Last Saturday, I actually got to play three, count’em, three hours of jazz! I got the gig through an old friend that I played the Silverado Country Club with years ago. Anyway, I hired an old keyboard player friend that I went to San Francisco State University with in 1975. Guy and I were fast friends and we were both sort of rebels. SF State was loaded with classical players and we jazzers were mostly loaded. It was great to see Guy and play with him again. I think the last time we played together was about fifteen years ago. We swapped war stories and how many times we almost died from this or that. Typical old guy stuff. He was a good player back then, he is much better now!
The gig was at Rutherford Hill Winery in the heart of the Napa Valley. It is way up in the hills on the east side of the Napa valley and the view was really spectacular. So there we were, playing cool tunes, staring out at the Napa Valley, watching the sun go down and the moon coming up. Oh, did I mention we got paid well to do this? Not to mention a very nice bottle of 2002 Rutherford Hill Cabernet Sauvignon ($36.00!). I love my job! Most of the time, anyway. The few times when I don’t are another story. All my gigs should be this nice. Check out the landscaping at this place.