Cafe Nine Welcomes Music Fans Home

A toast of “cheers” with glasses raised was changed with the phrase “welcome house” previous Friday night time at Cafe 9, when the aptly nicknamed “musician’s lounge” reopened for dwell music with a restricted variety of in-person patrons allowed in underneath Covid-19 pointers.

The long-running bar and live music venue that had reveals seven days every week earlier than the shutdown is starting an tailored schedule of Friday and Saturday from 5 to 7 p.m. and Sundays from 4 to six p.m. Friday night time featured Buzz Gordo (also referred to as Gary Mezzi), who has carried out on the venue quite a few instances as a solo act and as a part of the bands Bronson Rock and Large Unhealthy Johns. He was ecstatic to be returning to the stage.

“That is the longest I’ve gone not enjoying music since 1977,” Gordo mentioned over a soda earlier than the present. “It was loopy to appreciate how a lot of an everyday factor enjoying is. It sort of messed me up.”

Gordo met up together with his Bronson Rock bandmates in his yard final November to movie their conventional tackle Mitch Miller’s basic “Should be Santa” for Dean Falcone’s Covidtorium, which was streamed on-line to boost cash for the venue in December. “It was so natural, a lot enjoyable,” he mentioned. “We performed dwell with no mics. It was actually a blast.”

His ties to Cafe 9 go even deeper than the music.

“As a former co-owner it’s good to be again,” he mentioned. Gordo famous that he had as scar on his arm from when he and present proprietor Paul Mayer moved the quick wall that used to run down the middle of the room. “It’s my model of a Cafe 9 tattoo,” he added with amusing.

In accordance with Mayer, the most recent restrictions permit for 32 seated patrons inside and 12 outdoors. The tables inside — with seating out there for 2 to 4 folks — are set aside at protected distances, and there may be restricted single seating on the bar, the place plexiglass separates the bartenders from the general public. Six correctly spaced tables can be found outdoors on the sidewalk, the place the music can simply be heard.

The brand new guidelines additionally require that patrons have to be seated to look at the present and have to be masked anytime they depart their desk. The menu now consists of meals offered by Firehouse 12 on Fridays and Saturday, an extra providing in latest months through the venue’s gradual however positive re-entry into the world.

As regulars entered the acquainted room for the primary time once more, the power stage fairly shortly rose to a festive and acquainted one, as if hardly any time had handed, the laughter and dialog ample and wealthy as Gordo took to the stage for a two-hour set.

“Welcome again,” Gordo introduced with a wave of his arms overhead. The viewers answered him with thunderous applause often reserved for the tip of a present.

“This has been a hell of a 12 months, proper?” he mentioned, and was met with much more applause. “It’s good to be again doing the factor I like to do.” 

Arrange additional again on the stage and framed in Cafe 9’s glittering stars, Gordo opened with a “basic nation tune about bars closing up” known as “Shut Up the Honky Tonks” by Buck Owens, which he instructed the group he had posted on Instagram again when the shutdowns first occurred.

He then launched right into a 16-song set that featured songs he had written for each bands. He dug into many Large Unhealthy Johns fan favorites, together with “Smokin’ Joe” — written about boxer Smokin’ Joe Frasier — in addition to “The place’s Waldo” and the apropos honky tonk-tinged “The Bar That I Name House,” which garnered the smiling singer-songwriter one other large spherical of applause.

Gordo talked about that Bronson Rock has been engaged on a brand new album for the reason that shutdown started and that it could hopefully be out someday quickly. He performed quite a lot of songs from that upcoming file, together with “Again of My Tongue,” “Hey Sally,” and “Come to My Celebration,” which included the lyrics “sipping a soda / ain’t doing a lot / dancing across the room to the radio,” which had been paying homage to the sentiments many have encountered this previous 12 months as they longed to be out within the metropolis and with their buddies.

One other new one, “My Outdated Man” — which Gordo mentioned was a “semi-autobiographical quantity” — illuminated his signature lyrical type that captures the essence of late ‘70s/early ‘80s New Wave-power pop rock singing: “We had been sturdy, and we had been weak. We had been good at self-destruction. We had been unhealthy at self-critique.”

This reporter determined to have a look inward herself and do one thing she hardly ever does on the job: depart early. As a lot as I beloved being again sitting in my common seat towards the wall underneath Tom Hearn’s iconic images of musicians, I knew there have been others who could be ready to have their likelihood to return house once more, even when just for an hour or so. I left after the primary set, which ended with one other large spherical of applause and Gordo expressing his gratitude in addition to the phrases I’m positive everybody else was considering proper together with him: “I like being right here. That is so superior. I’m so glad.”

For details about future reveals please try the Cafe Nine website.