Summer Concert extravaganzas

On August 25 I played a gig in Whistler at the 'Campground C Country Music Festival' with Aaron Pritchett and earlier in the day Kelly Brock. What made the gig special for me was playing with my two of my oldest friends - drummer Chris Aiken and multi instrumentalist Lee Worden. We all went to college together (I've actually known Chris of over 30 years - we met in Kindergarten!) and these days the chances to play together are few and far between. Chris lives in Europe and is a successful musician/ producer over there. He came to Canada for a visit and ended up picking up a few gigs including this one with Kelly Brock. It was like coming home to play with them both again.

Also on the bill in Whistler - Spirit Of The West. Twenty five years into the band - they sound better than ever. One of Canada's finest - they put on a great show. Aaron followed them and I wish we'd gone on before them.

Aug. 27 - I played a gig at the PNE. After soundcheck I wandered over to the mainstage to watch Kenny Loggins. Fantastic band behind him and Kenny - love him or hate him as seems to be the way - is an amazing musician and singer/ songwriter. You have to recognize that.

Aug. 28 - Also at the PNE - Christopher Cross! Mr. 5 time Grammy winner in one year! Excellent band yet again and Christopher himself sang well and played some great guitar.

Aug. 30 - The New Odds .... essentially the old Odds with hew guitarist Murray Atkinson.... Murray Pat Doug and Craig made me fall in love with them all over again. Some old hits and a bunch of new stuff .... it's good to have them back...

Aaron Pritchett - Aug. 18 - Dartmouth, NS - Rodeo Lounge

Our second go 'round at this club in Dartmouth - a suburb of Halifax. We had a gracious host named Carla who treated us very well. It was a nice way to end our 10 day trip.

Aaron Pritchett Band - Aug. 17 - Lawrencetown, NS

This was another agricultural fair - the APB seems to play several of these a year. Don't ask me where this town is ... a three hour drive became about five. Although I wasn't paying close attention, we seemed to take a few detours getting to the venue. When we got there, we found an amazing site - a great stage situated by a river at the bottom of a hill making it a wonderful natural amphitheater. The response by the huge crowd was overwhelming - "Warm Safe Place" was sung by the crowd loud and clear. The screaming was deafening.
Afterwards the autograph lineup was well over two hours long. I took some great pictures at this memorable gig. The haddock I had for dinner was also great.

Aaron Pritchett Band - Aug. 16 Charlottetown, PEI

What a town. I had been there before a long time ago but never got a chance to explore it but it's a gorgeous gem of a town. Charming people and the vibe is amazing. The gig was at the Civic Centre - part of what seemed to be an agricultural fair. It was a general admission gig. When they opened the doors after our soundcheck - people rushed the barricades to the stage. Several thousand people soon started chanting Aaron's name. We hit the stage and it was thunderous. A great gig - the crowd outdid themselves and it was a lot of fun. The stage crew rocked as well - the gear was first rate as was the lighting and monitors. Afterwards the autograph lineup must've been close to two hours long.
The next morning Darren and I got up early to check out the city some more. A cup of coffee and fruit smoothie later - we moved to buy indigenous food items for our people back home. I know my Nana loves preserves.

Aaron Pritchett Band - Aug. 7- 12 - Prairies and Ontario

Roll call - Aaron Pritchett, Mitch Merrett, Mike Sanyshyn, Darren Parris, Ron Briggs, Scott "Scooter" Findlay, Warren Dieno, Carmen Choney and yours truly (sorry no pictures this time):

Aug. 7 - Edmonton, AB - The first gig of a 10 day trip - a show at the Western Canada Summer Games. Weather was not on our side and the gig was not very well attended - although those that were there were great. It was interesting to note that Jordan (Aaron's son) and his band Roswell opened for us. During 'Hold My Beer' Aaron invited Jordan up on stage for an impromptu duet. It was great - the pride on Aaron's face was a sight to behold.

Aug. 11- Little Current, ON - A festival sponsored by the local radio station, we arrived the night before into Sudbury ON and drove three hours to Manitoulin Island where Little Current is located. Our hotel was a nice Inn on the lake - a great place to stay although unfortunately located about a half hour from the gig. The crowd was great as per usual. After the gig - we got back to Sudbury to our hotel, We slept for about one and a half hours then headed to....

Aug. 12 - Wood Mountain, SK - Well - not directly. We flew to Regina and then drove to Assiniboia SK. We checked in to a hotel (no names will be mentioned) which is probably one of the most appalling hotels I have ever been in. Flies, stains on the floor, walls, and curtains - smoke laden and just plain awful. Darren and I arranged for a ride to Regina (courtesy of Scooter who lives there) and booked our own room in a more livable situation. We felt bad for the rest of the band - but they chose to rough it. The gig however was another story. Another fun time - a mixture of several small communities at a music festival held in the middle of Saskatchewan. Nice folks. Darren and I got back into Regina into our beautiful room and got a good night's sleep.