Who wants to keep Santa Cruz weird?

Squeezebox freak the Great Morgani does, that's for sure. A story about the Keep Santa Cruz Weird campaign includes an awesome pic of one of the wackier accordion ensembles I've ever seen.

The Great Morgani goes on to tell Metro Santa Cruz why he's into keepin' it surreal in SC:

"I have lived in Santa Cruz since 1947," he says with a chuckle. "I have seen all the changes and all the good and bad stuff. Everyone says, 'Wow! You lived through the '60s and the hallucinogenic generation,' but I was playing the stockbroker. I used to think, look at those weirdos, never thinking that one day I would be the one on the box in a ridiculous costume."

That's a sentiment I can get behind. It's truly weird how you can stumble into a strange musical situation -- like, say, bass player in a mostly all-accordion rock band -- and wind up setting up shop in a house of mirrors. Guess that's what makes life worth living. (That and gettin' up and doin' stuff and goin' back to bed.)

P.S. As it happens, we just played Don Quixote's International Music Hall in nearby Felton, Calif. That was a good time for sure (except, maybe, for the long drive home over 17), but we met some really cool folks. It's always like that down there. Can't wait to get back.