Karaoke On The River Blog 3

Every night they have karaoke at the Riverside Casino in Laughlin, Nev. upstairs in the Dance Club, a large cocktail lounge with a dance floor the size of Texas almost.

We have our regulars, both the customers and the karaoke singers. A few of the singers attend 4 nights a week and Joe in the picture, and me, are a couple of the regulars. Joe sounds just like Johnny Cash believe it or not.

His wife Chris also is a regular. When I first arrived about a year ago, this couple took me under their wing and asked me to sit over on that side with them, so I usually do sit with them while awaiting my turn. Joe and Chris have been regulars for 7 or 8 years at the Riverside. Chris remembers how frightened she was to get up and do her stuff. Now, if she and Joe weren't there, the show just wouldn't be the same without them, and Chris says she has improved, and she practices at home like I do sometimes.

They have their own karaoke machine at home. I use my computer to practice on.

The songs we do there are varied. A lot of country is done by some of us. On certain nights we will get visitors who rock us. Generally though, the age group calls for the old standards along with the country.

There's a bit too much gossip goes on in the club. Rumors and such, about divorces, marriages, fights, and whose putting the moves on who and who just won a pile in the casino, or I might say who said they just won a pile but is lying.

If you're a serious karaoke junkie you just blow it all off. People will talk and you can't stop them from talking, so you grin and bear it. If somebody is in my face with gossip they soon change the subject to music if they see that glazed look come over my face.

The other night one of our regular guys announced he'd tied the knot in Vegas. When somebody announces a birthday, or engagement we usually sing an appropriate song. So I sang a 50's number "Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry." I sang with more gusto than usual, as the singer and I cut up on stage alot, and he's been searching, it seemed, so long for someone special.

Well, as it turns out, he was playing a little joke on us. He is not married! Lol! He had met a lady with the same last name as his, and so he thought of this little joke to play on us.

So then I had to think of another appropriate tune. I did, and it was called "I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts."

He just had to film that shindig. I wonder if I will get a copy? People are always having a good time at the Riverside, running up to the stage with their cell phone cameras, making memories.

Line dances are a lot of fun and I finally learned the Electric Slide but I always do extra steps to the consternation of those who desire complete orderliness within dancing. Tough. It's tough. Deal with it, there's always somebody gonna step out of line somewhere.

I'm going in tonight and I think I'll do Long Black Train again. You know, that train is taking a long time to get here. Sometimes I think gambling is like a long black train, feeding off the souls that are lost and crying. Yea, that's the lyrics..cool huh?

But don't worry, all the gamblers are retired and getting older now, they collected a bit of money to burn and they just wanna have a little fun and try their luck. Sometimes one of them wins.

When they get tired of gambling they come into the Dance Hall and we entertain them properly.