It was a bit of a stressful day heading up to Maine for the wedding this past weekend. Didn't expect the traffic to be so intense (what should've taken 3 hours instead took over 4). But we all made it with plenty of time to spare and were well into some swingin' jazz when the guests finally arrived.
We were immediately thrown a curve ball when the venue told us the bartenders here are instructed not to serve alcohol to band members. "Wha-wha-what?!" Not that we drink a lot, but it's certainly nice to have a beer with the guests, loosen up a bit, and feel like part of the party. It was no fault of the bride and groom, I'm sure they knew nothing of it, and of course we didn't say anything to them on their big day. Some places, especially in Maine, have really weird rules about musicians and alcohol, as if we're not responsible enough to handle it. Many places tell you that they see the band as an employee of the venue, and they don't allow their employees to drink. Well, I can see why you wouldn't want a waitress drinking on the job, but a drummer? And technically we were not employees of the venue, we were hired by the bride and groom. But hey, I'll stop ranting. Really not a huge deal. We still had fun and we all left very well hydrated with plenty of Maine's finest tap water (with ice of course).
None of that stopped the band from delivering a great night of music. It always amazes me when I first evaluate the crowd and decide "hmm, I don't think their the dancing type" and then three songs into it, after dinner and a few drinks, the dancefloor is packed. What can I say? We get 'em excited.
The reception hall was carpeted, with a circular dancefloor of hardwoods in the middle. That circle must have been 30 feet across. I kept monitoring the dancers, waiting for the time when the dancefloor would be so packed that people would spill over onto the carpet. I think it was about 10.30pm when this happened, and it made me smile. That's when I knew we had them.
Back at the hotel we had a nice little after hours (Diamond D found a gas station that sold beer). We were tossing the frisbee at 1am (who knew Alec could throw so well?) and watching Hendrix on the DVD. It was surprisingly cold that night (I could see my breath). Next thing I knew it was 11am and Diamond D was knocking on my door, trying to wake me to get on the road, another successful show completed and the long ride home ahead of us.
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2 comments:
You should find yourself a girl too and let someone plays the drum. That'd be fun and romantic too!
Hey Justin,
You guys were awesome. I continue to get compliments on the band and the atmosphere in general. Thanks alot for making the trip and making it the celebration of a lifetime for us.
I can assure you that Mary Laurel and I knew nothing about Spruce Point Inn refusing to serve you guys a couple of beers. Sorry about that. In my experience, musicians perform better with a hot meal and a cold beer (or three).
If it's any consolation, they threatened to have me "removed from the premises" about 15 minutes after your last song as I complained to the night manager who decided to shut down the hotel bar (too early, in my opinion). I complained because we made arrangements (at their urging) to reserve the hotel rooms in that building so we wouldn't disturb anyone who wasn't attending the wedding if the bar was open after midnight. I think the final offer we made was $1K an hour to stay open and sell us drinks after the reception. Go figure.
Boothbay and SPI are, without a doubt, a beautiful place for a wedding or vacation, and so much of what the resort did for us was certainly top-notch. But occasionally, their service and attitude towards guests was inconsistent on some important things, leaving us (the hosts) and some of the guests wondering which was more inhospitable - Maine in Winter, or the attitude of one or two key SPI employees?
As I tried to explain to the night manager - when you only have about 3 or 4 months of tourist season, why would you go out of your way to make sure people don't buy any drinks after 11 pm, and shut down the bar for most of the day? You gotta make hay while the sun shines, right?
And if weddings are a big part of your business (as they appear to be at Spruce Point), why in the world wouldn't you go out of your way to accommodate a bride and groom's guests on their wedding night? I guess I don't get it. Maybe it's the law in Maine which needs attention (again, how much of the economy in Boothbay is tourism oriented?)
In general, I liked Spruce Point a lot and will undoubtedly return for some R&R. But I agree that they could have been a little less militant and schoolmarm-ish about the entertainment and libations.
So we owe you guys a few drinks - we'll happily by a few rounds if your future gigs bring you to Tampa someday.
Thanks a lot, and best wishes to you and the rest of the Chicken Slacks band.
Darren
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