Tucson, AZ

After a long week at work, my friend Nikki coaxed me into joining her for some live music and dancing at Plush on a Friday night.  We hadn’t been out dancing in a while and when she mentioned that local bands Latino Solido and The Jons would be playing for just a $6 cover at the downtown venue on 4th Avenue, I put my dancing shoes on.

We arrived at the club a little after 10:00 p.m. and to our surprise, even though the front bar and patio were packed, the back room was nearly empty. We grabbed a couple seats at one of the two tables near the dance floor and waited for Latino Solido to set up. We took the chance to catch up with some friends who had also come out and shortly after 10:30 p.m., the band came on stage. Despite their impressive line–up, which included horns, keyboard, bongo, guitar, bass, and drums, only a few people peppered the dance floor, grooving along to their Latin-infused rhythms. But, after a few more songs into their set, which even included some Tower of Power covers to Nikki’s delight, the dance floor began to fill up with couples and singles alike. By 11:00 p.m., the establishment took on a completely different feel from when we first arrived.

It being mid-August, nearing what is hopefully the end of another sweltering summer, we were none the less surprised at how hot and muggy the joint was. That still didn’t keep us from dancing once the next band, The Jons, started their set. Even though their set seemed shorter than usual, we still worked up a respectable sweat purging our week’s frustrations on the dance floor. Once their set was over, we moved outside to get some fresh air on one of the two outdoor patios at Plush. To our dismay, however, the night air was dead still and didn’t provide much relief. We found a cool spot standing under a fan near the patio door, but couldn’t manage to stay there long without blocking traffic.

With perspiration on our temples and our feet throbbing, Nikki and I decided to make our way to Brooklyn Pizza, just half a block north of Plush to grab a slice and soda from their late-night service window.  Since it is standing-room only outside of Brooklyn this time of night, we opted to cross the street and plop down on the edge of a flower bed wall near Delectables to avoid eating our pizza standing up. We giggled as we watched the activity on the avenue, which was bustling with late night revelers. Once we finished our pizza and mustered the strength to head back to the car, we had finally cooled off and were ready for a good night’s rest.

To see what other bands will be performing at Plush, visit http://plushtucson.com/.  To check out the bands mentioned above, visit http://www.myspace.com/latinosolido or http://www.myspace.com/thejons. Brooklyn Pizza is open during the day, too! You can visit them at: http://www.brooklynpizzacompany.com/.