What are the odds?
Let's start way back. Let's start at the beginning...
So from a very young age, I wanted to be a musician.
To play something, some sort of instrument...to be good at it.
To make a mark, do something that mattered.
And yeah, that would happen, but it is a different life, a different Genies wish from this tale...
So...
I guess my first "real" musical experience was that I was in the high school marching band.
I played the big bass drum.
Not because I wanted to, I mean really, it was certainly not the prestige instrument.
No, the "cool" spot was Tri-Toms, A set of three drums on a rigged harness that was like having marching drum kit in front of you. That was played by a guy named "Greg"
Back then he was the “cool" guy. Even in High School, He had a mustache and side burns, drove a 68' Plymouth Barracuda, and had pair of women's lace panties hanging from the rear view mirror. ( I know, but this was 1979)
Next desirable spot was Snare, we had two snare drummers. Snare was also pretty cool.
Then the two Bass drums, "Big " and "Small"
And then a cymbal player .
Bass was better than cymbals, I suppose, but...
So like I said, we had two bass drums in the band, big and not as big. The main reason I was the "big" bass drummer was the "look".
I was already six foot tall in high school, and according to our band director, it "looked" better for me to be marching behind that big bass drum, in the sort of center of the line-up. It made sense, i guess.
The reason that I say it was my first "real" musical experience is that, sure, we had our "fantasy" bands. We played in our bed rooms, living rooms, garages, you name it. Wherever and whenever we could set up enough instruments to pretend to be rock stars and knock out a few of our current favorite pop tunes.
But the High School Marching band was kinda "real". In marching band we practiced every day of the week. On weekends we played at football games and pep rallies. We participated in competitions. We traveled in busses to far away places and stayed in hotels and sometimes got into trouble... (There are many stories there, but time will tell if they ever make it to print)
But yeah, it was real.
Another unrelated coincidence is that as of this writing, I currently make my living playing a large bass drum in a band called the "Wicked Tinkers" where we travel in our tour van to far away places, stay in hotels, and get into trouble...But I digress... that is not what this particular story is about...
So getting back, a bit after high school I was in a couple bands in my hometown of Santa Cruz. This was in the mid 80's. "No Excuse" a punk band, and "321" more kind of a Mod/ska dance band
I didn't play anything in either, really; I was a "singer."
I had, over time, tried a lot of musical things. Harmonica, drums, hammered dulcimer, guitar, but being a singer seemed to suit me best.
Well, "singer" is generous...I was a fast shouter. Sometimes harmonic, sometimes not.
But I made a good run of it, I suppose.
The first endeavor came to fruition because a couple of friends showed up at my house one night and we went to a punk show at the local grange hall. Saw five or so hardcore punks bands, had a blast.
After that we went to Dennys, where, after consuming a couple gallons of coffee, it occurred to us that, we should form a band. I said, "Seriously, we could make stuff up on the spot, play fast enough, and who's gonna know?"
And so, "No Excuse" was born. Originally we had no songs, no play list, and like I said, we would just make up all our songs on the spot. I would call out a random song title (also made up on the spot), or say, "This song is about...(whatever)", and we would just rip into it. We were Santa Cruz's fastest improvisational punk band. (Still are, I guess) After a while though we were receiving too many "requests" for songs that people had heard at previous shows, so we ended up putting a few down on paper. We played all the local clubs that would have us, as well as parties in assorted garages, room parties at the local collage...There were some fun shows, there were some weird shows. There is even a show none of us seem to have any coherent memory of the actual event, only vague blurry snapshot like memories, but we have seen the flyer, so apparently it happened.
but it was mostly all fun
I met a lot of people that way.
I actually met one of my past girlfriends from the time, at a house party we played, But I only mention all that to set the scene.
So Yeah, That was my second "real" musical endeavor at the time.
Then I moved away from Santa Cruz to San Francisco in 87, and lived there for 9 years, (there are a lot of stories there, and many of them are in this blog) and was there until I moved back to the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1995.
I had been fairly unmusical for a long time.
There were a couple of years in San Francisco, in which I would play the concertina, very poorly, usually sitting in the big bay window of my Twin Peaks flat in only a bath robe and fedora. That window was my stage, and the neighbors my audience. But then after moving back home to the Santa Cruz mountains, around 1997, I became intrigued with the Ukulele. It was partially out of my obsession with Tiki stuff. People would always ask "So, do you play the Ukulele?" But I didn't. I had at, this point, zero interest in the Ukulele or Ukulele music, other than obscure Hawaiian records I would play at my annual luau. But, I thought, ok yeah, just to be cheeky, I am going to get one and learn a song or two, so next time anyone asks, I can say, yeah, I do. and whip it out and play a few tunes... and so I did... (Which is another whole long story) But as a side effect, I became somewhat obsessed with the Ukulele, and subsequently ended up discovering there was a whole sort of underground Ukulele scene.
I practiced constantly, and over time ended up learning, and later writing, a lot of ukulele songs.
I got to the point that I wasn't bad.
Practice, Practice, Practice...
I began Performing at open mikes, etc, as a solo performer. Then, when I turned forty, some musician friends of mine from past endeavors put together a "band" and learned a bunch of my songs, as well as songs from my 80's punk band, the afore mentioned "No Excuse", and performed them at a surprise party given in my honor. We ended up playing the night away, and later, after too much (or just enough) Whiskey, we decided to make it official, and be an actual band.
Hence, "Tiki King and the Idol pleasures" was formed.
We played around town, starting again with open mike type gigs, then opening for other acts, then headlining shows at assorted venues. It went on for a several very fun years...
So, where is this going?
Listen:
So at one point we found ourselves playing a Ukulele concert in Berkeley, Ca. with four or five other acts. A couple we had played with before, and a few we had not. I confess I don't remember who they all were at this juncture.
But there was one, which is crucial to this tale. A Duo calling them selves "5 cent coffee" comprised of a tall fellow playing ukulele and a voluptuous chanteuse crooning Tin Pan Alley tunes. They were fantastic. After the show the various bands were milling about backstage. I remember talking to the ukulele player fellow from "5 cent coffee". I remarked about his last name, and asked if it was Irish. He said it was, and we began talking about Irish heritage stuff (because I have a strong Irish heritage)
At one point, I gave a nod, and asked he would care for a nip...
He said he was about to ask the same thing...
We both almost simultaneously produced bottles of good Irish whiskey from our respective kit bags.
Mine, Jameson...
His, Bushmills...
Yeah, I know. There was a time when these two Whiskeys represented different opposing political stances. But in the world of ukuleles, we were of the same tribe. We exchanged bottles, back and forth, and had ourselves a grand time.
So, at some point, after much of the bottle was gone, I said, "your last name... Interesting, I have a friend who has the same last name. She is a comic illustrator who Lives in Las Vegas now, but originally was from my home town of Santa Cruz"
He paused, stared at me and said, "That IS interesting, because my Ex-wife who has the same last name, is a comic illustrator who Lives in Las Vegas now, but originally was from Santa Cruz"
I think I said something like "huh...weird... huh...” but left it at that.
I am pretty sure I changed the subject.
I wasn't sure where to go...
A few days after the gig, I sent my "Friend” a message, and relayed the story.
Here is the thing, my "friend" and I, We had only recently re-connected. She had a different last name when I knew her in Santa Cruz. I didn't even know her "new" last name until maybe a few weeks before the gig. Until I found out through mutual friends about her social media, her art, etc.
But I suppose that is why it stuck with me.
I did not hear back from her.
At least not then.
However, a few days later, I did get a message from the Ukulele player from "5 Cent Coffee"
It said basically:
"So let me understand this.
My ex-wife, is your ex-girlfriend?
WOW! The world is fucking 3 inches wide! Amazing. God bless her."
So Yeah, his ex-wife was the girl I met at a house party that "No Excuse" played two decades earlier, who became my girlfriend.
As far as Mr. Ukulele player, We had never met before. We had absolutely no other shared past, or any other "mutual Friends"
Like I said, this gig was two decades later, and several different non overlapping "scenes", cities, interests, and lifetimes removed.
Who could have predicted all of the moving parts to make this meeting?
All of the things that had to occur to put me in the right place at the right time to be with this specific person, and make this connection.
Just Coincidence maybe...
But what are the odds that this could "just happen"?
Apparently, 100%
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