As I write this on Sunday, September 5th, we’re hunkered down at home in St. Pete riding out Hurricane Frances, the largest hurricane diameter-wise in recorded history. So far, there’s been lots of wind and rain, but no major property damage in our area. This was quite a stormy homecoming after our five-week Summer Tour, but we’re really glad to be home!
Our 2004 tour took us to shows in Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, and Tennessee. This was our tenth year at the Cincy Blues Festival (Cincinnati, Ohio), and the rainy weather cleared in time for our 6 PM performance. Liz & I truly enjoyed seeing so many of our friends and fans there, and we had a great time staying with our good friends Les & Lilia Gruseck and their daughter Maya. While at Gruseck’s, we had the chance to get together with our pal Roy Book Binder, his wife Nancy and her sister Maureen; we also had a cookout there with our friends Dave Warford, Mary Ann Kindell, and Dilip Tripithy, courtesy of the Grusecks. Check out the new Cincy 2004 pics on our GALLERY page.
Liz and I did two shows at the Canal House Tavern in Tuscarawas, Ohio- our first time there. It turns out the owner is Liz’s second cousin, so it was a reunion of sorts.
One of the joys of touring is playing in familiar towns where we reunite with old friends and fans. Liz and I had a nice time at our Slippery Noodle show in Indianapolis, where we saw friends Stephanie Griffin, Jim & Kate Kirk, and Jack Bailey, who graciously put us up for the night in his beautiful home (Thanks, Jack).
Also, we had a great two nights at the Marietta Brewing Company in Marietta, Ohio (our old stomping grounds) and at Court Grill (Pomeroy, Ohio), where we reunited with many friends from Southeastern Ohio & Parkersburg, West Virginia. Further, we did two shows at Wild Bill’s New American Grill in Lebanon, Ohio, where we stayed with Liz’s sister Mary and her family.
Liz & I played at Brackins Blues Bar in Maryville, Tennessee for the first time on August 27th (this is a fine blues club with a nice stage & house PA). The Maryville Daily Times did a story on us prior to the gig. We then headed south to Chattanooga, Tennessee for our gig at The Tropicana Room (where we saw our good friend, Dr. Russell Linneman- the “blues doctor”) before heading home.
On Friday, Just before Hurricane Frances hit, Liz & I played our homecoming gig at Dave’s Aqualounge to a great crowd of familiar faces. Among the new songs that we’re now doing is “Straight At Me”, a new tune by our friend Terry Gregory (music by Liz). This new song was well-received on our tour, and people are finding it quite danceable. Liz also has a new original entitled “Last Song”; both of these songs will be on our next album. Further, we’ve introduced our new logo-embroidered blues berets, which come in four colors and are available at our shows.
Among our other upcoming Florida gigs, Liz & I will be performing at the Jazz-Up Dunnellon Festival on September 25th, The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel/Casino (Tampa) on September 13th, and at Classic Wax in Sarasota on September 17th. Please check our DATES page for details. Also, we’ll be going to Brussels, Belgium in late November to play at the Brussels Boogie-Woogie Festival.
That’s all for now- Hope to see you at a show soon and thanks to all who made our tour wonderful!
