The Last Supper?....

The Rick threw it out there after recently visiting Blackeyed Sally's and noticing the upcoming booking of Sarah Borges - "Hey, anyone interested?"  Sure, the last time we saw SBBS was opening for the Reducers in New London in 2009.  We missed her appearance at the annual Blackeyed & Blues Fest last June over at Bushnell park because we were at the Cape on a golf trip.  An email from Sarah's publicist tells of an imminent hiatus (breakup?), so this might be our last chance to catch one of our favorite live bands.  A quick email to Keith/Sharie and Vin/Marsha yields one yes, one no (Marsha passes, instead going retro to catch Joan Baez with the girls on Friday night; Vin, on the other hand, seems to be stuck up on a climbing trail somewhere in Middletown). We're passing on Dave Mason at the Wolf Den the same night.  Okay, reservations for six.  It's a nine o'clock show, so The Reet is happy; those 11:30 showtimes at Cafe Nine are not her cup of tea.

JoAnn and The Rick drive up from Shelton (rumors that Rick molested those horses are greatly exaggerated), while Keith/Sharie pick us up for the ride up I84 to the bustling CT Capitol.  Keith deftly parks the car in the lot across from Sallys and we hoof it (sorry about the horse reference) across Asylum.  We enter, finding that JoAnn & The Rick have already arrived, having not been informed that reservations are at eight, not seven-thirty.  Rick informs us that Sarah had just pushed past him; I look over my shoulder, finding her and the guys chowing down in a booth (hence, the Last Supper).  Beers/wine obtained at the bar (thanks, Rick), we're shown to our table off to the left of the band stage.

Love the food here.  (Thanksgiving suggestion from Sally's: Cajun Fried Turkeys are back! Place your order today!  This Holiday season, impress your family & friends with a “no-hassle” Thanksgiving Dinner from Black-eyed Sally’s- book it, Danno).   The Reet would disagree - hates this stuff.  I order the blackened catfish with collard greens/sweet potatoes.  The Reet, searching for something ordinary, opts for the mac 'n cheese appetizer.  Rick tells of his team building exercise- asking each of his people to submit his/her top 4 songs of all time, then playing each song, having the group guess the song, artist AND who submitted the song.  Interesting exercise.  And tricky, for one is always torn between actually giving your favorites and trying to be cool.  So, what's your top four?   I've asked The Rick for the listing to post here.  Must be close to show time 'cause drummer Rob Delaney is test-pounding his drum set nearby.  I run into Binky on my way to the head.  Yeah, long time, heard you guys were taking a break.  He says (I'm now pissing while talking back to him via the mirror) they will still play some shows, but it's time since Sarah and Kyle got married and all.  Oh, I did not know that!  Then he's out to start the show.

The table behind us is full of thirty-something Sarah fanatics, a few of whom fly onto the dance floor for the band's opening number.  I can sense that Keith is itching to join them, but he suppresses his primal urge.  He's looking sharp, having gone with the jacket/scarf look for the evening, but Keith gets soundly trumped by the dude near the dance floor sporting a long, white scarf, deftly tied and casually flung over the shoulder.  I pat Keith on the back to reassure him that his fashion touch was a really nice one anyway.  Sarah & the boys sound really good.  I've only caught Kyle Brewer once since he replaced Mike Castellana as the guitarist, but I love his playing.  Interesting solos, nice variation in styles.  Nice playlist, too (didn't take notes, sorry), a couple new covers along with SBBS staples, played good and loud.  Blackeyed Sallys is a good venue for this band, a venue that, because of the dance floor directly in front of the stage and the close proximity to the bar, gives some extra energy to the performance, much like Cafe Nine.  I find that places like the Iron Horse in Northampton are nice, but everyone is seated all the time and it can become a bit of a one-sided effort.  Some, if not all, in our party would take issue with that assessment.  Anyway, great set (of songs).  The band takes a break just after 11PM, signally the end of our night, although our waitress apparently didn't think so, disappearing from sight.

Happy trails, Sarah, Binky, Rob & Lyle.  Catch you, well, sometime.

Waxing nostalgic, here is a listing of SBBS shows attended over the years:

• The Narrows Center in Fall River, MA in 2005 with Peter after reading an article about her on Yahoo (posting)
• Cafe Nine In New Haven- numerous late night shows at the Musicians' Living Room with, at various times, The Reet, Johnny Gumbo (where Gumbo tried to recruit Sarah for a gig at the Southington Apple Harvest Festival), Trish/George, Keith/Sharie, Judi/John, G-Man, Aaron, including the show where Sarah broke off her front tooth, but, like a real trooper, played the show anyway.  Who said women pirates weren't hot? (posting)
• Lizard Lounge in Cambridge in 2006 with the McGowans/DuBoses/Joe&Nancy (posting)
• Joe's Pub in Manhattan in 2007 with G-Man (posting)
• Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton in 2007 with Keith/Sharie (posting)
• Hygienic Art Park in New London in 2009 with Vin/Marcia, Joann/The Rick, Keith/Sharie, opening for the home town Reducers (posting)
• Blackeyed Sallys in Hartford in 2010 with Keith/Sharie & JoAnn/The Rick