Hey There everyone, Coming to you from I-95 in Florida on our way to the show tonight at the FU-Bar in Ft. Lauderdale. Everything is going great. The first week of the tour came and went with over 2,100 miles under our belt. Let's see what I can remember...

glitter vinyl

camo truck wrap

car wrap black matte

matte black wrap

chrome vinyl wrap

Let's see. Laurel Aitken, the Godfather of Ska, flies in from England and meets all the band. On the books are a 5 week tour with Laurel Aitken and Boston's own The Allstonians. The tour would give the Allstonians a set of their own material, followed by a short intermission, and then they would return to back The MAN for a full set. The Allstonians prepare by scouring tapes and cds: listening and learning the material. The legend rehearses at the Allstonians space in the Fenway everyday for the next three days. In addition to the 'regular' repertoire of hits in Laurel's deep catalog, Laurel is excited about the band and wants to try some new songs, as well as changing up some old songs, presenting them in a different style.

Thursday, July 8th- The first show of the tour, starting off in our hometown at the Middle East. I am bringing Laurel from his hotel in Brookline to the Middle East, as we are leaving the hotel, a family of four with two teenage daughters enters the hotel lobby. I notice that one of the girls is wearing a Less Than Jake T-shirt which I point out to Laurel. He asks me about them and I tell him about the Gainesville, Florida punk/ska band that has really made the cross-over to popular music & commercial radio to a great extend. Also, I tell Laurel that they (along with the Bosstones, No Doubt, Reel Big Fish) are a big reason for Ska resurgence and media attention in the United States over the past 2 years. I can't help but think to myself how ironically oblivious this girl is walking past this living ska legend. The first show has a lot of friends in the house and everyone if filled with excitement. First up is Boston's own Take 5 who have been emerging as a trad ska band w/ a soulful feel complete with an Austin Powers like lead singer. Next up the Allstonians hit it hard with their set and features regulars Nigel and Steve who will not be going on the tour. After a warm set, the band retires to the dressing to talk to Laurel and get a set list for this first show. The band is excited, yet nervous. Many, if not all of the Allstonians, consider Laurel a legend, and now a dream is about to come true. The set goes quite well with a few minor problems (mostly tempo) which the fans don't notice and Laurel solves easily. In addition to his crowd pleasing favorites ("Sally Brown", "Rudi Got Married", "Mad About You", "Boogie In My Bones"), Laurel starts the show with a bluesy style of "Hey Bartender". The set also includes a new song Laurel has never performed live before called "Latin Ska". The crowd demands and receives a 3 song encore and everyone leaves satisfied. The Allstonians stop and take a moment after the show to soak in the magic and understand the significance of this tour. Memebers scramble home for a few last hours with loved ones before we leave tomorrow, not returning for 5 weeks.

Friday, July 9 - The Beachcomber, Wellfleet, MA - Well, being a Friday in summer and trying to get to the cape over the ("5 mile backup") Sagamore Bridge, we leave around 1 pm to beat the traffic. We spend some time at my mothers house just relaxing and talking for a couple of hours before we head up to Wellfleet for the show. For those who have never been at the Beachcomber, it is a real pleasure to play there. This establishment has been a mecca of summertime fun and music for outer cape residents for years, being the only established venue that can and does (occasionally) bring in national acts. Although the club is exclusively 21+, underage fans often gather outside on the beach to listen to the music and watch through the windows behind the stage which gives a great view of the back of the band. While The Beachcomber does attract great talent, the crowd they bring in is much more tourist based out to have fun, a lot of the times not even knowing the band or the style of music which they paid $5-$10 to come experience'. The Beachcomber crowd loves the Godfather and there is no stopping him as he storms through a 4 song encore while the club turns the lights up to signal the curfew. No rest for the weary, we drive right from the show to New York City for an early show in Central Park.

Saturday, July 11 - New York City - We arrive in the city around 9am and go straight to the hotel for a few hours of rest before loading into the Summerstage in Central Park on the upper east side. By the way, the Empire Hotel is a union hotel which means the bellmen get paid $4.10 for every bag they carry and you are not allowed to carry your own bags in....sounds like a scam to me. We avoid the costly doorman by breaking up into smaller groups and entering the hotel separately (shhhh, don't tell them). The summerstage is an annual event which brings music to the people of the city for free (most of the time) and through the generousity of their sponsors (thanks for the cold Heinekens!) Well, even though the weather is overcast, we set up and avoid any rain. Today we only do Laurel's set, so the backing boys have no warm up time per se. The crowd swells to 2-3,000 people with a large contingent of skas and skins right up front! The Spanish "Perfidia" and "Caladonna" go over particular well. A roar from the crowd erupts when Laurel announces "This song was the first Jamaican Hit" as the knowledgeable fans knew he was about to kick into "Boogie In My Bones." The song was recorded as a double A-side b/w "Little Sheila" in 1959 and was the first ever release from a new record label called Island Records started by Chris Blackwell. We return to the hotel and people choose to enjoy the evening, sleep, or visit with friends. Thanks to Steve from Moon for bringing Laurel a couple of new Pork Pie hats the Laurel requested (they did such a great job last time!)

Sunday, July 12 - New York City - We leave the hotel around 1pm to load into the Wetlands located in TriBeCa. The Wetlands has built up a name as an environmentally friendly venue who try to promote various ecological causes by a multitude of petitions and educational information available throughout the venue. This show I am really looking forward to because also playing it is The Porkers, all the way from Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. The Porkers have been around since the early 1990's and have lead the ska scene down under. Pete Porker, the lead singer started his own record label called Sound System Records which also is the ska source for the island-continent. Well, The Porkers had come to the USA to play 10 dates on the Vans Warped tour from Texas, through California up to Seattle and Vancouver, they then flew to NYC to drive to Providence for a show w/ The Agents then to Boston w/ Bim Skala Bim. Today is their last US show. Well, the Porkers show up late while the Allstonians are on stage. The crowd is a little bit timid for the start of the sets, but they surely warm up. The Porkers have a great lineup, in addition to their 3 piece horn section, bass, drums, guitar and singer, they also bring "The Porkman", whose sole job is to entertain the fans and/or the band. He is dressed in Mexican wrestling mask and he would also join in on lyrics. Apparently The Porkman was dressed only in a duct-tape G-string in Boston the night before. Well, the Porkers rock hard and then Laurel hits the stage to a frenzied crowd who get the Godfather singing and dancing I have yet to see. The show was great, Laurel did a 5 song encore. Also, his set included another new song called "Rude Boy Dream". After the show, we say goodbye to the Porkers and hit up the Odessa Diner in the East Village before starting our mammoth overnight drive to Savannah, GA.

Monday, July 12 - Savannah, GA - Savannah is a quite old southern town, but in the past 10 or so years (I would guess) the downtown area has become very depressed. Lots of blocks of boarded up buildings and not much concentration of activity right outside the small market square downtown. We are booked at the Velvet Elvis, a small cozy club who has a great owner, Sara, originally from Brighton, England. Well, we get in around 3 pm and go to the Howard Johnson's where I had reserved 3 rooms for us. When I go into the office, I am met by two workers who say that "Check In isn't until 4pm". Well, I said I had requested an early check in for us and let them know we were staying there two night. "We can't guarantee early check-in" they replied with an attitude. I inquired about how on a Monday in Savannah, I found it odd that with less than an hour before official check-in time, that the housekeeping staff would not have at least finished some rooms. Sensing that they might have to work and leave the viewing area of the Jerry Springer show in the lobby, they decided to say come back in an hour. I decided to go next door to the Thunderbird Inn where I promptly checked in with a very friendly female desk clerk named Josh, for less then half the price. The Thunderbird has real character, and hosts a giant 50 foot American Indian-style bird sign. I return to HJ to cancel my reservations, they briefly look up from Jerry Springer. We all rest for several hours then head out to eat and load in the club. We start loading in and the first contact is with the sound guy, Gill, who is apologizing for the sound system, and says they can't mic everything. No worries, we've seen it before, we'll see it again. The Allstonians go on around 11pm and by the end of their closing songs ("Spike" & "B-Train To Allston) the crowd is dancing. I let Gill know, while Laurel is sitting right there, that Laurel really likes a lot of vocals and some bass in his monitors so he can hear the songs. Well, once again, the sound guy jumps into an apologetic triad saying the system can't handle it, and a lot of back talk and excuses. He leaves and Laurel knows this isn't going to be one of those good sound on stage night. During the course of his set, Laurel continually asks for more monitors which don't happen, and the sound guy is spending more time drinking beer, smoking, talking to his friends, hanging outside. Occasionally, I do see the sound guy at the board. I go up to the board, and find out he is tape recording the set, which is not cool. A lot of times, artist don't have a problem if the sound guys tapes, as he can see how his skills (or lack there of in this case) come out, but they usually ask for permission first, which is the professional way. I had previously asked if there was a way to record off the board and he said NO. So now I find him taping the show off the board which can't be done, according to him. Well, I confront him, he starts back-peddling, say "oh, it didn't come out ...ahhhh....I was trying to see if I could tape it for you, .... ahhh... I was going to give it to you, yeah that' the ticket...." A load of bullshit. I take the tape, which actually comes out pretty good on later listen. Meanwhile, sound problems continue to go wrong on stage. The sound guy now comes to me and tells me what's wrong. I guess I just expected him to do his job. I'm not the sound engineer, why the hell are you telling me. Just fix it. Its obvious he can't so I have to step in and do his job too. He gets all defensive and goes running to Sarah when I suggest he do his job instead of insuring that his beer is always full. During the encore, Sarah asks Laurel if he can do "It's Too Late" which he does and dedicates it to her. At the end of the night, a 18-something girl down from Pennsylvania comes to ask for a picture of Laurel holding a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon, as she had requested of all the Allstonians. Laurel is very nice and agreeable with her and insists on a picture for HIS collection in addition her pix that she takes with him. They talk for quite a while and Laurel promises to send her a record of his and she promises to write him. The whole time, the young lass is in total awe of the situation, talking to him, her eyes wide and with a permanent grin on her face. A friend of her's emerges and says they've been waiting for an hour for her and as she leaves I her say to her friend "THAT was soooo cool!". There is Laurel, making fans one at a time. We all look forward to the day off tomorrow.

Tuesday, July 12 - Savannah, GA - Today is errands day, getting all the stuff we discover we need. Tubs for merchandise, misc personal supplies, food, and of course, beverages to enjoy the All-Star game taking place at Fenway Park, merely 2 blocks from The Allstonians rehearsal space. Laurel enjoys watching the game while some of the band goes to see Star Wars, and others head out for some billiards.

Wednesday, July 13 - The drive to Tallahassee is only about 5 hours so we head out around noon. We stop at the hotel, drop Laurel off, then go load in at the Cow Haus, which is the noon for its ska shows. The sound guy there is the guitarist from local ska band Baccone Dolce so we talk about a lot of ska while loading in. A quick van trip to eat puts us at a 50's style driving in complete with ordering consoles at the drivers window. The only thing missing was the roller skates on the waitresses. The show goes well, with local band the Double Deckers.

Thursday, July 14 - Head to Ft. Lauderdale and encounter a closed section of the Florida turnpike due to an oil spill. Luckily the 20 mile detour went quickly with not many delays. We arrive at the FU-Bar and discover that the promoter had added a fourth band in addition to the Double Agents, so know we will be playing later. Laurel breaks out "Al Capone" for the first time and also surprises the band in "Train To Skaville." Normally, Laurel says "Hit me 1 time... Hit me 2 times ... Hit me 3 times... hit me 4 times" and the band responds to his calling. He often throws in a "Hit me 15 times" and the band bangs out 15 accents. Tonight, Laurel was feeling good and he calls an audible and goes "Hit me 100 times" the band starts banging it out all looking at each other smirking while also wondering if they would really go all the way to 100 notes. The crowd is full of skins, and at one point during the 3rd song, a skin is knocked to the floor unconscious. They lift him up and the Laurel says "music - music" and they band goes back into "Perfidia". At the end of the show, as Laurel is crowded around by autograph seekers at just outside the side door, we see a scuffle ensue and unfortunately these two stupid skins who were fighting were unaware of their surroundings and proceeded to knock over a young gentlemen in wheelchair who head starts bleeding profusely. Despite the problems at the end of the night outside the club, the show goes very well. While perusing the options of accommodations, we find a Day's Inn that features a Tiki Bar, we know that's for us. Although we find out the Tiki Bar is not open due to lack of staffing, and the desk clerk wasn't open to the self-serve idea.

Now driving to New Orleans after playing Orlando last night. I will start with Orlando next update.

Well folks, We are currently in the midst of our 24 hour drive from Austin to Los Angeles. No rattlesnake or scorpion sightings yet, perhaps I should not have the band playing hide and seek barefoot in the desert...

Friday July 16 - Orlando - We drive up from Ft. Lauderdale and stop by my friend Tom's house to pick up some stuff that was sent to him for us. Tom is my old college friend, we lived together for three or so years in Winter Park, right outside Orlando. Tom just recently has surgery to remove 2 disks from his spine, and he had 3 vertebrae fused together (and a metal plate put in to support everything) as a result of an aggressive day wake boarding with the his wife Jodie and his two children. I guess they went through his neck to operate and now he has a cool scar to show, at least once he gets the neck brace off. It was good to see him and I hope he gets well soon. We then drive to the club, the Sapphire Super Club in downtown Orlando and load in and do a quick sound check at which time Laurel runs through a couple new songs with the Allstonians including "Stand By Me." The club is a beautiful place, with some Moroccan like furniture and wall coverings. They also provided us with some hotel rooms at the Harley Hotel, just around the corner from the club. Orlando is my old stomping ground, so when we need some musical equipment, I take a couple of the guys to Thorobred Music (just bought by Sam Ash) on Lee Road who always have a great inventory and are very helpful and knowledgeable. Tonight shows is probably the best show up to this point. A great turnout from fans, and the club had recently undergone some improvements so there is actually a dressing room now instead of changing in the kitchen. Jamie Bogner from Ska-Tastrophe Magazine (last issue featured Laurel Aitken on the cover with a killer picture of him on a vespa) was supposed to DJ before and between the sets, however, the turntables never arrived, leaving Jamie more time to talk with Laurel and enjoy a few libations. The set was great! The Allstonians have played here twice before, just last year and then about 4 years ago as well. The set included several first time songs including "Come Dun" and "You Got Me Rocking" (a Laurel original), and during the encore rendition of "Skinhead," the stage became a dancing ground for about 15 skins. Also in attendance this evening, was an Indian man named Ram who actually promoted some Scandinavian shows for Laurel several years go. Although he was very nice, it was a little annoying that he kept requesting to introduce Laurel at the beginning of the show. I had to shoot him down, as the Allstonians always start playing "Hey Bartender" before Laurel reaches the stage, and D-Train, who usually introduces him, was already on stage playing, so it would have been too confusing. Laurel did dedicated "Negro" to Ram and his wife, at which point, Ram decided to clap along to EVERY SINGLE BEAT of the song and yells loudly, especially during the quite refrains. I also had to nix his idea of going on stage and dancing, as no one else in the crowd knows he is special' and would view that as an open invitation to everyone to come on stage. With the show behind us, we relax and try to catch some sleep as we are leaving at 7am for the 12 hour drive to New Orleans, however, a bleary eyed Jamie Bogner, slunk off into the darkness at 4:30am.

Saturday July 17th - New Orleans. Everyone tries to accrue more sleep time on the van ride across the Florida panhandle and through the nubs of Alabama and Mississippi. We pull into town around 6pm in time to check into the hotel and then go load in at Jimmy's Music Hall. I had come through Jimmy's before about 2 years with The Pietasters, Pilfers and Royal Crowns, so I knew the room. The club was sold to Scott back in April and he has put some serious efforts into making it a higher profile club. The cool thing here, off to the side of the stage is an alley that leads outside and then into a band house with two large living rooms for the band. Really spacious area, and a nice place to chill. Also, you gotta love that they have 3 refrigerators and 2 cools spread out between the band house and the side of the stage all stocked with various beers welcoming the band. Well, opening the night was a local band RF7, who went from Two Tone to swing to rock. Once again, it was amateur night for the sound guys. While the owner was nice enough to bring in extra equipment for the show, he explained to me that he rents the sound system on a monthly basis and the sound guys are hired by the sound company, in tonights case, we have Eddie. Well, we should have taken a hint when it took this guy almost 2 hours to wire the stage and do a sound check. Now, if you recall the Savannah story, I still am not a sound engineer, and it was pretty clear this guy also fit that category. Due to immense feedback and ear piercing decibels, the "sound guy" cut the sound to the room about 4 or 5 times trying to figure out what was going wrong, mean while, the sudden silence was only broken by the shrieks of the audience followed by the music coming directly coming from the amps on the stage. I was one of three people running to the sound board manned by the 'sound tech'. The other two being Scott, the club owner and Mike, the lead singer from RF7 who also does sound at Tiputina's, who I met coming through two a couple years before. Well, that was a good indication to finish the set and let them solve the problem. At that point, that may have been the last moment that Eddie was actually working for the club. Mike, was immediately deputized to do sound for the Laurel set, and thank god. After that, everything went very smoothly. Big Kudos to Mike for making it work. Scott asks me if both Laurel and the Allstonians would be willing to sign their respective publicity photos for the club. I, of course, say yes but point out to him that the Allstonians press photo he has only shows one person who is on this tour: D-Train. He throws the pix out while I go get Laurel's autograph. While loading out, a local musician tells us www.yoyiwc.net a story about how he got shot right where we were loading the trailer. A sudden quiet happens, followed by everyone quickly spinning their heads around in a nervous glance to their surroundings. We pack quickly. The ride back to the hotel brings a in-depth Voodoo discussion as the interior dome light pops on by itself and refused to go off. Also on the ride back, Matt claims to have seen a old roadster whose roof was sculpted into a giant skull. No one else could confirm it.... We get back to the hotel about 3am, early for New Orleans, but no one braves the lure of the Big Easy and we crash.

Sunday July 18 - New Orleans to Houston, TX - A few of the guys get up early to venture to the French Quarter and the world famous Burbon Street. While shopping at Walgreens, Laurel enjoys a t-shirt worn by a tourist which says "Hold My Beer While I Kiss Your Girlfriend." The Burbon Street scouts return and report that smell of Burbon Street on a Sunday morning is the same toxic fumes that occupy the Allstonians rehearsal space. We arrive at Fitzgerald's in Houston just in time to load in during a downpour (this would be the 2nd of 3 straight nights we load-in while its raining). Fitzgerarld's is a landmark concert venue that was started back in the mid to late 1970's and used to be a regular spot for Stevie Ray Vaughan to play in the late 1970's. The place has undergone some great upgrades since I was last there. What used to be broken down wood building with exposed wires and a large 3 foot hole out the side of the men's bathroom has now been improved. They changed and added additional dressing room, the stage is better, the bathrooms were re-done, all in all very good change. We are greeted with a treat when we arrive, we find that the house sound engineer is none other that Boston's own Mr Ed, AKA: Eddie Venteroso, who had just moved down the previous month for the job. Seeing him was great, however, we find out that his grandmother just passed away that afternoon, and he is flying back to Boston tomorrow. We are all very sorry to hear that and offer our condolences. Well, the crowd for Houston is light until Laurel hits the stage, rallying all the skins from the parking lot now full of empty beer bottles. We also meet Anna, a lovely young lady from Houston (originally born in St. Croix) with whom we share mutually friends. Anna offers and helps us out selling merchandise during the set. It's always good having a beautiful girl behind the merch counter with a room full of skinheads. Big shout out to Anna!

Monday July 19 - San Antonio. After bad traffic jams, construction, and one particular asshole that refused to let anyone pass him, we arrive at Hootnanny's on North St. Marys, a couple blocks north of the White Rabbit, my only other San Antonio experience. We time it perfectly so we arrive just at the club for a major down pour. No one really knew what to expect tonight, Laurel's first time in and the date was originally supposed to be 2 days later (and appeared in one of the papers as such). Jeff, the club owner was very nice and provided a great club and was very easy going. Tonights set was probably one of the best as far as musicianship, songs, and fan reaction (not including the fight between two skinhead girls during "Mad About You"). Since the proximity of San Antonio is close to Mexico, there is a large Spanish speaking population which Laurel acknowledge by talking exclusively in Spanish between songs. After the show, Matt, Zack, Eric and Morgan hung out in the parking lot across from the venue with about 30 skins. The post show party was pretty humorous as both Zack and Eric almost got beat up. First up, Eric (or "the hippy" as we affectionately call him) was challenged why he was wearing sandals. They confronted him, but his answer that he wasn't hippie, but in fact, he was a SURFER! That was enough to satiate their well-numbed brains. Later, someone threw a bottle near some other people and when someone demanded to know its source, two kids behind Zack implicate him. Matt, who had befriended some the skins early on was able to calm everything down.

Tuesday July 20th - Austin, TX - Finally a day with a short drive. The hour and a half drive ends at this great cafeteria style barbecue called "Rudy's" where we meet D-Train's parents. They are really nice and later in the evening I hammer Darrell's mom for embarrassing early Darrell stories. After lunch, we go to do laundry and try to rid our clothes of the evil spirits that have been slowly creeping in the fabrics. Next a quick stop at a large Salvation Army thrift store and big scores for everyone, we head to Emo's in downtown Austin. Austin is always a BIG music city and a LATE city, with bands rarely starting before 10 and often going well past 2am. This would be no different. Emo's is right at the beginning of 6th Street, the main drag that houses tons on music clubs and bars. The corner it is on (Red River & 6th) also seems to be particularly good for certain businesses, as throughout our time there, there were no less than 10 young black men hanging on the corners who would routinely walk away when a police car would drive by. The venue itself is sort of an half-indoor/half-outdoor venue with half of the place and stage covered, while the other half is open and has full grown trees shooting up out of the floor. Tonight is Tuesday so several places has drink specials such as 50 cent drafts to $1 beer and free billiards, we a few of us take advantage of. We had a lot of help with this show from Jim at Heart & Soul Sound System, who was also spinning vinyl between sets. Also on the bill were two local bands. The first was called the Oi!sters (oysters) and played a solid set of Oi! The other band was called McClaremont (sp?) Avenue named after the road where the famous Stax Records studio was located in Memphis (home to Booker T & The MGs). They brought a lovely Hammond B-3 and full Leslie cabinet, which are both huge, two person moving necessity, which gave their soul sound a welcome addition to the show. Anna from Houston comes to the show and kicks Eric out from doing merch. Laurel finally hit the stage about 1:15AM and when it was all over at almost 2:30, we had done "Negro" twice, and had been called back for two encores, ending with "Its Too Late." We pack up with a few band members guarding all the equipment while twenty yards away our actions were eyed by the young entrepreneurs who would continually walk past us and then return while visually inspecting everything sitting on the sidewalk. We stop to get something to eat at Katz Deli, which we find out is NOT related to the famous NYC one, although it copies it down to several details. Then, we climb into the van at 4am to set off for Los Angeles, a mere 24 hours of driving and two time zones away....

Wednesday July 21 - (Austin, TX - Phoenix, AZ) Drive drive drive drive drive drive drive.... Drive about 18 hours straigth with a few stops for gas, food, and bathroom. MAN is Texas a huge state. We had to go almost 800 miles on I-10 just to get out of it! We cross through New Mexico and the terrain is pretty wild, long, flat, with some rocks, cliffs and cacti. The drives are straight. We pull into Tuscon to eat and then continue on to Phoenix where we rest for the evening.

Thurday July 22 - (Phoenix, AZ to Los Angeles, CA) Our gaurdian angel watching over our driving is a small "Big Boy" figurine with one of those spring-loaded bobbing head so when we hit bumps he goes wild. With velcro attached to his base and the dashboard, he can see what is coming up ahead or he can chill out and look back at the band during our drives. Well, the hotel we stay at is right next door to a brand new Big Boy restaurant and we all go there to eat and Matt triumpantly totes his "Big Boy" into the restuarant which is meet with curiosity and amazement, not only by the employees. We enjoy a good breakfast and then once again climb into the (now somewhat aromically challenged) van. Arizona does not observe daylights savings times, and with the time zone changes, everyone is unsure of the exact local time. We all agree that Arizona should change to make it easier for us, but still no word back from the legislature yet.... We stop by the Joshua Tree National Park and unsucessfullly explore for rattlesnakes, scorpions and tarantualas before we get into LA around 10 PM. We decide to stay just outside of downtown at the Hollywood Inn Express (formerly the Cape Cod Inn). As we will be in the Southern California area until Tuesday, we want to stay somewhere somewhat central and somewhere cheap! Well, the hotel does seem to do a brisk business, and there are quite a few 'working women' who seem to also choose that location, makes for good entertainment out the windows. While disconnecting the trailer from the van (a nightly ritual at this hotel's small parking lot) we discover the U-Haul lighting wires had pulled out and dragged (for who knows how long) totally removing all six connector pins. We'll deal with that tomorrow. Scott, a close friend of mine and D-Train's (way back to the Steady Earnest days) who recently moved out here from Boston last year, comes to the hotel. We then head out to eat and eventually end at Barney's Beanery where we are greeted with "You better not be French!". (Seems they don't like the rude foreigners who do not know he meaning of tipping) Barney's is a great place to eat, huge menu with all sorts of choices (too many), cheap, good atmosphere and they have killer chili. This is a landmark establishment on Santa Monica Blvd and reminds some of the band of the Deli Haus in Kenmore Square, but much, much larger. After dinner and a few pints, we retire for the early load in tomorrow.

Friday July 23 - (Los Angeles) Time to run some errands such as dropping off the bands suits for dry cleaning to try to loss some of the 'personality' it has assimulated over the past two weeks. We find the mecca of all dry cleaners in Hollywood who offers 1 hour dry cleaning 7 days a week, and pretty cheap too. Score. Then off to load in at the Key Club on West Sunset Boulvard, right near the Roxy, the House of Blues, and the Whiskey, all famous live music venues. The Key Club holds mixed feelings, as this is where the Skatalites were performing last November when Roland Alphonso calapsed on stage and was rushed to the hospital in a coma. He never recovered. I had always wondered what the place looked like and now I would see. Well, I don't know what sort of morbid aura I was expecting, but after the initial walk through, I tried to switch into business mode and think of this as just another venue. We were all looking forward to playing LA, as many of us have friends here, while others where looking forward to a professional room with professional sound people, something that would contunally present challenges along the tour. Tonights show is with a local band called The Dynamics, who played a jazzy-rocksteay sound, and has 2-Tone Ted in it. It is another early show (must make room for the all dressed in black asians and europeans after the show) so both the Dynamics and the Allstonians play to a "waiting for Laurel" crowd. Due to the fact that the merchandise was downstairs and Ted (formerly of Eastern Standard Time) had promised us to watch the merch during our set yet walked off leaving 2 Allstonians waiting for his return. Meanwhile, the club tells the remaining Allstonians that they have to go on right now, so 3/4 of the band start into "Elevator" while the other two give up and quickly pack everything up and manage to make it to the stage before the end of the song. (Thanks for nothing Ted.) The set goes on and then Laurel's set kicks ass. While we pack and load out, plenty of dancers and models start strolling into the dressing room, as this will be there pad for the next 6 hours. Amoung other random events today: John went to where his trumpet was hand made 9 years ago for a quick (and gratis) repair, Dr. No enjoyed all the talent at Jumbo's Clown Room, Zack picked up a couple Sublime cds that Laurel heard us play in the van, a reorganization of all the merch, an appearance by Drew Barrymore, and Laurel's friend from San Diego comes up to spend some time with him, and we hang with a couple more friends of GLEN!

Saturday, July 24 - (Southern California) No one wants to get up early, but The Allstonians are slated to play on The Ska Parade Radio show today which is broadcast from KUCI-FM in Irvine, (Univerisity of Cal @ Irvine). We are up and out of the hotel by 9:30 AM for the drive and load into the small pre-fabed dwelling around 11am. The show is broadcast from noon to 2pm on KUCI and also the web, then it is rebroadcasted on a X103, a commercial station, on Sunday nights. The Ska Parade is one of the oldest established ska radio station and just about every major ska band had played a live set on the air, resulting so far in two compilations on cd. This is the second time I have been to the Ska Parade (the first a couple years ago w/ Bim Skala Bim & The Royal Crowns) so I've know Tazy for several years. The show goes off without a hitch and we leave to go back to LA to collect Laurel and then head off to Pomona for the evening's show. The club in Pomona is call The Vault Club (former bank building) and the promoter, Eric, is very friendly and helpful. We talk about how he has been involved in the reggae scene for years as promoter and also as Editor/Publisher of Reggae-Nucleus Magazine, a nice free color glossy cover zine that is subtitled "California's Reggae adn Ska Magazine." In fact, Eric give me a recent issue with the cover story "Living Legends" which features pix of our man Laurel, along with the likes of Derrick Morgan, Marcia Griffiths, and Ken Lazarus amung others. I could tell that Eric is a friend of musicians first, and a promoter second by the way he was so attentive to making sure we had everything we needed. He also took us to an authentic Jamaican restuarant for dinner, before the show. The show had been billed with 3 opening acts, including last nights' Dyanmics. This would be yet another amateur night as far as sound crew goes. I knew it was shady to even try a sound check w/ 3 other bands on the bill PLUS the guy who was setting up the equipment would not be doing sound that evening, so it wouldn't help us any. The sound problems started to develop during Rocksteady Society's short openning set. The second band no-showed, and the Dynamics were due next, until they realized that their bass player was not going to make this show (it was supposed to be his last). So, with an hour to kill between the first band and the Allstonians, we try to make the sound system opperational to little results. The owner of the bar was trying to do it, plus there two other guys who were supposed to be sound engineers. Basically, the monitors didn't work, nothing was going through the house, and what was going through the house was a lot of feedback. The crowd was pretty subdued for the forty minute "check one two" solo from stage. So, finally with a semi-working system in place, the Allstonians start the set. I spend the next 10 minutes running back and forth between the stage and the sound board trying to correct problems. At one point, D-train is so perterb by the problems, he goes to run off the stage to get the 'soundman' but unfortunately his efforts are sidetracked by an unseen step and a resulting faceplant into the drum riser into a roll down the stairs. Meanwhile, another of the living legend featured in the magazine, Ken Lazarus, came to the show and talked with Laurel. From what Laurel tells me, Ken was very prominent in Jamaica in the 60s as a writer/performer/producer who was somehow affliated with Byron Lee and the Dragonaires. Well, Ken looks the part of the authentic old skool jamaican that he is with dreads below shoulders and a easy going manner. Laurel adds another song to our set (first time performed live w/ Allstonians) called "Bad Minded Woman" dedicated to Karina, his friend from San Diego. All in all, a pretty good show depsite the sound problems. Sunday July 25 - (Los Angeles) A DAY OFF! Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaahh! Well, we all were looking forward to having a day off in LA, except for Caleb who discovers that the hotel maids perpatrated a massive conspiracy against Caleb to steal his non-essential personal toiletry items. Matt, Caleb, John and Eric head off to Disneyland, Dave takes off with a friend, Morgan and Laurel chill at the hotel while Zack, Darrel and I head off exploring. First down to Long Beach, home of Sublime, who is on regular rotation in the van. Next up the coast to Santa Monica with stops at some record and thrift stores. We buy a couple of weird looking band demos and few mixed tapes at the thrift store for 75 cents each to bring a sense of unknown into out musically community. A few of the tapes are destined to be recorded over, and given a new life. While driving, we start a tally of many different and prominent donut brand stores which would eventually exceed 20. There must be a lot of cops in Southern California. A stop in Santa Monica and then back to the hotel to pick up Laurel to try to catch up with an old friend of his: Jimmy Cliff, who is playing tongiht at the House of Blues. We were able to secure a couple spots on the industy list thanks to Eric, the promoter in Pomona, and his connections with Reggae Nucleaus Magazine, thanks Eric! So, Laurel, Zack, Dave, Dtrain and I head down to the Sunset Strip to the Hob, where Laurel had played on his last tour, about 3 months earlier. We get the first wristband to allow us access to the Foundation Room, an 'industy only' VIP room, but Zack and mines are removed by the second guard because we were wearing the dreaded (& banned) shorts. We all then get a second wristband to get into the club where I find Jimmy's tour manager and let him know that Laurel is in the house and would like to say helo to Jimmy after the show (since he was in meditation and just about to go on). I also try to find a House of Blues authority person to allow Laurel a seat in the VIP area as he can't stand during the show. My quest carries me all over the Hob, at one point, next to the stage entrance backstage where Jimmy was doing his strecting exercises about 5 feet away while the MC was introducing him. I didn't disturb him, as I know a lot of performers get 'in the zone' immediately prior to going on stage. Back up to the VIP seating area where the hostess accomadates us with an empty table right on the rail. She tells us that that is "No Doubts" table and if they show up we may have to move. I think to myself that I would like to see that, having Gwen show up and meet the Godfather. I'm sure she would be cool and probaably knows and has the upmost respect for Laurel, but I still find it somewhat ironic to enjoy the show at their 'table'. The show is incredible with Jimmy going off vocally and physcally including splits on stage. Laurel really likes "Many Rivers to Cross," a cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World," "I Can See Clearly Now" and of course "The Harder They Come." JImmy also during the set and for one encore comes armed playing a red, left-handed gibson guitar. I also find the bass player is going at it with a six string bass. The second encore has all the band members sitting and playing congos for a percussion filled "Rivers to Babylon" followed by "Sitting In Limbo." After the show, Laurel and I catch up to Jimmy's brother and tour manager at the dressing room where many of the band members and others are "No way, Laurel Aitken, holy shit!" We then go to Jimmy's private dressing room but discover that Jimmy had gone back to the hotel across the street so we give him a call. Laurel talks to him for about 15 minutes and Jimmy told him that he heard Laurel was there but he didn't believe it, as they haven't seen each other in 20 years. When Jimmy Cliff first left Island Records, he was having a tough time professionally and Laurel booked and promoted several of his shows over in Britian, so they've been friends and business associates for a long time. It was fun sitting in the dressing room listening to Laurel speaking Jamaican to Jimmy and hearing them talk about old stories. Jimmy is leaving the next day to Japan and has his family with him (including his 7 year old daughter who graced the stage as a dancer for several songs in the set) and it was not a good time to stop over and see him in person (too bad!). We pile back into the van, head back to hotel and all agree that watching a show is better than working a show. Everyone also enjoyed the free day, and as Laurel put it: "It was great not having Grant telling me when to go." Ahhh, no respect....

Monday July 26 - (San Diego) We leave LA early to head down to San Diego for tonights show. We also want to check out this record store that we had heard about and (2Tone) Ted gave us directions to so we drive down I-5 until Encintas then go a half mile and find Lou's Records. The place is more like a complex with two different buildings, one for new and one for used stuff. The band all piles out to inspect the goods and Laurel is seized upon by one of the buyers who then takes him back to the office to sign all the Laurel Aitken cds they have in stock. The used store is pretty impressive with several rows of ska and reggae. The new selections barn is incrediblly huge! They have over 4 feet of just Lee Perry cds (that is spine width only so probably about 100 cds or so). They also have a large vinyl collection and several boxes of singles, including a few originals and many re-issues. Zack and Matt both scored the biggest pile of records, with Morgan right behind. Everyone (except for Caleb) bought music there, and the guy from the store hooked Laurel up with a couple Yellowman cds he was interested in. So an hour and a half later, I still have to drag people out of the store so we can continue down to San Diego. The show tonight is very sketchy. Originally, we were set to play the Showcase, but that just recently shut down, leaving us with an off day. So we ended up getting this last minute gig in the Empire Club, but were are tentative, as they have had less than a week to promote the show, let alone being a Monday night. Kevin is the owner of the Empire, and a nice and friendly guy who welcomed us in and tried to make the best of the room and its limited 8 channel sound system (we usually use 17 channels). We had a huge dressing room almost the same size as the stage room itself. These types of shows can either be the worse in the world, or the best. Luckily, it was a great show as the vibe was really cool and turnout was really great for what we were expecting. Another version of "Bad Minded Woman" appeared and even with the challenging sound capibilities (including bad mic cords and channels), the show was ended with everyone estatic. The drive back involves detours and road closings which cost us another hour drive time at 3 in the morning. Tomorrow, up to Santa Cruz....

Keep going and going...half way through....

Tuesday - July 27 (Los Angeles - Santa Cruz) The long drive and early wake up was not appreciated yet it was necessary (as always). For lunch, I am finally able to bring the whole band to an In-N-Out Burger place, as I've been hyping them all week. In-N-Out Burgers is a California chain restaurant which is a big step up from McDonalds on the fast food scale. They actually make their fries right there, you can watch them put the potatoes in the press and pull down turning it into fresh french fries. Also, the burgers are old-fashioned burgers, not frozen and the menu only has 3 options: Hamburger, Cheeseburger or Double Double (double hamburger with double cheese). The fries and drinks come in one size only, none of that supersize/medium/extra large/normal/kid size bullshit. Strait and to the point and damn good! We get into Santa Cruz, a big surfing area, and pull up to the club, Polookaville, to see large 4 x 8 foot posters of Laurel in the windows: COOL! The hall is really nice, and the promoter is really cool, getting us what ever we need. Also on tonights bill is Monkey, a bay area trad ska band that I've heard about and was impressed with their cd "Changito!" when I heard it last year. The club feeds us at an in house restaurant and we chow on great Thai food! Meanwhile, Monkey starts in and they have a pretty impressive live show. Mike Park from Asian Man Records (& former Skankin' Pickle front man) comes to the show and its great to catch up with him and see how everything is going out here. As is everywhere, ska has definitely slowed down on the west coast as well, although with the Skatalites and Reel Big Fish coming through this room in the past two weeks, it is hard to tell. The Allstonians set went over well and I leave to pick up Laurel from the hotel, as we often arrange a time for him to be ready so I can whisk him to the show for him to dazzle the audience nightly. Well, everything is going according to plan, until I get to the hotel and find Laurel asleep, and not prepared to leave. Well, he gets up and gets ready as fast as he can and we head back to the club to go from the van directly onto the stage, do not pass go, do not collect $200. It took Laurel about 2 songs before he was fully awake and then it really started rocking. An hour and two encores later, the fans leave sweating and happy. By the way, the Motel Continental was excellent to us. Very personal staff and friendly, and worked with us on our budget. Bob, the manager, even gave me a present when we checked out.

Wednesday July 28 - (Santa Cruz to Modesta) Well, a day off, 10 people, a pretty short drive, and a lot of confusion because people want to do different things. First, we go to the Santa Cruz boardwalk when you can ride a roller coaster, play on the beach, eat, and generally have fun. Then, off to the Surfer's Museum on this point overlooking Monterey Bay where we checked out not only the surfers and the sea lions below, but also the museum that showed a surfboard with a large shark bite chunk removed. We drive through San Jose and drop off half the troops who are staying with a friend and will explore San Francisco tonight while the rest drive closer to our noon time load in tomorrow.

Thursday July 29 - (Merced - San Francisco and north) Well, today we have two gigs scheduled. In the afternoon we are playing this benefit for Fatty Mocha's in Merced, CA (about 2.5 hours southeast of San Francisco) which is a coffee house/juice bar which provides one of the only live music venues in this city of 100,000. The gig took place behind "The Golden Steer" in the parking lot. We were pretty curious about this gig as well, due to the nature of the specifics in advance. All we know is that we are supposed to go on early in the afternoon in this (basically) unknown city, on a Thursday afternoon, in 95 degrees, with 15 other bands that will play until the late night. Doesn't make much sense but we fulfilled our obligations. So the band Monkey goes on first at about 1:30 with a few people there (mostly other band member) and play a cool set of their material. I liked todays simple set over the previous set two nights ago, sounds a little more laid back in stead of more complex. The guys from Monkey are really cool and we all enjoyed meeting/playing with them. They are a really pro band meaning they work hard in booking, promoting, and playing their shows. The parking lot is up to about 50 people when Laurel goes on and Laurel commands everyone to come up front and no one wants to disobey the Godfather so they do. The set is short and sweet and we get out of there to go to Slims in San Francisco and try to get there in time for the dinner, which we barely make. Slim's is a really cool venue that has great dressing rooms, good hospitality, very good pro sound people and overall a really cool vibe to the room. Tonight we are playing with fellow hometown-ers Skavoovie & The Epitones. Skavoovie is on tour with Boston Punk band The Ducky Boys but tonight we only see Skavoovie. They have been doing an opposite tour from us, going across the north then down and back across the south. Everyone is psyched to meet up in San Francisco and we trade road stories from this tour (Ask Ans about crossing the boarder). Skavoovie's set is really tight and sounds great. They are seasoned veterans of touring and have probably played San Francisco 5 or more times. The Allstonians go and the crowd is very receptive to their first SF gig. Some friends are in the house tonight including Pete Porker (from Australia's The Porkers who has been enjoying some time off in the states since the Warped tour and their East Coast dates) Boston's Train To Skaville DJ Jess Moore, and a good friend of mine from college who has always hooked me up with laminates on all my tours (Thanks RZ!). Tonights crowd is one of the biggest and best so far. They were dancing from the beginning and making the vibe great. Laurel's set is highlighted by an appearance of "You Got Me Rocking," the second time played on this tour. Also, today is Caleb, our upright bass player's, 22nd birthday, so a few of the guys join him in a celebratory shot at the bar. After the great show, we pile in the van and search for some grub before we do the overnight drive to Seattle. We find a nice little coffee/pastry/deli open and we all get in line to the horror of the single worker there. Right after we arrive, a motorcycle cop gets in line and we chit chat, standing directly in front of a display case of 10 different varieties of dounuts, all very appealing. I attempt to make small talk and as I ask "So you come here for the donuts?" I realize I just insulted him by perpetuating the cop loving donuts image. I try to remove the foot from my mouth and he lets it roll of his back. We then head off driving north, through the night, through the morning, through the afternoon, finally getting near Seattle. After finally finding hotel rooms, we settle in and most everyone relaxes and crashes early after eating.

Saturday July 30 (Seattle) We return to the Jet Diner, where we ate the previous night and again had a stellar meal. Nice service, friendly, good food, pretty cheap and fast. Scores good on all the relevant band factors. Next off to a Laundromat to rejuvenate our cloths where we meet a couple cool people do come down to the show. The laundry clerk used to go to BU and lived in Allston and had heard of the band, so that cool. Then, I see a guy hanging out with a full case of beer, so of course he looks like he needs a friend. He says today is his birthday and wants to have fun. His name is Tom, and he knows that we are playing in town tonight, and he gives us half of the John Courage English beer. We put him (and the laundry girl) on the guest list and they both show up: COOL! We get down to 2nd Ave in Seattle, which is in Pioneer Square, the big 'happening' place and find out that tonight is the Torchlight Parade to celebrate the Seafest, an annual celebration of the seaport, and as it is explained, more of an excuse to party. So we load in, park across the street, as the parade goes right in front and there is no parking on the street. We are playing The Fenix, a really cool place with several different bars connected. This is another pro place, one with sound, monitor and light guy, so were are set. The dressing room is down in the catacombs and we are really psyched for the FULL RIDER! We sound check, I go out to dinner with my old roommate Scott and his wife Megan. After dinner, we come back and watch the parade go by the club. There are all your favorites in the parade: high school marching bands, cheerleader squads, floats with kings and queens, cars with parade officials, horse draw carriages, fire trucks, etc. Two cool things that also stood out were the Seattle Police Motorcycle drill team performing different maneuvers (no jumps or wheelies though) and the Asian community dancers with the multi-person dragons, masks, and other props. The parade ends around 10pm and the band starts soon after. The club comes alive and for a 21+ show, it is really happening. The Allstonians do an hour set and the disco dance floor gets moving. The club/reggae dj spins during the intermission and it becomes obvious that this is also a dance club/frat boy environment. Laurel comes out and starts right into "Boogie In My Bones," this being the first time he hasn't opened with "Hey Bartender". The upbeat tempo quickly catches all the people who came to the meat market who are mixed between the rudies and the skins. The crowd goes wild and Laurel feeds off the energy, dancing like I've never seen him before. New number in the set which they rehearsed during soundcheck: "Jesse James." The fans forces him to numerous encores which included "Too Late," "Rudi Wedding" and ending with "Hitchhike." With the show and the electricity now ending, we 'squirrel' the rest of the rider to take with us and get ready to load out. On the sidewalk in front of the club is an average homeless guy trying to bum money, smokes and beers. He starts singing and people join in to the courses of "Proud Mary." When someone comments on this "Ike & Tina Turner song" the guys gets all mad and says "it's Creedence! Don't you know anything about music?!" He continues to sing the song for the next 40 minutes will we load up. The only problem is, he only knows on verse which he continually repeats along with many of the boys joining in. When he quiets down, Dr. No sings the first line and the guy immediately sings the rest of the verse and repeats it several times. This goes on for a long time, and provides quite an entertaining load out. We give him some beer and some food the we were going to take on the road. He is happy, we pile in the van and head east, starting at the very beginning of I-90. Yes, the far end of the Mass Pike, only 3048 miles from the other end of I-90 near Chinatown in Boston. So now we are in the midst of our 24 hour drive to Denver. We have until Tuesday to get there, so its not so bad...

Sunday Aug 1st (Ogden, UT) - We drive through the night and morning, stopping just outside of Boise, ID to have breakfast/lunch with John's uncle and cousin. They were very nice and we had a great breakfast in a small country cafe. After eating, John stays in Boise for a family/neighborhood barbecue that night and will fly in to Denver to meet us, just like the rock stars do. His absences for the remaining 16 hours allows more room in the van...we continue on. After a total 16 hours of driving since last night, we stop for the night at a small hotel in Ogden, UT, just a bit north of Salt Lake City. We encountered a really nice clerk at the hotel who went out of his way for us. Since we stay in hotels every night, it is very refreshing and nice to have someone like this guy to deal with: Offering advice on food, bars, town activities, etc. He also hooks us up with some free movies. He did, however, originally check us into a room that was already occupied...twice. Finally, on the third try, everyone has a bed to sleep on.

Monday Aug 2 (Ft Collins, CO) - Another 9 hours in the van. We pass the time listening to music, talking, handing the computer around so everyone can check their email, and trying to sleep. Sometimes, we pass a long freight train and everyone guesses on the number of cars the locomotives are pulling. (Exciting Rock N Roll!) We get into Ft Collins, about an 90 minutes north of Denver, where we are playing tomorrow night. We get Laurel set in a hotel room and get him some chicken fried rice, a road favorite of his. We head here because Dave (aka Dr. No, aka Shabba) has a old friend from Maine named Doug, who lives here and is part owner of a Mexican Restaurant called The Rio Grande. Doug was gracious enough to invite the entire band out for dinner and drinks and we gladly accepted. We get to the restaurant and it is margaritas for all. Apparently, this restaurant (along with the 3 other Rio Grandes) is responsible for 10% of all Cuervo tequila sales in North America. I like the warning at the entrance saying Maximum 3 margarita's per person (each one has 4 shots of tequila in it)........mmmmmmmmmm. We chow down on some great authentic food and then head to a couple other bars, first a martini bar where we sample some fine cocktails and enjoy a nice Macanudo cigar. Then off to yet another bar for more drinks (like we needed them at this point) and then we decided to serve up a fireworks display courtesy of the fireworks shack on the Wyoming boarder. We head off to Horsetooth Reservoir where some of the troops scaled down a steep rock cliff to the shores. Meanwhile, some of us preferred not to risk the death climb and stayed topped side to watch the spectacular display from below. Eventually, the fireworks, beers, and skinny dipping subsided and everyone made it topside with only minor injuries. Then off to Doug's house where his couches and floors are overrun by Allstonians for a mere 5 hours of sleep. Overall, a pretty good lampshade night for all.

Tuesday Aug 3 - (Denver) We get into Denver early in an attempt to dry clean some suits and do some laundry. After running around here and there, everyone is happy and our mission is mostly accomplished. Denver is a cool city and club we are playing is the Bluebird, right on Colfax Ave, a main drag that crosses the city from East to West. Colfax Ave offers quit a lot for killing some time and walking around: thrift stores, record stores, pawn shops, music shops, porn stores, great restaurants and more. The club is really cool and I have enjoyed my last two visits here. A very good staff, really friendly, and always good sound! Just below the 20 foot blue neon Bluebird sign, the marque says "Laurel Aitken plus The Redemptions" which they then added "The Allstonians" to for all those last minute ska fans that were holding out for a better show. By the start of the show, there are about 10 different vespas and scooters lineup up out front, a few sporting stickers for the Denver scooter club called "Mile High Mayhem." The show is all ages, but they separate the downstairs for the kids and the upstairs for those who wish to imbibe. The Redemptions offer a nice set of third wave soul-ska, reminiscent of a younger Pietasters. People were dancing from the start of the Allstonians set, and it was obvious that there were some Allstonians fans in the house. Laurel then comes out and the balcony empties and the floor fills up. Laurel had played the Bluebird last year and really like the show. Laurel decides to add another new song, "I love You" to the set, and Eric (trombone) is very happy to hear this. He tells Laurel that his girlfriend is emailing him w/ lyrics from Laurel's songs. So, when it comes time to play that song, Laurel dedicates the song to "One of the band members who misses his wife terribly," an embarressed Eric declares that he is not married and blushes. Whenever Laurel announces his Spanish songs, you can hear some cheers and yells from the crowd in Spanish. It turns out, one guy was swearing and Laurel stopped talking, looked over, pointed to him and says "If you are going to speak my language, at least speak it correctly" and the guy apologized. Also out tonight, "Jesse James" returns and both skinhead songs ("Skinhead Train to Rainbow City", "Skinhead") were warmly received, especially by the young female skins. Load up, head to the hotel, stay up late talking with some friends from Boulder. Alright! We get to spend 10 hours in the van tomorrow going to Kansas City.

Wednesday August 4 - (Kansas City) We decided last night to blow off the early load in time and get there around doors so we can get more than 4 hours of sleep. We definately needed it. We get there and load in. The club is cool, but with a twilight zone vibe....hard to explain, maybe just because it is Kansas City. The dressing is in the back of the club, and to get access, you need to buzz the soundguy who is perched high above the floor in an fortress like enclosement with a small openning looking out over the crowd and to the stage. The club has a small dance area in front of the stage followed by about 20 cocktail tables with four chairs around each table. This club has an on-going Reggae nights on Wednesday (Justin Hinds to appear two weeks later) so we are pyched to have this established audience. The opening band was a reggae/r&b band who sounded pretty good and had some good female fronted vocals. The house brings a lot of the reggae crowd in along with the usual army of skins and rudes. The Allstonians set goes well once the monitor problems are solved (at the end of the set). Not too many people dance, but a lot of foot tapping and bopping around the club. During the break, Laurel gets the rhythm section together for to go over the song "Kansas City" which he wants to play. Sort of weird that the only exosure to the song the band has is of Laurel singing it to them in the dressing room then expecting them to play it with literally no rehearsal. With all the rehearsals and mock dressing room run throughs, the set break ends and then some and still Laurel isn't quite ready to go on stage. The promoter pokes his head in and Laurel tells him he'll be on in a few minutes, not exactly what the promoter wanted to hear. Laurel does come out eventually and plays a great set ironically devoid of "Kansas City". While watching from the side of the stage, I see this short portly skin in a plaid shirt who is wildly dancing with one hand on his Amstel light which now consists of a lot of foam and a lot of spraying with little beer left. Earlier in the night, a couple skins told me how the Toasters had a bad experience there last time through, it turns out that someone got up on stage and somehow broke Chunk's (Toaster's trombone player) horn but these skins "messed him up real good" for doing that. I'm sure the Toasters would be thrilled. Also, the Toasters were leaving from that venue when they were involved in that bad accident which crushed several horns, caused many bruises and stiches, and totaled the van. Lucky no serious injuries. After the show, we hear from another fan that he discovered the Allstonians at the Kansas City Public Library and listened to their cd there. Wow, I never suspected that a library could be a good thing... We drive a bit, get a hotel, crash, still another long drive tomorrow.

Thur Aug 5 - (Chicago) Well, quite a long day indeed. Drive drive drive, get to Chicago where we load into the Subterranean Club near all the other clubs. We know that Deal Gone Band, the Chicago band on Jump Up Records is opening for us tonight, and I am excited to finally see these guys after hearing a lot of good things. Chuck Wren is there spinning records before/between/after sets and it is good to see him again. He tells me that this club, and the promoter Tom really did a great job of building up the room and the scene here. Tom is really nice and gives us "whatever we need" which is a good sign in a promoter. The restaurant below the club feeds us with great, fresh made food. Killer mozzarella sticks and chicken fingers done right, not the frozen kind. The Subterranean was, I am told, an old brothel from the 20's & 30's with a upper balcony that circles the stage, providing a nice vantage point to check out the action. Deal Gone Bad was missing their keyboard player, but still the provided a strong set, despite the fact that they started late and ran over by 15 minutes. The place was packed and it was hot and sweaty. The Allstonians play to a packed house and did a shorter set then normal. Laurel takes the stage and because of the miscommunication between the club owner and the opening band, Laurel only can play half an hour. This really upset Laurel and the fans, but the owners had a curfew that was not negotiable, and there was no way to push back time. Deal Gone Bad apologized profusely, we still get paid the same amount for only doing a half hour set. After the show, we go to the 24 hour Post Office to mail some boxes of merchandise home, as we are crossing the Canadian boarder in 5 hours and don't want to pay hundreds of dollars bringing merch into Canada. We drive overnight to Detroit with Zack driving a key leg when no one else was able to.

Friday Aug 6 - (Toronto) After eating at IHOP in Detroit, I call the van rental company to let them know the brakes are pretty bad, sounds like metal to metal grinding. Of course I couldn't say we are towing a U-Haul (that is not permitted in the rental agreement) and I can't tell them we went to California (as the contract says only to Texas) but I could tell them I need to get the brakes fixed and we were about to head into Canada and I was hoping to do it this afternoon. we cross the Windsor Bridge into Canada and have no problems getting the work permits and going through customs. Another 5 hours later (now 14 hours in the van) we get into Toronto and get into a huge construction/traffic jam only a mile from the hotel. Everyone is on edge, we just want to get the fuck out of the van. An hour later, we storm the Alexandria Hotel for a few hours of rest before we have to load in. No time to get the brakes fixed. The venue is The Comfort Zone on Spadina Street, not far from Queen Street, which is one of the main drags in town. Toronto has always been very clean, and the people very friendly. The promoter, Shane, is really nice, has set us up with a couple press interviews and we are really excited about tonights show. There are no other bands on the show tonight, so the band sets up, does a sound check, then goes to eat. I walk around and buy a phone card to make some business calls and find out the card doesn't work. You can call the 800 number and enter your pin #, but no calls ever go through, and the other 800 customer service number which was disconnected. I bring the card back to the store and ask for a refund, explaining that since they sold me a defective product, they should exchange it or refund the money. This guys says it is between me and the phone company, and I tell him it is like him selling expired milk, the product is not what it should be. Yelling ensues, I resist the urge of violence and destruction and leave with the first bad taste ever in Toronto. All for ten Canadian dollars, that's like a buck two eighty American. Well, the show is a blast. Lots of people out to see the Godfather. Laurel breaks out a new pair of pants, a shiny silver like satin pants. It looks wicked with his combat boots and his white Fred Perry shirt. During the encore, someone points out that there is someone recording the show, so I know from speaking with Laurel and his manager, that no one is authorized to record his show. I confront him, he reluctantly coughs up some tapes which turn out not to have the show on it, I end up chasing him out of the club and down the street and finally find him, a few more tapes latter and a long walk back with him, I know he is not a bootleg seller, but a fan, and we talk, I give him back the other tapes. I think he learned a lesson. Back to the dressing room, which is through a maze of catacombs, is full of people looking for autographs, interviews and pictures. We head back to the hotel, a few blocks away, and everyone tries to catch up on sleep from yesterdays overnight drive from Chicago.

Saturday, Aug 7 (Montreal) - Into the French-Canadian province of Quebec and the bilingual area of Montreal. The show tonight is at a place called The Swimming, which turns out to be a pool hall, with a small stage. Looks like it might be one of those shows. The hotel is just a few blocks from the place, so after we load in, we go back to the hotel. We skip sound check because the sound guy was going to be a lot later, and we also have local ska band (and Stomp Record recording artists) Gangster Politics opening up for us. People wander the streets, check out the stores, and grab some food before the show. We catch the last half of the Gangster Politics' set to a full room of people sitting at tables. Our friends, The Kingpins, show up and its great to see them again. Lorraine brings a copy of their new cd to give to Laurel after the show. All the people at the club are really nice (and cute!) The entire band has been noticing how the girls in Canada are very beautiful, and some say "Only one week left" The show is great. We do get people to move the tables back and make dancing room and right away people are supporting the Allstonians. It turns out, that also this evening, The Pietasters are playing across town with the Pilfers and Anna, bassist for Pilfers, shows up for a couple songs. I write her a note for missing load out, but set her up with our hotel's phone number because they couldn't get a hotel room and we were able to get more earlier in the day. Well, a great show, great turnout, a couple skinheads kept grabbing mics and in the process of fixing them, I spilt a full beer (sob!). Laurel plays a couple encores and the bar staff is dancing behind the bar. I finally get to meet Rupert, who works at Stomp, and did a great interview with Laurel last week that got Laurel totally pumped up for Canada.

Sunday, Aug 8 - (Quebec) - As we move into even deeper french territory, Morgan has been named our official interpreter, as he used to live in France (but we still like him anyway). The brakes on the van still work, but the sound is getting worse, and the company isn't open today. The city hosts a yearly Winter Carnival, which I've heard is really impressive and fun. We find the club in the old town, which is surrounded by a large wall. The city is small and European in appearance, Our hotel is just a couple blocks up from Kashmir, the nightclub. It is a quaint, small hotel with maybe 12 rooms, some with shared bathrooms. Everyone looks around for food and drink. The sound check goes well, with Morgan being able to convey the bands' needs to the sound guy in French. The show is kind of a last minute deal, filling up an empty date, so the club doesn't have the proper time to publicize the show. Still, a small bunch of people come out to see Laurel in this "intimate setting." After the show, some of the guys goes explore the old fortress and wall, and return with some locals to help finish the bottle of Jim Beam. Good night....but tomorrow morning is not so good for all!

Monday, Aug 9 - (Quebec to Binghamton, NY) - A day off today, but we are playing just outside Washington, DC tomorrow night, which is about a 14 hour drive. We sleep late, head off, and get some great food at a small diner. Drive the same route we came yesterday 4 hours to Montreal then south to cross the boarder into the US. No problems crossing the boarder, the guy waves us through. Drive all evening and stop to get a hotel in this small town just outside Oneonta, NY. It is midnight, and I wake the hotel lady up who then asks questions about who I am, why do we want rooms and tries to figure out how 10 people could fit in 3 rooms. She was a little (maybe a lot) weird, and wanted everyone to come into registration to show id, because she "needs to know who is staying in what room". I offer my ID, and a credit card deposit, saying we are very tired, and just want to sleep. She tells me how one time someone stole a phone from a room, so she needs to know who is in which room. Then she starts telling about the drought and mumbling "10 showers...oh no" and offers maybe we should stay somewhere else, which is fine with me. Crazy lady turning down 3 rooms. The next hotel is Super 8 and sold out, so on to Binghamton and the Motel 6 and sleep.

Tuesday, Aug 10 - (Wheaton, MD) - Continue the drive to the DC area with a stop at a friend's to pick up some merch in Baltimore that we sent from Chicago. We get to Phantasmagoria around 5 pm and load in. The house tech is still putting the sound system together, and there is One Groove Ensemble who is opening up. The club also host a record and cd store, so it is pretty cool to look through all the vinyl, cds and tapes. The hotel is about 15 minutes away, I take Laurel back, let him hang out and get some food. At this point, we are hoping the brakes will last the rest of the tour. My driving becomes more conservative and I now downshift using the overdrive button to help slow down. The club has a great turnout, everyone is into the show. This is one of the best and most enthusiastic crowds. Laurel shakes things up during a break, he says "Give it to me 1 time" into the song "Skinhead Train", providing a new opening for the song for the rest of the tour. The Allstonians have played this club before and they have many fans out here tonight. Wow, another great show and probably the largest group of people waiting for a private audience with Laurel after his set, including Zack's and Morgan's mothers who wanted to meet this legend that their sons have said so much about. Ginger, who does Laurel's website popped in to get some pix for an update. Back to the hotel, late night food from Tastee's Diner, and some sleep.

Wednesday, Aug 11 - (New Jersey) We head to the Tastee Diner for breakfast (yeah, their food was that good). We head off to Randolf, NJ for the show at Obsession. Unfortunately, we can't find Randolf, NJ on any of our atlases, so we are a little bit skeptical about this place. Also, when I advanced the show with Bill, the owner, I found out that there are also 4 local opening bands on the bill, all NJ punk/ska bands. They also bring the sound system in, so we decide to forgo a sound check and get there later, just for load in and dinner. We go to our hotel first, the Howard Johnson's on route 10 about 20 minutes away. We get to the show with the first band already in progress, and see about 100 young ska/punk kids which is cool, but there was a lack of rudies and skins. There is a separate bar area for those of drinking age (about 4 people) and then the room down front where everyone else is migrating. We eat the pasta, meatballs and salad (which was very good) before playing a few of the video games there. The promoter seems cool, but the whole band feels this 'weird NJ vibe" which may have something to do w/ the lack of traditional ska people present. I get Laurel and bring him to the show, maybe scaring him a bit with my pessimistic view of the crowd. The kids prove me wrong and they know who he is, and come out dancing. I was very glad and relieved that it wasn't just a punk/ska crowd that would leave after their friend's band played. The crowd is good, Laurel does a good set with a couple encores. Back to the hotel. It settles in that tomorrow is the last show. The band is somewhat bittersweet about it. On one hand, we would be home and see our loved ones, but on the other hand, we would no longer be able hang out with the Godfather. We would really miss our sacred time with the legend. Can't believe we are almost done.

Thursday, Aug 12 - (Northampton, MA) The last show of the tour at Pearl Street, a venue most of us love to hate. The people there never really care about the music (save the sound people), they are interested in making money off the hard working bands. We get into town early to discover the annual "Taste Of Northampton" weekend event starts tonight as well. People wander around, get food, and do some shopping. Caleb manages to finally find a couple cds that Laurel has been looking for, and, we also find him a bag he wanted for all the miscellaneous stuff Laurel has collected on the tour. Greg comes out from Boston to do his magic behind the sound board and we are all relieved that we wouldn't have to encounter another hit or miss sound place (actually, Pearl Street usually has very good sound people and system). Band members girlfriends' start arriving, making for a somewhat distracted sound check. Another of the problems at Pearl Street, is the management never has any answers to the questions. I had tried all the previous week to contact someone to advance the show and had been in voice mail hell, and finally someone left a message, but failed to answer all the questions I had. The venue had a few flyers up for our show, but then again, they still had a bunch of flyers for the Skatalites show that was about 2 weeks prior, so it is pretty obvious they don't take promotion too seriously. Also, with the Taste of Northeast bringing thousands of people out about 2 blocks away, I was surprised to find that they had no interest in promoting the show to those people. Well, doors were at 7:30, with the no opening band. The Allstonians were supposed to start at 8:30 and after fighting to get an answer from Ryan and the sound guy, I push the set back a bit for more people to come in, which they do. Meanwhile, Laurel talks with his manager, Shay, who has just finished the Skatalites tour the week prior and had driving up from New York. Also in the house, friends such as super-merchman Randy and photographer-extrodinare Josh who both had just finished the Warped Tour with the Amazing Crowns, as well as Scott, who had been tackling the duties of manager for the Allstonians. The show energy is good, with a lighter crowd then we had hoped. Several people came in through the windows of the venue, and although the manager was alerted, they did nothing to stop it. At this point, it doesn't matter to us, we get paid the same amount, if the venue wants to lose money by letting people sneak in, that is their problem. After the show, we present Laurel with a cake celebrating the tour. He was very touched and was pleased that everything had worked out so well. He has on many occasions, and now he re-iterates, his intentions of working again with The Allstonians. We all load out slowly but surely, and it is actually an early evening, leaving for Boston at about 12:30 am. The drive home is always the longest. Everyone wants to get to their own bed, their own girlfriend, or their pets. We dump all the stuff of at the rehearsal space and the tour is done. I only need to do 3 final things: First, to return the U-Haul tomorrow (hiding the holes in the wall from putting up a bar for hanging the suit bags). Second, get the trailer hitch removed from the rental van, as we are not allowed to tow anything, and lastly, return the van, praying that the brakes will hold out until I get to Medford. It all works out, and Scott and I get Laurel to his Virgin Atlantic flight back to London. Now for some sleep....