Risky Business

John Wray, reading as part of Amanda Stern's Happy Ending series at Joe's Pub.

The rule of the Happy Ending series is that everybody has to take a public risk, so last night we had Wray revealing his tattoo for the first time and Arthur Phillips retiring from his career as a writer to chase his dreams as a matador. To prove his dedication he brought along a bull--a small robotic bull, to be sure, but now we can say that Joe's Pub has hosted a bull fight and that will look nice in the press clippings.


The musical guest this month was Vampire Weekend, who took a break from recording their second album to play a stripped down set, performing with a stand up bass in public for the first time ever. They also played a cover version of Tom Petty's Walls, turning it into a sing along in front of Edward Burns who was seated on the couch and had directed She's The One, the movie which featured the song prominently in the soundtrack.