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Location: south east Michigan | The Now & Zen Cafe has really been good to us. They were happy to have Brian and I come in, sit on their couch and just work on songs for a few hours. They encouraged the "arts".
Sad to say that they had to close down. I had said before that they had attracted kind of a young crowd. I guess it was a young crowd without any money to spend. BrianT and I had played our first gig there and we were hoping to do another soon. It was a perfect place to get used to playing in front of people.
R.I.P. N & Z!!!
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Posts: 274
Location: Maryland, USA | That always stinks when great places can't seem to make enough money... |
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Posts: 1180
Location: Vermont USA | We see a lot of that up here just when you find a nice place to go, it shuts down within a month.
Paul |
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December 2001
Posts: 10582
Location: NJ | I was a semi regular at a thursday night local coffeeshouse. I also bought something and so did my wife and anyone else we managed to drag with us. The prices were a little higher than the local convenience store but so be it we were entertained.
The twenty and some thirty somethings would come just to play. they would bring their coffee from a local chain or buy a soda (pop for you midwesterners) from a machine across the street. I saw the demise of this place coming for a while and I was not surprised when it went under.
Some people just don't get it. |
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June 2002
Posts: 6197
Location: Phoenix AZ | You and Brian should have bought the place and turned it into a flop house and jam studio for wayward OFC members.
Dave |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | That's too bad, Brad. My Condolences.
Just had a local place that I/we gigged regularly shut down. It's sad.
The guy here at least went about it the right way - One Final BASH.
$10.95 AllYouCanEat Buffet, DrinkSpecials, and I donated the use of my P.A. for everybody and anybody to perform - one last time there.
A Great time was had by ALL!
Best to go down in flames than with a whimper . . . |
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Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | You and Brian should have bought the place and turned it into a flop house and jam studio for wayward OFC members.
Young people without any money to spend....
G.A.S. weary OFC members without any money to spend....
same problem |
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January 2004
Posts: 627
Location: Cherry Hill, NJ | Brad
Too bad. At least it was fun while it lasted. Hey, I know of a hotel lobby, that you and Brian could play at in Conn. |
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Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | One of our local coffee shops, The Flying Saucer Cafe, which on occassion had open mikes, just closed. A starbucks moved in about 3 blocks away. I hate Starbucks. G-d d-mn overpriced donut shop for fools. |
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December 2001
Posts: 10582
Location: NJ | come to think of it, I sat in with a friend at a place called the "southwest grille" for over 2 years on a saturday night. many good times there. The last night we played there the staff seemed sad, and they ran out of soda, shrimp, and chicken. I found that really strange. The cooler was turned off and there were no longer any beverages there. We got the call a few days later that they were closed for good. I still miss that place it had the best barbeque in jersey. |
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| "G-d d-mn overpriced donut shop for fools."
I went in a Starbucks for the first time yesterday. How right you are... |
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Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | Their hot chocolate is good. |
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Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | So it seems I'm hanging out with a bunch of people who either frequent or gig in venues which, coincedently, close up a short time later.
Hmmmmm...... |
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Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | If I were a trained detective, that would tell me something.
Oh yeah. I am. And it does. Of course, it's like saying that axe murderers drank milk when they were young, therefore, milk causes people to become axe murderers. It's just not true. Except in Clifford's case..... |
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Location: closely held secret | That lactose intolerance can really make people cranky. |
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December 2003
Posts: 13987
Location: Upper Left USA | Play in church, it keeps getting better!
"My" Bass Player just happens to run a successful Car dealership in his "spare time" and I keep giving him ways to spend his money. My last suggestion was for a Coffee Shop/Rock climbing Wall/Open Microphone Stage venue we could play bi-weekly at.
I would love to find an appropriate local venue to "play" at. |
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March 2002
Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | Gramatically, that should read "..at which to play." |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | ". . So it seems I'm hanging out with a bunch of people who either frequent or gig in venues which, coincedently, close up a short time later.
Hmmmmm......"
It's kind of an inside "running joke" that Rick & I have that out of the dozen and a half (or so) venues that TwoManGroup plays, we've managed to "close" three of 'em (thusfar).
(I had a REALLY good self-deprecating joke to insert here, but I don't wanna tick off the Judge again, so I'll let it "slide" . . . too bad, too . . it was a GOOD one . . .).
In our area, it's gotten really bad.
It's not always so much that the "business" isn't there. It's become the cost of DOING the business.
One of our all-time favorite little places that we used to play had to "let us go" because the insurance policy (that he could "afford") only allowed for "entertainment" to consist of A singer who played AN istrument, SomeONE singing AND someONE playing an instrument, but NOT two people playing AND singing simultaneously.
If your establishment has an established "dance floor", forGET it! . . . yer into some MAJOR bucks, then! More and more places are foregoing live entertainment in favor of (ugh!) "karaoke".
The lawyers and insurance companies are KILLING the business. I've already had a couple owners tell me that if NJ adopts the whole "NoSmoking in Bars" edict . . . they'll just end up "folding". |
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Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Originally posted by cliff:
but NOT two people playing AND singing simultaneously. Because then you have to factor in the cost of the chicken wire. |
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August 2004
Posts: 604
Location: Tampa, FL | Moody, P.I. a man of many hats. First the price police, then the bracing police and let's not forget the string police (specializing in the third string perhaps :eek: ) and now...
the GRAMMAR police. When will it end. Are we doomed to a moody, p.i. police state? |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Waskel;
I tried to argue the point with the guy that we "suck" so bad at it (is that okay t'say?), that between the two us, he's really only paying for one REAL musician . . .
. . . he thought the concept was quite "original", but sadly, would'nt buy it :rolleyes: |
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March 2002
Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | It's amazing the stuff that stays with us from childhood. My father always pounded into his kids to never end a sentence with a prepostion. Decades later, I'll be working on a report, realize that I just did that, and even tho' the sentence sounds right, have to go back and restructe it in a more formal and correct way just to satisfy that voice in my head.
Shoulda done drugs when I was younger...... easier to live with the afteraffects. |
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Posts: 604
Location: Tampa, FL | I believe that would be , "after effects" :eek: ;) |
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Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | Hey, I said I was good with grammer, not spelling. |
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Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Yah, people that done drugs don't care how they wright. |
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Our venue closes
