What A Day

Tip toeing barefoot through secret doorways into rooms filled with books and antiques. The walls covered in paintings. Guitars signed by stars shine in all the corners. Muddy Waters growls from the juke box as we play a game of Cut Throat on the ornate billiards table. Were these my dreams or is that how last night became this morning? Our day in D.C. was planned to be busy. This trip was planned with the generous help and support of one of my favorite people. A great lover of music and rock star in her own right, Jessie Scott. Part of the plan was to hang out at the O Street Mansion and film some songs for Music Fog and then play a show.

The Mansion itself is hard to explain. Here for 30 years or so, it’s not necessarily well known to Washingtonians. They like it that way. An underground art museum, hotel, rock-n-roll fantasy land. The list of guests who’ve graced these halls and slipped through the secret passageways here is long, illustrious and not to be discussed. When you’re here, you’re identity is unknown to the outside world. Reality is the world inside these walls. I found it fitting that we went back to the pool room to film with the Music Fog crew. It’s where our first day of tour ended, so why not start there again?

After an amazing brunch that included, yes, chocolate covered bacon! I returned to the billiards room. We planned to capture songs from both the Mystiqueros and me as a solo artist in support of both the new records, Agave and The Next Time. I went first. It’s bit nerve wracking to have three cameras in your face at 3 in the afternoon after staying up all night, but they did bring us some beer. (tastes like true love) The boys joined me on a song or two and all in all it went well. By the time we were wrapping up it was time to get downstairs and set up for the show. I was beyond hungry at this point. After performing for the cameras I was running on fumes but was revived by a side order of some of the best spinach I’ve ever had from a little place around the corner. It came with my crab cakes. (also fantastic) Then back to the Mansion for the show. I don’t know how it happened, but we had a really nice crowd. Not huge, but quite a bit better than I expected and we fell into that MQ thing that we do. And when we fall in like that, we do it well. I could almost feel all the musical magic that has happened in that room. Very cool.

When all the CD’s had been signed and the folks were gone and the last cable rolled up and put away I was dead on my feet. So tired that I felt ill. The boys went out and I went to bed. I may never live it down, but I had no choice. I’m looking forward to their stories of what may have happened while I rested. We head on down the road to Baltimore today and a show at Cyclops Books. I will miss this place, but it seems we’re welcome back anytime. I hope that time comes soon.

-El Guapo

p.s. I’ll leave you with a video of the video shoot. WW was kind enough to shoot this for me as the boys and I did “Hold Up The Train” Look for the Music Fog version sometime soon.