Yesterday me and True Willie and The Boys played our first date at the Laguna Festival of Arts/Pageant of the Masters Festival. We have another date later in the festival on Aug. 4th.
My experience began with a trek into the concrete jungle of Orange County. There were surprisingly few metal beasts prowling around. This scene is just south of the "Orange Crush" as the 57 South dumps onto the 5 South.''
The concrete jungle gave way to the coastal hills as I make my way toward Laguna Canyon.
When I arrive at the venue I see Guitar Mike pulling out of our load-in area behind the stage.
There's a little alleyway behind the stage area where we can park while we unload.
John arrives just as I am unloading. Our helpful, friendly gatekeeper gives us our parking stipend to use at the pay lot across the street. Parking is difficult in this town.
I wheel my gear onstage with my handy dandy Rock-n-Roller cart to find my fellow bass player Grant and his wife already in the VIP section.
So I jumped off the stage, actually I used the stairs, and ran over, actually I walked, to chat and take a selfie. It's what I do.
After saying "Hello" to Grant and Mrs. Grant I had to move my trusty Astro van across the street to the pay lot. Then venue gave us $15 to put into the machine to get our parking pass. We are treated pretty well here.
Here's a view from across the street after I had parked. The stage is to the right under those triangular roof scrims. In the middle is the large art gallery. To the left is the theater where the Pageant of the Masters is held, a live art exhibit.
When I get back to the stage I see the band and soundman, Sid, are in full setup mode. Drummer Dave brought his granddaughter, Kaylee, to be his roadie. She worked harder than anyone today, except for maybe Sid.
True Willie arrives as the band screws stuff together and plugs stuff in.
Here's a view from out front as Sid works with True Willie. There's a nice QSC sound system here with a couple of subs under the stage and flying arrays. There are also a few extra speakers hung around the venue to spread the love.
Being the bass player, it takes me about 10 minutes to set up. While everyone else is finishing up I head on over to our green room. It's behind the gift shop.
I guess the venue normally uses this as a meeting room but they don't mind sharing. They had a nice hospitality spread for us.
After stashing my stage clothes and stuff I make my way back to the stage. It should be about time to sound check. It will be a quick one.
The cheap seats are starting to fill up. The people in the VIP section can afford to show up later. John is getting all of his sounds arranged. He likes playing the Yamaha electronic grand on this stage.
A few of you have expressed your curiosity about True Willie's "Trigger". Here's a closeup.
True Willie, without the band, played a special event last weekend. It was a private party for another 1%er's birthday party. Also on the bill was Clint Black and Kenny Loggins. Here's TW with Kenny.
TW got Kenny and his band to autograph "Trigger".
Since this was a local gig, Guitar Mike brought his beautiful tobacco burst 335. I love that guitar. I'm going to buy a bass to match it just for my TW gigs.
Drummer Dave's got his drummer hat on. He'll put on his Waylon hat when we start the show.
Yes, Sid put Dave in a little cage this time. It was great. It was so quiet on stage that I would hear everything and TW didn't have to have his monitors at ear-splitting volume. Here's the view from my mic as the venue starts to fill up. The crowd got to watch us set up and soundcheck. I told Grant that it kind of takes the magic away from the show. But it keeps it real and keeps me humble.
Here's a soundcheck selfie with TW himself.
This is the merch table. Mrs. Drummer faithfully handles all the merch sales. She also prints out set lists for us, with key signatures. I love that.
After our quick soundcheck we make a mad dash back to the green room to put on our cowboy clothes and hurry back to the stage. I understand the crowd paid $20 to get in, the VIP section even more. I'd better play good.
Here are a couple rigs of dads, me and Dave. I didn't use my Fender today.
Here's my just-about-to-start selfie with Mr. and Mrs. Grant in the background.
Johnny Magic Fingers is ready to put on the show. I really wish he would have put his cases off the stage. But he's all about convenience.
Guitar Mike looks the part in his white shirt and hat. He's really a great player.
Drummer Dave says, "Peace out!" now that he's donned his Waylon hat.
We play True Willie's intro and start the show.
John is about to dazzle everyone with his boogie woogie number. The crowd loved it.
We had a pretty full house today.
I didn't get a chance to take a lot of pictures during the show. But I caught Guitar Mike tuning up.
We played our big closer and brought the crowd to its feet. They were very enthusiastic and appreciative.
Then we all took part in a little meet-and-greet. Of course, True Willie got all the girls.
After which I changed into my secret identity, a roadie, and schlepped gear off the stage.
Here's a parting shot of the festival as I roll my gear across the street to the parking lot. It's easier than trying to drive across the street.
Before I close, here are a few pictures from out front that my friends shared on the social medias.
Like I mentioned, we'll be back to play this festival again on Aug. 4th. I've got three more gigs this week with the ANB, Wed-Thu-Fri, so it's really a busy week for me. I'll enjoy my Saturday off. Hey, thanks for looking! I appreciate all of you stopping by and sharing electrons.
Thank you for your indulgence,
BassCliff
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