The July 17 concert by Victoria and Howe was a fantastic mix of magic , musical bliss and low key fun.
The usual crowd of Raven Cafe habitues was augmented by serious Howe and Victoria fans who drive in from points all around the compass, plus those hometown culture lurkers who don't make it downtown all that often, plus Vitoria and Howe themselves.
I say that because, besides putting in a couple of loose, fun, musically riveting sets, Howe and Victoria hung out talking with fans on the sidewalk and in the hallways of the Raven.
Angie and Andrew spent a lot of time climbing ladders, making adjustments on the roof and generally working on the Coyote Radio transmitter and inside gear to get the first broadcast by Coyote Radio (AM1610) ready by show time.
We did make show time and it was a real charge to hear Howe doing his sound check with that great rumbley voice of his coming out of my car stereo on Cortez Street.
We got a chance to meet Jim Blackwood, a tech guy and morning DJ on Tucson's venerated community radio station KXCI. Jim recorded the show for Howe's archives as well as gave out some great advice to Coyote Radio folks and the mixing crew at The Raven.
Jim was part of a whole Tucson posse that arrived for the gig. We hope they had a good time and we hope to see more of them as The Raven Cafe and Coyote Radio play host to more evenings of great music like this one.
