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Kimba Madsen and Ben Martin cozy up with Loggins at the Chris Ayres Benefit concert on May 7 at the Truckee Community Center. Photo courtesy of Ben Martin |
CommentsOut and About: Kenny Loggins with Ben Jammin' Sittin' In
Published: June 20, 2010
We’re playing with Kenny Loggins! Garrison and I meet at noon to confidently set up our state-of-the-art BOSE sound systems. Kenny arrives, takes one look and says “This is never going to work.” Buzz kill! He tells us what to do, listens to our sound check, gives me a smile and the thumbs up!
Looking at the mixing board he says, “You’re not putting it there, are you?” It was front and center stage, so I could access it while playing. I’d forgotten that everybody was coming to see Kenny — not the sound man — and that I was only playing the second half of the show. Feeling foolish, I quickly pull up the duct tape and cables, moving the mixing board to the back of the stage.
Surprisingly, Kenny is very intent on preparing for the performance, especially the vocal harmonies. Kimba, Garrison, and Mike are cool under pressure, quickly implementing Kenny’s directions. He diplomatically asks me to turn up my bass by saying “Can you hear yourself OK?”
Show time! I’m mixing the sound while Kenny plays “Danny’s Song” and “House on Pooh Corner.” As performers, we worry about making mistakes or stopping in the middle of a song, but he stops numerous times, makes a joke, and continues on, to the delight of the audience. What a feeling it must be when everybody is singing your songs along with you and you can do no wrong!
Now Ben Jammin’s All Stars have to follow Kenny Loggins. We play a couple of songs and then Kenny joins us. We mix classic rock with Kenny’s hits. He simply asks the audience to clap, sing, and dance, and they do! Much of what we practiced goes out the window, but Kenny masterfully increases the energy and excitement and we’re all thrilled to be a part of it.
The event was a big success raising $20,000 for Christine Ayres, and it’s something I’ll never forget!
~ Ben Martin, special to Moonshine Ink
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