Time Flies
It seems like only yesterday when we were counting down to midnight on December 31, 1999 for the big millennium celebration. Strangely enough, after all the hoopla, we didn't find a single Y2K bug on our computer system. At least we thought so until the middle of May when we wanted to send a computer fax. Our fax software was trying to schedule the faxes to be sent in 1984! After realizing that it couldn't accept 2000 for the year, we finally gave up and printed the file so we could use a real fax machine.

On the evening of New Years Day, January 1, 2000, we played for Lisa Rudnick's birthday party at the Backstage restaurant. People danced until late in the evening despite the fact that many of them must have partied hardy the night before. Lisa and her friend, Jo Washburn, got up and sang a set of songs with our band backing them up. It was great fun.

Next, on the first weekend of February, we traveled to Los Angeles for the NAMM 2000 music trade show. The west-coast show is held annually by the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) and gives an opportunity for music industry folks to see all the new gear that the manufacturers have to offer. There's also a smaller NAMM show held during the summer in Nashville, Tenn. It's a little known fact that the NAMM headquarters is in Carlsbad, CA, next to Lego Land in the greater San Diego area. Located in their building is the Museum of Making Music, a fascinating look into the history of the music business. When we visited last year, it was not yet open to the public, but our music industry credentials enabled us to tour the museum while it was still being built. It should be open to the public by now, but we recommend that you call first.

While at NAMM 2000, Tom checked out a few different guitars, including the shark-shaped one he's jamming on above and to the right. Although closed to the general public, NAMM is a virtual Toyland for industry musicians that want to play with new and interesting stuff.

Meanwhile, Joel has gotten some new bass pedals, and is adding in keyboard parts with his feet. You should see the dance he does during some of those Pink Floyd sets! (Not to mention the one he's doing in the picture to the left)

And it really seems like yesterday that Joel was just a kid, tagging along for the ride. Now, he's graduating from college! He'll be receiving the Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz. His major program of study is Fine Arts. As part of his graduation requirements, he must present a weeklong public showing of his artwork. This is commonly known as the senior show. His senior show will be held the week of June 2-9 at the Guzman Room at UC Santa Cruz. A reception, complete with live music from you-know-who, will be held on Thursday, June 8 from 6 - 9 PM. Be there! Of course, we understand that many of you live hundreds and even thousands of miles away, so at least be there in spirit if you can't make the trip. His graduation ceremony is the very next evening on Friday, June 9.

We've been working with a great drummer, Mark Larsen (shown to the right). It's hard to miss with his solid beat and meter. As a child, he was always reprimanded for beating silverware at the table.
He started with real drums in 2nd grade when his older brother got sick of the snare drum and gave it to him. From 4th grade on, he played in symphonic band and marching band, and of course, rock bands. Throughout the 80's and 90's, he has performed and recorded albums with several bands, and has appeared on several commercial radio jingles. He has played the Bay Area circuit in bands ranging from country, metal, blues, punk, soul, and reggae, to big bands and jazz fusion.