A Friday Night Of Blues At The Gourmet Gallery
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
On Friday night we had the chance to play for the new owner of the Gourmet Gallery in Abbotsford. Deception has been playing at the Gallery for many years, but Kimberly Arthurs has only owned the coffee house/art gallery/antique store since November. This was our first time playing there since she took over.
Photo by M. Margison
We played to a packed house of patrons who seemed to really “drink in” the electric Blues sounds that Deception is known for. Speaking of “drinking in”…
Kimberly has found out that she needs to buy more of certain brands of beer for our fans. She had been given a list of fan favourites to buy, and thought she bought enough. But the number of people there that night, surprised even us, and the supply in the cooler didn’t quite go far enough. However, people do adapt, and were quite happy with their 2nd choice. They did come for the music after all…
Photo by M. Margison
…And the music didn’t disappoint, despite both Art and Gary struggling with a viral infection that was effecting their throats and their vocal chords. Art and I just did slightly longer solos than normal, and we just had to be more selective in our song choices.
For us, playing the Gourmet Gallery, is like coming home. It is a great place to play music. The ambiance, the crowd that actually comes to hear the music, and the staff, all blend together to make this a very comfortable and pleasurable place to play.
Abbotsford has so few venues for live entertainment, that we really owe a big ”thank you” to the establishments that host live events. If it weren’t for places like the Gourmet Gallery, the performing arts in this town would have even fewer outlets then they do.
So “thank you” Kimberly for carrying on the tradition that Diane established, and continuing to have live acts at the Gourmet Gallery. We’re looking forward to playing there again in ’09.
Our First Show At The Church Of The Blues In Dewdney
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
Well, we had a great deal of fun this weekend at The Church Of The Blues, in Dewdney. On Saturday night, we played a regular show to a packed house. The crowd was really appreciative, & seemed to really enjoy themselves.
Here are a couple of shots that were taken that night…
Left to right: Art on guitar, Helen on sax, Steve on bass, & Gary on drums.
The front line in action: Art, Helen, & Steve.
On Sunday afternoon & evening, The Historic Dewdney Pub was rockin’ to some amazing Blues sounds, as we played host to the Church Of The Blues’ weekly Blues Jam. As usual, there were some amazing musicians there who stepped onto the stage. It was a privilege to be the house band for this very talented group of Blues players.
We’d like to thank Doug McNeil & Julie McDonald, the owners of the Historic Dewdney Pub, for booking us for the weekend. We had a great time, & we are really looking forward to doing it again in the near future.
As Dave keeps saying, what you’re doing here is amazing. The fact that you’re providing a venue for Blues musicians to play in the Fraser Valley is awesome.
This weekend was only the 9th or 10th weekend of the Blues Jam. There were enough musicians there to keep the jam going past its scheduled 7 pm end time. Deception finally wrapped up the evening with a few songs at 8:30.
Let’s keep growing the weekly jam, and ensuring it’s continued success. There is a lot of talent in the Fraser Valley. This venue gives us an opportunity to showcase that talent.
If you’re a musician, and you haven’t yet checked out The Historic Dewdney Pub, AKA, The Church Of The Blues, since it’s under new ownership, please do. If we want to have a place to play our music, we need to support the places that support us.
Thanks again to Doug & Julie for having us this weekend.
Post Show Write Up & Some Pics
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
A couple of nights ago we played our show at the Gourmet Gallery to a packed house. It was a lot of fun! The drink cooler definitely had a lot less in it at the end of the evening, than when we started our first set at 8. Apparently even our photographer had a beer or 2…
Photo by M. Margison ©2008
It was really nice to see some familiar faces that we hadn’t seen in a while. Since Diane switched the nights from Saturday to Friday for live music, some people have found it difficult to make it in. I was talking to a couple who used to come to our shows all the time, but who I haven’t seen in a while. They told me they found it really hard to get there on time from work. I’m just happy they made it in on Friday, and even happier that they stayed right through to the end. Thanks! Hope to see you again in December!
A big “thank you” to all of you who came out and supported us! There are so few live music venues in Abbotsford, so supporting live music is very important if we value it. So thanks again. You guys are great!
Now poor Gary has for a long time complained that he is always either not in a picture, or stuck behind the sax player (me), or his own cymbals, but this time, he was actually caught in the act…See for yourself….
Photo by M. Margison ©2008
Here’s one Gary should like, my head stuck behind Art’s guitar for a change. Seriously though, I like the shot. Steve’s looking happy. Art’s looking concentrative. Gary & I are still in the pic, but the focus is on the guitar and bass players.
Photo by M. Margison ©2008
We also managed to capture quite a bit of great solo videos during the evening. Once Art has had a chance to see and hear them all, he can make a decision about where and how he thinks we should use them.
A Photo Of Gary…At Last!
Posted by Musician | Filed under Photos
OK, now here you go Gary…Here’s a photo for you…And when Marge took this, you hadn’t even posted your lament about your lot in life about being a drummer behind cymbals, sitting on a stool behind the sax player. 
Here you are singing at Berry Beat 2008. Now I realize that you have a microphone in front of your mouth, but heh, I think it’s pretty good, all things considered.
Maybe we need to get you a raised platform for your drum kit. That might be the answer. 
Envision Twilight Concert Series Show In Mission
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
On Friday night we played to a very large crowd, for the Envision Twilight Concert Series at Mission’s Fraser River Heritage Park.
My friend, who lives across the street from the park, said that this was the largest crowd she had seen this season for a concert in the park. That’s exciting!
Photo by M. Margison © 2008
Thank you to the audience members who came from Mission and surrounding areas to hear us play. We hope you enjoyed our music as much as we enjoyed performing it for you 
Hopefully we’ll get to do it again for you in the near future.
Thank you also to the event organizers for inviting us. It is a great venue to play. We had a great time.
Thanks also to the sound crew. You guys rock Thanks for making our lives so easy that night. You are a pleasure to work with.
Although the day started out very overcast and gray, the clouds were gone by the time we started our show at 7:00. The sun shone and weather couldn’t have been better.
We had put together a special set of music for the show, and it seemed to go over very well with the people there. The music was upbeat, and had a number of the under 6 crowd dancing up a storm. It was a lot of fun to see.
Deception is the Abbotsford-based blues band formed in the mid-90s by guitar player Art Panchishin.