It was around 3 PM on Saturday the last day in August and I received a voice mail from ‘Ready’ Freddie Washington saying hello and that he was in town performing with Steely Dan.

It was always good to hear from Freddie. I have known him since he was 16 or 18 years old and I considered him as one of my favorite electric bass players – especially as the performing bass player over the last few years with Walter and Donald and the ‘Dan’ recording legacy.

I immediately called him back and after a short hello and ‘how ya been’, etc., he invited me to the show that evening. I had been invited several times before in the past by Tom Barney and always enjoyed briefly visiting with them before their performance.

This invitation turned out to be a very special night and will be monumental in the pleasurable memories that I have during my career in organized music as a bass player.

I called up a friend, Dan Bradford, who had once played bass in the local ‘Dan’ copy band and we went to the venue. Walter was the first to greet us when we went back stage before the show. We were later joined by Donald and then Freddie. Together we all had a good chat about current, past, future, etc., stuff.

Although I was recovering well from my stroke a year and a half earlier, Walter, Donald and Freddie expressed their well wishes for a complete recovery and expressed understanding and concern they had during my ordeal.

As I left the dressing room going to our seats, I was given a gift to good to mention other than it was right on time and something needed.

I enjoyed listening to the 2 hour show – reliving in my head how pleasurable it was to have been a special part in the audio making of the music now being performed and enjoyed by so many people – and the best was yet to come!

During the back half of the show, when the musicians on stage were introduced, Walter said , as he had always done before, very kind words to the audience about my participation in the making of the now celebrated ‘Steely Dan’ music.

He then invited me up on stage and introduced mew to the audience and I shared on stage hugs with him, Donald and of course Freddie. – I have had many great experiences during my career and this one will stick out as one of the best. It was the final energy that further promoted my ability to climb ‘back in the saddle’ and ride again as a bass player in organized music.

-Chuck