When Kakki first called me to tell me about the HOB date, I knew that I wanted to be in LA for it. Finaly,after many volunteer jobs with Avocado/Guacamole, standing in the rain selling t-shirts and working tables in the lobby (hearing but not seeing the show)while others got to usher, these "Gold Circle" seats proved worth it. Granted,they were expensive and there were no "seats" and I was so tired after flying in from SF, going first to Burbank, to see Jackson Browne tape the Jay Leno show Braving rush hour traffic, I arrived at HOB just before 7:00pm (doing a fast change of clothes in the car). The HOB is just across the street from the "infamous" Sunset Hyatt, a huge part of local (and personal) music history. The will call window sent me to the "industry window", saying the window would open around 7:30. While waiting for this elusive "window" and discussing the old LA club the Hullabaloo (where I saw the Yardbirds) with some other early arrivals, Kakki came over from valet parking. As soon as she got there, music and Graham's voice was heard from the door nearest us, so I went in hoping to find the "industry" window. Instead we got to see and hear the soundcheck. What a treat, especially hearing Pevar and others practicing the harmonies. The "guest" list was a huge volume and seemed to be in no particular order.While "patiently" waiting, I was enthusing about the Fillmore as a venue, citing some of the great shows I have seen there and that musicians really appreciate the venue. This led to a discussion with one of the men in the crowd about Tom Petty's legendary 20 (or so) night run at the Fillmore. In the middle of this, the guy (later identified as Joe G) said"look there's Joni" I turned to see joni's head "checking in" at the Foundation door. She looked happy, serene and beautiful. Obviously, the "stars" were in attendance. While waiting at the bar for my one glass of wine and the food, Ed Begley Jr (the environmentalist!) offered me some of his french fries. Since Ed had just visited Hopland (in my backyard)for a benefit called Solfest, the conversation switched to conservation and my newly planted organic strawberry fields. Soon, we were exchanging ways to control the sowbugs and organic pest control (these types of conversations just seem to happen to me). Ed is very sweet and "real". This set the tone for the rest of the evening. The audience seemed to be made up of "celebrities" and industry types, and there was some instances of the typical "Hollywood" pretensions. The "Hollywooditis" came from the perennial "hangers-on". But the highlights of the evening were visiting with people who remembered me from my volunteer gigs, or even from the far distant past. Jeff Pevar stopped just before the show to say hi, and mentioned the Walecki benefit. Henry Diltz has a photographer's memory for faces, and laughed when I told him how much money I pledged to KQED recently because of his pitch on the telethon. We had more than full-access, moving from the main floor, through the upstairs tables and then ending in the Foundation Room (with a few forays to the "smoking" areas). While reminiscing with Henry about the far-distant past, (Monterey Pop, the Sunset Strip,the Stones), another woman stopped to chat about photos. She was Rosemary Butler who has sung background for so many people and has one of my favorite voices. Soon, we were talking about the Jackson Browne "Hold out Tour" Jackson being on my mind since seeing him at Leno and again during the intermission. Graham and his wife were quite welcoming and sincere, even though we had missed the "dressing room" introduction. While John ,the tour manager, was hustling Kakki and me down the stairs to see Graham, we passed someone on the narrow staircase. I was trying to walk, talk and think all at the same time (always a chore) and just exchanged that little nod of acknowledgement one does when passing someone else in a confined space. It wasn't until I hit the landing that I realized that it had been joni heading for the now "infamous" smoking porch. Finally, the night was over. I had been awake for almost 21 hours and was fading fast. (kakki was still going strong, but mumbled something about "work")
