce a first class mandolin player and guitar player himself. He told me that with acoustic players like these once you dial in the sound it's set. They modulate the volume themselves with the way they approach the groove and back off the mic. He was right! Bruce set-up his "flea fart" microphones that caught every colorful picking nuance of their first class acoustic attack on the frets. The sound was excellent, the composition was excellent but by far my favorite part of the evening was seeing everyones blissed out faces. The musiicans in the front row who were absolutely transfixed following every move, the folks who turned to me and gave me the thumbs up, and the friends who closed their eyes and smiled.
Note: If you ever get a chance go see them, DO. John Reischman & John Miller seldom get to play together because John Reischman is busy with his group the Jaybirds but they have two wonderful recordings called The Singing Moon and The Bumpy Road. Both excellent!
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