Taverns and Music: where is the nightlife?

On the Saturday night of Thanksgiving weekend I went out looking for music in a bar in Holland. This western Michigan small town has enough college students and young-adults-living-with-the-'rents to fill a few bars, so I went downtown around 8 PM hoping to feel the noise. Bad timing. The Irish pub was full of supper patrons and a reunion crowd in the back room, but the band, advertised as playing Chicago blues from 7-11 PM, wouldn't be setting up until after 9. The brewpub across the street was almost full of customers, but there would be no party with live music this weekend. The 5th floor nightclub had the lights on but it was a very quiet evening in downtown Holland. So I was back home a little after 9, sitting back with a movie and a glass of Wild Turkey (no, Brenda, not a tumbler, just a shot glass). Just for giggles, I googled "western michigan bar band" and came up with Why Not Astronaut, a local funk-blues band I met at a music store in Holland, playing at the Itty Bitty Bar on the north side, tonight. So I went out, again, a little after 11, looking for music in a bar in Holland.

This was just what I expected: parked cars overflowed the paved lot to an adjacent field, smoke and noise filled the entrance, hundreds of youngsters stood shoulder-to-shoulder or face-to-face in an area half the size of our house, and the staff was really busy. The bouncer at the door glanced at my shaggy white beard and waved me in, no ID presentation necessary. Though I was able to slip immediately into a recently vacated seat at the bar, it took 15 minutes for the athletic bartender to pull me a beer (actually 2, I didn't want to wait for the second). A draft Pabst was my only choice since the stock of Canadian beer in bottles was long gone.

I must appear to be a hunter, since a couple guys asked me how was the season; there was time for short conversation before the band started the next set. Why Not Astronaut might not be the greatest bar band I have ever heard, but they were loud and clear in proclaiming the funky blues. They were exceptionally good at playing a version of musical chairs: in the middle of a tune, the drummer handed over the sticks to another player and took the guitar from the other player. These three guys seamlessly and effortlessly continued to play, swapping instruments in the middle of the stream!

I am happy to report that music is alive and well in a bar in Holland. I like living here!