Big Hand Dave

If you didn’t make it to the “First Annual Big Hand At The Lake Party” part deux, then shame on you. If you were on the invitation list and didn’t show up, then you should hide your face in public. If you weren’t on the list, it ain’t that hard to get there. Just ask. There was much merriment. The Big Hand extended family knows how to throw down.

Christine, the official Big Hand Photographer, was on Hand and took lots of cool pictures, so keep an eye on the Gallery section of the site for a soon-to-be publicly available update. Check to see if your mug shows up!

Before I go any further, please allow me to say a Big Hand “hats off” to Beth. She is a Low-Country-Boil MACHINE! She cooked up the best batch of low county boil I’ve ever had. The only problem was the shrimp that Dave got were kinda’ small. Each shrimp weighed about a pound and a half each. Where do you get shrimp that big? How do you grow shrimp that big? Big Hand Dave does nothing small. Also, Beth studied Bloody Mary Mixology at P U and I truly enjoyed her doctoral thesis. Her righteous Bloody Marys in combination with whatever spectacular drink Amy made for me was a recipe for a most excellent evening.

The party was well under way by the time we started making some music, so that may have had some effect on the perception of our skills. In any case, the crowd was generously appreciative and all that cheering and clapping and screaming and yelling really makes you feel good. I know for a fact that it was NOT my imagination and we sounded better than we ever have.

P’s lead guitar was SMOKIN’ all night. Wes really knows how to layer rhythm and vocals in there. Rodney kept us on track all night and Dave was simply ON. You would’ve thought a band showed up to play. What was even more impressive (at least to me) is that we hadn’t practiced a specific set list. We just took turns picking out songs from our repertoire. We, in a word, rocked.

I’m sure I’m going to miss something, as I was less concerned with taking notes than I was in having a good time. And that reminds me of the Case Of The Missing Notes. That case has been solved- at least partially. There will be a full update forthcoming and you guys ain’t gonna’ believe it. It’s funny as hell and makes me all the more glad to have the privilege of getting to spend some time with the knuckleheads that make up Big Hand Dave.

We started the set with “Bittersweet.” That song was a harbinger of things to come as from the first note to the final cymbal, it was perfect. Next we played “Keep Your Hands To Yourself.” I knew again what kind of night it was going to be listening to Philip tear through that guitar part. After that it was my pick and after hearing what kind of guitar was going on, I naturally picked “Secret Agent Man” simply for its All-Spy-Review intro.

Next came “All Right Now.” I love the bass part in that song and the ending was perfect. After that we played “All Along The Watchtower,” our signature song. Amy made me spill my drink during this but she made it up to me by fixing me one of her concoctions. Then we played “Cumbersome” with Wes on lead vocal. “1985” was next. It seems it was “fast but right.” Then we played “867-5309/Jenny,” a crowd favorite.

“Gloria,” one of my new favorites, was next, followed by “Good Lovin’.” Then we played “The Dark Side” and “What I Like About You” in a medley, which, as Philip pointed out, is a much better match than the “Gloria/What I Like About You” medley. After that we did “Play That Funky Music” followed by “What’s Up.” Did I mention that the guitars were smokin’ this night?

Then we played “C.C. Rider” and “Real Wild Child,” then wound up the set with “Black Betty.”

Then the festivities began in earnest. The aforementioned Low-Country-Boil was the hit of the evening. There was also a boat ride to be enjoyed. A monster catfish was caught from the dock and Dave signed autographs. On people. Specifically, on their breasts. Yes, I got autographed and proudly displayed it.

As a special treat, Trent was at the party and sat in for some songs. Trent is an excellent guitarist and he and Rodney frequently have tall contests. Dave was otherwise engaged entertaining guests, so Wes sat in on drums. Who knew that as well as being a talented guitarist and vocalist with a contagious smile, he can also pass as a drummer?

We jammed a bit and played some familiar tunes, including “Chevy Van,” and “Closing Time.”

It was a great time. It was the best party I’ve ever been to. And – bonus – I got to sing with a great bunch of guys and hang out with a great bunch of friends.

Life is good.