Ketchup

So my reason for not blogging for over a month was that I was really, really busy during the month of April. I'd like to tell you what I was up to ...

When we got back from Texas, my bass player Zack Foley and I decided to put a band together here in New York (since most of the players I played with consistently were based in Texas). So we batted around ideas for a few days and decided on the additions of Jesse Elder on piano and Sam Knight on drums.

We started rehearsing in late March and since have put a really fresh, new sound to all my songs - old and new. Our debut gig was scheduled for May 9 at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe.

Also during April, I was working on my buddy Mike Swift's new play The Sinner, which opened on April 23rd at the Nuyorican for a two-week Thursday-Friday run. Zack and I composed the music for it and I was there every night running sound.


The play is about a priest who begins to realize that he's far too disconnected from society and he finds it hard to help the people who seek guidance from him when he has never experienced the troubles that these people go through. So he decides to go out and get lost in the nightlife of New York City to "experience" the good, the bad and mostly the ugly that today's society has to offer.

Zack and I opted to go for a concoction of church/choral/organ music, as well as some funky jazz, alla Miles Davis' In a Silent Way. I think it worked out beautifully.

The week after The Sinner was through with its run was the week I played twice at the Nuyorican. On Thursday May 7, I played a couple of acoustic sets - the first set was me alone, playing my songs. The second set featured duets with my sister, Lisa Vidas, and my buddy Zack. The show was great, we had a good turnout for a Thursday, and I felt pretty good about the way the sets turned out. Here's a set list:

JASON'S SOLO SET

• Now
• Rely on Fate/The Crime
• Not Guilty
• Untitled
• Rich with Red
• Take the Helm
• Alone Again
• Sad Infatuation
• Wondering If I Belong

FEATURING LISA VIDAS

• Avalanche
• Tonight You Belong To Me
• Come Home
• Valerie

ZACK & JC

• Punky's Dilemma
• The Dangling Conversation
• Homeward Bound
• Two of Us
• America
• The Boxer
• The Only Living Boy in New York
• Old Friends/Bookends

Then on Saturday, May 9, I debuted my new Citizens for Boysenberry Jam Band. The set was intense, funky, mesmerizing, and surreal ... and that was just for me. I have no idea how everyone else felt about it. Zack did his vocal bass thing, which in and of itself is both amazing to watch and very cool to hear; Sam was ridiculous on the drums, playing with and "easy intensity" if that's even possible; and Jesse is such an incredible talent, it was an honor having him play my songs.

Here's a set list:

• Deeper
• Not Guilty
• On the Cusp
• Untitled (The Man That I Am)
• Bittersweet
• My Song
• Heckle & Hide
• 1000000 Miles

OK kids. That's all I got for now. Again, I promise to blog more often from now on. Or until I get busy again. Perhaps a LOST season finale review?!?!?! Umm, yeah ... I think so.

Bye.