By Max Fontaine | Beacon reporter who didn’t have the day off

A pre-Thanksgiving music showcase was delayed Wednesday at Funky’s on the Bayou, when a fire broke out in the early stages of “Thanksgiving Eve Showcase on the Bayou.”

Not just any fire — “A Fire,” according to Bass Lake Fire and Emergency Institute.

BLFAEI personnel arrived at the scene at 7:45 p.m. to address a 9-1-1 report of a potential public safety threat, “that of a fire in progress,” according to dispatch records posted on Twitter.

Prior to arrival of firefighters, though, flames at the nighclub were doused successfully by Guy Soundguy, audio wizard for Local Cover Band, Bass Lake’s most enduring local cover band, which was set to headline the show, and hit the stage pretty much as scheduled.

According to witnesses, Soundguy used a large pitcher of water located near the soundboard to quell the blaze and save the day.

It marked Soundguy’s first public policy decision of his term as mayor of Bass Lake.

“Water works great to curtail fire — it’s like rock-paper-scissors,” said Skippy Jenson, Local Cover Band singer-vocalist, speaking on behalf of Soundguy, following the fire/music incident. “We came here to rock, and that’s exactly what we did!”

None of Funky’s patrons or employees had time to suffer serious injury during the incident, and property damage at the establishment was minimal, said Funky’s owner Greg “Funky” Gregory.

“Thank God for that, especially the property-damage part,” Gregory said during an interview out back of the bar. “Now get out of my face, journalist. Show’s over.”

Preliminary investigation indicates the source of the fire was either kitchen-related, electrical in nature or ignited when a lit cigarette was improperly discarded into a bucket of gasoline.

“Smoking is prohibited inside that establishment, so we’ve almost ruled out option 3,” said a fire institute official. “Unless somebody tried to sneak a smoke in the restroom area — but I can’t imagine anyone doing such a thing. We’re also suspicious that gasoline would be conveniently available in a nearby container.”

Due to time constraints caused by the flame-outbreak, the set by opening act Opening Act to Be Named Later was truncated, either midway through the second verse of “Burnin for You” or during the 12th verse of “Alice’s Restaurant.” Sources close to the stage are conflicted about which one it was, due to happy-hour related memory loss.

A member of OATBNL said today that the group considers the mid-gig interruption “a sign that it’s time to break up the band.”

They will be missed.