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November-December 2004 Newsletter
Harmonica Joe Jams at Skip’s Tavern On my recent trip to San Francisco, we decided to try to find a place to go to a blues jam session. We finally decided on one at Skip’s Tavern which has a blues jam on Sunday and Monday starting at 7 PM. The bar’s owner takes pride in having “the dingy tavern with the nicest bathrooms in the city.” Even though we were not locals, we were welcomed by a very friendly staff. The host for the blues jam is Regi Harvey and Thunder Blue. Regi gets your attention right away with his big smile, Jimi Hendrix hair and his red pants. I mentioned that I play some harp and he said that I can get up after a couple of tunes. So the jam begins with Regi Harvey on guitar and vocals, Kirk Bowman on bass, and Tobi Caine on drums. Sure enough, after a few tunes, I was asked to come up to play. I seem to fit in with the band well and I was asked to play quite a few more times that night. Regi also seemed to have a particular interest in a guy named Patrick. He did a really good job on both the vocals and guitar playing and Regi’s smile lit up as he played. Interestingly, there was a steady stream of very talented musicians coming in all night. By the end of the night, there was a good horn section, four or five conga or bongo players and a rhythm guitar player, three or four guitar players, singers and a couple different drummers. Everyone seemed to enjoy playing with each other, including me, so it was a great and memorable time. One incident that almost marred the night was when I was playing, there seemed to be a terrible feedback. I was doing everything I could to stop it but nothing worked. Then, from the doorway of the tavern, in walked a female who thought she could play the harmonica. She had been playing just outside the door and her talent was a horrible one-note screech that she loved. Nobody else liked it though and she had to be very persuasively asked to stop. We returned again the second night to have another night of fun. A highlight of that night was when a young man dressed to the hilt came in with an older man. I assumed the older man was an old blues player as the younger man was carrying a guitar case and helping the old man. However, the young man took the guitar and said that he wanted to play a song for his father who turned 86 years old that day. It was very touching. I could go on and on about the blues jam at Skip’s Tavern. Drop in and join the fun yourself if you are ever in San Francisco. Thanks again to Kirk, Tobi, Regi and all the staff.
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