Tour Diary
October 15, 2008
Amsterdam
We touch down after somewhat sleeping on the overnight flight. Holland is cloudy, windy, cold, and way cool. We stay at the La Boheme hotel (around the block from the Melkveg) which has the steepest and most treacherous stairs in the world, and it takes two or three trips to get all of the luggage up to the rooms. Menny More is *, ranting, probably quite jet-lagged.
Band members who enjoy “coffee” take the afternoon to seek out “coffee shops,” where they purchase bags of high quality “coffee.” I go out and look for one, but it is cold and rainy, brittle, and I give up. I pass the Bulldog by because it is a known tourist trap, and go back to the hotel for a nap.
[Easy Star Co-Founder] Remy Gerstein flew up from Istanbul to see the show, and he is there for sound check. He’s all smiles, ready to party; it is good to have someone in the Easy Star Administration in on the festivities. Also, Big Dan Jesselsohn of Dub Is A Weapon and his wife Caroline come to the show, and everyone rages backstage with the local brew Heineken, wine, and “coffee.” The Amsterdam crowd is alive and ready to groove with the show, even though jetlag glazes everyone in the band’s eyes. Great time.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 733 points.
October 16, 2008
Nijmegen
The drive is pleasant enough, considering the crazy navigation essential for getting around in Holland. We count windmills, eat Dutch rest stop food, “drink coffee,” and make it to the graffiti-covered venue Doornroosje Poppodium by dusk. We don’t know what to expect, but the catering is generous upstairs, and there is internet.
The show is chill, polite. It looks like the dedicated local crew. Speaking with someone after the show, they say that the building is to be torn down, because they want to build a bigger venue. Too bad, this place has a kind of squat, Euro-street-art charm. Standing on the fire escape with the smokers, the moon is up and bright.
The markets are up 400 points.
October 17, 2008
Brussels
The traffic the next day is gridlocked. It feels like the end of the world, takes forever to go one mile, and due to construction, the Dutch GPS machine is confused, telling us to go around in circles.
We finally get to the AB Club. I go into the club from the front, find the stage where I see some blokes on stage with a strange set up: percussion, a Hammond, drums, no horn mikes. I think, maybe I’ll ask the keyboard player where the dressing rooms are, but someone comes up to me and offers to show me back stage. I follow him, a maze with lines on the floor, and when I get to the dressing rooms, they all say “Steve Winwood.” Hmm…I look around, see nothing with the words “Easy Star” on it, then I hear the crew loading in downstairs. I follow the sound, find them, and oh… I was in the wrong place, we are playing in the smaller club (follow the BLUE line)… glad I didn’t ask that middle aged keyboardist where the dressing rooms are.
We meet some of Steve Winwood’s crew at the catering hall, and invite them to come to the shows in the UK. Our show is packed, if in a smaller venue; the vibe is rocking.
After the show, I join Elenna [Canlas, Easy Star keyboardist], Marcos [Ferrari, Easy Star Soundman] and Shelton [Garner, Easy Star guitarist] in enjoying some local Belgian ales around the hotel. We end up walking through the red light district, where large African women sit in windows bored out of their minds, before we find a sleazy Belgian bar where we order Duvel. We try to talk to the bartender about what is the best Belgian beer, but this is just not that kind of place. A girl is sitting in the corner with her man, who is nodding out. It is two in the morning. Time to go.
The Markets are down only 127 points today!
October 18, 2008
Kendall, UK
We start with a blisteringly early lobby call to find the airport, and we make the flights even as the GPS unit continues to act oddly confused in giving directions. Iray [Easy Star bassist/vocalist] is sick, and others are starting to feel something very flu-like. I’m okay.
We land in Manchester, and meet up with our old friend Steve Nevard. His wife is pregnant with their second baby. Marcos is in the same situation, only HIS is imminently due. Wow, how can these guys be on the road with babies on the way? Patient wives? Stubborn agendas? Maybe both…
It is our third time playing in Kendall at the Brewery Arts Centre. The food upstairs at the restaurant is excellent! I have the venison steak! Mmmm…I am just a Deer Eater (check out the excellent “Pork Eater” by Ticklah and Rob Symeonn on Ticklah Vs. Axelrod for the melody I am singing this to)…We join up with Ed Rome and his band, who are opening up for us and providing the backline for our whole UK tour, and proceed to sell out the joint.
Sly and Robbie, who we are to play with in Dublin, had played there the night before, and we were warned that they had to pay a fine at the hotel for smoking in the room. Some of us will have to be careful. Though not Amsterdam, England seems to have plenty of its own fine “coffee” as well.
There is a strange vibe back at the hotel. There are some flare-ups between band-members, but we are all just probably a bit tired. Someday, this job will be easier; maybe we’ll have our own rooms instead of sharing? Maybe we will be driving in a bigger vehicle? A group of musicians like us, crammed together in a van, sharing rooms, it all gets a bit hard on the emotions sometimes.
October 19, 2008
Newcastle
The next night is our second appearance at the Carling Academy. It is the Boss Sounds Festival, with Jerry Dammers as DJ spinning old school ska and reggae. Iray linked up with his old friend Monty Montgomery, who is there with his band Symarip. It is a great, if short set, and chaotic, with no stage manager and a crazy stage schedule. The manager for the last band yells at us as we are going on “You are late!” but she has no authority. Jenny Hill [Easy Star saxophonist], Tamar-kali [Easy Star vocalist] and I go to confront her, but she meekly backs down. Jeez!
The bands hang out at the hotel bar after the show, drinking cider and carousing until late. Some of us take advantage of the internet and skype home.
October 20, 2008
Glasgow
It is a windy and rainy drive up to Glasgow, and finally Jenny Hill breaks out the dominoes. What a way to pass the time! I guess every band has their game time, and this is ours. She has the same set as last tour, and the scores are still there. Menny More is the champion, Jenny Hill is the challenger, and Marcos is the silent powerhouse. Me? Well, I am just along for the ride, and I can hold my own.
It is our second appearance at The Arches. We reunite with Ed Rome and play a smoky show as the crowd repeat their chant “EASY EASY EASY” like they did last time.
The markets are up 413 points! Yay, the world is saved!
October 21, 22
Dublin
Then comes the early drive to the ferry. Jenny Hill finds the Sly and Robbie outfit on the boat, and hangs out, trading stories of her days touring with Burning Spear. I sleep on a comfy bench near the food court.
It is a night off in Dublin. We hook up with Honey-B and her band and we go out for Lebanese food, and then drinks at the Bleeding Horse pub, right next to the hotel.
The next day is quite nice--no rain! We set off for some good sightseeing at Dublin Castle, St. Peter’s Cathedral, and of course, the Guinness Storeroom, which is kind of a rip off except for the beers at the top floor, The Gravity Pub, with 360 degree views of the city. This is the freshest Guinness you can buy. What a subtle difference; it just tastes stronger, thicker. The manager introduces herself to us, and since we are in a band, she buys us all a free round. Mmm…even Iray, who never drinks, gets in the spirit and tries some.
The venue is just down the street from the hotel. We open the show with Maurice Brown sitting in on trumpet. Then I watch one of the best reggae shows that I’ve ever seen – Sly and Robbie, with Nambo Robinson on trombone. I watch, listen, and learn. So THAT’s how it is done!
After that show, more drinks at the Bleeding Horse, and then a short sleep with a six forty-five AM lobby call.
This time, the ferry ride is stormy, rock and roll, and I take some medication to sleep, find a bench near the movie theater, and while I am sleeping, the songs from “Mama Mia” infiltrate my brain. Evil!
We drive along the Welsh coast, big tidal beaches, gray clouds, and then we turn inland to Leeds.
The stock markets first lose 232 points then they lose 514 more! The end of the world is near.
October 23, 2008
Leeds
We play the Irish Centre, reuniting again with Ed Rome. The room is well packed with a great audience. That night, we stay at the first of several Travel “Dodge” hotels. These hotels have one big bed and a pull-out sofa bed. There is one little bar of soap and some plastic cups. The worst aspect is that the internet is expensive. Oh, one day we will be staying in posh luxury. Until that day, we flip coins over who gets the pull-out.
The markets are up 172 points today.
October 24, 2008
Southampton
The Brook is one of the first rooms we ever played in the UK. They feed us oriental noodles and Scrappy Jack cider. Mmm. Some of us try to do laundry, but the machine is slow. It is a capacity crowd, and most have seen us at the Brook before, or else at the other pub down the road.
The Markets are down 312 points. Fear the fear…
October 25, 2008
Bristol
The Trinity is a regular spot, and though it is trashed out, the vibe is raging positive – it used to be a church, after all. Not the greatest catering in the world, with “vegan” beet sandwiches, kind of like hamburgers with a root vegetable rather than the patty. We are joined by PAMA Intl, our booking agent Sean Flowerdew’s band. They rock hard, and during our set, their horn section sits in with us for “Let Down.” The guitar tech from Steve Winwood shows up with his girlfriend, and I talk with him about what it is like doing that gig. Wow, they each get their own rooms, even the crew…I’m jealous.
Afghani kebab place is the post gig stop. Delicious chicken shish kebab with warm Nan bread. Sweet and spicy chili sauce. I wish America had kebab shops like this!
October 26, 2008
London
We make our way through frustrating London traffic playing dominoes. We pass Shepherd’s Bush Empire, the venue that we were supposed to play, but then it got moved to Dingwalls, the venerable venue in Camden Town. The roof had partially collapsed behind the stage, so it is propped up with sections of plywood and the stage is moved forward into the crowd. The dressing rooms smell of London sewage, so I go out to buy some incense.
Tamar’s voice goes out, and so she has to start sitting the shows out. Iray brings in some different songs to the set to make up for her absence: “Fighting,” “Nah Bow Down,” “Vaporizer” and “Brain Damage” (which I get to sing). At first, I am worried about how the show will run without her, but it goes without a hitch. The crowd is loud, happy, and some sing along with “Vaporizer.”
Meanwhile, I have my own room tonight! I can relax and watch TV, all without having to talk to anyone! It is a deep, healing chill time.
In the morning, a curious alcoholic is hanging around the lobby, and then at the door of the van during load out. He is going on about the Chelsea Hotel in New York, and we have to close the door on him to get going. I feel kind of sad, since the guy seems so lost, but I guess we all make our decisions, and his was obviously to go out in delirium.
October 27, 2008
Brighton
We load into the Brighton Komedia in mid-afternoon, go through sound check, hit the catering, utilize the internet, then some go to the hotel while others stay at the club. I stay and eat Italian food with Elenna and Shelton. Maph, our old tour driver from several years back came to the show, but he was not allowed up into the dressing room. Some say he was wired, others say he was “whacked out on drugs.” I never saw him. I remember a couple of tours ago when he did a stage fall down a flight of stairs at a hotel. I watched him drink down a glass of tomato juice with a hard-boiled egg in it. I remember him as a great guy. I wonder what led to this alleged downfall.
Chicken kebabs and chips after the show – the men working at the joint recommend the shish because that’s what they eat. Marcos calls the Doner kebabs “elephant legs.” Makes it less appealing to eat one now, as they shave the sides of the meat with electric rotary-knives. Poor elephants…
The markets are down 203 points.
October 28, 2008
Nottingham
Menny More is on the attack in dominoes and Jenny Hill is in his sights. He is relentless. He never stops chatting “Chuck in yer ‘and, JENNY’ILL, chuck in yer ‘and…” He says he’ll make me win, but * no! No one MAKES me win. I am defiant. Marcos just plays it cool.
The Travel Dodge is right in the middle of town, but that it is a big tower didn’t change the fact of the usual minimal amenities. We go right to The Maze, a pub with a very small back-room stage. The club owner lives upstairs, so he lets us use his living room as a dressing room. They hire a Sicilian cook, and the food is amazing: mushrooms with bacon-wrapped mushrooms, fresh mozzarella, and the best pasta in the world.
Shelton sings “Lucky” for the first time. It’s great to have that song back in the set. The audience is crazy: drunken lunatics lunging at the stage, girls dancing on the bar, beer flying through the air, all in the name of love, I guess, or perhaps in the name of alcohol. A great night.
The markets are up 889 points! Yay, Superman!
October 29, 2008
Cambridge
A special night, as this is the home town of Pink Floyd. The Junction is part of a “Leisure Center,” with the Travel Dodge, a movie theater, and restaurants all in the same complex. Jenny, Ivan, Tamar and I see the movie “Eagle Eye.” Boy, what a lame movie. Jenny says it was entertaining, but I just thought it was a loud mess. NO STARS out of five!
A small and polite crowd comes to see the show, and they act like this is a stand-up comedy routine with Iray speaking anti-capitalist wisdom to them. It is not the most crowded show we’ve done. Maybe everyone is home doing their homework.
After the show, we join Ed Rome and The Connecters at the local pub a mile away, and it is a ‘lock-in’ night, where we drink bitters and hang out all night. I speak with Bella, the sax player about the financial downturn – she should know, as her day gig is working at HSBC. She says all of this crisis will go away, that it is just a temporary flux. Interesting. Back at the hotel, we order in kebabs to lessen the impending hangovers. I don’t think it is going to work.
The markets are down only 74 points! Maybe Bella was right.
October 30, 2008
Oxford
“Yer ‘and DEAD!” taunts Menny More. Jenny plays on. I don’t really know how to count these dominoes, but I think I’m getting the handle on how to maneuver in, close the game and…win? Yes, I finally WIN!
The gig is at another Carling Academy, just like at Newcastle. Last time we played Oxford, we were upstairs when the club had another name. Laundry facilities right at the club! Oriental noodles right across the street. Internet! What more could you ask for?
Marcos gets the call that he now has a newborn baby boy! Celebration! I still can’t believe that he isn’t on the first flight back to London. No, he just laughs, parties, and says “I guess I have another one!”
Tamar returns to the stage, and even though her voice is still only at 50%, it is great to have her back. There were a number of regulars there at the show. Last time through, in August 2007, Ini (strange name) offered to buy me a beer, but we had to leave before he returned. He was back, and bought me a Guinness. It took a long time for that drink to come.
Kid Kebab next door after the show, almost as good as the Afghani kebab place in Bristol. This seems to be the after-party hang-out joint.
The markets are up 190 points. Yay Bella!
October 31, 2008
Exeter
This is a college show; some of the Ed Rome guys went here to Exeter. Jenny and I go out for a walk, and find a concert by an African children’s choir at Exeter Cathedral. We walk through town, and see only a few Halloween costumes. I guess they do this holiday in a milder way here.
Our show is typical college: some dudes (I guess in the Queen’s English it would be “blokes”) get up on stage and it looks like they won’t leave unless security kicks them off. I give the nod to the guard, and the boys are thusly excised.
November 1, 2008
Falmouth
We drive through Devon, and it feels like driving east on Long Island to Montauk. Rolling hills, sheep, ocean off in the distance. Except it’s Long Island in the winter: cold, gray.
Falmouth is a beautiful coastal down, on a harbor with boats, cranes, and old English buildings. I have a lunch of the recommended fish and chips, and I swear that this is the last time I ever eat this stuff. It is good, yes, but it is the greasiest thing a person can eat.
The Princess Pavilion is a proper concert stage with black curtains up above the crowd. This seems less a cosmopolitan crowd, and more of the local community – there are people of all ages.
So this is the last night of tour. I am looking forward to getting home and voting out Bush. I think the majority of people here feel the same as I do, amazing that so many people in the world have such a strong opinion about what my country does. So this is what it is like to be a citizen of a super power.
TWO encores! We have to stretch our set list to make it happen; the crowd just can’t get enough. Then, OH MY GOD! Shelton sings Marley’s “Redemption Song!” Just like Junior Jazz used to do! Amazing!
After the show, a couple comes up to me and starts talking about communism. I wonder why until I realize that I am wearing a military-style hat with a red star painted on it. Oh, I’ve been flying the commie colors all along! I suggest to them that if this were a communist country, then it wouldn’t be free to get in, rather we’d need government vouchers and a permit to get in…just talk. They are nice people.
End of tour. It is kind of sad; I always want it to go on longer, but I am comforted thinking that, given the world economy doesn’t end in the next year, we’ll be back. I will have more fish and chips, drink more flat English bitters, shop at more Tesco’s and watch the traffic coming at me from the wrong side of the road. England is great. God Save the Queen!
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