About a year or so ago I asked people to tell about thier proudest moments. That thread has long since closed, but I've been thinking along those lines lately.

    Eight or so years ago, whilst hosting the open mic at Mother Fool's Coffehouse in Madison,WI, I encountered a young man named Aaron Nathans.
He got up and performed a couple of pop/rock covers reasonably well. He kept going to open mics and trying to expand his repertoire. I'd run into him from time to time (I've spent an unbelievable amount of my professional time in the last decade hosting open mics). Within a couple of years he started to get braver. He started writing. He has since become quite good at it. A week ago last Sunday I performed a guest set at his first CD release party. On Friday May 6th I'll be recording one of his songs live. I'm so proud of this guy I could explode. In a scant eight years Aaron has not only become a darned good songsmith, but a fine entertainer, and a genuine presence on stage. there are few things more exciting than watching new talents grow and blossom.

Stephen Lee