4 Years of Vinny and Jess: Looking back at September 9, 2005

I remember so vividly the first Friday night that I met Jess. I was with Mike Gow and Doug White, and we had finished a sushi dinner at the Drunken Fish. As we dropped her off at her car, I remember begging her to stay and hang out for the night; but she couldn’t.

I was in town from New York specifically to meet her. I saw her photo on a Velvet gallery on Velocity’s website and all I could see was radiant beauty. I was drawn to her, even even from a thousand miles away. I asked Rob from Velocity to help put me in touch with her and he was able to get me her number.

I couldn’t just randomly call her from New York and and start a conversation. So instead, I called her and asked her to model for the upcoming Curvve Recordings Vol 1 CD: Live at Miso, mixed by Mike Gow.

I wasn’t being deceptive, I had every intention of following through with it.  It was a great move for Curvve which came from my desire to meet her. In the end though, everyone won. But at that present moment she was interested in the project, and Curvve Vol 1 was a go. We scheduled our first meeting at the Drunken Fish, and things just went from there.

The next day following our dinner, Saturday September 9, I called her hoping to hang out again. Why not? I made a special trip to St. Louis to see her so why not give it my all. She said she was going to Ten14 & Velvet for Jimbo’s double birthday party. Perfect because Gow and I were playing at Ten14 that night. Musically, something happened to me that night. I remember it well. Even Gow said it was one of the best sets he had ever heard me play. I don’t know if I was overcome with inspiration, but it seemed as though I had found my muse. After my set, something unexpected happened: A Rooftop party was forming atop Kitchen K, hosted by the one and only Kirk Apazeller. Something happened that night. Something magical.

To this day I only remember blurred fragments and pieces, but the one thing I do remember is that we were instantly connected. We ran around and laughed together all night. When she finally left, I was filled with nothing but Euphoria. I remember speaking to the great Liz Miller shortly after, describing the immense sense of afterglow that I was left with. From that moment on, my life had purpose.

After I had returned to New York, Jess and I talked on and off during for a while (mostly off), but I wasn’t giving up; we had work to do. Within a month I was back in town and we all met at Miso. Rick Gould took some great photos. If you’re interested in seeing them, the pictures are online in the 2005 Miso Photo Shoot gallery. We ended up using several of Jess’ (and Gow’s) photos on the CD. So overall, the day couldn’t have gone smoother.

This time it was just her and I, and we ignited. Rue 13 will always hold a very special place in both of our hearts as it was where we shared our first kiss. I’m grateful, 4 years later, to be playing at Rue on the weekend of our anniversary. How’s that for timing? It seems as though over the last four years, events have always seemed to unfold in a manner which is greater than any probable odds. To believe that every minor event which led us together was purely chance, seems too improbably to calculate.

Whether or not you believe in fate or destiny, you certainly can’t deny the odds. Funny enough, a few years after we had been dating (maybe even after we had been Married), Mike Gow found a a very special picture on DJ Ellen Ferrato’s website (from San Francisco). I developed her website around 2002, and he was looking through the pictures that I posted of from her events at velvet. Guess what he found? That’s right, three years before I had even seen, known about, or considered calling Jess, something still drew me to her. So much so that I used this picture of her on Ellen’s website. What more can I say except that it’s all been a hell of a ride.

We were meant to be together and I will always love her. Anyone who knows us knows that we’ve had our share of ups and downs. But regardless of the bullshit that we have to endure on a daily basis, we always know that at the end of the day, it’s still just me and her. For that, I am truly blessed. I look forward to the day when I have the opportunity to blog about our 50th anniversary. In the meantime: