Jakes, you really came out of the woodwork to make it to this show! It did not go unnoticed– we love you all! Thank you so much for continuing to support our aging, cranky asses.

Jake isn’t used to being on stage, at least not since our infamous show at Vintage in White Plains back in 2009. Looking out and seeing so many familiar faces made it a very fun night for us.

Lucy’s prefers that bands play two longer sets, and it just so happens that we prefer it that way too. If you didn’t get a chance to see this show, we’re working on setting up another date so stay tuned!

Set 1
The Boys Are Back in Town
Sweet Emotion
Last Nite
Heart and Soul
My Best Friend’s Girl
Buddy Holly
Possum Kingdom
All Along the Watchtower
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Billie Jean
Just Like Heaven
Africa
What I Like About You
Hurts So Good
Are You Gonna Go My Way
Honky Tonk Women
Sex On Fire

Set 2
Santeria
Pressure
Corduroy
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
American Girl
In the Meantime
New Age Girl
Night Moves
It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Jesse’s Girl
867-5309-Jenny
I Melt with You
Dancing with Myself
I Wanna Be Sedated
Suspicious Minds
Hey Ya
Under Pressure
Easy Lover
Baba O’Riley
Blister in the Sun
Laid
(Alright, Fuck It, Let’s Play) Everlong

What a show, Jakes!

We stuck TSM’s drum kit in the corner but he could not be contained; he’s a beast. We tried to stump him by throwing a Police song in the mix without his knowledge.

Dino, you’re fucking killing me right now.” –TSM

Don’t worry, he crushed it.

The crowd was brimming with enthusiasm, and requests. We played, and then we played some more, until the place was practically empty. Then we played for those people. Maybe we played for ourselves? Maybe we just forgot how to stop?

Thank you for coming out, for screaming, for making requests, for singing along, for dancing, for hanging out with us until the wee hours of the morning, for going to work late the next day…

Thank you for being Jake.

[instagram url=https://instagram.com/p/3iUuXxgr0f]

Set 1
Sweet Emotion
Stuck in the Middle With You
I Melt With You
Hurts So Good
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Just Like Heaven
Heart and Soul
My Best Friend’s Girl
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
No Excuses
All Along the Watchtower
Santeria
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Buddy Holly
Jesse’s Girl
Circle the Drain

Set 2
Jailbreak
Revolution
Honky Tonk Women
In the Meantime
New Age Girl
What I Like About You
Love and Memories
Blister in the Sun
She
Dancing in the Dark
Message in a Bottle
867-5309/Jenny
Sex on Fire
It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Suspicious Minds
Hey Ya
Baba O’Riley

Encores
Dani California
The Boys are Back in Town
Eyes of the World
Sweet Home Alabama/All Summer Long/Werewolves of London
Easy Lover

The Mountain Men have a running gag about being the self-proclaimed loudest band in Westchester. We often joke about our ears ringing for days after our shows. Well, as it turns out tinnitus and hearing loss are not actually that funny at all. A few of us actually suffered from noise-induced hearing loss for 24-hours after the show. While we planned on helping to ring in the new year back in December, we instead ended up ringing our own ears for months.

We hope you got your hearing back.

It was a Christmas show, and our gift to you was the long-term remembrance of our last show! Merry Christmas!

Many of you came in full support, wearing your horrendously ugly sweaters. This is normally where we would make a reference to Bill Cosby, but we wouldn’t want to risk triggering anyone at the moment.

Christmas tunes were demanded, and we delivered. You wouldn’t believe how difficult it is to take yourself seriously while wearing Grandma’s bedazzled, over-sized, woolen, holiday vest. As usual, we had a blast playing for you folks at the RGAB, and the next show couldn’t possibly come any sooner!

Cheers,
–The Mountain Men

Ugly Sweater Setlist
Please Come Home for Christmas
Just Like Heaven
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Circle the Drain
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
Cradle of Love
Sex On Fire
Locked out of Heaven
I Will Survive
Little Saint Nick
Undone (The Sweater Song)
Dim
O Holy Night
American Girl
Crazy Little Thing Called Love
My Best Friend’s Girl
Blue Christmas
Honky Tonk Women
Hurts So Good
Last Night
Interstate Love Song
Run Rudolph Run
Santeria
Take Me Out
Corduroy
She
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Surrender
Love and Memories
Dancing With Myself
I Wanna Be Sedated
867-5309/Jenny
Rock and Roll All Nite
Jesse’s Girl
Trippin’ on a Hole in a Paper Heart
Blister in the Sun
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Laid
It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Working for the Weekend
Sweet Child O’ Mine (Tease)
Highway to Hell

“The Train Kept A-Rollin'” is what song we should have played, as it was the theme of the evening. The band performed a ‘Jake-A-Thon,’ pushing for over 3 hours without any break– with one minor detour for a round of shots, courtesy of Monith (friend and drummer extraordinaire).

Electric and eclectic describes the extra-long mega-set. The crowd was a tad sparse, but those present made themselves heard. If the band wasn’t loud enough to puncture eardrums, our fans did their best to assist. Some RG&B regulars had some odd requests, we did our best to oblige– although Jimmy Buffett remains off the table at this time. Seriously, people?

This show was in jeopardy of being cancelled as a certain unnamed lead singer neglected to recall the gig that he, himself, booked half a year before double-booking himself on a European vacation (Big Ben, Parliament, etc.). Luckily the wonderfully accommodating staff at the RG&B agreed to shift the date, allowing us to perform with our fabulous frontman. Yes, we’re clearly still giving him a hard time about it– it’s only fair, right? And now let’s wax lyrical about him for a moment because, even while fighting jet-lag, Mussels put on a killer performance– hitting all the right notes and getting right in there to fire up the audience.

The same can not be said about Jake, himself, as he was again absent– this time allegedly suffering from something known as ‘Pink Sock Disease’. We urge you– please do not Google it. We did, and we can’t unsee what we’ve seen. Please, just trust us on this one. Get well, Jake!

The “Jake-A-Thon” Mega-Set
Midnight Rider
Just Like Heaven
I Wanna Be (500 Miles)
Love and Memories
Santeria
Like a Stone
Better Man
Wonderwall
Circle the Drain
Just What I Needed
Hurts So Good
Beds are Burning
Take Me Out
Counting Blue Cars
All Along the Watchtower
Billie Jean
Life on a Chain
American Girl
Radio, Radio
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Are You Gonna Go My Way?
Sex On Fire
Dancing in the Dark
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
Last Night
It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Low
She
Working for the Weekend
Brian Wilson
Hey Ya!
Easy Lover
Blister in the Sun
Laid
In the Meantime
New Age Girl
867-5309/Jenny
Panama

“When I come home, cold and tired, it’s good to warm my bones beside the fire…“– ‘Time,’ Pink Floyd

Thank you, all of you, who braved the polar vortex to come rock out with us at the Rye Grill & Bar! Let’s not mix words, it was really fucking cold that night. So cold, in fact, that Jake himself didn’t make it to the show since the door to his cabin in the mountains was frozen shut. Whatever, he always seems to have some excuse.

^{Photos ©2014 Ashley Covelli}

The crowd response was a bit ‘chilly’ during the first set, but towards the end of the evening everyone seemed to be catching that warm and fuzzy feeling that Jake was churning out. However, by that point the band was out of material and began to take requests. “Rhiannon!” shouted an overzealous fan (who likely just saw Stevie Nicks’ cameo in the most recent episode of American Horror Story: Coven). Jake obliged. Yes, we freakin’ played Rhiannon. (Well, sort of.) But who are we to say no?

While it did eventually take an interpretive dance from Mussels to warm up the crowd, hearing them chant “ONE MORE SONG!” at the end of the night concluded the show on a high note.

We’ll see y’all again when this frost has finally melted! Cheers!

Set 1
Stuck in the Middle
Wonderwall
Night Moves
Take It Easy
Everyone Wants to Rule the World
I’ve Got a Name
No Matter What
Dark Hollow
Solsbury Hill
Beds Are Burning
Midnight Rider
Mary Jane’s Last Dance
Just Like Heaven
Wild Night
Africa

Set 2
Last Night
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Love Shack
It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Hurts So Good
The Joker
Beverly Hills//Here I Go Again/Pour Some Sugar On Me (Medley)
Life on a Chain
Jesse’s Girl
Hey Ya!
Blister in the Sun

Encores
867-5309/Jenny
Message in a Bottle
Laid
Working for the Weekend
Rhiannon (Tease)
Take Me Out
Everlong
Dancing With Myself
I Wanna Be Sedated

We at Jake consider Pete, our live sound engineer, to be a full-fledged band member. If you were at the show this past weekend you probably learned that Pete was on vacation- and well, we really missed him!

The show was off to a somewhat rocky start as no able-bodied individuals could figure out how to get sound coming out of Pete’s board. After pressing every combination of buttons we could think of (including frantically texting and calling Pete) we eventually figured out a hack that worked pretty well. Massive props go to Mike Griffiths for running sound for us in Pete’s absence. He was dealt a pretty shitty bad hand and handled it well- with a few beers and a big smile.

^{Photos ©2013 Ashley Covelli}

After a “fashionably late” start, we got right into the business of hard rocking. Acoustic guitars can’t hold Jake back from melting faces! The venue was packed with our regular fans and quite a few locals who, admittedly, may have only stuck around to see if we’d ever be able to get the sound system working… Nonetheless, we made some brand new fans, rocked hard, and played loudly- the only way we know how.

Jake!

Set 1
Last Night
Better Man
Won’t Back Down
Midnight Rider
No Excuses
Wonderwall
Signs
Dark Hollow
Brian Wilson
My Best Friend’s Girl
I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Life on a Chain

Set 2
Wild Night
Just Like Heaven
What’s So Funny (‘Bout Peace Love and Understanding)?
It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Night Moves
Beds Are Burning
American Girl
Hurts So Good
867-5309/Jenny

Encore
Blister in the Sun
Laid

What a great reunion this turned out to be! The band hadn’t played an official live show since 2009, and this was the first time doing an acoustic set in front of a large audience. The crowd tried to eat their food and pretend like we were background music, but by the time we busted out “It’s the End of the World…” they couldn’t resist jumping out of their seats to dance and sing along with us. The energy level never dropped and we were begged for encores. We obliged.

Jake forever.

Set 1
Midnight Rider
I Won’t Back Down
My Best Friend’s Girl
Wonderwall
It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Sister Golden Hair
Just Like Heaven
Dark Hollow
Dire Wolf
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
Beds Are Burning
Times Like These
Signs
Better Man
Take It Easy
The Man Who Sold the World
Hurts So Good
The Joker
Beverly Hills/Here I Go Again/Pour Some Sugar On Me (Teaser Medley)

Set 2
Wild Night
No Matter What
No Excuses
She Came in Through the Bathroom Window
Melissa
What’s So Funny (About Peace Love & Understanding)?
Man on the Moon
Brian Wilson
Night Moves
Holiday Road
Blister in the Sun
867-5309/Jenny
Squeeze Box/Life on a Chain (Medley)

Encores
Jesse’s Girl
Working for the Weekend
Laid

Jake played encores after finishing up a five-hour show. Take that, Springsteen!

^{Photos ©2009 Ashley Covelli}

Set 1
(What’s So Yummy ‘Bout) Beef, Pork & Barbecuing
Help!
Bar-B-Que City
New Age Grill
Just What I Seasoned
The Boys Like Blackened Trout
Charcoal Killed the Propane Star
Bloody Holly
Sangria
Jesse’s Grill
Nom Nom Nom, De Da Da Da
Life on Propane
I Melt With Bleu (Cheese)

Set 2
Surrender
Handle With Flare
Counting Blue Flames
Gasoline
Aero-Propane
Crazy Chicken Wings I Love
Stuck in the Metal
My Best Friend’s Grill
Wish You Were Seared
Brian Wilson
Like a Stone
Radio, Radio
Pulling Mussels (From the Grill)

Set 3
Dani Carolina (Pulled Pork)
Tastes So Good
Last Bite
American Grill
It’s the End of the Feast As We Know It (And I Feel Full)
Smoke Me Out
Rock the Cash Bar
Everybody Wants to Rule the Grill
Lager in a Bottle
867-5309/Jenny
Bite Moves
Rub Meat Two Times
Working for our Dinner
All Along the Slow-Cooker
Under Pressure (Cooker)
Delicious Minds
Brisket in the Sun
Bar-B-Que O’Reilly
Dancing with Myself/I Wanna Be Sedated (The Deadly Medley)