Pat McGee, an artist out of Florida, apparently has quite a following in New York, though I would bet that you couldn't find his discs if you walked into virtually any CD store here. How the packed house knew every word of his songs, off of his numerous CDs, was the real question.

Singing along with Pat, the crowd was in bliss as he played his mild form of rock, sweet toned and pretty sounding, McGee's music has that lilting quality that us Northerners have come to associate with all things Southern. The highlight, sadly, was his cover of Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes," delivered solo on acoustic guitar. With the audience singing along en masse, this was a magical moment - too bad his own stuff didn't stand out the same way.

Fighting Gravity, a band that recently lost their record company backing after the record biz shakeup a few months ago, is apparently bouncing back full force. A group that adores playing live, it was obvious from moment one. They had the crowd eating out of their palms. Opening with "Bend" and performing a ten song set, FG made their mark on the City that night.

Owsley, out of Alabama and a distant relative of Stanley Owsley, famed LSD maker and Grateful Dead manager, opened the show. His set of really cute, poppy and intelligent songs made this the standout performance of the evening. He had the audience bopping along almost immediately, with unbelievably catchy tunes like "Oh No the Radio" and "Coming Up Roses." Sort of nerdy looking, Owsley is an unlikely leader for a band, but his image is soon forgotten when one hears the delightful music emanating from within. And if geeks like David Byrne and They Might Be Giants can manage to bolster an audience, why not Owsley? This will be an act to watch for.