May 21st, 2013
Of course, it’s different for everyone but it usually starts about a week into the tour. Everything gets on your nerves and you find yourself desperate for some privacy. All the jokes that were hilarious yesterday suddenly seem stupid and puerile and you just wish everyone would leave you alone.
I guess it’s to be expected that, with 10 people living in each other’s pockets every waking hour, at some stage you get the touring blues – and yesterday it was my turn. A little early I grant you but at least it didn’t last long. After snapping at several people at the sound check in Berlin and refusing to play because the bass was too loud, I flounced off to my bunk on the bus for a good old sulk!
Everyone is aware that this kind of thing happens and most expect it to happen to them at some point so they all know that the best thing to do is to just leave it and it will blow over.
Happily, in this instance it didn’t take long. After a couple of hours dozing in the darkness I got bored with sulking and emerged happy once more – a sunshine-filled butterfly from a moody chrysalis!
It happens to most people on tour. It’s perfectly natural and is usually fixed by an early night and a bit of quiet time and it’s an unwritten rule that, if someone goes to ground, you just leave them be.
Anyway, having got my hissy fit out of the way, it was back to the business in hand.
WE GOT A SHOW TO DO!!
The rather bizarrely named “Quasimodo” club in downtown Berlin is yet another Jazz oriented venue which, given Lisa’s evident popularity, was always going to be cosy. However, none of us thought it would be quite THAT cosy…….
It was like the black hole of Calcutta! Every inch of floor was packed and there were people hanging from the rafters – but the atmosphere was electric. It’s been a while since we toured in Europe and the sense of anticipation was palpable.
As we cranked up the opening bars of “Can’t Dance” the crowd roared at Andrea’s soaring vocal intro (more of that later) but when Lisa came on, they lifted off the roof and we were off.
It was going to be another cracking night!
In actual fact, up on the stage it was hotter than the sun and within 2 minutes of starting the show we were all dripping wet. I managed to soak two towels through and I was in such danger of dehydrating that I had to have not one, not two, but THREE Vodka and Red bulls (my new best friend). Such sacrifice for my art……
In spite of all this though – the heat, the humidity and my moody start to the day – I think this was the best gig I’ve done with Lisa for a long time. When we came off everyone was absolutely buzzing and the handful of fans who were allowed backstage afterwards must have thought we were raving lunatics, but it would seem the only way to offload all of that pent up adrenaline is to shout like a banshee.
Once that was all done and we had all showered and changed, it was on to the bus for the overnight trip to Frankfurt. Not too bad this one – just the 5 hours.
On the way it was the usual laugh-fest – with Mickey and Andrea mentioned in dispatches – and I retired to my bunk in a considerably better mood than the previous visit.
I woke next morning with a surprisingly clear head to find the bus parked outside the hotel in Frankfurt. So, after a shower and a change of clothes, a bunch of us went exploring Frankfurt….
in the rain……
Nice….
Andrea Grant exposed as a fraud!!
Food Glorious Food!
Snowboy – Percussion
Mum & Dad try in vain to discipline naughty children…..
The Brass Section