BassCliff w/ANB at Knott's, 6/22/19

Howdy bass partners!

I know, I know. I said I'd put this Knott's Berry Farm summer run into one big thread. But I lied. OK? Please don't hate me. Me and the ANB played again on the Calico stage on a Saturday night to the delight of tens of fans while we made tens of dollars.



I had a very nice commute on a Saturday afternoon, very little stickiness on the freeway. I made my way down Beach Blvd past all the other attractions like the Pirate Dinner Theater, Medieval Times Dinner Theater, Rock'n'Brews (used to be Hard Rock Cafe) and other eaterys and showrooms. There used to be a wax museum around here somewhere.



I pulled into the first row end parking spot I could find, row 22 in the employee lot. I like the end spot because I can leave a little extra room to try and avoid door dings. But that leaves me quite a long carry to the employee entrance across the street. I don't mind. It's my workout today.



Since there was very little traffic on my commute I arrived a little earlier than I usually do. The bluegrass band was just finishing up their set on the Calico Stage.



I tossed my gear in the green room and wandered around a bit while the stage crew made their transition. I haven't ridden this train in decades. I'm going to, very soon, one of these days.



Chris was our crew leader and FOH today. He is a very attentive and helpful young man, good to work with.



Amanda gets her IEMs dialed in with the monitor guy. Oops, I didn't get his name. Jason is also wearing his IEMs. You can tell because he always plays too loudly when he wears IEMs.



Alright! The stage is all set. Time to get on our cowboy clothes and put on a show!



Arnie brought his Kemper unit tonight. He's had it worked on recently but I think it was still giving him fits tonight. He walked back and tweaked it several times tonight.



OK! We are just about to start. The lovely Ms. Amanda Kate does the old country bass player a favor and takes a selfie.



Just before we start, Arnie tunes because he cares.



Jason checks the set list to decide which songs he can play loud and which songs he can play too loud.



My old friend Ian is with us again tonight because our old friend John is still under the weather. Ian did a fine, upstanding job tonight.



Ian brought his own double keyboard stand tonight. There's not one in the backline. That top keyboard is backline. Ian took twenty minutes or so after sound check to program some sounds he liked. The bottom keyboard is one of his usual suspects.

Speaking of backline, last week my backline amp was on the fritz so I went direct and put bass in my monitor, which worked great. The amp had been fixed, plus there was a backup now. But the SVT Pro and 410 cab worked just fine.

Here's a shot from my mic just before Jason counts us off.



Amanda turned around just as I took this picture. We did "I Feel Like A Woman" the third song of the set. The long intro allows me to take a few pictures.



On the first break I wanted to try and find my buddy Skip on his stage. I hustled past The Suffragettes on the big stage.



I quickly walked through the rides and attractions on the West side of the park behind the Calico Mine Ride and found Skip and Dwight on the Boardwalk BBQ stage, having a ball.



They even recognized this old country bass player. They had the kids, and their parents, a-hoppin' and a-boppin' to that old time rock'n'roll that they play.



Their duo is a lot of fun. Dwight runs the drum machine on his mic stand and Skip plays left hand bass. They sound pretty darn good playing the old rhythm and blues.

Then it was back to my gig. I managed to snag another shot from behind Amanda and Arnie.



We started our last half hour set at 10pm. Since they don't allow employees to enjoy adult beverages in the park, I stopped on the way home to pick up an interesting stout I'd never tried before. I like the Stone IPA but I've never tried that brewery's stout.



Yes, you saw that right. It's got a 10.6% alcohol content. The Stone Expresso Totalitarian Russian Imperial Stout is formidable, but really tasty and light for a stout. Sure, it's a little bitter from the espresso but all the roasted malts are pretty mellow. I think I'll have another. This is a really good beer but a bit pricey, $20 for this six pack of cans. Yeeowzer! (Maybe this little corner liquor store next to KBF is price gouging?) But I like to splurge once in a while.

The band is off until Wednesday when we are at Downtown Disney. I think John may be back by then. The following weekend we've got a double on Saturday, a private party in Riverside before the Knott's gig. Then Sunday we have a concert-in-the-park in La Verne. The next few weeks are going to be pretty busy for us. Thanks for putting up with me.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

Hi guys!

Thank you gentlemen. Ian does a great job but we miss John too. I'll pass along everyone's good wishes. He's had a surgery so we want him to recover fully before he comes back to work. He's hoping to be back with us on Wednesday but I don't want him to rush it.

You're very welcome. Yes, please! Share your gigs with the class.

Ok, I'll put the Go To on my list. Thanks!

Francelle is still tearing up all the honky tonks in Nashville. She's recently done a few concert openers for Alan Jackson's tour. But yes, that's an old promo picture left over from when the gig was booked last year.

Thank you Dan, but it seems we're always in action.

Awww shucks. I'm just having my fun. Thanks for letting me share it.

Look at you! You'll be gigging before you know it. I also hope you get back in the air soon.

I can only suspect that at one time somebody abused the privilege and had too many cold ones on the job. I suppose if they let the band drink they'd have to let everyone drink. You don't want the ride operators hopped up on the suds.

Thanks! Knott's Berry Farm is the "other" amusement park in Orange county with Disneyland being the 600 pound gorilla. Knott's is smaller, less corporate, less expensive, and more "home town" feeling than the larger parks. It seems they try harder. I really enjoy it here.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

Hi,

Ha! Yeah, yeah, I know. Knott's doesn't feed us so I ate a big bowl of Coach's oats before I left the house. I fixed it up with dried cranberries and walnuts. I was hoping the beer review would suffice.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

 

Hi guys!

I should've stopped at two. But it tastes so good and went down so easy. I saved a couple for later.

It's a great spot for a stage. Sometimes when the train goes by the steam will condense and give us a little shower of mist.

Oh no, you wouldn't want to do that. Well, maybe you would. Some of the grub we get is pretty good.

Thanks Mark. I like the vibe of this park too. I've played Disney and Sea World but I like this one the best.

<Speaking of drummer volume>

Jason doesn't always play too loud, just most of the time. He's an excellent drummer in his wheelhouse, meaning he can't swing. He can't seem to get out of his rock mentality very often.

Ha! I related this to Mrs. BassCliff and she wholeheartedly agrees.

They are a fun act to watch. They're cute and talented and play all the dance-y pop tunes that everyone loves, "Raise Your Glass", "Can't Stop The Feeling", "Shut Up And Dance", and such. I've played most of their tunes with the KRB and the ANB but I'd rather play some good ol' country music.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff