Oh, My Nola...
A few days before my birthday, Harry Connick Jr. was in town with his Big Band singing music from his two new albums Oh, My Nola and Chanson du Vieux Carré celebrating his home town of New Orleans, one of my favorite cities I have ever spent time in.



I had really been looking forward to seeing Harry again! He is by far one of my all time favorite musicians and performers. And the only way to see Harry is up close and personal, sitting in the orchestra pit where you are close enough to see and hear Harry tapping his foot in time to his piano playing, close enough to watch Harry’s hands playing rapid jazz piano rhythms and melodies, and close enough to feel the deep inflections of Harry’s voice like kisses on your skin when he sings.

I don’t believe you would have the same concert experience sitting back in the general audience as you do in the orchestra pit because Harry is so personable with those sitting close, engaging them in conversation, making jokes about waking up inside the Rabobank on his tour bus, laughing, dancing and shaking his bootie, and flashing those heart-melting dimples when he smiles. The people in the orchestra pit participate in the show whereas those in the general audience watch.

New Orleans music has its own sound and emotion that always takes me back to the times I’ve spent in that great city. Harry Connick Jr. and his Big Band play it like it was the only music that ever existed or mattered. They played from their hearts music from their childhoods, home town and legendary mentors along with original songs from Harry Connick Jr. Harry and all the members of his Big Band are extraordinary musicians and they showcased their talent as if they were having the time of their lives. You could just tell they all love what they do!

Although Harry began the show with one of my all time favorite songs: Come By Me, the show consisted mostly of music from his two new New Orleans albums featuring songs like: Working in a Coal Mine, Won’t You Come Home, Bill Bailey?, Oh, My Nola, Luscious, New Orleans, Bourban Street Parade, Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and Do Dat Thing, which was a tribute to legendary New Orleans musicians, among other songs.

There were three moments in the show that really stood out for me and made it a night to remember…

The first was when Harry sang Let Them Talk. A ballad, Harry sang it like no other could with his deep romantic voice that melted my heart when he sang the words, “I want the whole wide world to know…that I, I really love you so.”



The second was when Harry left the grand piano at center stage to go play an old upright piano off to the side of the stage in a set that looked like a New Orleans club on Bourban Street. He played the most amazing and intricate piano solo song I have ever heard that brought the crowd to its feet. He effortlessly reminded me of why he is my all time favorite jazz pianist. I wish I could play my upright piano half as good. Alas, I do not have Harry’s talent.



He went on to play a few more songs from the New Orleans club set on the old upright piano with his Big Band and I felt like I was back in New Orleans. Back on Bourban Street in jazz clubs and restaurants where jazz musicians poured out great music while waiters walked around with baking sheets of fresh hot biscuits straight from the oven. I could taste the buttered biscuits melting in my mouth as Harry played and sang about New Orleans memories and legends.

And the third was during Mardi Gras in New Orleans when chingpea threw a Mardi Gras bead necklace on stage and Harry danced over and put it around his neck. One of our group had touched something that now touched Harry!

When that beaded necklace hit the stage I remembered being in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, watching the parades, being one of thousands crowded onto Bourban Street as people on the hotel balconies threw Mardi Gras beads down to those in the street. I remembered the music. I remembered New Orleans with all its grandeur and history.

Oh, My Nola… I’ll remember you through your music.

*Pictures posted were found on the internet and are not from the Oh, My Nola concert in Bakersfield as photography was not allowed.

Labels: Bakersfield, Bourban Street, Harry Connick Jr., jazz music, Mardi Gras, New Orleans, Oh My Nola, piano

  posted by Matildakay at 9:45 PM 2 comments

Tonight I'm seeing a New Orleans man...
Harry Connick Jr. is in town tonight with his New Orleans tour singing songs about one of my favorite cities I've ever spent time in.



My friends and I will be there with our drool on.

**Updated: I'll regale you all with Harry Connick, Jr. tales soon...

Labels: Bakersfield, Harry Connick Jr., jazz music, New Orleans, Rabobank

  posted by Matildakay at 1:26 PM 2 comments

Oh the men I’ll be seeing…
There are men in my future...

Hot men.

Talented men.

Famous men.

Who? You ask.

Harry Connick Jr.


Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean At Worlds End


John Mayer


Darren Hayes


and The Police


This Smalltown Girl is looking forward to the next five weeks...

and the men I’ll be seeing.

Labels: Darren Hayes, Harry Connick Jr., John Mayer, Johnny Depp, Smalltown Girls, The Police

  posted by Matildakay at 9:38 PM 4 comments

Chaos, Music and Surreal Moments…
Lately it seems like I’ve been running at full speed. I’ve had so much going on I haven’t had a moment to myself. And thanks to the time change, every time I’ve sat still for a moment, I’ve fallen asleep. We only sprung forward an hour, but its taken me days to quit feeling exhausted.

My days have been filled with chaos, music and surreal moments…

I had a meeting with a lawyer that was actually positive and reassuring. Lawyers are not exactly my favorite people. No offense to any reader that might be a lawyer. But my experiences with lawyers throughout my divorce were less than great. In fact, I’ve spent a lot of money on lawyers with no real results.

So when I met with a lawyer regarding my insurance claim I was expecting similar treatment. But instead, I felt like this lawyer was actually on my side. Was he a champion for hire?

I spent an afternoon wandering the streets of Little Tokyo in Los Angeles with friends and ate really good Japanese food.

I got lost spiritually and found myself standing mere inches from Van Gogh’s Irises. I found myself in the brush strokes, the texture, the thickness, the layers, the colors, and the chaos and made a museum employee nervous by my proximity.



I experienced the same revelations when I encountered Monet, Degas and Rembrandt.

I felt small when faced with historical artifacts, sculptures and illustrated manuscripts. In the big scheme of life my existence seems insignificant in regards to history, God and religion on display in the rooms I walked but wasn’t allowed to touch.

I found peace in the architecture, gardens and spectacular California coast and Los Angeles city views at the Getty Museum. The solitary stone benches, the staircases, and the fountains felt like home. I could have stayed for days instead of hours.

Soon after finding myself at the Getty, I became Rock Star Struck.

I visited Hollywood, the land of movie stars, to worship at the feet of rock stars in the Viper Room. The rock stars in question are Los Angeles new wave rock band: World Wide Spies. I’d seen them perform a couple of times in Bakersfield, and I’m obsessed with their new album: Images of Black and White. It’s absolutely fabulous. But I was blown away by their performance at the Viper Room. The sound was amazing. World Wide Spies were bigger than life. I felt like I was front and center at an intimate U2 concert. And just like that… I succumbed to their philosophy.


Matildakay (lower left corner) Rock Star Struck by World Wide Spies

Having mastered the art of buying Police tickets online… I applied the same savvy technique and bought Harry Connick Jr. tickets. I may not have any vacation plans scheduled yet this year, but 2007 is already filling up with great music.

Bakotopia and their new compilation CD release filled my weekends with lots of great local music. Everything I ever needed to know about life I learned from a punk-rock song. What a sober realization.

I found myself in a deserted parking garage at midnight with bats flying over my head flapping their wings in a sinister fashion. An eerie omen for sure.

I fell in love with Something New and realized that love can be found in the most unexpected places if you just open your heart a little…

And Spring came early…

My life feels like I'm rushing head first into the fray like a blooming flower that I've neglected to water.

Labels: Bakersfield, Bakotopia, Getty Museum, Harry Connick Jr., punk rock, Rock Star, Spring, The Police, U2, World Wide Spies

  posted by Matildakay at 11:55 PM 7 comments