I had a blast in AC. Ben’s been hanging with his family so me and Jared and Lindsey went to the Steel Pier and got hooked up on free rides. The guys that run that place are real nice.
We rode go-karts and I kicked ass until this young guy grabbed his chest inside his car. He looked about 12. I think he was okay but it was a real scare. I felt bad for his dad. I can’t imagine how bad it sucks to see your kid hurt like that.
Then, me and Jared rode the Rocket. That ride’s bad ass. It shoots you 200 feet in the air and its hard to process your bearings, so its a true thrill ride and not a “nod” to thrill rides.
We went to get dinner at the ac bar and grill where lobster is cheap and the beer is delicious. I got a bloody mary there once and they put Old Bay seasoning in it. It didn’t work like I wanted.
But enough about ruining myself.
Ben Lee kicked ass. Rufus Wainright did the same. He brought his sister out to do “Hallelujah” with him and they became a couple of angels. Sweet, sweet angels.
Ben’s amazing at what he does. He’s got the magic. And Jared and Lindsey are tight. So, getting to sit in with them is just as tremendous as it sounds. I was really nervous and paced constantly, waiting. And when it was almost time, I rocked back and forth, going over pieces of the song. And when Ben introduced me, I ran on stage (I’m not a graceful runner), sang “Keep Your Hands of My Woman” with them, and was too nervous to stay for the applause, and ran off stage as soon as I was done.
It was too quick to savour. I enjoyed myself fully and knew what was happening but still, I should have savoured it more, unlike a child eating a porterhouse.
Yet, believe you me, I can still taste how bad ass it was to sing for Ben Folds.

The stage crew at Town Hall are tightknit. They all seem to get along well. One guy shared his dinner with me after the show. Good, good fellows.
This is the place where Mighty Wind was shot. It didn’t feel like Mighty Wind but more like the audience in Chris Elliot’s portrayal of FDR. I loved that special.
This was the first show on the tour with seats. It made me work harder. I didn’t pull out all the stops because I ran out of time but I did pull the stops real hard.
There’s was a huge Steinway backstage and organ pipes on the sides of the stage. I’d love to play the organ there someday. I played one at Trinity University in San Antonio. There’s a delay from pushing the keys to hearing the sound. I tried playing a Bach invention on it but couldn’t. It’s almost like you’re programming the song ahead of time. I knew a guy that majored in organ. He told me most of his music was circus music. I guess that’s what’s written mostly.
My friend, Fletch, came to the show. He gave me one of my first shows in Dallas. The manager at this club hated me and would get mad at Fletch every time he booked me. It pissed off Fletch so much that he booked me to play a staff meeting. Good times. It was real good seeing him. I hadn’t seen him in about 4 or 5 years.
And to the fellows who wanted to hear Junior High, I’m sorry I didn’t play it. I promise it to you next time.

I get confused with all the Florida streets DC has to offer but when I finally find get to where I need to it’s awesome. The 930 club takes real good care of you. Someone made tomato soup with stuff in it as soon as I walked in. And then they brought me dinner! And then beer! And then I got a motorcycle ride!
I wanted to kick around in Bowie and see the old sites but didn’t have time. And the museums. Next time.

I played a whole song on piano without any sound coming out. I could hear it onstage but noone in the audience heard it. I started the second piano song when I was told the sound wasn’t working. Excellent!
It was like dropping a bowling ball on a glass table and then still trying to serve ice cream on napkins. Delicious!
Someone yelled out Freebird and I played it, though I shouldn’t have.
I still have trouble talking to the audience individually. It’s hard not to. I have a hard time not answering back to dialogue directed at me.
“Are you high?”
No. Please. I’ll crash and burn with one beer at this thing. Hi. Yes, I did see Bad Boys. Huh? Not the second one. I should finish my set. Oh, yes I did like the first one. Martin Lawrence and Will Smith should work together more often because separate is like a Siamese twin trying to do a one-arm pushup. Okay, stranger, I really gotta start my next song . . .

I stayed at the Holiday Inn in Chicago. It has a holidome with a macaw named Popeye.

Ben Folds is a beautiful gentleman. What a stand up fellow. And so are Lindsey and Jerrod. Nice, nice fellows. And their tour manager, Joe, is stand up guy, too. He takes good care of me and always smiles and goes to bat for me when 2 outs are coming. I’m a lucky fellow. Real lucky.
The first night was in Chicago at the Riviera. I’m intimidated by places of such heights. But I walk in and there’s my beer and soda and bananas in my room and 2 dinners right outside in the hallway: pad thai, steak, pasta, homemade soup, salad, desert, good cheese and GOOD TIMES. I meet everyone and everyone is cool. Everyone. Mike, the sound guy, is a pro. And the promoters took a house of cards and put bricks around them. So tight!
The show went well and I got to watch Ben’s magic hands from the side of the stage. Holy shit is he good. He’s all over that piano. And I wish you could see Lindsey’s one-hand rolls. That band is tight and Ben is true showman. I hope I can play that good someday.