Rock Meets Red Road

A few days ago, I made comments about the fact that I wanted to make a stage outfit for our upcoming gig that had some unique qualities to it. I wanted to be more of a reflection of who I am today and where my head is at now rather than try to recreate who I was back in the late 80’s and early 90’s.

Let’s face it, I’m not 21 anymore, and I’m not the same rail thin, long haired, pretty boy that I used to be (look, the “pretty” part is entirely subjective, but I heard it enough from enough people back then that I’m prone to believe it (LOL!). Add to the fact that Mother Nature has seen fit to not bestow much in the way of genetic gifts in the tonsorial department (that’s a long winded way of saying there’s a reason I shave my head today :) ). So how can I pay homage to their former glam rock past, while firmly acknowledging that I am now 41, above the 200 pound mark, and significantly less pretty than I was once upon a time? One adapts and plays up what they are about today, that’s how.

I’m not going to unveil anything too soon, but suffice it to say that I have decided I will be sort of an amalgamation of Johnny Cash, Los Lobos and R.Carlos Nakai (well, I won’t be playing a cedar flute or anything, but yes, there will certainly be “red road” influence to my look.

Those who have known me through the years have known that I have always had a strong affinity with Native American culture, music, dance and clothing. Therefore, it should be absolutely no surprise to anyone that I am planning to work that into what I wear on stage. I’ve closed out a few options by finding an awesome shirt and I have some extra items I will definitely wear, such as my long standing turquoise and silver necklace. The rest, I’m still looking into and trying to decide how I want to go about doing this. I’m currently on the lookout for a tight pair of black jeans (I’m too old to wear leather pants; that’s just trying way too hard at my age (LOL!) ), and I’d love to score a used pair of motorcycle style square toed boots. The big debate, and the one Christina is most curious to see what I’m going to do, centers around two questions:

1. Will I wear makeup again (leaning towards no at the moment, but I might change my mind on that)
2. Will I wear my earrings again for the show (this one I’m a little unsure about. Part of me says why wear them since I don’t wear them now, but another part of me says they were a big part of my “rock & roll” look back in the day, so I might as well bring them out for this show. I’ve had several people tell me I should, no one suggest I shouldn’t, and honestly, I’m not sure at this moment though if I go significantly Red Road, then yes, I will wear the earrings to bring out the rest of the look.

8 ½ weeks until showtime… I’m getting exited, anxious and nervous, all at the same time. Regardless of what I ultimately wear, what’s important is how well the show goes. IF we have a lousy show, no one’s going to remember or care what I wore, just that we didn’t deliver on our promise. If we hit the ball out of the part, well, then having a memorable outfit is definitely a plus ;).