Date: Dec.26.2001

Place: Hanley's- Milwaukee WI

The day after Christmas is usually a tired one, but there we were at Hanley's Irish Pub on 35th & state getting ready to play a show.

Every Boxing Day Hanley's has a ceili, which is a musical gathering where anyone who wants to, can get up and play a song or two. This particular ceili was hosted by an Irish band called Reilly. They played for an hour and really got the place rockin'. Up next was a bagpiper. Now I don't know about you, but after 10 minutes of hearing a bagpipe, I just don't want to hear it anymore; and I'M IRISH! But for what it was it was good.

Up next was your favorite band and mine, the Upside Groove Coalition. Now every show we've played so far, something has gone wrong. Just ask Steve! But I am happy to report that everything went right and we played what turned out to be one of our best shows to date. We mixed in a few cover songs along with our originals and the crowd really seemed to dig it. There were people dancing and singing along, and we had a lot of fun playing together. It wasn't what you would usually hear in an Irish bar, but we gained a few fans that day.

Until next time,

Jim

Write Jimmy at: jk@upsidegc.com