Melting in Indio

This is a great week to start my new blog.  I had great shows over the weekend and 3 more this week, including one toni.....  uhhh, uhhh ohhhhh!!!!  Opps, sorry.  My neighbors across the way from a different complex are having, uh, playtime (AGAIN!) with the windows wide open (as usual) and all I hear is the female, uh, er, singing, so it is difficult to concentrate.  Yes, I have tried closing my own windows but it pierces right through.  Might I also add it is very hot this summer and none of the town homes have air conditioning? They seem blissfully unaware they even have neighbors and are deaf to those of us who yell at them to shut up.   This goes on for hours.  While I admire the endurance, COME ON ALREADY!!  Sheesh. But, I digress.


Anyway, have you ever had your lunch race through your colon at sonic speed and attempt to exit your body like lightning?  If so, you know what it felt like to make your way to the stage to perform in front of 3,000 people last Saturday night.


My cover band was scheduled to perform opposite a Michael Jackson tribute act at one of our regular gigs in Indio.  The stage is outdoor and this particular day was approximately 117 degrees, hotter than usual.  It cooled a little by dark, however still waaayy too hot.  The many people jammed 5 deep in front of the stage at the Rock Yard made the temp rise even more; all waiting for some form of entertainment to take their mind of the stifling heat.


During our sound check, people were piling in and I started to get the feeling it would be a big night.  Of course, I had no idea how big.  By the time I went upstair to dress for the show and come back down, a time span of about hour and a half, the crowd had multiplied ten fold.  It took me seemingly forever to swim through the bodies to get to the stage.  That's when the Italian Sub I had earlier came knocking at my back door.


Thankfully, I held it together by demanding that my guitar player get the flask of Jack Daniels out of my gig bag for me so I could down a few shots to calm my nerves.  Yeah I've performed in front of thousands of people over my 10+ years, but not at the same time!


After the first set ended, every stitch of make-up had run down my face leading my drummer to call me Alice Cooper.  That's quite a feat considering the type of cosmetics I use are water resistant and run proof.  Ah, so this is what is feels like to shower in your own sweat.  Yuck.  Needless to say, during my break, I ran up to my room, took the ruins of what was my face spackle off and reapplied a new coat of paint before the second set.  Hopefully, the Press at the foot of the stage didn't get too many shots of me sans face paint.... 

All in all, the show was a smash, we killed it, even with a few of my flubs - hey, it was too hot to concentrate!  The crowd was fantastic given the miserable heat and we all had a great time.  I am glad my Dad could be there to see it too.  Yes, Pops comes to all my shows if he can.  He's my biggest fan.