Welcome to a night of holiday music with the Rhythm Kings Acoustic Duo at the Cooperage Inn!
The Kings at the Coop
Mike and Patrice, longtime subjects of the Rhythm Kingdom. 
Cathy and Larry, enjoying some of the finest food and dring on the North Fork. They felt the music wasn't too shabby, either. 
"Okay, I got the frankincense, you got the myrrh...where's the GOLD?!?!?!" 
The sumptuous buffet at the Cooperage. 
Philip picks a little dressing off the turkey. 
Douglas attempts to pry a smile from the shy waitress. 
A warm smile from the coat check girl. 
Another shy employee. 
She still won't smile! 
A contest: |
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Just another bar, just another gig
GREETINGS! and welcome to just another night at the bar with the Rhythm Kings! 
Meet my friends - two of the weirdest-looking people at the bar tonight 
Talk about flippin' the bird! 
Hmmmm. Costume or not? 
Just the beginning of a night of serious partying. 
Joey Magic. 
Picking up radio stations from Mars. 
...radio stations playing the music of the Village People, no doubt. 
Who is she going to bust tonight....? 
...the wayward priest...? 
...the leader of the wacky-wanna smoke-in...? 
...or maybe the Big Bad Wolf and his, er, escort? 
Yo! It's DJ Badda-bing, representing the Deer Park crew. 
Shiek Yerbouti, seeking fresh camel-toe. 
It's Maryland Monrovia and her daughter, Zippy! 
Monrovia's diminutive Princess Augenschmutz. 
Look! It's Ace Freeley and Alice Cooper! 
"I want my lox and rolls tonight..." 
Hadj O'Rokkingruven, a bloodthirsty timekeeper. |
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The Cooperage Inn Fall Festival 2009
The Cooperage Inn on Sound Ave. in Baiting Hollow, all decked out for its annual Fall Festival. 
The stage awaits. 
The Cooperage audience. Note the age range, from just starting to walk all the way to still walking. 
The audience responds. They seem to be having a better-than-average time, don't you think? Sure it was Tony's birthday - Tony is the one with the baseball cap on the right - but methinks the music helped a bit, too. 
And a handsome audience it is, too. That's Joe Murphy discussing radical Celticism with Joe and Pete. 
Love is a beautiful thing. That's Miss Denise snuggling with John Potter. John took this great batch of pictures at the Cooperage. 
Apparently Joe Murphy's radical Celticology drove off the other Joe. The fine young fellow on the right is actually approaching the Rhythm Kings guitarist for an autograph, which he'll undoubtedly treasure for, oh, three weeks or more. 
Brian and Barbara kick back, bask in the autumn sunbeams and enjoy the brews and band. 
The stage accepts the Rhythm Kings. The band plays to their special guests, the pumpkins and the cornstalks. Note the GUESTBOOK on the steps. If you're in that book, you're probably looking at this picture. 
Douglas and Philip dig in. This could be during one of the jams in "Cripple Creek," or perhaps "Superstition." Or maybe "Reelin' In the Years." Quick, name another band that covers The Band, Stevie Wonder and Steely Dan. 
Here are some really extra-special guests, the Rhythm Kings groupie entourage! 
The Coyote, relaxing between sets with Mo and Joe (mo's brothers-in-law are sadly obscured). Of course Mo and I have the stupid looks on our faces while we sip teetotalingly on vitamin water and soda, while Joe looks totally relaxed with a tray of McBrewskis nearby. 
The Rhythm Kings Electric Trio 
Miss Mo spooning with Philip Gardner on bass. The spoons, by the way, are from Newfoundland. Miss Mo is from Rocky Point. 
Chris "Hadj" Hadjopoulos lays down a righteous groove on his sixties vintage champagne-sparkle Ludwig kit. 
Unbeknownst to Hadj, the band held auditions for the drum chair between sets. 
This fabulous babe is definitely on our short list of stand-by drummers, should Hadj be unavailable. 
Philip coaches an auditioner on the fine points of maintaining rhythm with the Rhythm Kings. 
The Coyote breaks out his very rare Ibanez Artist 2700 series guitar. You can read a little more about it if you travel over to my "Tools" photo gallery. |
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Huntington Lighthouse 2009
The Rhythm Kings dockside, waiting for the boat to take us to the lighthouse in Huntington Harbor. 
Hadj and Brian on the boat to the lighthouse. 
Here we are at the lighthouse, looking over the shoulders of the King Wellington band, who perfromed just before the Rjhythm Kings. We are looking west towards Lloyd Harbor. 
Another view of the King Wellington set, looking slightly northwest towards Lloyd's Neck. This and the previous picture will give you some idea of the HUNDREDS of boats that filled the harbor on this beautiful day. Unfortunately, the Coyote's camera was not properly set and all of his pix of the Rhythm Kings were overexposed. If/when more pix of the Lighthouse Festival become available, they will be posted! |
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Popei's Deck, July 2009
The Rhythm Kings at Popei's Outdoor Deck, Sunday afternoon, July 26, 2009. 
Philip Gardner, vocals and bass. 
Douglas Baldwin, guitar and vocals. 
Chris "Hadj" Hadjopoulos, drums. 
Brian Connolly, keyboards (and vocals when he remembers to bring his mic stand...) 
The fans! Without them, there'd be no music. John Glatt is a famous true-crime author. His web site is http://www.johnglatt.com/ . The groovy chick in the Foster Grants is his wife, Gail Freund. She is one of the most creative contributors to our Guestbook. See some of her Guestbook art on my current events page. Scroll down to "Guestbook Art" - you can't miss it! 
Longtime friend Marianne with new beau Frank. 
Another shot of the beautiful Marianne. 
Marianne with her son Dylan (left) and Taylor Baldwin, the Coyote's son. The outdoor deck at Popei's is definitely family-friendly! 
Jerry and Emily Freund, our favorite Senior fans. Jerry was celebrating his 85th birthday this day. 
Fan dancers, dancing. 
...and dancing... 
...and dancing... 
...and dancing... 
...and dancing... 
...AND DANCING! 
Fans sitting in with the band. I've unfortunately forgotten this fellow's name, but he will always be remembered as the "self-employed" guy singing "Takin' Care of Business." 
Cathy, adding harmony to "You Ain't Going Nowhere." 
An audience-eye's view of the band on the deck. That festive red-and-white awning is a life-saver. Click on the photo, and you'll see that, even with the protective covering, Brian and I are displaying our Northern European complexions turning from pasty gray to several shades of lobster. 
This is late in the day. The canopy has been pulled back, and the band is rocking even harder. 
A moment of silence for the Muse, from whom/which/where the muse-ic flows. 
Back to screaming, emoting, and working on my lobster complexion. 
The tongue is partially extended - this is a sure cue for an ending. 
I appear to be playing a G#m or G#5 chord. Hmmmm... In what song would I play that chord AND sing? Send your answers to coyotelk@optonline.net. 
Contemplative, or just resting, but certainly drenched in sweat. Note Gollum-like strands of hair plastered to my ever-expanding forehead. 
Enjoying a cool breeze. NOT the one from the crappy fan I bought that day. (I got my money back the next day when I returned it to P. C. Richards Appliances. 
The tongue is out again, but the song's not ending!!!! A moment of climactic dweedle-de-dweedle-de-dweedle pentatonic minor pull-off guitarism, perhaps? 
A close-up of my latest hand-made guitar pickguard. 
Philip lays down some bottom. Note the alternative "Rhythm Guy" T-shirt and the drink in the mic-stand drink holder. 
Doin' the sideways mic thing while Brian lays down some big chords on the keys. 
Philip is up among the trees. 
'Scoping out the audience. Perhaps some superior dancing was taking place...? 
Philip demonstrates that the lower he holds the bass, the lower the notes get! 
Brian scans the crowd. What's he looking at? Check out the next picture... 
A Brian's-eye view of the crowd! 
Brian gets back to the music - take a look in his glasses. 
Hadj cannot be photographed without a beaming smile on his face. 
What could be making Hadj so happy? Let's take a look in HIS glasses... 
It's all about the music, the people and the good vibes on the Outdoor Deck at Popei's, Summer of 2009! |
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The people that make the music happen - May 2008
A band's-eye view of the crowd on Popei's deck, Cinco de Mayo (actually Cinco de Quattro!) 2008 
Are these girls having fun yet? 
The band rocks. The crowd enjoys. 
The sun moves closer to the horizon. The crowd continues to enjoy. 
People in this picture are cramming just a little more enjoyment into their lives. Are you in this picture? 
The needle on the enjoy-o-meter is veering hard to the right - but it's not in the red yet! 
The sun dips. The enjoy-o-meter rises. 
Three empty chairs. You could be sitting here...unless you're dancing! 
Attemping to break the enjoy-o-meter. 
The enjoy-o-meter has been abandoned. Everyone's having too much fun to be looking at a freaking measuring device. 
The two gentlemen in the foreground are arguing over who is having more fun. 
The Cisco Kid!!! 
Ciscolito and her Ciscolero. Note the Cisco Kid in background with mustaccio. I hear that happens after menopaussio. 
"Hi! We're having more fun than you because we're on Popei's deck with the Rhythm Kings and you're staring at a computer screen!" 
I understand that Joe grew those muttonchops so that his smile would not touch his earlobes. Note the constructive use of the little Coronas, or Coronitas, available five to the iced bucket at Popei's for only $10. 
Joe passes on the secret of the ear-to-ear smile. 
A toast to the ear-to-ear smile! 
He'd better grow some muttonchops, quick. 
In spite of the empty Coronita bucket and the setting sun, people still seem to be enjoying themselves. I'll bet the Rhythm Kings are still playing. 
The mixed drink is about to ask the ketchup to dance. No doubt the Rhythm Kings are still playing. |
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The band that makes the music - May 2008
Riding with the Kings. The Rhythm Kings with the bikes at Popei's in Coram. Left to right: Douglas Coyote Baldwin, guitars and vocals; Philip Gardner, bass and vocals; Chris Hadj Hadjopoulous, drums; Brian Connolly, keyboards; Rob Deloney, percussion. 
The band in action on the deck at Popei's in Coram. Philip likes to do it out on the deck. 
Philip Gardner, doin' it on the deck. 
The Coyote finds the howling note. 
Hadj lays down a very serious groove. 
Brian works on having just a bit more fun. 
Rob Deloney adding tasteful hand percussives to the mix. 
The most important element of the Rhythm Kings - you! 
The Upper Deck at Papa Joe's. Dig the 365-degree view of downtown Port Jefferson. 
Philip orders Joe to "Get inside and have more fun, dammit!" 
Shadow puppet 1. |
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Creative contributions to the band guestbook - click on the pix to enlarge!
If you've been to one of our gigs, you know the tradition of the passing of the Guestbook. In addition to allowing us to keep in touch with you, we love it when the creative muse strikes and YOU give your talents back to us! Here are some of the drawings and fun pages we've found in the ol' Guestbook, post-gig. The one above was done by a couple of young fans at the Millhouse Inn in Yaphank. 
This little love note was actually delivered on a napkin from a couple of friends of Douglas. Rick is one of Douglas's longest-studying private students, and Maria is a great 'cellist. 
Here's a serendipitous collage. We're not sure where the lipstick kiss came from, but the graffitti art was from a patron of the Grey Horse Tavern on Halloween night. 
Another contribution inspired by the Grey Horse Tavern. That spooky girl is Gail, Douglas's sister-in-law and her bespectacled admirer is her husband, John. 
Gail comes through with another masterpiece, again from the Grey Horse Tavern. From left to right we see John Glatt (Doug's brother-in-law), Debbie (Doug's wife and Valentine!), and The Artist Herself. 
We're not sure where this Frankensteinian fellow came to life, but someone better get him his Pabst pronto. (PBR is Pabst Blue Ribbon, a beer from the olden days.) |