Reno, Tahoe and San Fran

Before playing the Tahoe gig, we had about 36 hours in Reno to kill. I won't go into details, but I learned to play craps and had a great time while there. I lost some money, but not enough to break the bank. The gig in Tahoe was fun, but it was the post-party that stands out in my mind. Some of you might know that Sammy Hagar and Cabo Wabo Tequila go hand in hand (and inbelly). There just happens to be a Cabo Wabo Club at the casino that is adjacent to the venue we played. Before the gig that night, Sammy invited Davy to jam with him after the show at his club. Unfortunately I missed the portion of the post-party where Davy, Michael Anothony and Chad Smith jammed out Sweet Home Alabama with the house band (Sammy was busy swigging tequila). But a couple hours later Davy, PK and Steven were invited to the stage to play a few songs. They ripped through 'fun' versions of Messin' with the Kid (Junior Wells), Outside Women Blues (Blind Joe Reynolds) and Coming into Los Angeles (Arlo Guthrie). By 'fun' I mean, everyone had fun...but it was after a few shots of tequila and a few beers. VERY fun, but fun with a little sloppy. :)

After sitting in nearly 8 hours of traffic getting into San Francisco, the guys played their own rockin' show at the historic Slim's. It was a fun to see the guys play for a full 2 hours versus the 40 minutes they are allotted opening for Chickenfoot. The crowd was rabid and clearly loved the show.

Off to SEATTLE!!! (yes, this is posted after Seattle, but I'm a day or two behind...more to come!!!)

Riverbeds

So after playing a fun gig with Chickenfoot in Atlanta two nights ago, Davy and the guys had the stage to themselves last night in Mobile, Alabama. They were the headliners at the BlueGill, a true southern family owned restaurant with a deck and stage that overlooked one of the many tributaries of the Mississippi River. Some of you might remember a tragic Amtrak train crash that happened some years ago near Mobile. That accident happened just a short boat ride away from this restaurant. A while back Davy saw a special on TV about the tragedy and it became the inspiration for his song called "Riverbed". Knowing this, a fan of Davy's set up a boat ride for us to the site of the crash. It was a pretty intense and sobering trip. Davy said he'll never play the song the same way again...

The last time Davy played Mobile was on his 21st birthday a year ago in April and it was clear the town was eagerly anticipating his return. The doors were supposed to open at 6pm, but a line started to form around 4:30pm and by the time 6 o'clock rolled around, there were about 200 people lined through the restaurant and into the parking lot waiting to get in. One of the biggest supporters of Davy in Mobile is a local DJ for 92, The Zew. He introduced the band and promised a 'longer set than last time' to already noisy crowd...and the boys delivered! Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam ripped through a 2 plus hour set of originals and covers and not only featured countless solos from Davy on guitar, but Seattle native Ty Bailie showed off his chops with some incredibly wicked keyboard solos as well. Drummer Steve Barci also got in the act with a drum solo - complete with a beer chug. The band rocked...the crowd rocked...it was a rockin' night!

Now we have 4 days off as we travel to Lake Tahoe to meet up with Chickenfoot again. And I'm counting the days until we get back to Seattle! One week to go...

Chickenfoot - Super Group...Super Guys!

Yeah, I know it's been a long time since I last posted. I figured once we started with Chickenfoot I'd have lots of time to write. After all, our opening set is only 40 minutes each night. But I'm finding myself busier working these shows that I am when we're headlining our own. Who-da-thunk-it?

Anyway, I'm sitting in our green room at the House of Blues in Atlantic City looking down at Davy and the guys sound checking. It's great we have this view, but it makes for a distracting work session. It will be great to watch Chickenfoot from here.

So the venue itself is very cool, but the load in procedure was one of the weirdest things ever. I heard a rumor it's about a quarter mile from where our bus is parked to the stage. After walking it a couple times, I wouldn't disagree with that estimate. I'm REALLY looking forward to load-out...

A few of you have been asking about Chickenfoot. What is Sammy Hagar like? Is Cabo Wabo Tequila good? Do you party with them? Do you watch their show? Are they good?

First off, every single one of the Chickenfoot guys are great. I've had most 'face time' with Michael Anthony because he loves to watch Davy and the guys perform. He usually stands near me and we BS about how good DK&BDS is. In response to his statement the other night, "they're already done?" I told him we only get 40 minutes as the opener. He said, "They can play however long they want! I love watching your guys!"

Sammy is a good guy too. Loves to have a great time no matter what's going on. The first night of the tour he invited us into their dressing room and said, "Come hang out whenever you want." And then he made us all Margaritas...one of the best I've ever had!

Chad Smith is a character! He's always 'performing' in some way. A lot of people say he looks like Will Ferrell, which I agree with. But it's not just his looks...he acts like him a bit too. He probably throws anywhere from 40-80 drum sticks in the crowd each night. Even though he's sober, he parties harder than anyone else on tour (meaning he's a wild and crazy guy).

Joe Satriani is one of the sweeter dudes I've come across. He always takes time to congratulate Davy and the guys about the show. He's always smiling and always says hello when we cross paths. It's hard to believe he was ever involved with a copyright infringement law suit. I imagine he had little to do with it...

(so I started this a few days ago...now I'm sitting on the bus outside the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina)

...behind the venue here is an Alligator farm. I guess it's one of the biggest in the world and it was incredible. We walked in just as the staff started their 3pm feeding. There were probably 35-40 gators all fighting to get the pieces of chicken that were being thrown at them. It was quite a site to see...

Looks like we're 10 minutes from show time tonight, so I must go. I'll actually publish this now and write more soon (hopefully!).

:)

Prairie Dogs and Drunk Staff

So after a restful 5 days off in Nashville we got back to playing shows last night in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin at the Prairie Dog Blues Festival. Davy and the guys were the headliners and didn't go on until 11pm, so our 3pm arrival time left us lots of time to kill. After giving a quick scan of the audience that was already there, I realized it was going to be an interesting festival (to say the least). The crowd seemed like they all just rolled up from Sturgis and there were a dozen or so sets of Cornhole set up in the field for everyone. I saw hundreds - if not a couple thousand - of leather clad bikers getting hammered in the beautiful Wisconsin sun.

But it wasn't just the concert goers that were taking part in guzzling beer hand over fist...the festival crew were as well. The first guy I met was "Spike", and he was clenching a can of Budweiser as he shook my hand and introduced himself as my hospitality contact. I didn't have to actually see the can of Bud to know what he was drinking because he was spraying it all over me as he spoke. After explaining things to me a bit he ask me if I had any questions. "Yeah," I inquired, "is there any beer?" :)

After getting settled and receiving our 'meal tickets' I ventured out to food vendors, which consisted of exactly two booths. I was told the only one that would accept my meal ticket was the "Jambalaya and Catfish Booth". I like Jambalaya, but was a little weary of the quality coming from small town Wisconsin. They also had an option for Frog Legs 'n Fries, but yeah... So I went with the catfish. I don't think I've ever had catfish before, but was pleasantly surprised! It was delicious...

A little while later Spike, the drunken hospitality dude, caught up with me and introduced me to Todd, the festival organizer. Tood didn't seem quite as drunk as Spike (yet), but he was definitely enjoying the day, so to speak. He informed me that "Famous Dave" would be cooking up some BBQ for artists and festival staff later in the evening. As dinner time drew near, we congregated around the BBQ pit and we met Famous Dave. I'll give you one guess as to what he was drinking. If you said beer, you are right! But the numerous beers definitely did not distract from his cooking! We were treated to BBQ chicken, steak tenderloin, pork tenderloin, scallops and a variety of salads and pastas. It was first class all around!

Finally just before 10pm the guys were able to start loading their gear on stage and do a little 'sound check'. The festival crowd was about 3,000 strong, most of whom were scattered about on blankets and in lawn chairs. But as Davy plugged into his amp and started 'warming up', a couple hundred people started to merge towards the stage. It was obvious he had some fans in this small Wisconsin town. During the performance I ran into Todd again, who was now as drunk as Spike was earlier (by the way, where was Spike?). Todd started talking to me about God knows what and adopted the same 'spit while you talk' technique as Spike. Good times...

So the band ripped through their blues-infused 90 minute set (which was very well received) and headed towards the merch booth for an autograph session. The last people in line were friends and family of Todd, who all also happened to be quite sauced up. They wanted a photograph with the band - which isn't out of the ordinary - but they explained it was going to be the template for their Christmas Card. I love small towns...

So at the end of each night I am the lucky guy that gets to settle up finances with the venue manager, show promoter or festival organizer. When I was ready settle last night I called Todd a few times to find out where he was at. After 3 failed attempts, I used my best judgment and decided I might find him in the beer garden. Not surprisingly, I not only found him in the beer garden, but he was behind the bar pouring himself another beer. I let him know I was ready to settle and he got a confused look on his face. "I need to find Nancy to get your money..." he says. The funny thing is Nancy had just told me not more than 15 minutes earlier that she gave him our settlement cash. I reminded him of this fact and he pulled out an envelope that said "Davy Knowles & BDS".

Like any great Road Manager, I ALWAYS like to verify the amount every every night. Not that people intend to screw us over, but some people make mistakes...especially drunk people. Todd decided we (he) would count the money so we both could verify the amount. I'm not going to tell you how much there was, but it definitely should not have taken 12 minutes and 4 retries to count. I actually found it quite humorous...not just the counting, but the entire day.

Anyway, we had another fun show...but I never did see a prairie dog!

pictures, pictures and more pictures!

Finally got a bunch of my photos uploaded. Feel free to browse them at your leisure! The newest pictures are up top and older ones are below...

http://picasaweb.google.com/adams.chris

Houston, Drive-Thrus and Free Margaritas in Austin

The thing that I'm going to take away from Houston is that it was incredibly hot and humid. I didn't want to get off the bus for any reason! Thankfully the venue (Warehouse Live) had a shower in the Green Room, so we were all able to take advantage of that before the show began. I had someone to work my merch, so I was was able to enjoy the show as a 'fan' for a bit. Our backstage security guy (Flash) was a big fan of Davy, so he was a pleasure to work with. He had a huge grin on his face the entire night.

After the show we hung out for a bit with some friends on the bus. But as we headed out at about 3:00am, we realized that PK may have had a little too much to drink. He was funny as hell, but he wasn't making any sense. He started talking crazy about how "Irish" he was and how he could kick our asses. Then when we stopped to get food (again, at Whataburger), he got pissed we wanted to eat, instead of drinking more with him.

Speaking of Whataburger, only the drive-thru was open and the bus wouldn't make it through the turns, so Davy, Nate, Steve and myself decided to walk through and order. Surprisingly enough, it worked! It was the first time in my life that I was ever served when walking through a drive-thru (yes, I've tried more than a few times...). Once again, the burger was delicious.

At this point we had though PK passed out, but we weren't so lucky. When we got on the bus he was making fun of us (again) for eating and not drinking. Then he switched gears and decided he was, in fact, hungry. But when Nate tried to give him an Apple Pie (much like the one you would find at McDonalds), he took it and threw it at my face and started giggling. He said, "I threw my pie at your face and I will throw another one...uhhhh, (long pause) PIE!"

Eventually, we all finally made it to bed, but not before more random shouting from PK. It was a fun night...and PK claims he wasn't hung over when we woke up....but I suspect he was still a little drunk.

So when we all woke this afternoon, we were in front of the hotel our bus driver is staying at tonight in Austin. We all decided we wanted some Tex-Mex, so we found a place near the venue. But when we walked in, we saw a peculiar sign that read, "BYOB - Feel free to bring your own alcohol while our liquor license is suspended." But upon being sat down, we were told, "We can't sell alcohol, but we have free Margaritas during brunch..."

SCORE! :)

Now I'm off to get ready for the show tonight at Stubb's. Looking forward to them feeding us some AMAZING BBQ for dinner...

The Loft and Whataburger...?

Another city, another really cool venue! The loft in Dallas was a bit of a pain to load into, but the room has a great vibe and a kick ass sound system. We weren't sure if we'd get some bodies in the door, but those fears were alleviated when Theron (great stage manager) said he was expecting around 200 people (capacity is 300). And he was right...the venue filled up and Davy and the guys ripped through another incredible set, highlighted by a bluesy, kick ass version of Crosby, Still and Nash's "Almost Cut My Hair". Davy always goes off on this song, but last night he was feeling it...

After the gig we loaded out as usual and got on the road. Nate, PK, Steven and myself were still wide awake (and hungry) at 4am, so Maki (our bus driver) stopped at a fast food place I've never heard of before. I felt in the dark because I was not only the sole person who had never eaten at Whataburger, but I was also the only person who had never even heard of it. But the burger was amazing...not just because of the few beers I had in my system. And I'm not much of a fry guy, but damn if those weren't great too!

But the food might not be the most memorable part of the stop. It was capped off properly by a scuffle that started when we walked in the door. It seemed there were two different groups of friends who had some sort of disagreement. There was some pushing, some shoving, some yelling and some scream...oh, and two dudes ripped off their shirts. The cops must have been out there waiting, because they were on it faster than Ichiro beating out an infield single (sorry, had to work in a sports analogy there!). Good times continue!

By the way, it's freaking hot in Houston!

Quick Notes to Catch Up

So I'm sitting on the bus on my way to Dallas and I'm realizing there is no way I will be able to catch up on my travels thus far. So I'm just going to throw out a few cities/shows that stand out in my head and start 'from scratch', so to speak. I'll try to update this thing every day or two. Now that I'm caught up, I think I should be able to...

Philly/NYC - these two shows were pretty sweet. The Philly show was the CD Release Party and the guys sold out the World Cafe (think Triple Door in Seattle, but better). I didn't get to see the show because the merch booth was outside the doors, but the people who were buying CDs were incredibly enthusiastic (Cathy, you had fun, no?). :) In NYC we (sort of) opened for The Roots. I say (sort of) because there were two different shows that night, ours being the first. When DK was done, the venue was cleared out so the Roots could load-in. It was fun to see them chillin' in the Green Room as we were loading out.

Aurora, IL - We were supposed to be playing the "Blues on the Fox" festival, but a crazy storm ripped through just before the opening band went on, so the Mayor canceled the gig. I've never seen rain and wind like that before. It was nuts! We were able to salvage a show at a local Irish Pub, so all was good in the end.

Fort Wayne, IN - Two words...Rib Fest! :)

Kona, Hawaii - As most of you know I took a few days to travel to Kona, HI to take part in the first of two half marathon's this summer, both supporting CCFA's Team Challenge. What a great trip. I might have to write up a separate post about that trip.

Thunder Bay, Ontario - Who would have thunk that the best weather of the trip thus far would be in Canada? Not only that, we were 8 hours north in Canada! The show was very cool and the crew/hospitality were 2nd to none!

Burlington, VT - We had a full day off in Burlington and one of Davy's street team members invited us up to their cottages that are on Lake Champlain. It was a great day of RnR (and a few beers). The show the next night was very cool. The Higher Ground (name of the venue) was one of the coolest I've been in so far. Great stage/sound/bar...and probably the best Green Room on the country! Great to see you at the show Corey!

Pleasantville, NY - Not to be 'punny', but this was a very pleasant town! Great festival and great people. We ended up partying with members from North Mississippi All Stars and Big Head Todd and the Monsters after the show. Good times were had by all!

Saint Louis, MO - This show ended up being a bit of surprise because the 'venue' was the back deck at a bar/restaurant. Definitely the smallest stage the guys have played so far. But the patio was full and people had a good time. And to top it off, we were right across the street from Busch Stadium the day after the All-Star Game. Wish we would have been in town a day earlier!

Napa/Sonoma, CA - Yet another CCFA half marathon that I will write more about later. :)

Red Rocks, Colorado - This place is always regarded as one of the best outdoor stages in the world and it definitely lived up to the hype! It was so beautiful there. People compare it to the Gorge, but they are two totally different, but amazing experiences. Thanks for coming to the show Steph!

And here we are on our way to Dallas, Texas and I have to say, Middle America sure is flat! Looking forward to the coming weeks/months as we gear up for 30 shows with Chickenfoot, featuring Sammy Hager (Van Halen), Chad Smith (Chili Peppers), Michael Anthony (Van Halen) and Joe Satriani (Joe Satriani). That should be a blast!

Till next time...hopefully soon!

Nashville, Tennessee (Part 1)

(scroll down to see the first post)

After an amazing few days in Chattanooga, we departed for Nashville. We were scheduled to play two shows - the first at a little 'pub' called 3rd & Lindsley. The crowd was modest, but the guys jammed their way through a very high energy set and wowed the modest yet passionate crowd. I estimate that nearly 75% of the people in attendance bought something, whether the new CD (available for preview and purchase here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00274SI2E/), a poster or t-shirt. And most of them stuck around for an autograph (on a side note, I think it's very cool they make this a standard part of the show, no matter how big or small the crowd).

The next day was an off day and we were hoping to poke around town for most of the day/afternoon. However, when Davy and I walked out to the van, we noticed something strange about the right tire of the trailer. There was axel grease everywhere and the tire looked to be at a bit of an angle. I'm not sure if anyone knows this, but I don't know squat about wheels/tires/axels (or much of anything else about cars), but I knew it was messed up. I called the trailer company and found a guy (Billy) in Nashville who specialized in trailer axel repair (yeah, I didn't know people specialize in that either). After waiting a few hours for him to arrive and assess the situation, we got good news. Instead of spending big $$$ and waiting 3 weeks for a new axel, all we needed to do was replace a busted berring mechanism (took Billy about 20 mintues to fix it).

Week One Fun!

So I'm a little late starting my blog because I've yet to get my own laptop. That should change in the next couple of days so I will be able to post 'stories from the road' more frequently.

Departure - Where's My Luggage!??

Evan and I flew out from Seattle to Atlanta by way of Memphis on Friday, June 5th. Our first flight was a few minutes delayed and our 'layover' window wasn't that long, so we feared missing the connecting flight. However, the new terminal was directly across from where we landed, so we were able to quickly board our 2nd flight and took off pretty much right away. In the back of my mind I wondered if our luggage would make it to our final destination, but I trusted the airlines (Northwest connecting with Delta). But after an hour or so waiting at our carousel we both realized that our checked bags did not make it to Atlanta. The customer service rep couldn't even tell us where the bags were. According to her information, the last time our bags were in the system is when they were checked back in Seattle. Good times.

The next day Evan called the airline and they still couldn't locate our luggage. So I got on the phone and told the nice lady that my mediation was in my checked bag and that if I didn't get it 'today', I would die. After hearing that she quickly got on the phone to both SeaTac and the Memphis airports and tracked down our luggage. I had my bag 8 hours later... :)

Gig #1

Earlier in the day we packed up the van and trailer and headed to the Virginia Highlands Summerfest in Atlanta, Georgia. Who is 'we', you ask? Well 'we' consists Davy Knowles (guitar/vox), PK (bass), Steve Barci (drums), Nate Cake (production/sound engineer), Evan Blackstone (label dude), and of course, yours truly.

Upon arriving at the festival we were greeted with a barrage of hospitality. They had a road crew who helped carry all the gear on stage, a nice little southern style buffet and a assortment of cold beverages (including two cold kegs of Miller High Life). There were a few acoustic artists who were playing throughout the afternoon as Davy and company set up their gear. Davy's set was to start at 4:30pm, so around 4pm Evan and I started setting up the merch area just to the left of the stage. There were probably a couple thousand people milling around the big grass field and various food/crafts booths. But once Davy hit the stage, people took notice and started migrating towards him. Even though the guys in the band will tell you that the show was "ok...we were a little rusty...", I think they killed it! I witnessed a number of comments like, "WHO is this guy!!???" and "...wow, he is incredible! He's going to get huge!" from people ranging in age from their teens to their 60's. There were nearly 100 people who wanted to get an autograph from Davy (and the band) after the show. It was an all around great day. My journey had officially begun...

That night we hung around the hotel and drank a few beers as Davy and PK practiced a bit. It was fun to sit there and see these two great musicians go back and forth with ideas jamming the night away. By the way, at this point in time PK had only been playing with Davy for about 6 days (and Steve about 2 weeks).

In a Van - Gig #2

The next day we packed up our trailer and got on the road to Chattanooga, Tennessee where we were scheduled to play two shows at the Riverbend Festival (Sunday the 7th and Monday the 8th). Early on it was very clear that southern hospitality in Chattanooga was in full effect. The show promoter quickly met us as we pulled into the hotel and gave us all our credentials and assured us that any of our needs would be met 'with pleasure'. After checking in to our hotel (provided by the festival), we were off to load in and sound check the first show. When we first arrived to the outdoor venue, I was a little puzzled. The stage was set up under a bridge in front of a natural amphitheater of sorts that overlooked the Tennessee River. It was a bad setup, just not what I expected.

But my puzzled look quickly turned to awe as we returned to the venue after taking a few hours to ourselves after soundcheck. We were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd of about 500 people rockin' out to the opening band. Cedric Burnside (RL Burnside's grandson) was on drums and vocals in a traditional two piece blues band complete with 'stage guy' (inside joke, inquire for details). The duo made quite an impression on the crowd, so Davy, Steve and PK's set came with some big expectations.

The sun was just setting as the trio took the stage and from the opening note of their 'intro', they had won over the crowd. I was working the merch booth and didn't have much of a view of the stage, but countless people came over to me wanting information about "who this kid was" and where they could find his music. Luckily I had both his albums for sale...and sell them I did! After ripping through an amazing 90 minute set, the crowd demanded another song, so the guys obliged. One of the festival crew guys said to me, "in all the years I've been working this festival, I've never seen an encore on this stage..." Needless to say, Davy and the guys signed countless autographs after the show. Even the band admitted it was an incredible set. That night we hit up the diner that was attached to our hotel and celebrated with some food and a few pitchers of beers. Good times...

Press and More Press - Gig #3

The next morning the festival staff picked our team up at the hotel and drove us to a couple radio and TV appearances to promote the headlining slot at the Bessie Smith Hall blues stage that evening (for those keeping track, Bessie Smith was an influential Jazz and Blues singer from the 20's and 30's). Surrounding the stage were countless southern BBQ pits and crafts booths that were influenced by the blues and southern culture. The opening band offered up and generous portion of traditional blues and New Orleans inspired music. A highlight was when the horn section left the stage and marched around the crowd playing wildly to 'When the Saints Go Marching In". The lead singer - wearing an oversized black pinstripe suit complete with a blues styled fedora - seemed to be a bit of a local celebrity as countless people offered their appreciation and gratitude for the performance they witnessed. Once again, Davy and company had a lot to live up to...

And once again the guys delivered...big time! My guys not only won over the potentially critical crowd (after all, this skinny white boy from the Isle of Man was playing American Blues inspired rock 'n roll in the heart of blues country on the lawn of the 'Grandmother of Blues'), I saw a grown man cry during one of Davy's blues jams. Hundreds of people came up to me at the merch booth asking about Davy and the band. People were in love with his music. On a side note, I can't tell you enough how amazing he is, not only with the guitar, but his voice is equally as powerful. I hope some of you are able to catch his show while we're on the road this summer. Anyway, after the show well over 100 people stuck around for a chance to meet Davy, PK an Steve with hopes of getting an autograph on their recently purchased CD or poster...and many asked for a photo as well. It was a great site to see...

Once we got back to the hotel, we reconvened at the hotel diner for a healthy portion of nachos and a few more pitchers of beer. Another fine end to an outstanding day. Chattanooga treated us well and I hope we treated them well. When we were checking out the next morning the festival promoter pulled me aside and thanked (us) for playing the festival. He said that Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam were the buzz of the festival. A festival that, at the time, already included the likes of Willie Nelson and Three Dog Night. Good times...

more to come...