$148 in tips.  wow.  

Coming back home, I never thought I’d be moonlighting as a wine bar singer, but that’s exactly what I got to do last Friday.

The venue was Vines and Friends, a classy new bar here in town and conveniently located just minutes away from my house.  A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine and fellow musician introduced me to the place, and we both ended up auditioning for the manager on the spot.  Thankfully, we got the nod of approval, and I scheduled a solo show for June 29.

Fast forward to the 29th: I arrive at the venue running a little late from work, with gear piled in the back seat and my bro in the passenger seat as my faithful roadie. After a few technical difficulties, which involved running home to grab a new mic to replace a faulty one and securing said mic to the stand with a plethora of hair bands, I was ready to go.  What followed was a bit of a blur, as I sang and strummed through ever cover I knew (and several I didn’t) over a 3.5 hour marathon set.  

Some highlights:

• Getting to catch up with high school friends
• My parents and family friends coming out to support me
• Finding out my high school wrestling teammate was the chef of the bar
• People-watching!  
• Serenading adorable couples and “setting the mood” ;)
• Chit-chatting with my brother and other patrons in between sets
• Improvising a cover of “Freebird” twice (!!!) for a warm group of classic-rock lovers
• Hearing a whole bar sing “sha la la la la” during Van Morrison’s “Brown-Eyed Girl”
• Tackling “Someone Like You” in a lower register and doing it justice
• Debutting a new song, which got a positive reception
• The smiles of patrons as they came up to drop a few dollars in the tip jar
• Experimenting with my lower register, especially on Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love,” Magnetic Fields’ “Book of Love,” and John Mayer’s “A Face to Call Home”
• Duetting with one of the waitresses during Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours”
• The couple at the end of the night that had especially awesome taste, requesting Ray Lamontgne and Ryan Adams
• Playing guitar as a fellow California transplant belted Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”
• The gracious patrons that came up to me to compliment my performance
• Meeting the owner of the venue, who enjoyed my performance
• Getting a delicious turkey panini on the house
• Earning $148 in tips and feeling totally humbled and grateful in the process

All in all, it was a truly wonderful night and a great learning experience.  I’m so grateful to have found such a warm and welcoming venue to perform in :) I look forward to honing my performance craft at Vines and Friends over the next year — I’ve already booked a couple of shows in August with the gracious manager at the venue, Bee, and I’ll be doing a jazz jam with my friend next week.  But most of all, it’s great to be reminded of the immense joy to be found in sharing music with others.  At the end of the day, it’s all about the love of good music and its incredible power to bring people together. 

Till next time…

Love,

Andrew

P.S.:  I’ve got an online concert coming up next week, Wednesday, June 11, 8 PM PST at livestream.com — just tune into http://livestream.com/andrewplanmusic when it’s game time and I will be right there on your screen and in your monitors, serenading you in real time.  I’ll also be raffling off two limited edition Andrew Plan t-shirts during the concert :)  Hope to see you there!

Year of Song #3:  “Wherever love roams”

Here’s a product of my recent globetrotting.  Came up with the idea in Vietnam, finished it up at uncle’s house in Manila.  It’s a bit more romantic-y and supportive than usual…these past two weeks some of my good friends have had really tough times, so the sentiment of this song came from that, just the want to be there for them in way I could.  So I wrote this song, and hopefully it brings you some comfort as well.

This is the third in my weekly song series, Year of Song, in which I’ll be recording and posting one song a week till August 2011.  Sign up for my mailing list at andrewplan.com and you’ll be notified as soon as the week’s song is up, along with a link to the direct download of the song.

Till next week…

if ever you get to the river and manage to outswim the fire
just know as we lie on the cool cool grass, i’ll follow you wherever love roams

if ever your heart starts to falter, and your body too weakened to care
just know that time will let your mind go, i’ll follow you wherever love roams

no i don’t know what awaits us, or if this field will grow
just keep this inside and don’t let it die, i’ll follow you wherever love roams
i’ll be there, wherever love roams

rain hits the back of your best dress, the letter left you unprepared
i’m holding your hand but you don’t understand, these words will remain undeclared

no i don’t know what to tell you, or what kind of seeds to sow
just keep this inside and don’t let it die, i’ll follow you wherever love roams
i’ll be there, wherever love roams

and i feel your light inside, it’s bursting forth through newborn air
and i wish you all the best, but i don’t want you to believe in me
no, i need you to believe in you

whenever you wait by your window, to catch one more glimpse of the dream
i soar through the trees and the air that you breathe, i’m your shelter, wherever you go

no i don’t know what awaits us, or what kind of seeds to grow
just keep this inside and don’t let it die, i’ll follow you wherever love roams
i’ll be there, wherever love roams