Jon Roniger

Tails from The Road #6 – Sponsored by Digital Rodeo

As fate would have it, my show last night fell through. I am actually relieved that it was a Monday night show and not a Friday night show. It happens once per tour and last night was “the once”. I actually showed up and the bartender was like, “who are you and why are you here.” The manager and I did a little research and discovered that the gig was never confirmed by either side. There was an email trail that had the date and time but never a mention of “OK…we’re confirmed for this date”. I was bummed not to be playing another show in The Hague, but I was glad to have a night off to hang out and taste some local flavor.

The manager of MUSICON, where I was supposed to be playing, called another bar to see about a last minute show. It was very nice of him. He called a place named OUDE MOL in the center of town, very near my hotel. I could not have been happier with the venue. There was not a chance of me playing there, but the acoustic duo that was on for the evening was fantastic and I met some really great people! The owner and bartender was incredibly nice and offered me a show if and when I return to Holland. They actually played my CD between sets. I had not heard that CD, “MY WORLD” in a long time and I actually enjoyed hearing myself in the bar as people talked and drank and smoked up a storm!

There was a woman there who had done booking for rock bands all around Europe. There was a local country/blues singer and his wife. The owner’s husband was a great local drummer and a local percussion player had stopped in to see the show. There was a gentleman from Sheffield, UK and three locals arguing over US Politics at the bar. I wanted to chime in, but they seemed pretty down on both parties. I didn’t want to get into a fight and decided that it was best left to them to figure out who not to be able to vote for.

I think that I might have done more to spread the word about my music last night sitting at the bar, then had I played to an empty rock bar across town. I actually even sold a CD! I managed to give away about 4 more CDs to the musicians and might even have a small ensemble waiting for me upon my return.

When you’re chasing your tail on the road, improvisation becomes very important! This is how you make the most out of a bad situation!

Until next time……
Jon

Here are a few more pictures;

Live in The Hague – Taken by a drunk!