Well, Vinny had planned on skipping this show since he went and saw the Jug Band down in Norman on Thursday nite (and 3 nites in a row of shows is getting kinda tuff on Vinny), but with a phone call from his buddy Critter, Vinny decided, why the hell not and he's damn glad he did check out this amazing show. Vinny was curious to see what kind of reaction SAJB would receive from the WD crowd which probably numbered 75-90% there for Reckless Kelly. One word: WOW. Great crowd response. The floor was packed and there was alot of toe tapping and head bobbing going on as the SAJB tore it up thru their one hour set. The dueling fiddles of Brian Beken and Dennis Ludiker is amazing stuff, like it's almost straight out of the hills of Kentucky or West Virginia and these kids are only 19 and 22? Unbelievable!! This must be what it was like to see Randy Crouch 30 years ago. Awesome stuff. Willie Pipkin's work on guitar and James Hyland's and Will Dupuy's vocals and picking on the guitar and stand up bass just round out what is one of the best bands Vinny has ever listened to. They are THAT good. Vinny noticed a few eyebrows being raised and fingers being pointed by the "cool chicks" towards the hippie chick who was dancing in the middle of the floor, but hey, that's cool, that's not a normal occurence unless it's the Rangers or Randy Crouch onstage, so it's only natural for those who come out for the "Dime a Dozen bands" to take a second glance. She was there for the music. Vinny thought that was very cool. She receives the "fan of the night award" with "Converse High Top wearing Judd Nelson" and "Metrosexual Gary Allan" taking 2nd and 3rd. Vinny wished SAJB woulda played more than an hour and even though they didn't play "Summer Sunset" last nite, the performance and crowd response was an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10.
After a 30 minute intermission, Reckless Kelly came on and had the crowd into it from the get go. Vinny knows RK has alot of fans out there, and they are a good band, but they fall into the Roger Clyne category for Vinny. Good musicians, pretty good show, but the songs just don't click with Vinny like say a Randy Rogers band where every song is recognizable and ON. Plus, after seeing the SAJB perform....... it was just hard to get into it. So, Vinny and Mrs. Shark decided to leave around midnite and get rested up for tonite's Macon Greyson show. Vinny's looking forward to it. Oh, by the way, speaking of Mrs. Shark, she wanted Vinny to say thanks to the WD staff for the remodeling work done in the Women's restroom. Have a nice Ragweed Weekend!!

Well, Vinny and Mrs. Shark decided to hit the town Saturday nite to celebrate her birthday. After some crab legs, shrimp and chicken strips at OKC's finest dining establishment,(Hooters) the Sharks headed on down to 311 E. Sheridan.
By the time the Sharks walked in, the opening band was already on stage. Vinny walked over to Big Cody's bar, got his first bucket of Bud Light and two apple puckers and headed upstairs. After settling in, Vinny started to take a listen to this band that was onstage and he's gotta admit...he came away impressed. The Charlie Shafter Band is one of those bands that Vinny had never heard of before, but dug the first time he listened to them. Others in that select group include the Randy Rogers Band in 2004, Rodney Parker Band and Macon Greyson. They are a band to keep an ear out for in 2006.. Like Cooder Graw, they are out of Amarillo. Definitely had a good mix of just enough country and blues/jamband groove and vibe about them. Mrs. Shark was quick to point out the bass player who looked like he just walked out of an Abercrombie and Fitch commercial. Vinny definitely recommends checking them out. Cooder Graw came on around 11 and put on an excellent show. This is the 2nd time Vinny has seen them at the WD and they were definitely bringing it this time. Cooder Graw scores major points with Vinny with the addition of the female fiddle player as well as the couple times they brought out the washboard and gloves. THIS is what Vinny is talking about when he says a band bringing IT. Do something different. Shake things up. Separate yourself from everyone else. Cooder Graw did that Saturday nite and Vinny will be back for their next show.. As usual the cold beer was going down easy at the WD and Vinny was definitely feeling good throughout Cooder's set. Another Bud Light bucket and a kamikaze shot later and Vinny wasn't feeling any pain.

Another good crowd turnout, lots of girls dancing, a guy stumbling down the stairs and a guy puking in the bathroom all made for another good nite at the WD. Oh yeah, before Vinny forgets, he just wanted to mention this to all the Cowboys who show up to the WD: nothing wrong with the hat, buckle, boots thing, but please, please, please don't wear a kerchief around your neck. The guy who did Saturday nite reminded Vinny of Woody from Toy Story. Leave the kerchiefs in the car. That's borderline Brokeback kinda stuff right there. No wonder Charles Barkley said what he did about Oklahoma the other nite. Other than that, no complaints from Vinny this time around. It was definitely good seeing Grady Cross show up to the show too. Have a nice Ragweed Day.

So, on a last minute whim, Vinny decided to head on down to the Wormy Dog this past Saturday to check out the Bleu/Jackson Taylor Band show. Vinny arrived right about 9:30 and as if it was on cue, the JTB band went on stage and started to play before Vinny could even go to the back bar for his first bucket of Bud Light. Vinny's first impression of the JTB: Okay. Nothing to write home about. But, Vinny would rather listen to a decent garage band at 9:30, then wait for the headliner to go on at 11. Don't get Vinny wrong, JTB had some positives. First and foremost, the new Hot Topic shirts they wore that nite. Can't go wrong with Social Distortion, the Ramones and AC/DC. Also, they brought their own fan section that was whooping it up over on the north end of the main bar. Not sure what Rob Lowe was thinking about wearing sunglasses in to the club though. Leave your sunglasses in your car, unless you're in the band of course. Vinny didn't get the Van Zant guy in the Hollister shirt either, but hey... they looked like they were having fun and that's what matters. Music wise.. JTB was decent. Little rough around the edges, but they served their purpose. They're a decent R&R/TX party band. Even had a few couples dancing out on the floor. Overall, not too bad of a show. So, after JTB got done, it was time for Bleu to come on. If anyone's seen a Bleu show before, you know he and his band are probably the most energetic "Red Dirt" band in the business (besides Roger Clyne maybe) and Saturday nite was no different. Bleu had the crowd going from the get go and put on a solid performance. Although BEB isn't an "IT" band for Vinny, he highly recommends checking them out. Well worth the cover, even if you just wanna hang out, drink cold beer and hottie watch, which is pretty much what Vinny does at a Bleu show. "50 dollars and a flask of crown" is as good a song as it gets though.. As usual, the crowd was a good one, even had some Hornets game stragglers (Again, please leave the thundersticks in the car) wander in hoping to see Kobe Bryant. Unfortunately he had to cancel. Good nite overall though for those who showed up. Have a nice Ragweed Day!!