Last Monday there was a guy who played Long May You Run by Neil Young. From the first note he sung it was clear he has spent about 50,000 hours listening to Neil Young. I didn’t recall a Blind River reference in the lyric which was a nice surprise. Later a regular who often plays Radiohead this time played My Cherry Amour but his second song didn’t work, he became embarrassed and forgot his lyrics or the chord sequence and flustering in front of an audience can sink one’s ship. He then admitted not knowing what to do next, someone called out do another Stevie Wonder which turns out to have been exactly what was needed. He launched into You are the Sunshine of my Life. I couldn’t believe on top of all his other accomplishments, Stevie Wonder also has a superb jazz aesthetic. Part of the greatness in Kanye’s first records is the Stevie Wonder thing. In Roses, the song about visiting his dying grandmother after hours in the hospital, he breaks into the type of choir like groovy thing that’s reminiscent of much from Songs in The Key of Life. There’s another guy who usually shows up with his French Horn and asks for requests. I like breaking the ice and yelling something out. Last time I asked for Moon River and the time before that To Sir With Love. He did them well. I walked a bit with him after things ended and found out he’s originally from Nashville and has expertise in hanging doors, it was a perfect open stage.