We leave Tucson in our "new" van - a 1989 Ford 350 - that I found a couple weeks ago. Turns out it was a used Kitt Peak National Observatory shuttle van in its earlier life. That's where Kevin worked for 20 years (he still does as a consultant). It isn't outfitted like The Beast II, but it's got a smaller, more economical fuel-injected engine (351) and a lot fewer miles on it. We retired the old Beast with about 265,000 miles. It had become less reliable than we could risk on our tightly routed tours, but only after a lot of good service. The new van rides better, rattles less; it just needs some modification so we can store more gear.
That's not the problem as we leave town. It's that we're the only people heading east and north out of Tucson in early February. But, that's when Folk Alliance (the trade show of the folk and roots music business) is held and it's in Cleveland this year. Yes, Cleveland in February.
But first, Cedar Rapids. We pick up Gary on the way. He's in Topeka, Kansas, where his Dad was in the hospital for surgery. We pick up Gary and he tells us his Dad's doing great. That's welcome news. After playing with the same people for a while, you get to know their families and friends, just like in any other job. (Sometimes we're not just the noisy people showing up at the door at 3 am; sometimes we show up at the hospital, where the food's not nearly as good and we're not allowed to raid the refrigerator.)
It's on to Cedar Rapids, where we're making our fourth appearance at CSPS, a performing arts series in Cedar Rapids. They treat us great there; we've packed the hall in the past and hope to do it again. What goes on in my mind? Well, coming back to places where we've done well I always hope we can live up to the reputation. On a second visit, I wonder if the crowd got what they expected at that first show. (If you get a lot of press, great radio support and advance work, it's possible to get a big crowd on a first show in a venue - not likely, but possible.) But on repeat visits, when you know they came back and we know we built the crowd over time because of what they saw and heard, I am still concerned about meeting their expectations. You've got to walk a fine line: Playing the "hits" that they enjoyed in the past vs. introducing new material to stay fresh. We nearly always have some new material. This time, we've got a new CD's worth of stuff.
It turns out well. The new material gets a good listen and a strong response, and they respond to the opening chords on some of the oldies. (That still turns me on in a big way, thinking that people recognize our songs the way I recognize music that means a lot to me.)
I'm playing guitar on "I'm Not As Willing," one of Nancy's new songs that's on "Only A Story." I've played lead guitar parts on a couple of our CDs, but this is the first time in a few years that I've done any guitar live on stage. I'm an electric lead player, I never owned an acoustic until about four years ago. But, since this song is done without bass and drums, Nancy suggested I join in and play guitar on it. Sounds like fun to me, although I realized the afternoon of the show that I didn't remember the part. I recorded it a couple months ago and I internationally played in an odd position so I'd be forced to play a part that was different than some of the stuff I'd done before. I was a bit stiff, but it worked.
Honestly, I have very little idea what the others in the band think about our music. Oddly enough, no one talks about it much. Nancy is always wild about her new stuff, the newest is always the best; I guess as a songwriter, that's understandable. But, other than that, there's little or no talk amongst the band about the music, other than to iron out details in new songs. It's always seemed odd to me. In this case, since we took a fairly pronounced turn town country with the new material for "Only A Story," I was real concerned about how it would be taken. When we veered away from the band's early Celtic roots on earlier recordings - especially on "Hat Trick" - I know we lost some fans, but gained others. Still, I wonder, especially when we're going out with new material, how the fans are going to receive it. It was a welcome opener to the tour.
We headed off the next morning, seeing some fat snowflakes as we aimed the van toward Illinois for a show at a new place in Bloomington, IL, Lizard's. You've got to wonder about a place in Illinois called Lizard's. At least I did. Sounds like a college boy watering hole. But, it turned out OK. Nice crowd for an off night. We played with the Bogside Zukes, some friends we made at a festival in Peoria last summer. Hot band, and they brought their fans. The Zukes do more traditional Celtic pub tunes than we ever did, but their fans were open to our stuff. We probably did more of our Celtic-derived stuff than on most nights, gearing up for an intense coming month of St. Patrick's shows. Those tunes went well and we kept working on the new stuff.
The Zukes not only set up the shows for us (we're here for two nights with them), but provided us with PA gear and a place to stay. The rest of the band stayed with Zukes guitarist/singer Matt and his family; I stayed with Bruce (plays anything with strings, and very well) and his wife, Linda. I am still always surprised when people take us in - perfect strangers - and give us the run of their homes when they go off to work the next day ("eat whatever you can find, the place is yours, we'll be home at xx p.m.") I set up my laptop, made some coffee and tore into a freelance job. Nice day.
That night, we headed over for a show at Jimmy's in Peoria, the home of the Zukes and their rabid following. It's a tiny pub and the Zukes had been trying to "warm" us to the idea of playing on the patio. I think we just made uncomfortable noises when they mentioned it; we're from Arizona, it's in the 30s here in the daytime, there's fresh snow on the ground...you get the picture. Well, there's this ramada type thing in back of Jimmy's (which was even smaller than they said), a redwood structure with a stage and an open side. Heaters, they say, there are these propane heaters. Well, let's just say, that as the sun plunged, so did the mercury, and the heaters were fine if you were right next to them. But the Zukes brought out a packed house and, except for a freezing violinist, seemed to be doing just fine. So, we bundled up and played. It was so cold that the liquid crystal display on my cell phone moved in slow motion and the batteries in my equipment were losing power. But, we had a great time and the crowd was absolutely nuts. I HATE being cold (I grew up in Minnesota, but that was 35 years ago and I used up any tolerance I had for cold), but I had a great time. It was an outrageous night. Three hours earlier it had seemed like such a bad idea.
Next day, it was on to Ann Arbor (that's Michigan) for a show at the legendary Ark. Last time there, at least two years ago, we didn't draw more than a handful of people and were really disappointed. This time we had a much better turnout and they gave us a strong reception. The Ark is one of the top 20 folk-roots venues in the U.S. and it was important to make a good impression there. It's a real listening room, with a big stage, slanted theater-style seating, no dance floor. They get all the top names, so the audience is tough. I was pleased.
We drove to Cleveland the next day, looking forward to meeting some of our musician and music business friends. Better yet, my wife (Dianne, the band's manager) and my son (Kevin, 13, a guitar and bass student, and often a Mollys employee) were going to meet me there. The big deal about FA this year was our first official showcase. Performers wait for many years to get a showcase. We did. Nancy and Catherine have been FA members for many years and this was to be our first official showcase. (Last year in Albuquerque we did a couple of shows, the opening night gala and a local fund-raiser concert on the closing night). It was a big deal, an opportunity to play for the largest annual gathering of folk and roots music promoters, record company types, critics, distributors, publishers, management people and - best of all - other musicians. Each of three nights about a half dozen or so acts get 15 minutes to make an impression.
We did a sound check at the big music hall/theater in the Cleveland Convention Center about 5 pm Friday night and then went out to dinner. Our slot was at 9:15 pm. We did "Don't Come On Strong and Run," "Moon Over the Interstate," and "Rosie." Unfortunately, it was a lackluster performance - at least by my estimation. We got a big round of applause. We're a live band, no question; we've done well in short, high-pressure performances before (TV, as an opener on some big name concerts), but we just didn't seem to be warmed up for this one. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't what won those fans over the last 10 years. It'll be a while before we find out if it did anything for us, careerwise.
While at the conference, we ran into a lot of old friends and did a few interviews, talking about the upcoming release of the new CD ("Only A Story.") Unfortunately, it wasn't ready in time for the conference.
We left before the conference was over to do a show up in Cadillac, Michigan (way up there on the left side of the mitten, not far from Lake Michigan). This was a first for us, playing a snow-covered golf course country club. Cadillac is a small town and the country club was a laid-back place, more like playing a small town social hall. "Cadillac" and "country club" - I was picturing snobs in tuxes and cocktail dresses whispering "What in the HELL has the entertainment committee done?! Instead we met another bunch of really nice folks - music fanatics who started setting up their own concerts many years ago just for kicks. They fed us (including a killer finish courtesy of Joyce, the Patron Saint of Desserts) and put us up in a local lodge that caters to snowmobilers. (The whole area, including the lake next to the town, is abuzz with snowmobilers, blasting across the golf course and roads.)
We had a day off and the folks at Gopherwood Concerts (inside joke, we're told, a play on "go for wood" - what you do all winter when you live in chilly Michigan) let us spend a second day at the lodge. That was greatly appreciated. Kevin went cross country skiing. I enjoyed doing that a couple years ago when we did a series of concerts in Lake Tahoe, but my back is really screwed up again and this time I settled for the hot tub and a lot of reading. ("Crazy Horse" by Larry McMurtry and "Be Cool," Elmore Leonard.)
Then we moved on to Chicago, getting into the city just in time to tape Tom Jackson's radio show at WLUW downtown. That was a blast; it's a rare chance for playing and talking about the music and band. I take advantage of it, horning in on the mike. Occasionally, very rarely, a print journalist will bother talking to anyone other than Nancy, but on radio, we usually can all speak.
Then, we drove out to Berwyn, a close in suburb, in rush hour, for a show at FitzGerald's. Last time here we opened for Geno Delafose. I was pretty sure at that time that a lot of the crowd was there for us - just how much I didn't know. It was a bit of a risk. Usually the club isn't even open on Monday. So, we were on the line. Our luck held, and we had yet another big turn out. A lot of new faces, but also a lot of the crowd we built up playing The Abbey Pub and the Old Town School of Music over the last four years.
We had another good night in St. Louis at Off Broadway the next night. Earlier in the day we did a live radio appearance on Larry Weir's show at KDHX. We were in a larger than normal studio, had plenty of microphones and did a more elaborate set up than usual.
Doing radio is a touchy matter with the band. It's one of my jobs, setting up radio appearances. Either Dianne or I usually take care of the arrangements. We know how important it is because we see some of the playlists on the Internet. We don't have a big label that can lean on programmers to play our stuff. But, when you're running hundreds of miles between shows and short on sleep, it's tough to get up early to do a radio show. So, let's just say that it's often a stressful time. I, however, always enjoy it. If I weren't a musician, I think I'd probably try to have a show on a community station or be involved in radio some way or another. I'm really looking forward to what this new low-power FM rule is going to do for roots music. I hope these little frequency assignments get used for something other than money grubbing preachers and lunatic fringe talk shows. The public has been getting so screwed by the FCC for so long, it's about time they gave a little of the supposedly public airwaves back to the public. We'll see.
At this point in the tour, we counted ourselves mighty lucky. We had dodged bad weather - at least the snow - for more than a week. Now we were headed for Texas. Dallas and the Tipperary Inn was our first stop in our second home state. It wasn't a full house, but it was close enough for a Thursday night. It's a tough room for sound. We, as we usually do at The Tip, leaned heavily on our Celtic material. It's a table banging pub crowd, but one willing to listen while we veer all over the musical map.
Next it was McGonigle's Mucky Duck in Houston. You've probably read about this place before - one of, if not, my favorite club. Great food, great sound. Rusty and Theresa Andrews know how to treat their customers and bands. They get all the big name Texas singer-songwriters, as well as many national and international acts. It's an unlikely place, an Irish pub on a quiet side street in downtown Houston. But we always have a big crowd, and on a weekend (like this) it's a sell out.
We drove straight to Austin after the show, saving motel dough by staying for the umpteenth time with Kevin's cousin, Larry Schramm. We were there to play a new room (for us) - Jovita's. It's a Mexican restaurant on South First, south of the river. We once went there on an off night to hear Ponty Bone, the great accordionist. They've recently expanded the place, enclosing the back patio. We got a decent write up in the Austin Chronicle, did a live set on Sue Fawver's show at KUT-FM at noon, and worked our mailing list. We got an SRO crowd; we were told it was the largest crowd they've had. Had a fine time, to put it mildly. Lots of families with kids. Packed dance floor. Definitely a scene. I want back there a soon as I can make it.
For a finale (with the luck we've had this tour, it's hard to ask for anything) we headed for the little town of Copperas Cove (near Killeen and Waco, northwest of Austin) and our friends at the Knights of Columbus Hall. This is not your Texas dance hall or road house, to be sure. But it is a party. People get dressed up and come for the dinner (a big family style feed) and stay for the music. I've never played anything like this before, but it's a blast every time. It feels like a big family reunion party in a small town. And, they know how to polka, though it's a bit hard to break the ice and get the first couples out on the floor. Katie, self-appointed Mollys Fan No. 1 (though she'd have to fight it out with St. Joyce of Kasota, MN, fame), spoiled us rotten.
We're headed home, getting ready for our 10th Anniversary Party and CD release party at the Rialto Theater - and some big, big changes I'll get around to later. Until then,
dan s