report filed 1/3/00 11:22 am - Happy new year from the other side of Y2K! Seems like everybody survived the much hyped non event with few if any problems. That was certainly the case at WMO's year end bender, which was held deep in the celluloid heart of Hollywood's 'film studio' district. Set up in a quaint little restaurant rented for the evening's festivities, the gig was a private party hosted by John Daley of the network series Real TV.

Opening the show was Tittie Bar Mitzvah, (a semi-clever play on words reflecting the range of venues the band enjoys playing), one of drummer Ed Fletcher's many side projects. Affectionately referred to by those who know it best as a 'pretty good band with a great name,' the Bar Mitzvah boys put on a fun set of classic rock covers. Five, the band's happy-go-lucky lead guitarist was all grins ripping through solo after solo as the other titties bounced along in rhythmic support, laying down the Bar Mitzvah's good time beat.

After a quick stage change, the monkey got down to business. Set up outdoors under a canopy on an extremely private, stone floored patio, WMO got funky as the high stylin' partyers bopped and wiggled on the dance floor, as well as inside the restaurant. Man, everybody was lookin' sharp!

At apx. 11:50 pm, the entire party, maybe 125 people or so, walked out onto the street in front of the restaurant, champagne bottles in hand, to pop the cork at the stroke of midnight. When it was all said and done, there was a lot of hugging, kissing, drinking, and rabble rousing going on. The revelry lasted for fifteen minutes or so before the announcement was made that the band was about to start again.

From the monkey's first note, the dance floor was packed with champagne fueled entertainment industry types. Shaking their money makers with a new found reckless abandon, an intensity only hinted at during the first set, the buzz turned tipsy. Rocking in the new year with a classy, poached caviar and imported cigars style performance, WMO's high spirited grooves were tailor made for this intimate gathering of show biz savvy hipsters.

This was the final show for drummer Ed Fletcher and Scotty Homan. Both will be pursuing other projects. We'll keep you posted on what's up with them, as well as WMO's new lineup as the the new year unfolds...

After the show, we made the apx. two hour drive back to San Diego. Totally ready for some serious snoozing, I crawled into bed around 5:30 am. Since then I've been working on the website and getting ready for the next wave of article deadlines that will soon be staring me in the face...

OK, here's what's new on the website:

While going though an old computer I came across a review written a couple of years ago on a Les Paul concert I saw in New York City. The darn thing never got published, so I thought I'd at least post it here.

Jiggle the Handle and the String Cheese Incident both have new live albums and you'll find CD reviews of each posted here.

There's also a lot of new links, as well as a couple of brand new sections to the site.

Monkey Biz is a continuation of my tour journals with Wise Monkey Orchestra, but with a new twist. Although I won't be able to jump in the van for the upcoming three month, cross country epic, our Tour Coverage Bureau here at Anytime/Anywhere Studios will be reporting on the tour... with a little help from our friends.

In addition to posting tour journals written by members of the band, we'll be running PHOTO and WMO STORY contests.

Fans who submit photos taken at shows along the tour, as well stories or interesting WMO anecdotes, will not only have their contributions posted in the Monkey Biz section, the best in each contest will also receive fabulous prizes - click here for more info.

You'll also find a new FAQ, as well as a Splash Image thumbnail in the bottom right corner of the webpage that is a link to more info on the current and past Splash Page images.

Last item - We've also changed a few graphics which may result in portions of the webpage being 'clipped' by the computer's browser. If that happens try the f-11 button or the 'Full Screen' option in the browser's tool bar.

Well, that's the excitement around here. More later...