We were in Phoenix Arizona this past weekend drinking craft beers and enjoying some down time with friends. We stopped into the Low Key Piano bar in Glendale to listen to some music and drink some beers. The ambiance was pretty cool, it was fairly early still, so it wasn’t totally packed. The musicianship was solid, not that I’m an expert in musical performances, but at the moment with some beers flowing through me it sounded pretty dam cool.
The last piano bar I was at was in Vegas, and without fail they jammed Billy Joel’s famous song, Piano Man. I don’t care what time of night it is, or how many times you have heard that song when it comes on and everyone joins in for a sing, it’s such a cool sing-along that any piano bar across the U.S. erupts in participation when the tune gets played. Having a live performer jam it out on Piano in person while the crowd sings along is just a really cool experience.
So there I was in Glendale, drinking and partying when they started jamming that tune. With an IPA in each hand, I stood to join in with the crowd, bellowing lyrics that I only partially knew, but enjoying every minute of it. The thing about crowd supported sing-alongs is that nobody ever hears how bad you sing unless they are right next to you, and even then it’s dependent on their own intoxication levels.
As the crowd thinned, I had a chance to go and talk to the piano players and they were pretty cool folks. I got to chop’n it up with one of them and apparently, he also teaches at a music school in Glendale called The Noteroom Academy of Music. Originally he was a student of The Arizona Music Academy, then later in life studied music at Mesa Community college. For those locals reading this, I threw those details in here for you. Aside from that as a part-time gig and the live shows on the weekends, there just isn’t enough work to keep him busy as a musician, so he works at a brewery in Chandler, AZ called SanTan Brewery during the week. This conversation went from talking music and performance to talking about the only thing that really matters….. beer!
I had never tried that SanTan IPA and was so pleased by its flavor that it has quickly become one of my favorite IPA’s. The specific one I have fallen in love with is the Galactic IPA, and I must say it is a work of art. Such a smooth beer, flavorful, and a decent 7.3%. I’m going to write a more detailed blog post on that beer but wanted to get this one done to share my experience at Low Key Bar. If you find yourself in the Phoenix-Metro area you should definitely make it a point to stop in for a drink and some music.