Greetings from section 8, row 13 at beautiful Huntington Park in Columbus, Ohio. It’s the Clippers last business-day special of the season and the weather is perfect so I blew out of the coffee shop a little early and caught the #3 bus to the game. 

As a follow up on my skin cancer situation I am wearing sunscreen and a big floppy hat which I suspect makes me look like a huge Billy Strings fan. I actually have never heard a song by Billy Strings but plenty of folks love that guy so maybe I am a huge fan and I just don’t know it yet. I’ve already got the hat. 

Upcoming Gigs:

Friday September 6th - Hot Times Festival - I am playing guitar with Willie Phoenix, time TBD.

Friday September 13th - Colin Gawel League Bowlers / Woodlands Tavern 6-8pm

Saturday September 28th - Watershed at Rumba Cafe - We are doing some road dates the following week, TBA.

Little Rock Bar Closes

James Baumann said it way better than I ever could, but another Columbus rock n roll institution has closed down. It is not a sad ending, though. Owner and fellow musician Quinn Fallon had the opportunity to sell his successful bar business while still collecting rent as the owner of the building. 

Who could blame him? He has been tending bar and busting kegs around for over 20 years. That kind of work can wear a man out. Little Rock has been host to countless cool local events including many Watershed/Bowlers gigs and the Willie Phoenix Tribute Machine release party. 

As I was playing my final solo set on Saturday August 17, I must admit this one hurt. I took a moment to soak it all in and burn into the memory the view from the “stage” I have played so many times surrounded by so many friends. Set below. 

Sensational Things / Profile / A Long Runway / Self Motivated / Blow It Up Before It Breaks / Hey Little Girl / Superior 

If The Planet Had A Battle of The Bands…

The Stray Cats might win. I shit you not. I caught those cats at the fabulous Rose Music Center on August 12 (my birthday) and they blew the roof of a 5,000 seat venue with gear that could fit in a Ford Econoline van. Though you would have to strap Lee Rocker’s stand-up bass to the roof. 

But seriously, if you put every single band that ever existed and held a battle of the bands in a 300-seat club like say CBGB, Smith’s Olde Bar or Rumba Cafe in Columbus, who is going to top the Stray Cats? Not AC/DC. Not Green Day. Not Queen. Certainly not The Beatles. 

First off, traditional bands cannot even physically pull off what the Stray Cats do. Slim Jim plays drums standing up and dances the whole time. That knocks out every band in history where the drummer sits. How lame is that? A drummer who sits. Pfft. 

The previously mentioned Lee Rocker plays with an Olympic medal level of physicality to hammer out those notes on all these up-tempo rockers. One day his thumb might rip off and fly into the crowd spewing a gusher of blood GWAR-style across the VIP section.

And Brian Setzer might be the best guitar player of all time. Yup. This is not hyperbole. He must be in the conversation. And he can sing. 

And they look cool. And they grew up together. 

And I’m not even a huge Stray Cats fan. But I must admit, put them in a club, and they would win that battle of the bands. 

He’s Not A Rebel No No No

The entire point of being a third-party candidate for president is - in the words of Popeye - “That’s all I can stands, I can’t stands no more. The tyranny of the two-party system must be stopped at all costs. The whole system must be put on trial!  It’s not about winning. It’s about making a bigger point. It will be difficult but I promise to stick it out to the election day to give voters another choice.” (paraphrasing)

Not only did Robert Kennedy Jr. tap out on this promise before Labor Day, he threw in with the super-old billionaire white guy who…get this…has  already been President before. Dude? Dude! Ross Perot is rolling in his grave with his charts. Good thing this RKJ was born on home plate or he might have to face consequences for such wanton jackassery.

Mind Blown!!!!!!!!!

I was listening to Aerosmith Rocks on the bus ride home from the baseball game, and I was suddenly hyperventilating like a paleontologist who just discovered T REX bones in their own backyard.  Get ready for this…

The song “Get The Lead Out” only does the chorus one time in the entire song. And for only 3 seconds…..

At .39. “Get out the lead, get out the lead, get the lead out.” Done by .42. 

It is no exaggeration to guess I have listened to this song over 1,000 times and somehow I never noticed this quirky arrangement. I had to play it back three more times to make sure I wasn’t just nodding off. 

It’s such a great lyric. It’s the title of the song. And it only happens once? In the first minute? How had I never noticed this until riding this bus? 

I’m telling you, seeing a UFO or Bigfoot out the window couldn’t have shook me harder. 

Some other notable events on August 21 2024

My all time favorite Reds player Joey Votto retired after 17 years in the MLB. I’m excited to hear his Hall of Fame induction speech in four years. 

Also the same day, my current favorite Reds player Elly DeLaCruz became just the 5th player in MLB history to have 60 stolen bases and hit over 20 home runs in a season. Bonus fact: Two of the other five were Reds also??? Yup. Joe Morgan and Eric Davis. Ronald Acuna Jr. and Ricky Henderson round out this exclusive list. 

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the biggest event to happen on August 21.  My all time favorite guy Owen Gawel turned 21. My wife & I were lucky to host him for a spontaneous visit from Ohio State as he stopped home for a birthday visit with the parental units. His work ethic, optimism, kindness and curiosity inspire me on a daily basis. 

On a related note, he now lives right down the street from the Out R Inn starting his junior year at OSU. The place I got carried out of on my disastrous 21st birthday. People were more stupid then. Or at least I was.

But this is also the place Owen’s mom and myself had our first date. 

We will call it a draw. May the circle be unbroken  - Colin Gawel 08/21/2024

Random Record Of The Month: Cotton Mather - Kontiki

Random Podcast of the Month: Chuck Klosterman on the Bill Simmons Podcast