An Eve of their own

I had a themed dinner party at my apartment in New York. People came as their favorite historical figure. We had Napoleon, Josephine and Hugh Hefner in attendance. I was Gandhi. Half of my moustache fell off into the bouillabaisse. At midnight, we watched fireworks from the roof of my loft.

It's been years since I've done a New Year's Eve gig. The last couple years, come midnight, I've been by myself, sitting on my back porch looking up at the stars, saying, 'OK, God, what's next?' I'm used to the quiet, peaceful farm -- just me and God and the sky.

It was Dec. 31, 2005. I was visiting my parents and stuck in the suburbs. My girlfriend at the time and I went to get sushi for dinner -- they were offering all-you-can-eat, but we turned them down and ordered a la carte. She had just gotten back from study abroad in London, so afterwards we went home and drank absinthe from London at midnight. We both got sick from the sushi.

This year in Minneapolis feels like a first proper New Year's show for us in a lot of ways. Last year was the only other year we ever played Dawes songs, and it was in Seaside, Fla., for an audience that didn't have any idea who we were and were there mainly to just catch the fireworks. We had a great time, though. We were done way before midnight, too. Before that, we spent several New Year's Eves playing with me and [brother/bandmate] Griffin's dad for parties he would be asked to play. Those would consist of three or four hours of all cover songs.

I went to church. I was at Michael Beckwith's Agape Spiritual Center in Los Angeles. [Michael Beckwith starred in the movie "The Secret."] This is something I've always wanted to do, but I'm always working New Year's Eve. What fun! At midnight, there was joyful music, a powerful message, plus we wrote plans and goals for the New Year.

On New Year Eve's 1995, Dan Geller [of Ruby Isle] and I locked ourselves in a room in a vow of silence with only a red balloon to throw -- for six hours. In 1999, while everyone was partying or stockpiling, Ryan Olcott and I recorded an album under the name Future Wives. Performing Dec. 31 is the closest thing to normal I've done in the last 15 years. This year will be the eighth in a row.

Since becoming a comedian in 1978, I have only missed two New Year's Eve shows. The last New Year's Eve that I didn't have a show was the 1999 millennium celebration. I was disabled with a back injury and was in a wheelchair recuperating. I remember sitting at home and staring at the TV with my family and realizing why people go out on New Year's Eve.

I've always avoided playing on New Year's primarily because of the pressure. I've got this party-boy reputation, and New Year's is, well, the party of the year. So this New Year's is my first time performing. As far as what I've done in the past, I've never really been the type to go to some booshie nightclub to celebrate New Year's. I've always kicked it at house parties. I have the most fun with close friends in a nonpretentious place. Plus you can do crazier [stuff] without getting arrested.