The first time I saw Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks was when they opened the show for a less memorable act at Winterland in San Francisco. I was blown away by their acoustic stylings, which eventually led to my discovery of the Gypsy Jazz of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. Thanks, Dan.

Dan Hicks wrote I Scare Myself in 1969. It appeared on several of his albums over the years and became his signature song. It’s one of my personal favorites. Who among us doesn’t scare oneself from time-to-time?

We begin with the songwriter:

Thomas Dolby recorded the best known cover of this week’s tune in 1984:

Singer-actress Maria Doyle Kennedy cut her scary cover in 2001:

Finally, a duet featuring Dan Hicks and the great Rickie Lee Jones:

What would the Friday Cocktail Hour be without an instrumental version of the week’s tune? This time, Ted Kooshian:

That’s it for this week. I propose a toast to the late, great Dan Hicks. It’s what Stephane and Django would want. Never argue with them.