My Friend, The Choosy Mother....

Early reports are that the "Jif and the Choosy Mothers" reunion event was a success. I hope to get a full report some time this week. My friend Glen Gardner, partner-in-crime for years at MidWest Family Broadcasting, owner of the Dane County YourNews website, colleague and mentor at Public News Service, and all-around good guy, went back to his rock roots this weekend.

Glen and his radio station pals back in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a couple decades ago, had formed a band called “Jif and the Choosy Mothers”. Glen played guitar. The band did a lot of fun gigs, and developed a name for itself in the region. It doesn’t hurt when several of the band members are on-air personalities on one of the top-rated radio stations in Cedar Rapids, Z-102.9. People came to see the band and had fun, and that’s a big part of what it’s all about.

Since our untimely demise at MidWest Family Broadcasting, Glen has, like me, picked up a number of part-time self-employment gigs to keep bringing home the bacon. And, I don’t think Glen would be mad if I mentioned that he’s bringing home a lot more bacon these days than he did with MidWest. One of those gigs is consulting at that famous Cedar Rapids radio station where Jif and the Choosy Mothers were born, and – sure enough – one thing led to another and the Mothers got back together.

Saturday night they held forth at the Chrome Horse Saloon, complete with a shapely gal fronting the band and a tight, powerful horn section backing them up. Glen posted some video of one of their rehearsal sessions, and I just know they rocked the house. Their show was titled “Still Marginal After All These Years.”

Once you learn to play an instrument, it stays with you. Oh, sure, your technique goes downhill rapidly without practice, but once you’ve mastered the instrument, whether it’s a guitar, trombone, drums, or keyboard, you can work yourself back into reasonable shape in a fairly short time. Sort of like riding a bike.

In a former life, I was a musician, too, but that’s a story for another day. I know that no matter how the concert was received by the audience Saturday night, my friend Glen and his pals had a blast.