Oakville, ON, Sold Out Show!

I’m not pumped about this gig today. Or maybe I’m just tired? Up too early for a run around Toronto’s High Park. It was pretty nice to wake up at home, even if this meant waking up way too early! Another perfect fall day, and the trees throughout the Park are showing plenty of colour. I count blue jays in the great oaks over the parking lot. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many in one place. I see another fox as I run today. The dirt trails are nice and soft. I strike a soft pace as well, and the swans at the pond shore ignore me completely as I pass.

Michael and Louise are going to arrive in Oakville— tonight’s gig location— at about 5:PM and are going for dinner. If I get there on time I’ll join them. I leave Toronto at around 4:15 and roll into Oakville just after 6:00. It’s not a long drive, but these roads around Toronto are entirely choked with traffic. I’m thankful I’m not driving back and forth to a dull job every day.


I spot the venue, The Moonshine Café, and load in. It’s a friendly feeling room, and I meet the manager-booker, John, as I’m entering. He’s very helpful getting me in, getting me a drink and dinner, bringing me up to date on ticket sales. Sold out! Sure enough, there are “reserved” signs at every chair, table and stool throughout the club.


What’s starting time? I had thought 8:00 PM, but John tells me “8:30, or 9:00.” The place fills up with people pretty quickly. Michael and Louise arrive and we sound check and get the merch in order. Singer-songwriter- Roots Toronto director Howard Gladstone and his wife drop by. Andie from Canadianblues.ca has come with one of her blues buddies, Dean. Great to see her out and about! Here’s a bunch of people who saw me play at the Escarpment Festival in Milton, ON, last year.

Michael’s greating old friends and fans, too. This is great. The bar is busy. Very busy. John asks us to hold back our start a bit longer.


Finally the place is packed to standing room only and people are restless. We are restless, too. I’ve been waiting over three hours. John says go!

What a great crowd, they are a little noisy in the back, but they are with us. The first set is very good. We sell cd’s and raffle tickets on a tour jacket. Here's the lucky winner.

The second set is hot. We are on in a big way. A couple of encores and we are done. Gosh, the night goes fast when you are in the zone. We pack out, signing cd’s as we go. I’ll come back and do this one solo during the winter. It’s a nice music room which reminds me of the coffeehouses I used to play in the 1970s- only with beer. Nice. Check out this room if you are travelling through the area. You will not be disappointed. John says he may charter a bus and take his club to Michael’s house concert- Concert for Peace next August in Crystal Beach, ON! That could be kind of wild, eh? Here's Louise and I closing up the paperwork on tonight's show. Thanks, Louise!