Road Diary Day 9 - Lake Worth, FL

After we left Key West, Paul and I headed - where else? - back north. We played in Fort Lauderdale before continuing on to our big gig in Florida, the BamBoo Room in Lake Worth.
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This former roller rink was converted into one of the best listening rooms in the country by Russ Hibbard and his wife Karen, along with a top-flight staff. We played the opening party for the club in 1998 and have been privileged to return several times since then. The room is set up for comfortable listening, with wicker chairs and tables and beautiful decor that includes bamboo-clad walls, vintage dime-store guitars, signed photos and more than a hint of faux leopardskin. You enter the club at the ground level, where there is an old-fashioned box office at the foot of the stairs. You're not sure whether to buy some popcorn and soda or a ticket long as your right arm. The stairway is coated in a plush jungle-themed carpeting that makes you think that Lavay Smith might be waiting for you just around the corner. When she doesn't materialize, you are disappointed, but you press on. The room opens up before you: on your immediate right is a large dark bar, backlit in blue. Real linen cocktail napkins adorn the counter, and the people who perch above their drinks seem comfortable and familiar with one another. The entire left side of the room is made up of windows and doors that open onto a veranda with ceiling fans and more tables and chairs. The stage is at the far end of the room against a simple brick wall, and it is large enough to accomodate a full band but small enough not to dwarf the solo and duo performers that make up a large part of the club's roster. The pictures of Robert Johnson and Lightnin' Hopkins on the back wall are not empty promises. Hibbard, unlike most people who own "blues clubs," is committed to promoting all styles of blues, with special attention to the acoustic prewar sounds of the musicians that started it all. From a performer's perspective, it's a dream come true: a place where people treat you well and take care of you, and set the bar high for what a blues club can be.
One time we played there when John Hammond and his wife were in the audience. Paul broke a string on his electric and John volunteered to change it. John has some experience with broken strings, but he didn't have to rush to our aid. He's just a great guy and, quiet as it's kept, one of the best guitar roadies in the biz.