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Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Well we are off to Nottingham, England. Hate to say good by to
Switzerland, it is a beautiful place. The flight from Zurich to Frankfurt was
only a little over an hour and was a nice and smooth flight. Carlene and her
people sat about middle of the plane and I was in the back. Lufthansa Airlines
is a great airline, except they repeat everything 2 or 3 times in different
languages. Upon arriving in Frankfurt I found out they take their security to
heart. I have never seen so many guns and so many security personal. We had
about an hour and a half before our flight to Birmingham, England, so we decided
it would be best to go on to the gate. The security was very thorough, as we all
got searched pretty good. After we went through security we realized that the
check point was right at our gate. Then we realized that there were no bathrooms
or food anywhere close. We would have to go back through the checkpoint if we
needed to food or the bathroom. Cory, Carlene’s sound engineer threatened to
strip down to his boxers and go through, but he was reminded of the very stoned
face guards and decided against it. The flight to Birmingham was only and hour
and a half and uneventful. We were met at the airport by 2 of the Americana
drivers as well as the promoter, Chris Jackson. The drive to the hotel was 2
hours and along the way you could see the damage that had been caused by the
rain and and flooding they have had recently. This is the worst weather they
have ever had. It started to rain again and you could see the worried look on
Chris’s face. He has a lot of money invested in this festival and it is an
outside event. The hotel will be our home for the next 4 days. It was build in
the 1600’s and at one time was a home for wayward women. Just my luck that has
all changed now J
Found out 1st day that England is costly as far as the
American dollar is concerned. Our dollar is worth nill. 1 pound is worth $2.00
USD. 1 beer is $5.50 USD. We had the rest of the day off so we just hung around
the hotel, looking for some of the wayward women
J and watched it rain…
Had real fish and chips for dinner and that was wonderful. We are the first
Entertainers to arrive so we kind of had the place to ourselves. No wayward
women anywhere, but a lot of nice people working there, they really took care of
us.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Happy 4th of July!
Have every intention of trying to get online today. We walked a few blocks to
town to see if we can find a “hotspot”. The hotel is not set up for internet.
Did I mention that the hotel only has 5 TV channels? All English, but the
Wimbeldon Tennis Tournament is going on and 3 of the 5 channels were covering
it. While in town we could not get hooked up. Called Lindsey and let her know I
could not check email and asked her to check it for me. It is starting to rain
again…
This is starting to look bad. We made it back to the hotel, after having another
round of fish and chips for lunch. I think I am beginning to grow gills! LOL!
Heather Myles, who was in Switzerland, is playing tonight in the town of
Nottingham. I wanted to go and see her show, but I found out it was going t o
cost us about $160.00 US to take a taxi. Told you it was expensive. Well I will
just have to wait till next time. I’m on an expense account so I do not believe
my BOSS would approve. J
Speaking of my boss, I know from her road reports that she jogs every
chance she gets, usually early in the AM, before anyone is up. I want you to
know that I’ve had many urges to go out and run also, but luckily there was a
bed or chair close by and I would sit down until the urge passed…
We all had dinner together and talked about the day. Carlene did a little
walking in town and 2 of the band members also did some sightseeing in the rain.
There is so much history in this area. Most hopeful that I will be able to come
back and see the Castle as well as Sherwood Forest. To celebrate the 4th
I tried some of their English ribs for dinner. Not bad but not American. It was
a good evening in just sitting around and talking. This would be a good place to
tell you about Carlene and her band.
Carlene- is the daughter of June Carter and her step dad was Johnny Cash. She
has been performing since she was a small child in the Carter Family. She looks
a lot like her mom and has her mom’s personality. She does a lot of her own
songs as well as some of her mom’s and Johnny’s songs. She is loved over here
and is very excited about Friday night show. She opens the festival.
Big John Main – is the oldest of her band. He is the bass player and is one of
Carlene’s oldest friends. He has played bass for some of the greatest bands in
the Entertainment industry. He was also one of the original players on “Will the
circle be unbroken” He spends a lot of time in Europe, so he was my go to person
about food and customs of the British.
Kevin Wells – is the drummer. He hand his wife live in the San Francisco area,
where Carlene and Joe just moved to. They have played together for many years
and their 2 families are extremely close. Kevin wrote “Walking on a Thin Line”
for Huey Lewis and the News.
Chris Casello – is the electric guitar player and is something to watch on
stage. He really gets into it and has the crowd going. Can not stand still. He
has is own little band, so I am most hopeful I will be able to work with him
some more. Doesn’t hurt that he thinks Roy is the greatest. Chris also has
played with some of the best listening to his stories were most enjoyable. This
brings us to the road manger and sound tech Cory Stone. He really knows his
business and was fun to watch in operation. This was his first trip out with
Carlene, but he fit in extremely easy and fast. Cory is the sound guy for Pam
Tillis, but had a couple of weeks off and went to help Carlene out. Cory gets to
work with my daughter, Lindsey in Norway when she takes Pam over there in a few
weeks. Now here is the fact of the trip. In England, “Cory” is slang for
“penis”. Cory is aware of this and takes it all in stride. It is hard not to see
the strange smiles on people face when you yell out his name, especially in the
airport. With the Hell’s Angels as the security for the festival, we all
suggested he introduce himself as “Stone”
Still raining…
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Decided to go out to the venue to check it out and get with Chris
Jackson on any last minute changes, etc.
The place is very muddy, but the trailers, mobile homes and people going to stay
in tents are arriving in full force. Puts a smile on your face to see them
backed up for miles. I know Chris is feeling a little better but the outlook for
later in the day does not look good.
The Americana Festival is based on a salute to the American culture. Hot dogs,
hamburgers and characters acting out the ole west are everywhere. It is one of
the largest festivals in Europe. Chris has over 40 acts performing. I was taken
over the grounds and met quite a few of the “characters”. As I said the Hells
Angels are the security for the event. The do a very good job and are highly
respected. Get back t o the hotel in time to listen to Carlene and the guys go
over their set list. They want to add a few songs and have a blast for 2 ½
hours. People at the hotel loved it. Carlene took all of us out for real Indian
food. Once again I call on Big John to lead me in the right direction for
ordering. He ordered me the same thing he got and it was very good. It will not
be the last time I eat Indian. Get back to the hotel late and have a pint of
beer… still no wayward women anywhere and it is starting to rain again.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Well it is show day finally! Upon awakening my room is mighty cold. I
had slept with the window open! Went to get some coffee and sat outside with the
owners son in law. We talk for awhile and the rain has quit, but the wind is
blowing making it very cool. The guys toured one of the haunted castles that was
close by. Carlene toured the city with her manager Cathy. No rain so far and the
sun has started to shine a little. Leave for the venue at 8:15 PM, Carlene goes
on at 9:30 PM. It is a bit chilly but Carlene goes out and wow’s them to no end.
She does her 90 minute set and the crowd absolutely loves her. Chris Jackson is
smiling from ear to ear. What a way to get the festival started. Chris meets me
after the show and says here are the dates for next years festival and tell Judy
I want Carlene back and by the way I want you back also. I hope my boss is
reading this. After signing autographs we head back to the hotel. The guys are
pleased as to how the show went, as well as they should be!
I must tell you, as usual my timing is terrible. While Carlene is performing, I
am standing backstage watching the show and when Carlene gets through performing
this one song, I hear her say “Sorry about that, and I would like to apologize
to those who have a problem with seeing breasts.” Seems she had a wardrobe
malfunction during the show.
We are scheduled to leave the hotel at 4:30 AM to catch the flight home at 9:00
AM. Had time for 1 pint of beer before getting 2 hours of sleep!
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Security is not too bad so we all made it to Newark without problems. In
Newark, Carlene and Kevin head to San Fran and the rest of us head to Nashville.
I believe it was a most successful trip.
I must say being my first trip to Switzerland and the UK was an experience that
I will long remember. Not only the sights and the people in each country, but
mainly for being able to meet some of the artist that I have heard Judy and
Lindsey talk about for years. How great is it to take American Artist over to
different countries and watch them perform and watch the reaction of all the
attendee’s at the festivals. They know all of the songs and sing along with each
one. They love our music and our people love to perform for them.
It was a pleasure to finally meet Howard and David Bellamy and their lovely
wives and the band. Augie Meyers is a true legend and the Texmaniacs are a great
bunch of guys. Heather Myles and her group were awesome. Carlene and her bunch,
who I spent the most time with, were a delight. They put up with the ole man and
I really appreciated it.
In parting I will say that I’ve heard for a long time that “Music is the
Universal Language” and I got to experience it first hand.
Taylor
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