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  May 7th, 2004 - On the Road

Big day today, and it started rather auspiciously, with a major thunderstorm. This blew our plans of putting the small speaker to use for a PA (graciouly donated by Accugroove) on the top of the truckbed cover. We moved it inside, covered the bass (which extends over the tail gate with a tarp, man, this truck holds a ton more than I thought it would) and crunched down for our pix at Michigan & Adams. It was windy, we had trouble keeping our hats on...yikes!

I'd made everyone (including me) put our dough in envelopes, and seal them, in line with our challenge. I'll admit it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be, although Mike tried to keep a $50 in his socks. When he forked it over his total was $66, and he swore he didn't plan it. Other than the weather, the tight quarters and my uptight mood (thinking they were going to mutiny), all was swngin.

We moved on, the skies began to comply and we were happily headed down route 66, which is very well-marked thanks to a lot of people in this state who care about history.

Had lunch at the Launching Pad, a strange futuristic barbeque joint...i know, an oxymoron...wait till you see it.

Played at our first hit, an outpost in Bloomington, a place called the Fox & Hound, we thought it might be a pet groomers, but it was a hair salon, not my usual type of gig. The people were great, treated us right and sent us down of then the road with enough gas money to make it to the state line...thanks Ted & Vicki. We inched over to Funks Grove, which is so happening it could be called funks groove. They make their own maple sirup, spelled that way cause they don't add sugar, nice folks and serene picturesque spot. Then to Springfield. Lew Grigsby was waiting for us, and he has rolled out the red carpet...wow, put us in the route 66 hotel! He also brought us out to the town Dawson, a 500 person swingin little farm town with as many grain silos as people. We ate killer food, were treated like kings and played for many appreciative folks. Lew also brought along his trumpet and his sax playing pal Bob White and we jammed up a storm. Man, if I'd known this was going to be this cool I'd a done this a long time ago. Met up with Palomino Patty, who is the Executive Director Illinois Route 66 Heritage Project (I think she has somethng to do with all the signs, big thanks there, didn't have to stop to ask for directions, not that I would have, and you know how that could end up...PintoPammy ridin shotgun), and she has helped set us up for tomorrow. Between her and Lew we might not get out of Illinois. We are scheduled into the Cozy Dog Drive Inn tomorrow lunch time, known for being the orignator or inventor (do you invent food) of the corn dog, not for jazz or western swing. However, its starting to sound like our kind of gig, then tomorrow night we got an actual night club hit at Lime Street. It's sweet. Keeping my guard up though, got the feeling I might be being set up...more to follow, whipped for now...zzzzz

Quote of the day:
"It's cool, you taking our money" Dan Robbins (Cowbop bass player), surrendering his bank roll first thing in the A.M.

Click here to check out pictures from May 7th