Charlotte - the long night...

From a distance the Wachovia building in downtown Charlotte looks a lot like the tower of Sauron so as I approached the city I felt the need to duck behind the wheel so as not to be seen by the eye! Also to be noted when traveling to Charlotte, if you park on one of the main streets there beware that the lights all become no left turn at 5 pm... which can make going around a corner a 20 minute affair ... 

Once loaded to Connolly's on 5th it began to rain which put a damper on the turn out for the night well that and Bon Jovi was playing down the street. All in all I managed to entertain those that did show up I made some new friends from Maine.. packed up the truck and decided to hit the road.

Nashville isn't that close but I figured I could sleep in a rest stop along the way.. which I did.  I stopped at about 2 am and got 2-3 hours of sleep curled up on the bench seat of my pickup... which is not a really easy feat at my height. For added bonus I left the radio on to lull me into dreamland which was fine until I got to Nashville and the battery died :(

Asheville Ashville Take Me In!

Spanish moss draped lazily off the trees that lined route 576 as I departed Myrtle Beach and headed west up and over the foothills and into the Appalachian Mountains of North-Western Carolina.  When I was a kid these hills and the people that inhabited them were of great interest to me through the eyes and writings of anthropology students in  a series of books called Foxfire. It is from the pages of these books that I learned the simple joys (albeit tough for them) of mountain living and the ingenious techniques employed to home-build all the needs of daily living (brooms, butter churns etc..) as well as musical instruments, tanning leather, down feather beds, corn-husk dolls and on and on... As many of you who have known me in this life time know I am always up for inventing new tools and solving problems the solutions to which have come from this compendium. 

I arrived at the exit for Asheville and decided that I would have a look around so I pulled off into downtown and took some random turns which ended me up in a parking lot across the street from 5Walnut (an amazing little wine bar that I had unsuccessfully tried to book a gig at for the tour).  I wandered up the street on the phone and found a 20$ bill in the gutter! Reacting to this good fortune I walked into said wine bar and ordered myself a big Italian red which then turned into a great conversation with the gal who books the entertainment and a gig for a future date.  I also found one of the nicest hostels I've ever set foot in; Sweet Peas.
Now back to the Firefox thing... It was a fantastically wonderful day that Monday the 4th of March and so taking a walk around town was in sure order. Along one of the streets up on the top of the hill there's a row of permanent booths that artisans rent to sell their wares. A guy selling dulcimer cigar box guitars another peddling terrariums from the miniature necklace pendant on up to very large glass-domed multiple species feature, wood turnings from bowls to funky lazy-Susans and last but not least a blacksmith who I had a very long conversation with about the ratio of heat and the color aspects that it brings out in different metals. I told him about etching with Muriatic acid... might have spawned a new line of work for him :) Great day.
My old friend and artist Stephanie, from my New Brunswick days, had moved down to Asheville in the last year and was kind enough to host a small gathering in her living room. Pot-luck style we hung out and drank great micro-brew beer ate home made pita and hummus and I performed songs from my album in between spurts of laughter and cries from the childrens. 

The First Long Haul...

After an epic night of playing music and drinking beer without eating dinner (Hi Mom :), on H Street in NE D.C. .. I woke up with 2 dogs staring me in the face! My host was still asleep and I was hungover enough that I stumbled out and started up my tour wagon in search of Rt 95 and a big breakfast so as to confuse my liver with fat and get it off the alcohol.

Just across and into Virginia I found my salvation in the form of 11 yellow squares proclaiming to be an abode of fried carbohydrates. Naturally I pulled in and found a seat at the counter and got my black coffee and a picture menu and set out to find out which combination of food items would sooth my angry stomach. The remedy would also serve as fuel for the 9+ hour drive down to South Carolina and my gig at Handley's Pub & Grub.  The two lovely ladies sitting next to me at the counter struck up some small talk, they were headed for Charlotte and the big NCAA Basketball weekend there... apparently all the big club promoters throw epic parties. Made some new friends and linked up on Instagram... 

95 gets a bad rap north of the Mason Dixon but it's pretty clear sailing once you get down into the heart of the South. That in mind I found my way down through all the pine forests and sandy ground to my friend's lovely home just south of Myrtle Beach with enough time to shower and take a nap... a nap that  almost launched me into missing the gig :) I woke up with 30 mins to get there and get set up! Close call. 

The highlight of the night was having my good friend and singer Diane sit in and sing "Jackson" to close out the night. 

I want to post some photos from the adventures.. but for some reason Blogger isn't letting me... I will investigate and update as soon as possible... stay tuned. 

The Big Board D.C.

    

    When I told my mother that I was headed to H Street North East in Washington D.C. for the first night of my tour her response was as if I had said Camden, NJ a.k.a. notoriously dangerous.   You see she grew up in and around our nation's capitol and I guess 50 years ago it wasn't the part of town a white kid like me would be wandering into unknown to play music.  These days that part of D.C. is almost like a fancier version of Park Slope in Brooklyn with all varieties of night clubs, bars and boutique restaurants and one in particular that has a unique take the buying power of beer drinkers. 

  The Big Board was started by the brothers Flannery as an exercise in free market economic principals and drinking beer!  I will not attempt a review here as I didn't have a chance to eat any food between rushing to the gig (see last post) and then the kitchen being closed after I was finished playing.  I am very much looking forward to heading back to this place and enjoying some food and beer! 

So many things were great about this night besides the things I missed... first off it was a night of reunions and new acquaintances. The man responsible for lining up this show for me and also being kind enough to give me his couch for the night was my across-the-street neighbor in Berkeley Heights.  Also present from the old neighborhood was my good friend AJ (who blogs about life) who brought a number of friends out to occupy the upstairs bar.... some other new friends that may or may not have some great contacts for me! ... :) 

Next up... the long drive to Myrtle Beach! 

Spring Tour 2013

There is a mad dash that one gets involved in when you bite off more than you can chew... which for me means getting tangled up in sprinting for the finish line all the time. I began the planning for this spring tour back in November as I was volunteering down in the wonderful town of Sea Bright after Sandy had blow things to bits. There was a moment then when I was contemplating hanging up the guitar for an indeterminate amount to time so as to help with the rebuilding of the Jersey Shore. I quickly figured out that I could still do both as the bureaucracy that funnels money down to "we the people" takes months so that by the time I reach home there will be lots and lots of work to take up my time.

    Friday the 1st of March I performed at "The Big Board" in Washington D.C. at 9 in the evening the events that lead up to that point are as follows to the best of my ability. Thursday I was completing the tables that you see in the photograph (top right), one of which was quite large (11'x36") and had to be delivered to a bar in NYC before I could hit the road. My father and I loaded up a rented truck with the 5 tables and some gear and headed in at 1am... by 5am the tables were installed (along with raising the bench you see the in the left side of the same shot up top). Then it was home again to grab a quick 2 hour nap to then go finish another job which didn't land me packing for my three month voyage until 3 in the afternoon t-minus 6 hours till gig in DC :-)

I then proceeded with the help of all present to literally throw things into the truck that I might need while on the road... everything from soldering irons, spare screws and tools to bedding, books and extra guitar strings.... the only thing I know I've forgotten at the moment is the keyboard stand I use for my merch table... 

I did manage to make it down route 95 to DC with enough time to grab a parking spot load in and start playing by my scheduled time! 

I will post stories from everyday of the tour so please check back every day for your daily dose of vicarious yarn. 

~DT