It's Never Too Late!!!!!

I told y'all yesterday that I'd be attending the blues festival downtown with my buddy Marcia and her husband. Mike. It was awesome. Marcia said that we should be there for the start of it a 4 p.m. because the group that was opening was really outstanding. It was decided that we meet there because I didn't really want to stay out too late.

It looked like the usual thing when I got there after lucking out and finding a really good parking place. The food and beverage vendors were there in force hawking outrageously priced snack food and four dollar beer -- yikes! Something in my frugal soul grates at that and I was glad that I had the presence of mind to bring along a Diet Coke. I looked around and didn't see Marcia and Mike anywhere so. as agreed, I called her cell. They were parking their car and I stationed myself where we could find each other easily after telling her to hurry because the band had started and sounded great! We found a couple other friends and it made for a fun time with great music and good company!!!

For the next two hours we were entertained wonderfully by Wallace Coleman of Cleveland and his band. The crowd wasn't that big and I suspected it would be a lot larger when The Fabulous Thunderbirds took the stage later in the evening. What interested me was that there weren't many young people there. The crowd was mostly elders who were applauding and yelling appreciatively including moi! As Coleman's band ended their set, Mike spied black clouds rolling in so we hustled over to the nearby Arcadia Grill just as raindrops started falling. We were lucky enough to get a table and, even better, our waitress was an old acquaintance of Marcia and Mike so she took great care of us keeping our glasses full and bringing our supper in a timely manner. She also got a great tip because rather than bother with a lot of math, we each threw in a twenty-dollar bill. It was still raining with no end in sight when we finished our meal so we all headed home agreeing that we have to do it again -- and soon!

After I got home, I decided that I wanted to know more about Wallace Coleman so of course I googled him and was truly amazed at what I learned about him.

His website is here and it gives his bio and info on his CDs (yeah, I gotta have at least one!). What astounded me most was not that he's 72 but that he didn't begin his professional music career until he was 51 after retiring from a well-known Cleveland bakery. And winning a Living Blues award in 2002 goes to show that the years he spent playng his harmonica on breaks at work paid off well!!!! What an inspiration he is for those of us of a certain age!!!!

Here's a video of him performing with Blues Hall of Famer, D.C. Carnes who he met when both performed with the band of blues legend, Robert Jr. Lockwood (who is still performing at age 86!). Enjoy!!!!



Just goes to show that it's never too late to follow your dreams! What's yours? Think I've still got a shot at the New York Times best seller's list? LOL

Happy Blogging!!!!!!!!!!

Kay