For a change, mostly good news. The music business is picking up.

THE WILD GOOSE GIG is going to be TUESDAY, 29 APRIL, 8 to 11 p.m. I’ve tapped Darrin Wayne to play harmonica, and want to tap James Maille for lead guitar, Jack Fischer for bass, and Dan Doshier for mandolin, if they’re willing. Soon as the band’s firmed up, I’ll do a poster. And notify the joelist.

Darrin and I also may be playing the Three Trees Lounge in Sams Valley this Saturday, 4/12. Just the two of us, but it could turn into a paying gig for a full band. We visited the place a week ago, and the clientele are definitely folks who like country music—and we can give it to ‘em.

At the Wild Goose open mike Sunday 4/6, I got to not only do my stuff, but also play lead guitar on one of Darrin’s songs (which we’d been practicing) and two of Scott Garriott’s (ditto). Might get a reputation as a guitarist yet. A lot of antiwar songs at the Goose—symptomatic, I think, of a growing unrest—and Darrin and I played ‘em my “No Good Songs About the War.”

Most of the other antiwar songs were frankly not very good; they were too long, mournful to the point of being boring, and/or named names and current events—none of which you should do in a good protest song. Protest songs need to be simple, and singable, and have a recognizable beat, and have a clear, timeless image you can beat people over the head with until you’ve got their attention. Closest one I heard to that ideal was Darrin Wayne’s “Who’ll Save Me?”

And I got approached by a recording studio owner who wants to record my stuff. He’s the third studio dude I’ve talked to (but the first who’s approached me). I have his Website and MySpace to check out; pretty quick, I’ll have to decide which way to jump. It looks like getting the new CD “in the can” before the end of April is a distinct possibility. Just have to decide where.

BEANERY GIG: Saturday 4/5, and it was okay. Small crowd (could have promoted better—and it’d probably have helped to not be competing with a Southern Oregon Songwriters’ showcase the same night). Scott and I split $9.60 in tips, and I got one more name for the joelist. The coffee was free (thanks, Beanery), and I think the staff liked us. Next 3 weekends are open, and it would be fun to do it again.

SPEECH TEAM DESSERT GALA: The big annual fundraiser for my daughter’s speech team was Friday 4/4, and they asked for two of my CDs to auction off. They ended up with three more besides mine—I donated my copies of Delonde Bell’s “Phoenix Door” album, Darrin Wayne’s “Touch Ya,” and Dottie Brown & Co.’s “Just Some More Good Old Stuff.”

TO DO: Nail down the gig at Roscoe’s in Phoenix. Burn more CDs (takes a while on the good-but-slow equipment I have at home). Find out from Wayne how the recording came out (if he’s gotten it done yet); I’m not that happy with my performance on it, but he may well be able to work magic with it.

No Screamin’ Gulch practice this week, but I still get to play Monday, Tuesday and the gig on Saturday. Not too bad.

Joe