Musical regrets

Saw Dennis’s post about Ernie, and this snippet caught my attention:

In fact, on the list of my great musical regrets is never getting to chance to see Professor Longhair do a show in New Orleans. I might write about some of the other regrets one of these days. It’s interesting how my Professor Longhair regret now has expanded to include “and seeing the show with Ernest Svenson.” Such is the impact of blogging. [DennisKennedy.blog]

I have a similar musical regret: never seeing The Call or Danny Gatton perform live. Both came through DC when I was an intern in the summer of 1991; in each case, I figured I’d have plenty of chances to see them again when I had more disposable income. The Call broke up later that year, and Danny Gatton committed suicide while I was in law school.

Oddly enough, in the fall of 2001 I was driving down Route 301 with my wife and in-laws, stopped at a gas station to pick up a soda, and saw a photo-copied sign taped to the window: an auction of Danny Gatton’s estate had happened earlier that day. I missed it by fewer than three hours (though I’d had no clue it was going on).

Moral of the story? Go see those artists when they’re playing, don’t wait for the next time around. If their music means something to you, seeing the artist perform it live is “unforgettable”:http://www.rklau.com/tins/archives/2004/12/15/saw_paul_curreri_last_night.php.