Friday

NewMexiKen returned to Albuquerque Friday. Instead of taking the quickest route, I-25, I took the shortest, pretty much U.S. 285 from Denver to Santa Fe, then I-25 on into the Duke City. It’s a beautiful almost exhilarating tour across South Park, past the Collegiate Range, and down the San Luis Valley.

I kept to the speed limits, which at various times thanks to the wisdom of Colorado and New Mexico were 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70 and 75. It took just a little bit more than an hour longer than the interstate (it’s 30 miles shorter).

But I got 25½ miles to the gallon, about 20% better than the trip up at freeway speeds. Not bad for a SUV, eh?

Last evening it was Jake Shimabukuro and The Greencards at the Rio Grande Zoo, part of the summer Zoo Music series. (Saw the baby giraffes, which were just as cute as you might imagine. The youngest one is just a few weeks old.)

We’d seen Jake in Honolulu. He is fun and can play any kind of music on a ukulele — Led Zeppelin’s “Gone to California,” Franz Shubert’s “Ave Maria,” George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” I even have an autographed CD of his. Terrific to see him again.

Except, that while Jake was playing, the folks near us discussed the South Beach diet, whom one of them might room with next, their day at work, bears attacking kids — well you get the idea. It is an outdoor concert, and one expects a certain amount of commotion, BUT IT IS A CONCERT. When the music picks up that is not a cue to talk even louder!

The Greencards, a bluegrass quartet, two of whom are from Australia and one from England — green cards, get it? — were quite good. Blue Grass is almost always infectious (though not to the yakkers around us). The group seemed genuinely fascinated with the venue (the zoo, the ancient cottonwoods I suppose) and put on a good show, with a rousing encore (“Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover” bluegrass style). See them if you get the chance.

Most people in the general audience are such simpletons that if I managed a relatively unknown band I would encourage them to open with covers of songs everybody knows. Get the audience engaged up front, clapping, singing, whatever, then do your thing. Good as they were, The Greencards opened with a lot of their own music, excellent but not familiar. And, when the band said that they were pleased that people were dancing, it seemed strange to me that they then played three consecutive slower songs that no one danced to. But what do I know?