Hello Everybody (Yes Indeed, Yes Indeed, Yes Indeed…)

First things first. The correct answer to last week’s puzzler is “Hollywood Swingin'” by Kool and the Gang. I got several replies from our brethren but no one got it right. I will periodically drop science on The Funk in order to hasten the coming of the Mothership.*

* – Yes, this too is a Funk reference–and it is saucer shaped.

This was a special A*T on a number of levels. There was a big turnout of local and outtatown talent. Dave Bolyard and the Lady Wendy came in from Milwaukee to check out our emerald essence and absorb some NYC energy. Plus, I believe for the first time, we had a guest Jammer become Yella-gible as Gary A. returned for the second consecutive week to dazzle us with his singular plastic prestidigitative stylings. When I arrived there was already a sizable crowd.

My daughter Carina was with me to present the Yella Jersey to this week’s designee Mr. Doug E. Fresh and some YELLA String Cheese to the the runners up (Quinn, Roger, and Rob) who had elected to miss the previous gathering to attend a concert featuring some type of Incident. Also with us for the evening were Joey, Ted, Avi, Bradford T., the Ageless Trevor Brown, Fearless Lou (who really ain’t skeered o’ no fancy duds), the Lovely Chrissy, as well as Jill, Claire, and BenJAMin. In addition we had Joe Heaver, Jaime (The new Jammin’ Heaver), and Ultimate Hall of Fame nominee Dan Weiss came out to get some of that good flight on a Thursday night.

I started my evening by getting right to the long toss with Jaime and Dan which was simply awesome as we locked in immediately. Jaime is a very serious in his own right as I have noted here before and Dan is very high on my list of All Time Mighty Heavers. He has a larger disc vocabulary at distance than just about anyone I know including a Hammer that Thor would be proud of and a high angle heave that no one can match (and most can’t catch). The winds were shifting when I broke in so we rotated positions so I could take the bottom of the slope at the South side and at this point we all got into a tremendous groove with 50-70 yard strikes and some nice running catches to boot. Did I mention that I really enjoy this stuff?

During this time Rob, Roger, and Joey got up for a Jam of epic proportions. I wasn’t able to watch much but I did see some very serious flow with Joey continually making the appropriate play, Roger’s airtight sealing, and Rob (who is absolutely at the top of his game) just goin’ off. When Roger took a break to hydrate, Rob and Joey entered “The Zone” for 10-15 minutes and got into the rarified air that frankly I can only dream of. When the Jam is just right the comparison to music is most apt and this is a case where they were trading licks like Bluefish which cannot be described only observed. And that was just one Jam! Dave B. was up with Trevor and Avi, and Brad, Gary and Ted got their shred on together as well so there was much whirling Dhervish behavior among all the Tai Chi with a Tool set.

One of the cool things about our A*T gatherings is the fluid nature of the Jams. When I finished Heaving and got some Mexican Ambrosia in my system, I subbed in for Trevor who was up with Ted and Gary. As I made my approach and asked in, Gary was just completing a shredful combo with a this sinuous low to the ground seal that was akin to a landbound Bad Attitude (it may have a name but I defer to those more knowledgeable for it) and it was clear that if I was gonna bust I had to BRING IT. I managed to do a nice combo for my first play and then throw a high Z strike so we were off and running. The now Yella-gible Gary is a very special player who is technically very sound but has a style all his own. He throws everything for strikes and his roll combinations, disc manipulation skills, and the most fluid combos into seals I have seen. We kept at it until it was time for more hydration and then I got up with Milwaukee’s finest, Dave B., for his last Jam before dinner. He and I had nice flow and a grand time as we DISCommunicated in the universal language of Jam.

I believe the last Jam of the evening involved TO, Fearless Lou, Gary and myself as dusk settled in and we all did our due diligence with Fearless getting Big Ups due to his amazing improvement over this season. His moves, combos and especially his throws have all gotten better day by day and the linebacker mentality he brings to the game makes me attack even more as I try to raise my own level. Personally, I’m trying to get passed the Brain Freeze that leads to Flaming The’s when I should go for the FANCY! T

Jam of the Day honors are shared this week by the Rob ‘n Joey pairing and every Jam that included Mr. Spinning Bee himself. Anytime a Guest Jammer comes to make consecutive appearances and then displays that go for it attitude we New Yorkers love so well, he (or she, if we can get some our Sistren to join us) should be held in the highest of esteem. Separately, I don’t recall who will be designated as the wearer of the the Cowardly Coverlet for this weeks edition though Kevin and Pat both come to immediately to mind…the Usual Suspects, as it were. 😉

Keep it off the ground!

TP, TJH