Ladies Nite Recap Part 1

Despite some Afghan Whigs-flavored closing time ugliness, Ladies Nite was quite a show. Lots of good performances and plenty of love for the Lady Bird. Here is a brief photo recap:

Friends of Lizzy started our marathon night off with what I believe was a Scott Weiland "lady" tune, but I could easily be wrong about that. The fact that Hunter Darby yelled "CHEAH!" at song's end is a good indication I'm at least in the ballpark, though.

Next up were the Daylight Titans, who played a slightly malevolent version of the Little River Band hit, "Lady" bookended by Cheap Trick's "Hello There" and "Goodnight Now" (as in, "Good night now, ladies and gentlemen!"). I'd ordered 20,000 screaming Japanese girls to complete the effect, but they got hung up in customs.

I knew Gretchen Phillips would do something unique for Ladies Nite and she did not disappoint. First she unveiled her new disco hit, "The Lusty Lass Is A Lucky Lady," then she brought my Ron Titter Band compatriot Andy Loomis to the stage to play a moving rendition of "Special Lady at the Waffle House." Next to the James Brown-styled "I Like What I See At the Waffle House" and "Waffle Doo-Wop," "Special Lady" is my favorite Waffle House jukebox song. Gretchen closed with a harrowing version of Kenny Rogers' "Lady" as done by a crazy woman who believed songwriter Lionel Richie had stolen it from her. Sheer conceptual joy.

I played next with the Dead Motley Sex Maidens and sultry sirens Julie Lowery and JenBB on backing vox. We did Tom Jones' "She's A Lady," KISS' "Parasite (Lady)," and the Corneilius Brothers' "Treat Her Like A Lady." Julie and Jennifer really brought the whole thing together and the band played great. All I had to do was remember the words, hit the ol' cowbell on the beat a few times and thrust my pelvis to and fro. Sadly, I forgot to hand off my camera, so there are no photos of us.

Masonic did a buzzingly good version of the Velvet Underground's "Lady Godiva's Operation" with vocalist Eryn nailing Nico's ice princess vibe to a tee. Then they totally shifted gears with LaBelle's "Lady Marmalade." They even snuck in a tune from their upcoming third album. I took it on faith that "lady" was in there somewhere.

Jeez, it's 11:30. I suppose I should finish my coffee, put my liver on overtime with some ibuprofen, and get my ass into work now. Tune in tomorrow for the conclusion of "Ladies Nite Recap," only on Beetsolonely.