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We just completed a glorious10 shows on the west coast.

the last two of the tour are still very fresh on the brain. The crystal ballroom in Portland, oregon and the showbox in seattle. The crystal ballroom is a true VISUAL pleasure. I opened for the cheese there in 1998 and I remember my amazement when I first stepped in the room. First and foremost, the floors are spring loaded. Meaning they literally bounce with just one person jumping up and down. Once you get a bunch people jumping at the same time its pretty amazing. it was a friday night so the energy was high going into the show.

Free Shows Rule

Sponsors pay for everything and the audience pays nothing. It’s an all around win-win. Especially in asheville, north carolina. the weather had a slight briskness to it, as it should, in october. The stage, which was a smaller semi truck style trailer that transforms into a covered stage. The truck pulling it broke down on the way to the show and didn't arrive until 3. The first band, town mountain, played really good bluegrass on the street in front of the stage while it was being transformed. Eoto then played a super cool, improvised, electronic, dance music.

West Coast

I love the west coast. When I was 16 or 17 wearing a skinny tie and blazer with the sleeves pushed up and sitting on stool playing eagles and r.e.m. covers on a back patio of a restaurant that was big enough for 4 tables that could hold 12 people that was usually

"On my way"

" My manager took this to document my first time FLYING .........to a dead show.

The Dead Reunion for Barack Obama

The show began on time with the allman brothers. Classic, tight, intertwining guitar harmonies and super strong vocals from gregg allman. It was truly exciting to see the original members of the dead onstage having fun. Bill Kreutzmann, especially. There was a super positive dance-y vibe coming from both drummers, which pushed the songs along with an unexpected, but welcomed vigor. Warren haynes takes the mvp. Two hours of allman brothers licks and tones and then another two and a half hours of totally different playing styles and different tones with the dead.

Grunge grass: A novelty project playing bluegrass versions of alternative radio hits from the 90's

I have to explain it like that because I couldn't come up with a whole set from just the "grunge" era that I liked enough to spend time learning. The weird thing is, I wasn't really into these songs when they were popular and being crammed down our throats on radio and TV. Times were different then. Massive airplay meant massive record sales. Which means a lot of people know this music. When I road test a few of these songs, it is clear that folks know this stuff way better than I. It’s surprisingly easy to transform these songs into bluegrass songs.

The one that got away!

We almost lost our gear on the way to the Barrymore Theatre in Madison, WI on Sept. 24, 2008"
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