I know that guy

Back in the days when my niece Lori was singing like Patsy Cline and we were trying to figure ways to help get her noticed, a noble but underwhelming idea was hatched.  We called it A Minor Promotions, which was not only a favorite guitar chord but also a nifty acronymn: Assisting Musicians In Need Of Resources.  Our biggest challenge: shopping a demo tape of Lori singing Cline's "Crazy," which she knocked out of the park, and LeeAnn Rimes' "Blue."

Among the people we gave this tape to was Brett Favre. We bumped into him at the Quarterback Challenge at Disney World and, what the hell -- he supposedly liked country music -- handed him a copy.  A year later he led the Green Bay Packers to a Super Bowl championship.  Those are the facts and you can draw your own conclusions.

We're sad to report that A Minor's momentum eventually fizzled out. Well, until Friday night in the mens room at Shank Hall. Waiting time for a stall in the bathroom between shows was about a minute -- not bad unless you happen to be a performer preparing to take the stage. 

A big man in a floppy straw straw hat opened the door and immediately pressed toward the front.

"I was gonna go out back but they said I'd set off the alarm," he said in a booming baritone voice. "Anybody mind if I get in here?"

"Go for it," I said, giving up my spot at the front to the night's headliner. He obliged, and while he was doing the deed I added: "My only request is that you play "I Don't Know That Guy."

"Awwwwww," Greg Brown said over his shoulder. "I don't know that song."

He then went out and delivered a rousing set, playing a mixure of new and old songs and even covering his wife Iris Dement's "Let the Mystery Be."

Everybody's wonderin' what and where they all came from
Everybody's worryin' 'bout where they're gonna go when the whole thing's done
But no one knows for certain and so it's all the same to me
I think I'll just let the mystery be

We hardly even noticed he never played "I Don't Know That Guy."

PICTURED ABOVE: Benson Ramsey of the Pines joins Greg Brown on stage at Shank Hall in Milwaukee.