big and rude

so, today at rehearsal (i'm in a musical based on the story the emperor's new clothes, yes, you read that right, i have to sing, in front of an audience, i'm, um, well, terrified. i mean, acting is old hat, but i've never done the musical thing before, anyway, i digress...) i was talking to this guy who has a delightful voice and i always love listening to him sing.

we were talking music. he asked who my favourite band was and i said "Big Rude Jake". don't know why BRJ came up first. i mean, absolutely on the top 10, but interesting that it came out as number one today. anyway, i was telling him about the first time i heard BRJ (who he hadn't heard of, which is not particularly a surprise, but did make me sad) and it made me chuckle again so i thought i'd share it here.

i'm pretty sure the first time i saw big rude jake live was at hillside. it's certainly my first clear memory of a concert with them anyway. they were playing the mainstage some afternoon (it was still light out anyway). i was enthralled from the beginning. i *loved* them. seriously, i nearly wet myself with joy (luckily i didn't, i mean, really, wetting myself would be bad enough, but at hillside? ewwwwwww.) and i turned to whoever was sitting next to me (kate? john? dave? shane? seriously, does anyone remember? man, that was a long time ago...) and said "wow, it's like a cross between tom waits and joe jackson jumpin' jive". i was pretty pleased with myself at that one. it seemed so perfectly accurate and i'm generally not that astute when it comes to music.

that week i read a review of big rude jake. i don't know if it was in the guelph mockery or in the ontarion or what, but i remember reading it in the words "big rude jake is like a cross between tom waits and joe jackson". i felt robbed. i was actually angry. someone had stolen my words. it didn't occur to me to be flattered. it also didn't occur to me that perhaps the reviewer just thought the same thing as me. i was convinced that it was someone who had been sitting within earshot and stole it without giving me credit for the words i was so proud of myself for coming up with.

i wonder if it was that year or the next year that big rude jake did the workshop with some band (i want to say tip splinter, but that could be a lie) and jake said "we need the saw lady, where's the saw lady?" in that frenetic kind of way he does.

okay, i need to see see jake again. who's up for going to see him in TO on some friday? apparently he plays at the reservoir every friday night under some other name but very much the same style.

funny, i have a number of stories around BRJ. i was about to keep telling them here, but i guess maybe they're not actually *that* interesting.

okay, i'm gonna go put on butane fumes and bad cologne now...

have a good night all!