'4' has hit the streets, sales are "brisk"; in the parlance of retail folk, and I'm happy to say that, in spite of having consumed entirely too much wine the previous evening, I believe we delivered a fairly solid set on Saturday night.

We played it safe, and opened with a couple of familiar numbers like "Head Light" and "Fix You", before dipping into the new record for 5 in a row, providing for a considerably less relaxed 20 minutes or so, during which time I had to carefully consider nearly every move made on the fretboard and each turn of phrase I sang, since some of these songs were receiving their first public airings, and have not yet adhered themselves to my brain in such a way that would allow me to perform them on sheer muscle memory alone.

Once we had negotiated the debuts of "The Ring","Fists & Guitars", and "Rock N' Roll Heart", we settled back into well-tread territory, save for a brief detour through Fleetwood Mac's "Go Your Own Way", to the delight of Tony Higbee, and Billy "Shitty Jesus" Wayne Goodwin, both longtime 'Mac supporters. The back half of the set was a looser affair, and my second wind kicked in towards the end, as the lingering effects of dehydration and irresponsible consumption began to subside.

To all of you who stuck around, raised your voices, and put your hands together at both appropriate and inappropriate intervals, we hail you! You guys keep this thing alive, and it means the world to us. If you missed it, well, that's a bummer, because as of right now, we have nothing booked in Nashville until mid-April. Hopefully that will change shortly, but in the meantime, we're going to be in Cincinnati, Louisville, Clarksville, Evansville, Bowling Green, Birmingham, Murfreesboro, etc. over the next 2 or 3 months, getting back to see some people we've been missing over the last year or so. Some of these dates are posted on the site already, and more will be appearing in the coming days, so check back here periodically, 'cause a few of them may be last-minute hit & run bookings that pop up on the fly.

Before we load up and get to work, I'm headed out to California for a few days to do a whole lot of nothing, and check out new gear at the NAMM convention in Anaheim. When I get back, we're off to The Nick in Birmingham, AL on 1/31, followed by Southgate House in Cincinnati(Newport, KY) on 2/2.

Later that week, we'll be in the studio, cutting a pair of cover tunes we may use somewhere down the line, and doing a little more work on the 'Nothing's Broken' LP. I'll be splitting from the studio on Friday 2/8 to play a special acoustic show at a Tex/Mex joint called OK Jose in Murfreesboro for my buddy Joey Doom's birthday. Come out and help Joey forget he's logged another year on Earth, while I strum semi-quietly in the background.

The next morning, I'm off to Illinois to do a similar, but non bday-related solo gig at Double T's in Morton. Hopefully this time, my heckler will stay home, and I will not be forced to put my guitar down mid-song to confront anyone about their lack of etiquette and questionable social skills.

I think that's about all I've got to report for now. I will be adding the "buy" link for the new T-shirts soon. They should arrive just as I get back from Los Angeles next week, so look for that if you're at all interested in wrapping your upper torso in a silver/gray t-shirt with 4 really good-looking guys on the front of it. Oh yeah, and if you haven't already, go order the new CD. Trust me, it's great. I've got nothing to gain but money by telling you that, so you know my testimony has to be true. Consume with confidence.

Cheers,

 Denny