by: Kanye Twitty
I love music. It is something I have realized in the last year or so, that is vital to my mental health. Its almost like those Snickers commercials, "Not feeling like yourself, listen to some music." I grew up listening to classic rock, 90s Country, and then pop/rap once I got in to high school. When I made it to college I had gotten to the point where I just listened to everything. If you put my mp3 player on shuffle, there would have been no telling what was coming next. At that time though, I had not really been to see much live music. But as fate would have it, I had a couple friends to move in down the block from live music spot, and on a night when not much else was happening, we decided to make the trek to Cosmic Charlie's.
It was a smallish place. I am not sure how many people it would officially hold but I never was there when it was uncomfortably crowded. That was due to my choice of mostly going on the folk/Americana nights. The cover was always less than $10, and drinks were cheap. Shows always started at 10pm and happy hour was 9-10 with $5 pitchers of Hudepohl and $1 Jell-O shots. So we could usually take a $20 and be good for the night. One night after a couple of pitchers, we went up to the bar after happy hour had ended and asked the bartender if they still had any Jell-o shots left. The bartender doesn't say anything, but reaches into the small clear door refrigerator behind the bar and set down three shots. One for me, one for my friend, and sets one in front of himself. He raised the little plastic cup to us and we all downed the blue Jell-o. Something about a free drink, even if it's in the form of gelatin, that will really make your night.
Even though it was a great perk, it wasn't just the cheap beer that kept us coming back to Cosmics. Some of the shows that we saw there were unforgettable. The most memorable bands being Kentucky Knife Fight, The Whipstitch Sallies, Mangrenade, The Tillers, and Ford Theater Reunion. The last of those bands is a must see by the way, and I've seen them 3 times now. The first time we went we had no idea what we were getting into. It was actually and album release party for them. I guess you could categorize their music as weird, but after the first clarinet solo I was hooked. The second show that I saw them, they didn't have an opening band but a sideshow instead, complete with burlesque dancers, sword swallowers and a guy that hung things from piercings that normally didn't see much daylight. The third show was at the new location. Again they had the Tinderbox Circus Sideshow as an opener. This time their new out door area allowed them to bring their firebreather, of which I had a couple videos on my phone forever. Looking at the videos after the fact though, his show was a little underwhelming, but hey, you don't get to see that kind of stuff everyday.
Another memorable show was the night the Tillers played. There was probably 15 or 20 people in the crowd, although that may be generous. They played the first half of their set up on stage and they were great. They are just really good live, and if you get a chance to see them you definitely should. But after they had been playing for a little while, they just decided to get of the stage and go set up in the middle of the bar area, with the stand up bass in the center and the other players flanking him, and then the crowd completely surrounding them. It was such a cool experience and nothing like any other show I had seen there.
But there are more bands that I don't remember the names of, and plenty of shows where there were maybe 10 people in the place. One of those nights after a pitcher or two of Hudey, my friend must have been feeling a little sorry for the band playing with 6 people in the crowd. He finished his glass looked up at the stage and said, "Lets go show them some support." He topped off his beer from the pitcher, walked up to the stage, stood directly in front of the lead singer, and started dancing. I couldn't let him do it by himself so I went and joined him, and looking back I hope the band appreciated it because, it seemed pretty awkward. I really wished I could remember what the name of that band was, but I do remember two songs from their set, which was actually the same night as The Eagles were playing Rupp Arena (It's strange the random things you remember sometimes). The first was "I've Got Friends In Low Places," that really got the crowd going. I mean all 6 people in the place were really going to town on that one. And the other was an awesome cover of "Trashy Women" by Confederate Railroad, that brought the house down.
Then after the show, as with almost every show, after the band played their set they came down off the stage to hang out and drank with the crowd. That was always fun, getting to talk to them was really cool to me. These guys were just out grinding small shows for not much money and I just liked to let them know they were great, which it could be argued was influenced by the pitchers mentioned earlier. And usually after talking to them, if they had some cool merch, I would grab something. Usually a sticker or something. Only once did I buy a CD from one of the bands, and I will keep it confidential which band it is. Let's just say I enjoyed their set much more that the CD that I bought.
After it moved to the new location I only went one time. At the new place you didn't stick to the floor, which most people I guess would see as an upgrade, but I think it kind of lost some of it's charm. Since it has closed, I haven't really been out to see much live music. Partially due to the fact that my favorite live music place is closed, and more because that I have a 4 year old that has required quite a bit of attention the last four years. But mostly due to the fact that Cosmics is gone and there wasn't anything to replace it. Lexington has a few live music places, like the Burl, but it's just not the same. I don't think anything ever will be. It was just a dive bar with cheap drinks and live music, but for me, it was something special.
Let's raise a glass to our beloved friend that has gone before us. May Cosmic Charlie's rest in peace.
