Getting Cozy With Bobby Long

I would like to officially say that McCabe’s Guitar Shop is my favorite place EVER to see a musician perform. As I’ve mentioned before, this tiny venue is literally the back room of a guitar shop with 100 folding chairs set up in rows. All of the walls were covered with guitars (shocking, I know), ukuleles, banjos, and I’m pretty sure I saw a digeridoo. The room had no elaborate lighting, curtains, or anything fancy - just a small, beat up stage with a mic stand, a chair, and a piano in the corner. You just can’t beat it for an intimate, acoustic set to show off an artist’s true talent.

When Twifixx, ZAnyMouse and I saw Bobby Long perform two weekends ago, we could have taken the most amazing pictures if cameras had been allowed in. However, once Bobby started singing, I got lost in his music and picture-taking was the last thing on my mind.

(source: Gibson.com)

(source: buzzinemusic.com)

Let’s just pretend that the above pictures were from the show, shall we?

He wore a brown/tannish plaid shirt rolled to the sleeves with a Hank Williams t-shirt underneath and rolled up jeans with navy blue socks and brown dress shoes. OK, so that doesn’t sound quite so stylish when I describe it, but take my word that it worked out just fine.

Does Bobby's unique and riveting fashion sense remind you of anyone else? (source Paul Froggat)

I'm still holding out hope that someday we'll see Rob perform live (source: Sofar Sounds)

As with the last show we saw at McCabe's, Bobby was very comfortable in the small venue and even joked that he could say anything he wanted because he knew it wouldn’t end up on youtube or twitter (or as he says with that adorb Brit accent… twittuh). Bobby’s voice and guitar playing were nothing short of amazing.

In between songs, he talked about what inspired him to write each one and went off on lots of very funny and strange tangents. In the course of the evening we learned that Barnes & Noble banned “The Bounty of Mary Jane” (he seemed both surprised and pleased by that), his blood type is B (not sure if that knowledge will ever come in handy, but make a note in case), and he reminisced about going on family trips to old graveyards in France when he was a kid. He also cracked himself up by saying that when he turns 40, he's going to wear suits every day, shave and shower every day, and have a couple of kids that his manager will babysit for him. I think half the time even he was surprised by what he said. I would also like to mention that I absolutely LOVE British slang.

After the show, Bobby hung around the shop to pose for pictures and sign autographs. While he appears a little introverted onstage, he's even shyer in person. He seemed very appreciative of everyone's support and made a point of thanking each person for coming to the show.

Bobby and TwiloveSue

Bobby and ZAnyMouse

Bobby and Twifixx

I couldn’t decide whether or not to include this last picture of Bobby because it truly was taken accidentally. Then I remembered what pervs you all are, so here it is. I started to take a photo of him signing autographs, but lowered my camera when someone moved in front of me. The picture took and this is what I ended up with:

My camera apparently has a mind of it's own.

This is the only photo I could easily find of Bobby and Rob together. I say “easily” because, frankly, I’m pretty lazy and gave up looking very quickly. (source:ADifferentForest.com)

And I’ll end with a picture of my other Favorite Brit, who I’m going to pretend was one of those shadow people in the loft above the stage during the show (source: ThinkingofRob.com)

TwiloveSue XOXO

P.S. I was so surprised when I Googled for Bobby Long images and several pictures of Scarlett Johansson came up. Apparently she made a movie called “A Love Song for Bobby Long.” Huh.