Rams Riverhouse is starting to feel like our own little experiment in how many tiny things can go sideways before a show and still add up to a really good night.
Dry load-in, quick setup, and the traditional “no guitar in the monitor” moment
The last time we played Rams, it felt like we were loading in during a hurricane. Sheets of rain, cables getting damp, and a 10–15 minute scramble to figure out why nothing sounded right. This time: blue sky, dry sidewalks, and a bar & grill that actually has a stage waiting for us. Already an upgrade.
We pulled into Port Byron with time to spare. Tom left his car at Greg’s place, rode along, and handed over a birthday present in the driveway: a Bell & Field thermos with our logo and Greg’s name on it.
We rolled our gear in, set up in record time, and somehow had a full hour before downbeat. Of course, we still had to uphold one soundcheck issue, and it was our usual routine.
Tom’s guitar check went like this:
- Tom strums confidently.
- Silence.
- He frowns at the mixer.
- We pretend to troubleshoot everything else first.
- He finally looks down and realizes a pedal setting is wrong.
It happens every single time like clockwork, and we both laughed because it really does. At this point it’s basically expected. We’d be more surprised if it didn’t happen.
River walk, Pavillion and “Molester Moon”
Because setup went so smoothly, we actually got to be human beings for a bit. We walked down to the pavilion by the Mississippi, and just talked. Tom had recently stayed at an Airbnb across the street with Malissa, so he pointed it out and told a few stories from that trip.
Then the conversation took a hard left turn into a ridiculous video Tom’s sons had shown him featuring a character called “Molester Moon” and a cursed chain of moon emojis. Picture a person in a weird moon costume, high voice, dancing badly, saying, “I’m going to molest you!” It’s the kind of dumb comedy you’re embarrassed to laugh at, and of course there was another couple sitting right there in the pavilion overhearing all of it.
We didn’t realize it at the time, but that couple from the pavilion ended up front and center for the show. Tom introduced himself later and we all laughed about the absurd moon video.
Salad, family, and a small but attentive room
Back at Rams, Tom grabbed their Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad before we started. He was starving but didn’t want anything heavy before singing for three hours. It hit the spot and he came back to the stage feeling good and ready to test his diaphragm for the rest of the night.
The room wasn’t packed, but it was the kind of crowd we really like: people listening, clapping after songs, and making eye contact instead of just shouting over us. Having Tom’s family there helped anchor the whole night, too. His son James came up to the piano for a go at “Take It Easy” by the Eagles with Tom on guitar.
Friends in the front row and songs that are starting to lock in
One of the best parts of the night was seeing familiar faces walk through the door: our friends David, Nancy, and Helen. We’re big fans of David Killinger’s work with The Carefree Highwaymen (his Gordon Lightfoot tribute) and his other folk projects, so having him show up on a night we’re doing a live acoustic duo performance always gives us a little extra push.
We pulled out “Sundown” for David. That one hasn’t totally settled for Greg yet, but it’s getting closer every time. It’s funny how a song that seems simple on paper—just a few chords—can be sneaky with nuances that have to land together or it feels off.
Some of our newer tunes are starting to feel really comfortable too:
- Borderline – starting to groove the way we imagined when we first added it.
- And She Was – not really new, but weird and wonderful as always, and the Rams crowd seemed into it.
- Walk of Life – a good fit for a bar & grill with an actual stage and people nodding along with their drinks.
We closed the night with “Walking in Memphis” and “Wild Night,” then hung out to talk with the folks who stuck around until the end.
An awkward restroom trip, nostalgic car rides, and heading home
Somewhere near the beginning of the night, Tom had one of those tiny human moments you don’t expect to end up in a show recap. The men’s room at Rams is just small enough that you’re not sure if it’s a one-person or two-person situation. One toilet, one urinal. Tom walked in, saw someone already standing at the toilet, and had that split-second debate: do I wait outside, or just use the urinal and pretend this is normal?
He went for it, but came back to the stage with that look of, “Did I just break an unspoken rule?” These are the important questions we wrestle with on the road.
After we packed up, we said goodbye to Tom’s family. Malissa rode back with us, and since there’s no Taco Bell on the route home from Port Byron, we stuck with our newer tradition: nostalgia listening session. Last time it was TV theme songs; this time it was old pop, rock, and hard rock we grew up on—“Cult of Personality” by Living Colour, some Nine Inch Nails, “I’m the Man” by Anthrax, and many others.
Tom hadn’t heard “I’m the Man” before and immediately said it sounded like the Beastie Boys. Greg had never made that connection, but once he said it, you can’t un-hear it. That stretch of highway went by fast with all of us trading memories about the first time we heard those songs.
By the time we pulled back into town, we were already replaying the night in our heads: the river walk, the molester Moon conversation, the wall of orange vehicles, James at the piano, David and his family in the audience, and that comfortable Rams Riverhouse stage where the sound just seems to carry right to every table.
Sharing music on a summer night for folks who really listen is about as good as it gets.
Want this kind of night at your place?
If you’re putting together something and want a live acoustic duo to bring harmonies, guitars, piano, and a bunch of stories like these, you can reach us through this page: https://www.bellandfieldmusic.com/book-acoustic-duo/.
