I’m writing this Thursday instead of my usual Saturday morning. Today I’m leaving for a wedding on my side of the family, a group I see very rarely. Then it’s a trip across two states to visit my son for Parent’s Weekend at his college. We haven’t seen other since August, and both my wife and are looking forward to that more than a night of drinking and dancing – especially since I no longer drink. So this will be some of the soundtrack for all the driving, the expectations, and the reality of my various reunions over the next few days.

• The Vintage Caravan – “Philosopher (feat. Mikael Åkerfeldt)”
• Santana – “Gypsy Queen (Live)”
• A.R. & Machines – “Station 1 – Globus”
• David Bowie – “Hallo Spaceboy”
• Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – “Save the World”
• Nine Days Wonder – “Fermillion/Puppet Dance/Square/Hope?/Morning Spirit/Fermillion”
• The Allman Brothers – “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (Live)”
• Frank Zappa – “Inca Roads (Rough Mix)”

Lot of new discoveries I’m still working through, like the Nine Days Wonder and the A.R. & Machines tracks, which I found by perusing the always reliable LaserCD. Along with my Grateful Dead obsession I’ve been diving into At Fillmore East from The Allman Brothers – Duane Allman might have one of the best guitar sounds I’ve ever heard.

Beyond that I threw in a few old favorites (Bowie, Zappa, Isbell) and a live cut from Santana that calls out Hendrix, so think of that as a 2-for-1.

Be safe, be good to each other. See you next week.