By Robert Beck

I was getting the key out for the door to my studio when I saw the sign in Blondie’s Sports Bar window saying Live Music Tuesdays. It was early afternoon, and the owner was inside catching up after the Super Bowl weekend, so I dropped in and asked about painting Music Night. A few days later, I was setting up in the rear of the side room while Jodie and The Normals were doing their sound check.

The room is ringed with flat screens, but I found a view that included just the band and the audience while still describing the feel of the evening. The band was casual about getting ready. This wasn’t a concert with lights, effects, and $800 seats. It was a gig on an off-night in a sports bar. The people at the tables had one eye on the game and one hand on a beer.

I don’t want to leave you lonely
You gotta make me change my mind
I just want someone to hold me
And rock me through the night

The first set was more the soundtrack of my life than theirs, although most of the music from the boomer decades translates well today. Frankie Valli, Van Morrison, Carole King, Ronstadt, Chapman. Love and anguish. As the band got deeper into the set, I saw more people turned to watch them play, more heads bobbing in rhythm.

Take away my trouble, take away my grief
Take away my heartache in the night like a thief

Some nights get a good crowd; others are thin—filled out with friends and occasional family. Blondie’s staff passed the bucket at the end of every set. What they collect might cover the babysitter. It’s not like being the one band in a three-bar town. This is New York, there are a lot of musicians, and it’s a chance to play and be heard. That’s the path; just keep it going.

Is this a lasting treasure
Or just a moment’s pleasure
Will my heart be broken
When the night meets the morning sun

I wasn’t sure what kind of music it would be, so I left my hearing aids in the studio and put a couple of foam earplugs in my pocket, which I did not need. The set was full of opportunities for harmony, and Jodie, Luis, and Zack, delivered beautifully. I was tempted to run back for the hearing aids.

As I painted, I watched the relationship between the band and the people who had come to Blondie’s that night. It seemed to be just what everybody needed on a cold February Tuesday.

I love you baby, and if it’s quite alright
I need you baby, to warm the lonely night

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Lyrics from: Gimme One Reason (Tracy Chapman), Crazy Love (Van Morrison), Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow (Carole King), Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You (Frankie Valli)

Robert Beck’s recently updated website, robertbeck.net, has a page devoted to the West Side Rag paintings, with links to their articles.

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