Cheatham Street Warehouse San Marcos, TX - April 1, 2003 ~ Anne It's 8:45pm Tuesday April 1st. I'm lying on the couch trying to decide whether or not I was going to see George Devore Four at Strait Music. Brandi had called me earlier to say that George was playing a free show there as part of a KLBJ Local Licks thing. Understand that Strait Music is within 2 minutes from my house in south Austin and free always has a nice ring to it but the 10pm show time was a little late for my taste. I had been out the night before to see Micky & the Motorcars at their Monday night gig at Red Eyed Fly, and after a night filled with a few whiskeys and maybe 4 solid hours of sleep, then working for 9 hours, I was leaning towards just vegging out. Well, I knew Reckless Kelly was playing at Cheatham Street Warehouse so I impulsively grabbed my Chronicle and looked up the phone number and called to see what time they were gonna go on and what the cover was; what I should have asked for was directions but.... I hit the freeway at 9pm and drove like a bat out of hell. You see, it had taken me all of 10 seconds to decide that I didn't want to miss an opportunity to see RK play. I threw on a t-shirt, grabbed my money and smokes and off down the road I went. RK start time was 9:30 and I made it to exit 204 in 18 minutes. Average speed 82 mph. Okay; I did have to stop once because I was lost but I made it in time to not only grab a beer and have a nice conversation with Darcy, but I also had time to shoot the breeze with Willy for a few minutes. I had seen Willy the night before and managed to muster up the nerve to ask him if he could get me the lyrics for "Million Miles" [Ed. Note: "Million Miles" is a song co-written by Willy and currently performed by Gary Braun in with the Motorcars]. There is a force about that particular song that gets to me but more than likely, it's the combination of Gary's vocals and song content. Anyway, Willy looked me straight in the eye and said, "just pay attention", which of course gave me pause... However, there I was, as prepared as I ever am to listen to RK. Just so you know- I have never gone to an RK show planning to write about them, (sooner or later I'll have to take some sort of class so I can learn how to write things I've already written/said to make it seem like I've never written/said it before). I asked two total strangers if I could sit at their table with them, God love 'em; they had the front table, how lucky was that? RK appeared as casual as the surroundings; it was a nice, pleasant beer joint. The crowd was on the young-side (boy, that's relative) but there were plenty of people ready to give their attention to an acoustical evening RK style. I looked around to check out fellow RK friends. I noticed Tonya, Matt and Andy and I recognized a few other faces in the crowd, and even though we were all spread out, there's a comfort for me to know other people I know are out there too. The boys took the stage and played straight through - 2 hours without a break. The set list had 24 songs but they actually did 28. The songs they did that will be on the new album had a more relaxed feeling to them when performed acoustically... more conducive to "paying attention". “Snowfall”, “Set Me Free”, “Everybody” and “Let's Just Fall”, are all brilliant songs, and when presented acoustically, extra credit should be given to David Abeyta for putting more meat on their bones. Not only is David a guitar player that other guitar players aspire to play like, he is also humble about it. There's not a thing "flashy" about him or his style but he dazzles and astounds. I have to admit that sometimes I feel a little voyeuristic when watching him. He is so focused, like he's having intimate moments with the music, like he's testing the limits and exploring the depths. Since I confessed a couple months ago that I never noticed Willy's guitar playing, I have made a concerted effort to watch him play - to listen to what he says with his guitar. It's as if his guitar is his armor and the songs he writes are his ammunition. You don't know if the man inside is a warrior or a poet but his guitar playing tempers the hardship of the battle. There are some songs that RK does that I truly believe they do better than the original artists. Tonight it was "Wheels”, “My Uncle”, “Ol' 55”, “Red River Valley”, “Wild Horses”, “Happy”, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” and “Wild Western Windblown Band”. It's not any one thing that sets RK apart from the rest. It's the amalgam of talents and personalities. It's the mixture of their musical backgrounds and individual prowess. It's how Jay occupies his space - how he can lead without being overbearing. It's how, if you're watching Jay, you become instantly mesmerized by him and the way he plays. It's how Cody can infuse every note with a unique beauty and authority. It's the boyish charm of his presence that belies the fury of his fiddle playing. It is the way they all look at each other when they're onstage; it's the silent respect they nod to one another. No, it's not just one thing that sets RK apart... it's everything about them. So like Willy says, pay attention and you will be rewarded. AED

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