OPEN MIC NIGHT @THE RAT

What a week! What a night! Not only was it a great Open Mic Night session--they're ALWAYS good, thanks to our local musicians and our friends who come to support them--but moreover, it just got better and better the later it got...I'm still recovering from how it ended! Our regular musicians and hosts--hey, you know who you are, and THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, for all you give to our community week after week--were so inspired by Mike Pfeiffer's solo performance, that after he played his sets, no one wanted to let him stop!

Oh no, not only did we all want him to keep playing, we had one musician after another just running in and taking the mike, taking the floor, joining in, participating, sharing, laughing, singing, playing...as our daughters would say, "OMG!" It brought chills down your spine, it inspired, it motivated. It became an incredible jam session that allowed all of the musicians who were willing and able to join in, to enjoy the night to the last little minute we were able to stay open. And for those of us in attendance, again, "OMG!" I've just finished uploading just 4 of these impromptu jam sessions (3 are embedded here) to our "The National Hotel NJ" youtube channel. I can't wait to share these with you! And I have other clips that I'll post to our youtube channel featuring other musicians from our Open Mic Nights. The talent just keeps pouring out!

And the funny thing, is that last night was probably one of the MOST enjoyable nights at The National Hotel, simply because of how naturally and organically it happened. Thank you, Mike. I know you're coming back next Thursday night for our weekly Open Mic Night, and then again on Sunday, August 8th for our Sunday Musical Afternoon Series. One of our very own, regular and local musicians already nicknamed him, "The Rhythm Machine." All I can say is, we cannot wait!

On that note, do check out our updated roster of artists who will participate during our Sunday Musical Afternoon Series through September. They'll be performing upstairs in our Restaurant & Bar, from 5 - 7 p.m. Pete and I are buoyed by the support, the enthusiasm, and the encouragement that we receive from our local artists, and in turn are thrilled to be the venue of choice for them to perform and share their talent. You have to realize that having the arts be an integral part of The National Hotel is one of the key reasons Pete and I just love our relationship with Frenchtown, love having taken this giant leap of faith, and being a part of the breathing fabric of The National Hotel.

And don't worry, now that we've finished a successful 3 Sunday series of dinner theater in conjunction with our own local River Union Stage, we will continue to look for opportunities to bring different artistic talent to the building. We have a few things "in the works" now that we'll share later in the month...stay tuned!

Do post a comment if you have any suggestions, ideas or feedback. And keep on finding information on us by becoming a fan of The National Hotel on facebook, follow us on Twitter, or just visit our website regularly for updates. I've come to terms with all the technology--it really just means that everyone has the choice of retrieving and accessing information in the manner that he/she wants. It's no longer "fed" to us; we search and retrieve it the way that we want, when we want. Now that's empowering! So follow us, find us, visit us...I hope we've covered all our bases!!