Part 1 -My New Year Begins...

Happy New Year.
Back from the big city. Chicago was wonderful…a great time. Shout out to PHREAK!!!
Word up to Cracklin Rosie! Peace out to LPG! Some of my favorite travel companions.

Quick recap of events. LPG, ROSIE, and Myself all arrived in Chi-town, late Thursday night, early Friday morning (2:45am). Grabbed a taxi to the hotel, had a celebratory toast of sorts, and got ourselves some sleep.

Awoke the next morning rested and refreshed. Phreak arrived a little before 1:00pm. A trip to the Liquor store, a call to the pizza place…and by 3:00 the party was underway. We headed out around 6:00pm, and grabbed a taxi down to the Aragon Ballroom. Keller Williams opened the show…a 90-minute set for the one-man band. Followed by the main even, Umphrey’s Mcgee. Great show first night. Fame encore was a highlight. After the show we went across the street to a bar called the Kinetic Playground for an after show show. Can’t ever have too much music. We caught Mike Mirro and friends. Good show, high energy…really had a great time here. Made it back to the Hotel and managed to get to sleep by around 5:30am.

Next morning I awoke at 9:00 am for a short walking tour of Chi-town. Was pretty cold out, and still pretty tired, so I called off my tour and returned to the hotel around 11:00am. Travel companions still asleep, I had made enough noise by 12:00 to wake everyone up. By 1:00 we had begun to shower, and shortly after that we were out on the street searching for food.

Back to the hotel for some more pre-partying, and off to the train station. The UM show on the 31st was awesome. I’m including the set list below. Anyway, New Years Eve was long night, that finally came to a close (with us passing out after partying in the hotel room, well, maybe not passing out, but laying down) sometime around 6:45am. We checked out at 12:00, and headed to a dinner before Phreak dropped us at the airport, and we headed home.

Great Time.

More to come in part 2, the Magical Day that was Monday, January 2, 2006.





12.31.05 - Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois
Set One: All In Time, Kabump > The Bottom Half, Got Your Milk (Right Here), Professor Wormbog, Turn In Difference*, Hurt Bird Bath
Set Two: Bridgeless^, Ocean Billy > Glory > Ocean Billy, 40's Theme, Anchor Drops, Last Man Swerving^ > medley^^, jam%, Just A Gigolo%%
Set Three: Nothing Too Fancy** > Auld Lang Syne**, Resolution$ > Miss Tinkle's Overture > Higgins^ > Miss Tinkle's Overture^, I Want A New Drug^, jam/song?$$, Partyin' Peeps**
Encore: Breathe&, Great Gig In the Sky&&, Believe the Lie, Night Time is the Right Time#
Notes:
Keller Williams opened
* first time played, Keller Williams; with Keller on guitar and vocals
^ with Michael Mavridoglou on trumpet, Chris Near on saxaphone, and Brent Sanders on trombone
^^ with Paris Delane on vocals along with the horn section; included One Nation Under a Groove, Kiss, Need You Tonight, Amazing Grace, and Stairway to Heaven
% with Jake replacing Kris on drums
%% first time played, Brammer/Caesar/Casucci; with Kris on vocals and Jake on drums
** with Keller on guitar and the horn section
$ with Norwegian Wood tease; with the horn section
$$ with Chris Near on flute
& first time played, Pink Floyd; "dub" version
&& first time played, Pink Floyd; with Michelle Hannigan on vocals
# first time played, Ray Charles; everyone on stage
last I Want A New Drug 04.14.00