Ha Ha Tonka at Cosmic Charlies

Today is my buddy Paul’s birthday. Last night, to celebrate his 29th year on this planet, he invited a bunch of his friends to join him at local music venue, Cosmic Charlies to see one of his favorite bands - Ha Ha Tonka.

My previous exposure to Ha Ha Tonka consisted solely of seeing them on my favorite tv show, No Reservations:

Frankly, that was all the endorsement I needed. If Anthony Bourdain wants to hang out and barbecue with you, I feel like I have no excuse not to like you.

It ended up being a great night. Ha Ha Tonka perform the kind of new folk/americana stuff that I’ve always been a sucker for. I’m officially a fan. And they were exceptionally nice guys - going so far as to sing Happy Birthday to Paul and then letting him join them on stage during their encore for some of the best tambourine playing Lexington has ever seen. Here’s a video of Happy Birthday, unfortunately I didn’t video the encore:

I love Paul. He brings a unique energy and personality to everything he does. I’d be lost without him. And now I love Ha Ha Tonka.