Hello There Slim People,

I was walking by the sea when I noticed a waffle laying on the beach. Upon closer inspection, I realized it wasn't a waffle. It was a...

San Diego.

Hello Slimsational Slim Folks!

How are the Slim Ones? Everybody good? I'm just checking in on the Slimmest of All People.

Before we get into the latest news from Slim's Shady Trailer Park, just a quick reminder about the upcoming shows...

The Slim Man Chase Huna Rat Pack Duo plays at the Larkspur Grill every Wednesday (except August 16th). Chase plays sax. I sing...Frank, Dino, Nat, Louis, Tony.

We play in front of a huge video screen. We've organized hundreds of vintage Rat Pack and Palm Springs photos that play as a slideshow behind us.

It's worth a look-see!

What's going on Wednesday August 16th, you ask?

Well, the Slim Man Band returns to the Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach. SHOWTIME is 5:30. You don't want to miss this show, SlimStones. It's a yabbadabbadoo time! Get tix now!

On September 16th, Saturday, we have a Slim Shindig at a new club called Encore. It's in Columbia, Maryland, not far from Baltimore. Bawlmer!

Giorgio Hazelrigg on piano, Hit Man Howie Z on bongos, John E Coale on drums, Kevin Levi on sax, and Cowboy Pickles on keyboards. Cowboy Pickles!

All details on all Slim Shows are down below and on the Slim Man website. Come on out and see us some time!

AND NOW THE REAL NEW REAL NEWS FROM SLIM'S SHADY TRAILER PARK

I was in a bit of a panic last Thursday night. My new Bona Fide song was going to press the next morning and I needed to change the title.

I wrote a new tune for the upcoming Slim Man/Bona Fide CD. It's an instrumental I titled Snidely Whiplash. The name was what we in show biz call “a working title.” 

Meaning it was a temporary name to be changed later. When I first wrote the song I thought of Snidely Whiplash, a cartoon villain from the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.

Not sure why…

Snidely Whiplash was a bad guy. His thing was tying women to train tracks. And when the approaching train was about to run the girl over, Dudley Do Right, the good guy, would swoop in and save the day.

Naming a song after a villain who ties women to train tracks didn’t seem like such a great choice.

Especially these days.

I can see it now, I release a song named Snidely Whiplash and all of a sudden I’m being chased down the street by angry women bearing torches and Tasers screaming, “There he is! Get him! Slim Man advocates tying women to railroad tracks and he must be stopped at once!”

So I decided to change the name from Snidely Whiplash, to…

I didn’t know what.

Maybe a name with a Palm Springs vibe. So I started looking on the internet and found a website with a list of the Top 5o Things to See in Palm Springs.

At the very bottom of the list, number 50, was Bombay Beach.

I liked the name. I liked the alliteration. And in general, I like the word “beach.”

Beaches are happy places. So, I decided to call my new Bona Fide musical masterpiece Bombay Beach.

I emailed the PR peeps after midnight and told them to retitle the song. Then I started reading about Bombay Beach…

Bombay Beach is on the Salton Sea. In the 1960s, the Salton Sea was on its way to being a luxury resort, with water skiing and fishing and swimming and birdwatching. Builders started building, folks started buying lots, and it looked like it was gonna be the next Lake Tahoe. And then…

The Salton Sea started drying up. 

Heat from the desert made some water evaporate. Runoff from agriculture started polluting the sea. And there was no new water flowing into the Salton Sea. Fish started dying, the shores were receding, and it became uninhabitable.

Sonny Bono, a California congressman who used to be part of the Sonny and Cher duo, tried to get Congress to do something, but nothing happened. The beat goes on…

And now?

The article said Bombay Beach was now a ghost town. 

I decided to find out for myself. Just to make sure Bombay Beach wasn’t home to a satanic cult or a group of bank robbers or villains who tie women to railroad tracks.

So I got up before dawn and drove down Highway 111. As I approached the Salton Sea, the sun started rising. 

To my right were a few state parks. They were still open but looked shabby and run-down and overgrown with shrubbery. 

I saw signs; old road signs advertising liquor and bait and sporting goods. There was a faded, almost illegible sign encouraging folks to buy seaside lots. $6350 with only $500 down!

The Salton Sea was on my right, and a set of railroad tracks was on my left.

And not much else.

Nobody on the road. Nobody on the beach. No boats in the water. I saw a sign that said Welcome to Bombay Beach. 

I turned down a sandy road…

It was eerie. The place looked desolate. There was a billboard with women skiing, looked like it was from the 1960s. 

A place called the Ski Inn had a mural of Anthony Bourdain on the outside wall. Apparently, Anthony stopped by for a patty melt back in 2008. 

I got out of the car to take some photos, and when I got back in, there were hundreds of bugs all over the windows. Little green bugs with clear wings, somewhere in size between a gnat and a fly.

There was a stench in the air, smelled like old fish and swamp water.

I drove down to the beach. There were abandoned trailers and houses along the way.

I was surprised to see a lot of art installations right on the beach. There was a huge cement star, perched on iron stakes stuck in the sand.

There was a car, cut in segments, one layered on top of the other.

I got back in my car and drove down a narrow road. I passed Bombay Beach TV. There were dozens of old TVs, painted in bright colors, outside an old mobile home.

I drove around the deserted town as the sun rose higher. I saw a guy on a bicycle, and nobody else. 

It made me kinda sad…it was such a pretty place. And it has fallen on tough times.

But I liked the name!

And there were no satanic cults or gangs of bank robbers. But there was a set of railroad tracks that were still in use…

Just in case Snidely Whiplash needed a place to tie up his latest victim!

But even if Snidely did his dirty deed, Slimmy Do Right would come to the rescue!

I left Bombay Beach with lots of cool photos. My favorite was of the Bombay Beach Drive-In, an art exhibit with old cars stuck in the sand and a tractor trailer as the screen.

I ended up using that photo as the artwork for the new Bona Fide single.

Bombay Beach gets released the second week of September.

If it goes to number one, I’m gonna save the Salton Sea! 

Or at least go to the Ski Inn for a patty melt.

Keep smiling, Slim People. And keep in touch.

It's all about love.

Who loves ya?

Uncle Slimmy

PS: Here's a YouTube video of my ravishing recipe for swordfish with white wine, shallots, and capers. She's a-so nice! I didn't catch the swordfish in the Salton Sea. I bought it at Ralphs!

Swordfish with White Wine, Shallots, and Capers

Wednesdays in August! [Except August 16th]

The Slim Man Chase Huna Rat Pack Duo!

Larkspur Grill at Hotel Paseo

45400 Larkspur

Palm Desert, CA 92204

760.340.6069

6-9 PM

Come see the Rat Pack Duo! Slim Man sings. Chase plays sax.

And we have a cool video screen behind us that shows hundreds of vintage photos of the Rat Pack, Vegas, Palm Springs, old album covers, travel posters and postcards from the 1960s. Come check it out!

It's fun. Ain't that a kick in the head!

See you there!

https://www.larkspurgrill.com

Wednesday, August 16th!

The Slim Man Band returns to Laguna Beach!

Festival of Arts

SHOWTIME 5:30 PM

On Wednesday, August 16th, come see the Slim Man Band perform at one of the coolest venues around. The Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach!

Craig Chesnut on drums, Chase Huna on sax, and Tateng Katindig--the Thrilla from Manila--on piano. You don't wanna miss this one, Slim Folks!

Festival of Arts

65o Laguna Canyon

Laguna Beach, CA

SHOWTIME 5:30

Get tix here

Saturday, September 16

ENCORE!

Columbia, Merryland

SHOWTIME 8 PM

Come see the only Baltimore area show this year! George Hazelrigg on piano, Kevin Levi on sax, Cowboy Pickles on keys, John E Coale on drums, and Hit Man Howie Z on bongos. Hit Man!

Encore

10221 Wincopin Circle

Columbia, MD 21044

443.545.1030

Get Tickets Here!

AND WE GOT THE CATALINA JAZZ FEST ON OCTOBER 13TH! A BONA FIDE SLIM MAN TRIBUTE TO BOBBY CALDWELL.

DETAILS TO COME. CHECK THE WEBSITE FOR ALL GIGS. AND MERCH! BUY A COOKBOOK!

PEACE, MAN!