Still Rockin' at 70

Not as hard or as fast, but still at it!

This past Saturday I met my Easterday bandmates at the recording studio of a local community college, where we recorded a song as a student project. We chose “Paper Bats,” one of our most difficult and complex songs, because we hadn’t recorded it before. And, we nailed it! One run through, one recording take, then added vocals and an additional guitar part. The two student sound engineers seemed to enjoy it, too, rocking right along with us and asking questions about the band, the songwriting, etc.

As we carried our gear into the building, I remembered a story told by a dear musician friend, Kathryn Lorenzen, who is about my same age. A few years ago she was setting up to perform with a band at a popular local club, and as she tuned, she heard a young guy say to his friend, “Look! That old lady is going to play guitar!”

She reminded me of this story a couple of weeks ago and we laughed. We drove to Wichita to attend the memorial service of her musician friend and mentor, where she played a few songs with another longtime friend. As musicians, we all acknowledge slowing down, but we still love playing music.

If you remember reading my post “Living the Dream” in July of 2024, I wrote about Easterday. We played a reunion show in August, and we enjoyed it so much that we’ve continued to practice, with a show scheduled on April 11, which is the same week as my 70^th birthday on April 7.

In my wildest dreams, I never imagined I’d be on a stage playing in a rock band at age 70!!!

Last year, my vocals were rusty, and I didn't need to play guitar in our short set. But sticking with it has brought much of my singing back, and this time I play guitar on some songs. I physically wear out sooner, but I’m doing back exercises, yoga, and take long walks to build stamina. Plus, my bandmates, although younger, are now in their upper 50s. While I’m further along the life journey, we have similar aches and pains that come with growing older.

I love being retired, and I haven’t missed some aspects of performing music like getting gigs, carrying gear, or late nights. I’m still writing songs, joined a community folk chorus, sang at a dear friend’s wedding, and sing with my grandchildren. However, playing guitar with the band is whole other exercise. This time I borrowed a Washburn hollow body guitar (thank you Chris Hudson!), which my bandmates thought would add a warmer sound. It’s slightly bigger, and weighs about 5 1/2 lbs. The pace of some of the songs is energetic, but with the help of my bandmates I’m finding workarounds and trying new ways of playing. I will be fine.

Another bonus of this experience is just how much I love the guys in the band: Scott Easterday (songwriter, vocals, guitar), Jon Niccum (bass), and Mark Acuff (drums). I’ve missed them in my life. We initially played from 1993-1995 (also the name of our Easterday album), so it’s been 30 years until this moment. Practicing in Mark’s basement, talking and joking and laughing, going to dinner, along with the extreme joy of playing music with talented musicians. Our dear friend Richard Alwyn from New York City will join us in the second set. I still can’t believe my good fortune, and I’m so thankful.

If you live in or near Kansas City, please come to the show! April 11, doors 6:30 pm, show at 7, at The Blackbox Theater in the west bottoms (near Kemper Arena). Let’s have a toast to life and eat cake!

P.S. I’ll be on KKFI 90.1 FM with Barry Lee this Thursday, March 6, 10-12 pm. Tune in online or wherever you listen for great music, including a couple of Easterday songs!