Monday - Car trip

[blargfromouterspace]

Today consisted of a 14 hour car trip from Melbourne to Tamworth where my band is taking part in the annual country music festival. Tamworth is, for a couple of weeks of the year, Australia's country music capital - our Nashville. Its essentially a country music trade show so you see all sorts of acts here from the incredibly talented to those who should never have started. There's music in every bar, club, restaurant and street corner. It can get a bit much at times. Even as someone who likes country music (well, some if it...) I'll be the first to admit that it is an acquired taste and that even the best stuff takes some getting used to. We're here for 6 days, over which we have 8 shows. It sounds like a lot, but there are some people doing 4 a day

Lunch today was corned silverside with plenty of gherkins and some good whole grain bread and a couple of perfectly ripe nectarines. I made this up in anticipation of the awful roadhouse food you get here. I'm glad I did too. The worse things you see here are, IMO, anything manufactured by a heinous company called Marathon Foods. Their products are invariably greasy things that are always half burnt on the outside and cold or frozen in the middle yet they're found in EVERY place you stop on the road and even in the city. What's the worst roadhouse food in your area?

Whilst I'm here I intend to do some G&L spotting. I reckon its been 5 years since I've seen anyone else using a G&L - when did you last see one being used live?

It's 1am here now and I've been up since 4.30am yesterday so I'm going to bed - which for the next week is the living room floor of a friends house, shared with the other three guys in the band. Being an amateur musician is soooo glamourous

PS - Todays poll question is related directly to the experience I just had trying to type this up on my phone and losing it all. I've now tethered it to the laptop. Waaaaaaay easier.

[Dave_P]

Hey Jamie, sounds like you've got a busy schedule this week, also sounds like good fun to me!
I haven't had a band/gig in a few years now and it's been even longer since a good road trip. I'm with you on the country music, my wife is a country fan and we've found common ground on a few songs I call it the "compromise mix" on my playlist

It's not quite lunch time yet here, but I'll be swinging by my house for some left over pasta. I'm lucky in the fact that work is now close to home so I never really have to pack much lunch wise. As for roadhouse food, most anything by Sysco foods is very manufactured tasting, usually dry and/or cold/burnt. You see that stuff mostly at fairs/festivals, nothing like a $10 burnt/dry/cold cheese(latex?) burger-like sandwich!
Other than that if I'm on the road I try and stop at local, dive looking places as they generally have the best food, more than half the time I end up at a fast food chain by default. I'll never forget this little shack I stopped at up in Maine one trip. THE best turkey club I've had in my life. Fresh carved roast turkey on home baked bread with thick cut bacon. I went back up there last year hoping to stop at the same place but, sadly, it had been replaced by a gas station

I've never seen a G&L used live at any local venues big or small...other than mine of course, but even then that was 3-4 years ago

Get some sleep, and good luck at your show(s) today!

-Dave

[Goat]

Lunch today was tomato soup, cheese, and toast. Quick and easy. Lunch usually is just a snack these days, with a decent evening meal. I kinda miss the days when I had time to train and eat 6 meals a day of healthy stuff!

Road trips with friends are a blast; memories that get talked about every time you get together with the same guys, for the rest of your lives.

As the UK is small, we just have motorway service stations, most of which have Micky D's or Burger King or similar, so the food is edible, just 2.5 times the price it would be anywhere else! If I'm not on a motorway, I'll usually choose a pub to eat in. That's rarely a mistake.

I've never seen a G&L on a stage around here. People seem leery about venturing onto a stage with anything that doesn't say Fender or Gibson on it. Wish they'd trust their fingers to do the talking instead of their headstocks.

I look forward to some updates about the week Jamie. Hope y'all have a great time, and play well!

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi Jamie,

MLK (and inauguration) Day here in these United States today. Since a couple of years our company has decided to honor MLK Day instead of Presidents Day. So it means the weekend get extended by another day. Just had an egg sandwich for lunch.

Never been on 'tour' but have made plenty of roadtrips with plenty of greasy's. The worst one I can recall was a little eatery just south of Deception Pass called Giselle's if I recall correctly. Terrible food; they couldn't fry a potato if their life depended on it. It is still there but under new ownership. Never went back to see if there was any improvement.

I actually have never seen a G&L in any of the many live concerts I have attended, or at least not that I recall. Now, if I only would have gone that Glen Campbell Farewell Tour at the Paramount a couple of weeks ago ...

Good luck at the festival and have fun!

- Jos

[willross]

Great start. I toured a bit on the East Coast (USA) and Stucky's was similar, but actually good. It was a bit of a haze, so anything food-like was acceptable...

I've seen stills of known artists holding G&L's, but Mr. Campbell has been the only performer. F & G are quicker to endorse artists and put free instruments into the hands of players, so many play them just in case of that opportunity. Sounds crazy, but true...


Cheers,

Will

[louis cyfer]

this is one of the few guys i have seen with a g&l.

[youtube]SdSjzGKjmtA[/youtube]

made me want a comanche really bad.

[Philby]

Hi Jamie,

You guys sure get around. As a country music sceptic, I admire your courage in venturing up to Tamworth. Like most festivals there's always alcohol to get you through the worst of the deprivation, and an MP3 player with jazz or soul music when 3 chords, bootscooting and faux southern american accents get too much.

Worst Roadhouse: When I was a student there was a truck stop on the way to my university outside a little town called Kempton. It was called Mood Food. They would serve any food you like as long as it could be deep fried. The truckies would radio in their orders and the food would be delivered to their rig when they pulled up. Judging by the size of those dudes, they could've used the walk inside to collect it. A single Chiko Roll from Mood Food was enough to nuke your digestive tract for weeks. They should've sold haemorrhoid medication opposite the takeaway counter. It would've doubled their profits.

G&L's in concert: Around 2005 I saw a US band called Mercury Rev as a support for Neil Finn. They were great. The guitarist was slinging a midnight blue ASAT Special with what appeared to be a mirror guard. It sounded just like a Special should. Like a tele with the twang dialled down and the balls dialled up. For anyone who had never heard of Mercury Rev (like me), this was their big hit at the time.

[youtube]3YpBAK0YBOY[/youtube]

[gitman001]

Hey Jamie,

Your week sounds like it is going to be a blast! I am sure you and your band mates are gonna have an amazing time.... I must say i am a little bit jealous

When the family and i are traveling the interstates and highways we usually stick to the "best" of the worst - McD's (or rotten ronnies as i get my kids to call it) or Burger King. In fact we were coming home from Toronto on the weekend and hit a Burger King... I must say i kinda enjoyed it!

There is at least one other guy in town who uses a G&L at gigs, although i have never seen his band personally.

I usually read the forum on my iPhone, but tried to post once from it and had about the same experience you had....

Have a Great Week!!
Scott

[zapcosongs]

Hi Jamie. Thanks for stepping in it, lol! Looking forward to hearing how your shows went, and how you survived the grub!

Lunch for me was left-over lasagna from last night. Not bad, but I was in a hurry and it ended up being cold in the middle - much like life.

I only became aware of G&L in 1999 or so, so I might have seen some and not realized it. Otherwise, the only musician I have seen whose G&L I could positively identify was played by our own bassman, who has quite a few and has amused me a couple of times by playing my G&L basses (which I do not personally know how to play).

Insofar as using electronic gadgets to post anything is concerned, this is a funny one. I have a very old cell phone that has an antenna that I pull up when I want to (try to) make a call. I don't use text messaging. If I want to talk to you, I'll call you or email. So sue me. I ran the damn thing through the laundry a couple of weeks ago. It still mostly works, but no longer rings. Hence, I have it set on vibrate and have to keep it next to my willy in order to know when someone wants me, heh heh. Seriously.

Road food: I usually have a good breakfast at home before setting out. Skipping lunch is usually a good idea. A liquid dinner usually feels about right at the end of the day, along with a handful of nuts or a granola bar or something. What was the question? - ed

[blargfromouterspace]

Phil - I really like Mercury Rev. I have their album 'Deserters Songs' and listen to it often. I never knew there was a G&L in there.

Scott - Its a sad situation when McDs and BK (which is called Hungry Jacks here) is the best thing going. Its often the case here too, but I refuse to give them my money.

Ed - I had a liquid dinner of cheap domestic beer

Goat - Tomato soup from a can is one of the best 'in a can' foods there is. Pub food is generally a safe bet here too. It can even be fantastic, but unfortunately there are several places that are sourcing frozen crap from the same manufacturer. Boooo!!

Dave- Latex cheese is a perfect description

[darwinohm]

Jamie, I am envious of your trip and coming week!! You have traveled 12 hours and are still in Oz. It is a big country. 12 hours in any direction would put me several states away or way up in Canada

I can't vote. I don't have a smart phone and do not see one in the future. I don't even text.

Most of the food that we get along the freeways is pretty good but more expensive. I eat light while traveling. I generally grab fast food as I like to keep going. I hope you guys have a great week. I know that you have a great country sound and you should kill 'em. I like a lot of older country and we have started doing a lot more of it because the crowds love it.

Speaking of Oz, I have been working on my Legacy with the Kinman blues pickups tonight. The pickups are wonderful but the tone controls were not wired in the circuit. I couldn't get any tone variation. I figured it out and wired the PTB back in and now it works great. I did research on the Kinman web site and discovered that they are in the land of Oz. They have a nice website and he is an interesting guy.

As for spotting G&Ls, they are pretty rare. I ran into a guy in Northern Minnesota about 5 years ago that was playing a Legacy. He also had a Music Man amp with 4 10s that he had installed JBL's in. There are 2 of them in our band!-- Darwin

[Philby]

Insofar as using electronic gadgets to post anything is concerned, this is a funny one. I have a very old cell phone that has an antenna that I pull up when I want to (try to) make a call. I don't use text messaging. If I want to talk to you, I'll call you or email. So sue me. I ran the damn thing through the laundry a couple of weeks ago. It still mostly works, but no longer rings. Hence, I have it set on vibrate and have to keep it next to my willy in order to know when someone wants me, heh heh. Seriously.

I don't like carrying a mobile phone with me Ed, but this trick would make receiving a call far more enjoyable.

Thanks for the tip!

[Katefan]

My apologies Blarg for hijacking this - Louis, get in touch with me if you're keen on my refin. SC-2. Its on the block...
Cheers,
KF