Published in the Aug. 5-18, 2015 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Mark Fenichel
Chris O’Conner and his brother Pat play at GVA Cafe.
Every Wednesday at seven o’clock at downtown’s GVA Cafe, performers start showing up with guitar cases in hand. Gibson, Fender, Taylor, Takamine, Epiphone, Martin, an array of guitar makes and models in the hands of young budding musicians, wannabe players, older seasoned players, singer-songwriters, musicians all with stories to tell.
It’s a musical smorgasbord including brother and sister duos, father and son combos, boyfriend and girlfriend musical partners, closet musicians who have never played in front of an audience and baby boomers showing off their years of musical skills and knowledge. They come to play, they come to learn and they come to watch. You can feel the nervous energy in the crowd as the open mic host Chris O’Connor calmly comforts everyone with his warm smile as he picks each act one by one, deciding who will go first and who will play next. There is no sign up list but the host works the crowd to ensure everyone is accommodated and the evening runs smoothly.
Welcome to another episode of Chris & Friends Open Mic Night — a place where musical dreams can come true. Ever since GVA Cafe expanded and opened its music venue, the open mic scene in Morgan Hill has blossomed into a beautiful experience for musicians and those who just want to come and be entertained by a tremendous variety of musical genres. You can hear it all on any given Wednesday night: folk, blues, country, rock, alternative and many original compositions from singers and songwriters to instrumentalists and even sometimes comedy and spoken word poetry.
Prior to the expansion of Grinds, Vines & Automobilia Cafe’s The Lounge, open mic night took place in a small space next to the gelato case. Before Chris started Chris & Friends, I ran an open mic there with Aprylle Gilbert that had a pretty good following and sometimes too good of a following, while other times a dismal turnout. Chris was a supporter and would come to play. My motto which Chris continues to uphold is “everyone who comes to play gets to play.” When Chris took over, he brought the consistency of a good quality night of musical camaraderie, a great sound system and the ability to project a welcoming vibe to all who came.
When I asked Chris why he took over the open mic night after we left, he said, “My motivation was selfish. I wanted to have a forum to share my songwriting — I have many tunes that I have written and nobody to hear them … C&F turned out to be something else that is bigger and more fulfilling. It was originally held only once a month and we played in front of the gelato refrigerator – the candy store was still next door. There were a decent number of people in those days but the space was cramped and there was no opportunity for growth. The monthly C&F went on for about a year then the new space was taken over by GVA and we began the weekly C&F April 2, 2014. With the new space, C&F began growing weekly.”
Every week is filled with many fun moments for both the audience and the musicians. I asked Chris if there is any one moment that stands out. His answer was true and sincere. “For me, it is when a new person comes in and on the surface the person looks meek or perhaps not possessing strong performance skills. Then he or she has a great onstage experience knocking it out of the ballpark. You then see a new light shine in their soul that only us public players know. The feeling of exhilaration for a novice player is much like an amusement park ride with anxiety and fear of crashing in front of our peers. However, there is the added pleasure and sense of accomplishment in the aftermath.”
One thing that makes Chris & Friends a true experience for the performer is the re-cap that he emails to everyone the day after. It’s always done by memory, with some inaccuracies but certainly true to the spirit of the Chris & Friends Open Mic, which is spontaneous, entertaining, from the heart, never boring and never the same.
Chris & Friends is open to the public from 7 to 10 p.m. every Wednesday. The cafe remains open until about 9:30 p.m. serving a selection of beers and local wines and a variety of food as well as snacks. Chris provides the sound system and the good vibes. Everyone that attends provides the rest.
On another note:
The Granada Theater has just announced the appearance of Graham Parker Sept. 17. This English singer-songwriter is best known as the lead singer of the popular British band Graham Parker and the Rumour and his quirky blue collar image is often believed to be a major influence on the public persona of many British musicians including Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson. Tickets are very limited, will likely go fast once the word is out and can be purchased directly from The Granada. Watch for more shows from high profile artists at this intimate venue.
Got a music tip? Send it to Mark ‘Fenny’ Fenichel at [email protected].
