Playing in the Rain: La Pompe Jazz’s First Gig

Kevin Laxar: “The gig was a school-run event at my college. The three of us showed up with our gear to a beautiful banquet tent with heaters and an awesome-looking sound system, but we quickly learned it was for the University’s a cappella group. With dark clouds building in the sky, our trio was directed around the corner to the jazz ‘tent’: a 4×4 tarp draped over some poles. It wasn’t long into our set before the rain began to fall.

“We quickly realized there wasn’t enough room for both gear and musicians under the shoddy tent, so in a heroic attempt to keep my upright bass dry, I stood outside in the downpour while playing the tarp-covered bass at arm’s length. The power kept going out thanks to the electric heaters in the a cappella tent, and I got a nice, deep soak. But we finished the gig. It was a real teeth-cutting experience I’ve always been grateful for. I now know that anytime something goes wrong at a gig, I can definitively say, ‘It could be worse.'”

La Pompe Jazz plays Vine Street Pub on October 19 to celebrate the release of a special collaboration beer with the pub: La Pompe Saison.

Editor’s Note: The Denver Bootleg is a series chronicling the history of local music venues by longtime Denver cartoonist Karl Christian Krumpholz. Visit Krumpholz’s website to see more of his work.