The show, this past Saturday, was was the annual, Tompkins Square Park Riot Reunion show that my band attends every year.
It is a reminder of a Police Riot that took place 31 years ago - the police clubbed and hospitalized over 100 homeless people who were sleeping in the park. It was the beginning of the gentrification and yuppification of the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Dozens of bystanders and people living in the neighborhood were beaten for just being nearby.
When the Riot started, I was about 4 blocks away, nursing my Guinness, at a bar called Mona's.
People ran in telling us about that hundreds of cops were beating people in the park. While the news was striking, I was not about to leave my Guinness to go watch... so, I bought another one and instead, read about the riot in the papers the next day.
This year, it was 86 degrees in the shade with humidity levels just as high.... it felt like there was very little shade on the stage.
By the second song, stinging sweat was pouring into my eyes, I was literally blinded and wound up butchering the second and third songs!
The singer used that Johnny Rotten line, "Ever feel like you've been cheated?"... referring to Sid Viscious's heroin induced disaster during Sid's final tour with the Pistols.
It was EMBARRASSING!
My straw hat did NOT help in the least!!! I had to wipe the sweat off, between each song and luckily, I was able to finish the set without any further flubs.
Going forward, I will keep a head band in my guitar case at all times... even in the winter!!!
The girls were lined up after the show! (that's called sarcasm)
