Hotel Chelsea (09.05.23)

First Tuesday of the month? You know where to find me. Photo by Kat.

Greetings and salutations, readers. I'm back once again with a non-news blog, and as usual, we'll be talking about my latest live show, and as usual in recent years, it was at Hotel Chelsea in Second Life. But first, let's talk about other shit as we are apt to do.

What's Going On?

That's the title of an iconic song by Marvin Gaye. I tried to cover it a couple of times but then became painfully aware that covering one of the best vocalists in history is just begging for punishment.

But asking the question "What's going on?" is important. It opens the door to people talking and learning, and gaining both knowledge and perspective. And what's going on with me is inevitable different than what's going on with you, even if we seem like similar people with similar backgrounds in similar places.

I've seen that most people tend to assume that their lives, with their own challenges and joys and struggles and successes, are the same as most other people's... and it's simply not true. Look, we do have a lot of commonality, and by "we", I mean humans around this whole planet. But our personal experiences drastically inform our respective outlooks, and that's how you end up with the extraordinary polarization that seems so rampant today, especially in the USA but all over the world in reality.

Whatzupwitu?

That's the title of an absolutely terrible song from 1993 by Eddie Murphy and Michael Jackson for some reason. But to answer the question in regard to me, personally, I'd say that not much out of the usual has been happening. I work a lot, like most people. I've been very consistent in most areas of my life, from doing my daily "Zak's Random News" bullets, to my daily workouts, to when I go grocery shopping each week (Tuesdays about 2:30 in the afternoon), to even the times I tend to go to sleep and wake up (10:30PM and 6AM on weekdays, if you care).

Me? I'm fine. Literally no complaints.

It sounds boring, but I think a lot of my early life, which was often filled with haphazard chaos and constant upheaval, led to a point where boring routine is welcomed and appreciated. Also, my version of "normal", which includes being a performing musician and working in the fields of rock-and-roll and media, might be less boring than some other person's overall lifestyle.

Down with the Sickness

That's the title of a 2000 song by Disturbed, which remains their best-known track. The early 2000s were, in my opinion, a particularly bad time in music overall, across many genres. there are, as always, exceptions, but that song isn't one of them. Side note: the band seem like good people. I'm just not a fan, and no band expects everyone to like everything they do.

Anyway, I am healthy -- another thing I am always grateful for these days -- but it seems like once again, tons of people I know are getting COVID right now. That includes a number of good friends of mine who'd managed to avoid it for the entire 3-1/2 years until now. Anyway, there's obviously a massive surge right now. Those who are vaccinated and recently boosted are far better off than those who aren't, obviously.

The current COVID variant, EG.5 (known informally as Eris) doesn't seem to be any more dangerous than other recent strains, but it sure seems highly transmissible.

But we're seeing widespread school absences and other pieces of evidence that show the current surge is super bad. Most people are not having severe symptoms, thankfully; hospitalization numbers are not up drastically. While I know folks tend to have short memories, allow me to remind you that wearing masks in indoor public settings, washing your hands, and trying to socially distance yourself is the best way to avoid COVID, along with the aforementioned vaccinations.

Speaking of which, the upcoming COVID-19 booster is expected to be available in the United States as early as next week -- potentially as soon as September 13 -- and it will help protect against the currently circulating variants. I'll be getting mine, and so should you.

Jimmy Buffett (1946-2023)

I'm gonna tell you, because I'm an honest guy and I don't bullshit people for any particular reason... I was never a Jimmy Buffett fan, or a Parrothead, as they are called. I think it's likely that it's been 40+ years since I went out of my way to hear a Jimmy Buffett song, or that I even didn't bother changing the station when one of his tunes came on the radio.

I don't hate Jimmy Buffett's music. I just find it insipid and predictable, while my tastes are the exact opposite, looking for tunes that are innovative and dissonant and musically challenging. And it's sort of funny that I learned "Margaritaville" when it was a new song in 1977. Why? Because I was a beginning guitarist and that song essentially has three chords, and it was in an "Easy To Play" beginner's guitar book that I had at the time.

His music? Nah. The person? Hell yeah.

But let me also tell you, Jimmy was an amazing person, which is much more impressive than being some kind of amazing musician. He'd built a business empire with his restaurant chains, casinos, sports teams, real estate, and other investments, and his net worth was over $1 billion at the time of his passing. Jimmy was also a philanthropist and worked causes to help save the environment, did fundraising for disaster relief efforts, and was a huge Democratic supporter, hosting rallies and doing fundraising efforts for many Dem politicians like Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, and others.

And a final note about his music. It was fun, and it was funny, and never took itself seriously... and I appreciate that as well. There's nothing wrong with music that offers an escape from one's daily life, and I think a whole lot of people got joy and fulfillment from the vibe of being on an island somewhere and sipping a tasty beverage just from hearing one of his songs. Rest in peace, brother.

Are You Going To Talk About The Show Or Not?

Of course I am. Jesus, have some patience.

Let's start by telling you that something happened at this show that hasn't happened to me in years: my stream server wasn't functioning, something I didn't discover until the moment I attempted to begin my show. It's been so long that my stream has been consistently functional that I never bother to check beforehand. The whole show could have gone downhill quickly, but Hotel Chelsea had a stream available, bless them, and I just quickly plugged in their info and bang-zoom, I was rocking. I've already contacted my stream folks to inform them of the issue, which should be resolved quickly.

Me being me onstage at Hotel Chelsea. Photo by Kat.

My view from the stage. Photo by Kat.

In addition to doing the aforementioned "Margaritaville" for the first time in 46 years -- fuck, I'm old -- I also reached into the deep annals of my song list and did a few that have been rare in recent years. I hadn't performed "Sunny Came Home" in over a decade, and even my own very silly song "Pickles" got pulled out for the first time in almost exactly three years; the last time I did it was on September 7, 2020.

Every time I glance down from the stage at Hotel Chelsea and see Shyla the Super Gecko, who manages the venue and stands front and center, it puts a smile on my face. Photo by Kat.

"Pickles" was a tune I did all the time at another venue where I used to play often before it went into longterm hiatus. Also, since the actual cat (yes, there was a real Pickles) moved away with its owner, I suppose I hadn't felt any inspiration to play it since. But it's a silly song and people love that shit, and I have to admit, it was fun to play and was an excellent closer for my set.

Overall the show went fine despite the stream issue. We built up a smallish but respectable crowd, and everyone seems to have a good time. That's all I ask from a show in Second Life.

Hotel Chelsea set list...

All I Want (Joni Mitchell)

*Margaritaville (Jimmy Buffett)

Accidents Will Happen (Elvis Costello)

Crosses (José González)

Either Way (Wilco)

Sunny Came Home (Shawn Colvin)

Alabama (Neil Young)

Games Without Frontiers (Peter Gabriel)

Things Under Trees (They Stole My Crayon)

River Man (Nick Drake)

Man of Constant Sorrow (Traditional)

Pickles (Zak Claxton)

*Indicates the first time I've performed this song in SL.

Big thanks to the folks who came out to the show, with an extra big helping of thankfulness to the following who helped support it!

Beth Odets, Charles Somerset, cristoofarr Resident, Trouble Streeter, Richy Nervous, Kat Claxton, my terrific manager Maali Beck, Hotel Chelsea manager Shyla the Super Gecko, and Chelsea's great staff.