UK BLOG V
Greetings from the Braehead T
Chaddy's Car - The Man Loves Texas!
PF Here, just sitting in the morning light (yes, it’s actually been sunny here for almost a FULL week! Cue the drought warnings and mandatory water restrictions), watching Jakey Sellers sleep soundly in the big double bed we’ve been sharing for the last few days. Yes, it is a glamorous life we lead, no doubt. We’ve been in this particular Travelodge for many days on this tour, and have more to come. You’ve already heard my rants on the suburbs, so I’ll not go into it again. Needless to say, the staff here views us with a mixture of alarm and curiosity. We spend lots of hours, wandering around the malls, baiting the local foxes (see here – yes, not actually a great thing to do, we know). But hey, it’s cheap, and we’re cheap, so YAHTZEE!
Let’s catch up. When last I wrote, we were in Aberystwyth, heading to Pontypridd. Pontypridd proved to be our least well-attended gig in Wales, but was nonetheless a great time, and we chatted with some great folks and played some fun tunes. Additionally, I’ll point out how many of our theatres (yes, “theatres”) are so legit in comparison to so many of our gigs. I mean, dressing rooms! Water bottles! Lighting! Ooh la la, we are spoiled!
The next day we had an early start as we had to drive essentially the length of England, from Wales to St Andrews, Scotland – just north of Edinburgh. The thought, by the way, that we would do a drive like this in a single day was anathema to so many folks we spoke to. An 8 hour drive to us, is not so long, mind you, but when it represents 75% of the entire South-North span of your country, I suppose it makes sense. Anyway, it was a long trip, full of so much BBC2 (more on this later), and it ended up taking around 10 hours. We rolled into St Andrews, a beautiful, kind of retirement town, I guess. The Byre Theatre is nearly all volunteer-run (something close to my heart . . . oh WRIR, how I miss thee!), and is just beautiful. The theatre was nearly full, and the crowd was very appreciative. There are a few folk who have come to see us a few times in our tour over here, and it’s just unbelievably flattering to think that what we do resonates enough for someone to go out of his/her way to make a show.
So, after the Byre Theatre, we headed back to the Braehead Travelodge, and have been here for the last three days. On Monday, we went up to the little piece of Texas in the heart of Paisley . . . the Alamo Bar! If you can recall from our previous experiences, the Alamo is a funny little bar that is frequented by Gerald, our road manager, band mother, and worst nightmare. The owner, Chaddy, is a former merchant marine with a real fetish for all things American, specifically Southern, and specifically Texan! Chaddy also bestowed Jake’s scottish washboard – The Albert – upon him. Clearly, this is a quality place.
So, given we had a night off, we were booked into the Alamo, to play for food, drinks, and good times. This is what we got, in spades. There’s some pics of the night – a little grainy – posted on our temporary picture page (i.e. our Facebook page), and you can tell that it was a loose and wild affair. We were steady fed Budvar Beer, from the original Budweiser Brewery (Czech). So much better than Anheiser Busch! In the states it’s called Czechvar, so you should . . . “Czech” it out! Hah! Yuks!
So, anyway, after the gig, there was a little bit of interaction with a wayward fox, outside the hotel. Pics are on the page. Don’t blame Ben and Ed, they were not necessarily fully logical at that time of night.
We had the next day off, which was spent bumming around Glasgow (the Kelvingrove! the Transit Museum!), watching TV, and generally slothing.
Yesterday (Wednesday), we had a couple of little gigs, first of all at a hospice in Johnston. Always rewarding to play these gigs. Enough said about that, in order not to sound like we are altruistic or caring, how would that match with our rockstar image? Anyway, last night, we also had a little pub gig at The Brown Bull, the lovely little pub that we invaded last January (there’s some YouTube footage of it, if you’re interested). Again, a great time, great food, and an enjoyable experience all together.
So, tonight we’re off to the Acoustic Music Club in Kirkaldy, in the Polish Club (HEY!). This, of course, will be a beauteous time. We’ll do our best not to get all liquored up on various Polish alcohols, but we probably won’t succeed.
Anyone who’s got some pics, please post ‘em!
Love,
PF HotSeats
Addendum: Thoughts on BBC2:
Have you heard this station? It is a combination of some of the most saccharine DJ’s, dedicating sappy songs to lonely pensioners, and constant repetition of 70’s and 80’s b-sides. Plus the worst garbage pop hits of today. Kind of like a US classic rock station, except they’re not the hits, for the most part. And then there are these quizzes, mostly revolving around ABBA and the Average White Band, and the “Dirty Half-Dozen,” wherein a listener pics 6 songs they have guilty pleasure about. It was during this little thing that we heard “I Need a Hero,” not ONCE, but TWICE! Anyway, it’s a nationwide station, and Gerry listens to it full blast when we’re on the road. We’re in the back, and , in theory, have our own radio. However, if there’s anything worse than listening to the BBC2, it’s trying to listen to something good, and then battling the BBC2 (and losing).
Basically, what I’m saying is THANK GOD for Clearchannel. Yes, all the stations are essentially the same, but at least you have to scan the dial, and that kills time. . .
