From Strawberry Festivals to Summer Concerts, the list of local towns providing performance opportunities for area artists increases each year. The challenging part for us "wannabees" is figuring out how to get booked. One such opportunity arose this summer quite by

chance when my musical partner in crime - Patti Bramson - happened upon an e-mail advertising auditions for Red Bank’s StreetLife Series.

StreetLife, presented by Fleet Bank, grew out of Red Bank RiverCenter’s revitalization efforts. Funded in part by a grant from the Monmouth County Arts Council, local entertainers have been hired for the last three summers to perform throughout the town.

Following our audition, Patti and I were ecstatic to receive a call of hire. This call validated our efforts to become a professional musical team and allowed us to debut in the town where our collaborative efforts began. Like most artists, we possess an urgent need to play and perform. Our colleagues say there’s something special about our "blonde, Martin ladies" look and sweet vocals that’s pleasing to the ear and eye. While Patti has a gift for recognizing and including talented friends in her performances, I thrive on songs whose content fosters personal introspection. Playfulness also comes to mind, as we’ve been known to change our set list at the first sight of a child.

Our first gig with StreetLife was on June 5th at Haagen Dazs on Broad Street. Though rain forced us indoors,
Continued on page 12

Had a different kind of night recently at the recently rocking new Wonder Bar’s open mike night. It seems to be a different KIND of open mike alright, w/name brand local talent mixed in with the off-the-street musicians, running a gamut from airtight, breathtaking, and soaring to mutely hilarious and once or twice, just horrible.

But first the breathtaking and airtight: It all started at the end of a steamy, cloaky kind of dogday summer Wednesday that saw Britney Spears’ video crew on the Convention Hall side of the boardwalk, w/800 Asbury cops cordoned up and hanging around giving one the assumption they all knew where Britney was except you; Plus, we heard news that E street drum legend Vini Lopez has teamed back up w/SOAP guitar prodigy Ricky DeSarno, while the Slydells aped BJ Thomas, teased The Bird, and The Legend’s horn played on…

Incidentally, we wrote this in a semi-heat drenched haze, as July’s oppressively warm air  just squeeee..ezed out word after word, like dripping verbs from a toothpaste tube.

I just had to flip you that analogy; anyway, The Wonder Bar’s Wednesday night Open Mike is gradually becoming the scene to be in on Wednesday nights down in The ‘Bury; starting w/an eclectic mixture from this night’s musical host, Joe Harvard (guitarist from Dragster, Mark Prescott Band/Saint soundman). Joe whipped thru an obscure to
  Continued page 3