John Hendow

Last night The 1 Uppers played at The Hwy 99 Blues Club in downtown Seattle. This was our first performance in this club and we had a great time. Sharing the bill were our good friends Purdy Mouth, who are sounding better every time we hear them. Our set was a 45 minute cross-section of favorite cover tunes and originals. This gig was the first time I brought my new pedalboard to a gig, but the only device currently wired up is my Line6 Pod XTLive. I don’t want to wire up the rest of the board until I receive my newly modified wah pedal and my compressor; both are expected to arrive soon, so hopefully I’ll be all ready to go on New Year’s Eve.

One of the nice things about the Hwy 99 Blues Club is that the stage is pretty good sized. For a six piece band, this is a significant consideration. It’s nice to have a little real estate to wander around in. I put my amp on a chair, which seems to change the character of its sound. Apparently the ground-plane effect from having it on the floor is rather pronounced, and elevating the amp above the floor has an effect on the low end. I’m going to try using a different type of amp stand that allows the amp to safely tilt back. This might help preserve the bass response.
We opened the night with “Three Picks”, a Lloyd Green instrumental that features Jon Hyde on the pedal steel. We also included “Sad Is The Lonely”, which features Kris Geren on guitar. The night went quickly and we enjoyed ourselves. It’s likely we’ll return to this club and play again. In addition to be a great venue, they have great food and a terrific selection of libations.