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April 24th 2004
This was probably the most picturesque journey
of the tour so far. It was a bright, clear and sunny day and the
views were just amazing. Because we were travelling at such slow
speeds (because of the roads and the traffic) we had a chance to
take it all in and the cameras were busy. It's almost impossible
to describe the scenery as you criss-cross Norway but I would recommend
you check it for yourself if you have the opportunity.
Up the mountains and down again we finally pulled into Stavanger,
a busy and important port city. The venue was run by students who
really knew what they were doing and they made us very welcome.
It was also next door to the hotel which was a bonus!!
Eventually our "roadies for the day" showed up!! Greg
and Sherri Terhorst had travelled all the way from California (I'm
not kidding!) so I could forgive them for being late, especially
since Greg had left his passport on one of their planes!! (sorry
Greg!)
Set up went smoothly (Petter has become a great stage manager now)
and we were all happy with the sound so we went off to the dinner
that the promoters had organised at a very nice little Italian restaurant.
No time for a nap (actually I was a little bit too excited to sleep)
so a shower instead and back to the venue to get "psyched up"!
Monica had Sherri to help with the merchandise and it was cool that
she was able to see the show from their little selling area. I don't
wear my glasses when I play but I could still make out her image
back there and I think she was dancing so we must've been doing
something right! She has seen this show so many times (well not
this exact show, but you know what I mean) so if she is enjoying
it that's a good sign.
Not only am I learning how to sing but also how to "budget"
my voice so it doesn't burn out. Eating and resting as well as possible
are important and I find myself a bit more focussed on my general
health too. Tonight, somehow, I found new power in my voice and
that gave me the confidence to try new things and it felt good.
Normally (and I remember this from the old days) we would do 4 shows,
a day off etc. so 7 in a row is unusual and requires a lot of extra
care. Maybe I should have tried this a long time ago?? Live and
learn but make sure you live first!
Tonight's show had excellent tempo all through it and the audience
reaction was high-energy from the very beginning. It is pleasing
that we are getting such positive response to the new songs and
the tremendous reaction to When Evening Comes was a real and very
nice surprise.
Apart from Hamar we have been getting very good crowds and that,
along with the great reaction has been really encouraging. The feed-back
to the promoters, the record company and the guest book has been
very positive so maybe we are building something here… that
would be nice… but for now we were able to enjoy another great
gig and EVERYONE was smiling!! That's a good feeling and it was
nice to enjoy the moment.
Hope Greg and Sherri are on time tomorrow :-)
Next day...
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