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...