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Thursday, February 3, 2005 |
... sometimes you know better than you should
Just
as I pushed post for the last posting, the bass solo began. I reached
for the person to my right to squeeze the life out of them but they had
already found their ride and walked away. Through a rather confused
chain of transportation reps, I started providing keywords to trigger
my reservation including my name, my affiliation, blood type, shoe size
and smoking preference. I'm now sitting in an Escalade in the rain
waiting for the other Lost Boys. The one woman who actually took an
interest in my case had no phone but a genuine interest in helping. That makes one person so far...
1:23:01 PM 
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... on land
Delta baggage claim #1 in Jacksonville...
it's trying it's best to be like the spaceport in Star Wars. Uniformed
welcomers smile at every intersection and remind you of where you are.;
strange bands play tunes that might be familiar to you but not to them.
There are so many name brand gathering signs around for the junketeers,
I feel like I should let them know I use their products. Everybody's
here...except my ride.
It's strange to see money and the lack thereof
standing side by side waiting for their bags, the promise of a party
and maybe a victory for their side in common. After watching my share
of Super Bowls and knowing that they tend to be one sided, it becomes
clear that it's being there that is the only important thing. For many
this is the one and only time they will find themselves in
Jacksonville. It really doesn't matter; the location changes every year
and if it was in Brownsville, TX they would find a way to make that
matter. The jazz combo on top of Baggage Claim 2 has just started up
again; I'd better stop writing before the bass solo or I may choke a
stranger.
1:02:53 PM
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... finally on the move
Off to Jacksonville for a little work... new
gig, new band (well, they've been around for a while) and for an extra
added bonus it's the weekend of the Super Bowl and we might as well put
the show out live on the TV. I'm surprisingly calm about the deal; I'm
guessing that either I'm 1) just so friggin' glad to be getting back to
work or 2) the new gig nerves circuit got fried on the last tour (I
sure gave them a run for the money). I'm hoping to find a the time to
see a few friends who are in town at the same time as we are the
support staff for all bread and circus events (!)
Besides the obvious sports event, there are a number
of musical performances on and around the field. The arena has a series
and there are so many corporate parties and events associated with the
Super Bowl weekend. There is so much money in the corporate and
industrial world that some of the acts you never hear or see anymore
still make a pretty good living being the band that plays after the
yearly awards dinner. I have in the past done shows for large
multi-national corporations who will have 5 major acts 5 nights in a
row at their yearly meeting for about one million dollars for a 90
minite set. When you
are on the road doing concerts getting every penny that has been agreed
to is a big part of a tour manager's (or tour accountant's) job. If you
ever wander into one of these corporate gigs, not only do you get your
fee, they might comp you on services and hotel stuff or give you big
bags of goodies. I'm still using up stuff I got from a show in 2000 for
an association of drug stores!
So, I know I've got pals doing the "Tailgating
Party" and others who are actually doing the halftime extravaganza on
the field. Will this be another roadiepallooza or will we all just be
working in the same city at the same time and not see each other?
More later at it becomes more obvious...
9:21:34 AM
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