Tonight's Setlist: 2/25/12, The Hideout, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Man, is it great to be part of a full-on band.

Tonight was the debut of Charlie Hustle, and it was a blast. It's fun to play solo acoustic shows, and you have some more flexibility in your song selection, but the give-and-take of four musicians onstage, even when it gets a little awkward, is a totally different and tremendous beast.

We had our hiccups, but considering this was only the fourth time we've played including rehearsals — and the first time we'd played with our bassist! — I feel like it went smashingly well. Click here to download/stream the show, courtesy of Archive.org!

Early set:

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

Quite a Night* >

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Dock of the Bay (O. Redding)

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Rosin the Bow (Trad., original arr.) >

Franklin's Tower (Dead)

Late set:

Jimmy Olsen's Blues (G. Schenkman)

New Mexican Shuffle*

All Along the Watchtower (Dylan)

Good Morning Lil' Schoolgirl# (J. Williamson)

Warrior with a Bottle# (Old E Allstars)

Ain't No Sunshine# (B. Withers)

Mystery Train (J. Parker)

I Ain't Supersitious (C. Burnett)

*Original

#Feat. Langston Kelly, saxophone

Charlie Hustle is:

Kyle Lawson, electric guitar/vocals

Patrick Varine, acoustic guitar/vocals

Dave Varasse, drums

Tony Thomas, bass guitar

Come check out the debut of CHARLIE HUSTLE!

So we were the Varine/Lawson Project for all of about 72 hours before we settled on an actual band name... so come check out the debut of CHARLIE HUSTLE, Feb. 25 at 9 p.m. at The Hideout, 45 Bates St., in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood.

Come check out the debut of a band soon-to-not-be-called The Varine/Lawson Project!

Soooo the club owner was pressing us for a band name so he could get his fliers together, aaaaand the best that we could come up with was The Varine/Lawson Project. Rest assured, it won't be that for long. HOWEVA, you should still come check out our debut gig, Feb. 25 at 9 p.m. at The Hideout, 45 Bates St., in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood (it's right off the Bates Street exit on the Parkway West).

Right now we're working on originals and covering everything from Bill Withers to Howlin' Wolf to the Dead, Dylan, Traffic and more!

The Rest of the Weekend: Old E Allstars' Set Break & the Graham Jam

Thursday was just the warmup. During the Old E Allstars' break at Thunderbird Café on Friday, I got to play a mini-set that was supposed to be me and the Old E lead singer Kyle. Unfortunately, trying to mic a plain old acoustic guitar so you can actually hear it in a crowded rock club is not very easy. So it ended up being a quick little solo set where I got another chance to test out "Strange Moon."

Then on Saturday night it was the Graham Jam in memory of Graham Austin, where the set went well and — if I hadn't been out until 3 a.m. the night before at Thunderbird — I would have gladly stayed all night.

Click here to stream/download both sets, courtesy of Archive.org.

2/3/12 Thunderbird Café, Pittsburgh, Pa.:

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Strange Moon*

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

Jack Straw (Dead)

2/4/12 Graham Jam, Gateway Inn, Gibsonia, Pa.:

Strange Moon*

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood) >

Alligator (Dead) >

Shakedown Street (Dead)

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 2/2/12, Coco Coffeehouse, Leechburg, Pa.

"Drivin' that train, high on cocaine..."

I've never done cocaine before, and I have no plans to try it. But listening to tonight's first set recording, it sure sounds like I need to watch my speed! Debuted a brand-new song tonight, "Strange Moon," that I think has the potential to become a regular in the rotation.

Click here to stream/download courtesy of Archive.org.

Early set:

Man Smart, Woman Smarter (Dead)

Rain Song No. 3*

Have Someone Play Dixie For Me (Dry Branch Fire Squad)

You Can Keep It*

Copperhead Road (S. Earle)

Strange Moon*#

New Mexican Shuffle*

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood) >

Alligator (Dead) >

Shakedown Street (Dead)

Ripple (Dead)

Late set:

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

No Expectations (Stones)

Race Among the Ruins (G. Lightfoot)

I Like It*

Althea (Dead)

Bird Stealing Bread (Iron & Wine) >

Uncle John's Band (Dead) >

Shady Grove (D. Watson)

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

Stella Blue (Dead) >

Jack Straw (Dead)

*Original

#First time played