Crooked Teeth

Most people don't know this about me, but I LOVE Kenny G. I don't know what it is about his music, but he is one of the few artists that I will always listen to if his song is playing on the radio. In fact, I love his music so much that....

- I listen to his Christmas CD year-round in my car. His version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas is one of my top five all-time favorite songs.

- I own one of his piano songbooks and play his music often

- I went to his concert last night in Norman and was REALLY excited about it, and...

are you ready for this????

-  I asked for and received a saxophone and lessons when I was in high school b/c I thought I could learn to play just like him. Unfortunately the instrument I was given must be broken because the noise that comes out of it is excruciatingly painful to the ears! If I remember correctly, I only made it through a couple of lessons; my instructor may have actually encouraged me to quit....I'm not exactly sure.

Anyway, when my mom called a few weeks ago to see if I wanted to go to his concert, I jumped at the chance and have been looking forward to it ever since. He played at the Riverwind Casino, which is actually pretty nice, albeit smokey, and I would highly recommend it as a great place to see concerts. We had second row seats, and we were so close that I thought a couple of times that Kenny and I actually made eye contact. 

So, the point of my story is that during the show he announced that at some point he would be bringing an audience member up on stage where he would play a song for them and then give them the sax that he just played, making it theirs to keep. In order to get in on this little deal, you had to go to the merchandise table and buy two items in exchange for a ticket. These could be t-shirts, cds, etc. So, I left my seat (in the middle of the concert) and stood in line for my two items and the chance to win a new soprano sax (mine is an alto sax). I waited and I waited, and when I was five people from the front of the line, Kenny's bodyguard announced that the contest entry period was over :(. So, since I was already at the front of the line I decided to buy a CD anyway, and I returned to my seat for the remainder of the concert. 

Well, as the concert came to an end, Kenny made the announcement that he would stay after and sign autographs for all of his fans. So, with CD in hand, I jumped into line and waited my chance to speak to Kenny and get my autograph. Yes, I am THAT girl. 

As I got closer to the front of the line, my stomach was churning because I wanted to say something other than just "great concert" like everyone else had said, but I didn't know what to say. So, I finally decided to ask him the question that a friend has asked me during the concert, "why does he hold the sax in the side of his mouth instead of in the center?" Our conversation went a little something like this:

T: Do you hold the sax in the side of your mouth because it is easier to take breaths that way?

K: No, I hold it that way b/c the sax rests against my teeth and that is the most comfortable position. My teeth are crooked and they slant down, so that is how the mouthpiece rests on them. See...

(He smiles really big to show me all of his teeth)

T: Oh, well I really can't tell, but it makes sense I guess. Maybe holding the sax that way caused your teeth to do that?.?.

K: Yeah. I guess. That's a good question. I never really thought about it that way. Do you play?

T: Well. Uh. Hmmm. No. No, I don't. (I was deciding wether or not to launch into my personal sax history and finally thought better of it.)

K: Well you should. It's never too late to start.

K's Bodyguard: Come on guys. Less chit-chat. We gotta keep this line moving.

So, that was my conversation with Kenny G! I didn't get the picture with him that I was hoping for, but I am happy to say that I got to talk to him and am once again inspired to learn how to play the sax! I told Josh that I am going to become a groupie, but I think I will be going at that alone. Most people my age (including my husband) aren't huge Kenny G fans. Oh well, their loss.

P.S. I am really having to bite my tongue to resist saying something in poor taste about the person I heard saying she would like to kill him with his saxophone!!! Nuff said.