Bend Is the New Mecca

Sadly, the tour is now complete...but happily, it was a grand success! The last gig was a beautiful outdoor show for 1200 folks at the Les Shwab Ampitheater in Bend, Oregon.I love what they have done with the downtown area--especially the trout stream running right through the middle! On the way home, we stopped for a night in Chico for our annual salmon float with Keith and Wally, and as usual, Joyce caught the most fish, and the biggest fish...in fact, the only fish. See you all in Pleasanton... til then, keep jamming. --Stu

Hot Air in Albany

I had heard all about the law enforcement officers around here...especially regarding drunk driving, and speeding, which seems to not be tolerated around these here parts. But I wasn't prepared to see a parking violation on my windshield this morning, after leaving my truck for a loooong time in a 30-minute zone in Salem. It was only $15, but the ribbing from my bandmates will keep me much more vigilant in the future.

Today's gig was nice, made so by another sound engineer wizard, the kind of dude who knows his sh*t. We played an hour set at the Wah Chang Art and Air festival in Albany. The air portion includes a number of colorful hot air balloons that set out each morning (we missed that part.) Dinner after the gig consisted of some grand pub grub from Mcmenamin's in Corvallis--recommended!

Gotta get to bed now--tomorrow's gig, the last of the tour, begins at 12:30 PM in Bend. Time to catch some Zs. Bona noche! --Stu

Dancing Mania at Tyee

Hey gang, what an awesome gig it was, playing at the Tyee winery. The people were awesome, the crowd was ready to get groovy, and the sound was perfect to a tea. When we first arrived the scenery was like stepping back into the Midwest, except I don’t think that back there they have many wineries. At Tyee there were vineyards of course, and nice little barns, where they kept the barrels of wine, and from what I gather the wine was pretty killer.

The stage that we were on was such a great change of pace, I mean we’re talking about an action packed, spring loaded, beautiful piece of wood here. I felt as though I was floating. You see the last few gigs have been this lovely, hard, no oomph in the floor stages. For any of those dancers out there, you know what I’m talking about. You have to work twice as hard, and by the end of the night you feel the hard ground in your legs.

There was quite a big crowd of little ones out there. It was great seeing them dance with the music, and can’t forget to mention the big kids out in the audience who were having a great time as well. I have a confession to make; I too got in on the dancing mania. I got the crowd going in a big circle, and it just kept growing and growing, and of course when we would all come together, you couldn’t help but resist making the all famous WHOA!

After the last set, which was in hard shoes, and believe it or not you could actually hear them over the pipes this time, I couldn’t keep still and had to go mingle with the audience. It’s so great when the audience is so into what you are doing, you can’t help but jump in on the fun.

After the last set, we started to go and change, but of course we had to buy a t-shirt from the Tyee winery to remember how much fun it was. I must say if you are ever in the Corvallis area that you should check this place out. The staff is wonderful, and the scenery is amazing.

After all was packed up, David and I had to make the usual after gig Taco Bell run. The place is open late, and what a perfect place for late night gigers to get food. Now the usual can be a little tricky to order. Next time you are at Taco Bell try order a grilled stuffed beef burrito, with no beans, rice, baja, fiesta, but add sour cream. It’s really good and prefect with a pepsi. After our bellies were full, we headed back to the hotel. And after a full nights sleep, we ready for the next gig that comes tomorrow. We’re on the countdown, only two more to go, where have they all gone?

Till next time, I will leave you with a new Irish saying that I picked up along the road, “May the good lord take a liking to ya… but not too soon!”

Bethany

Tyee Cellars Winery, Corvallis

Here are some images from our wonderful summer evening at Tyee, captured by Joyce and Suna. Best view from a stage I've ever seen, looking out across the fields with hawks circling overhead. -- Stu

Hotel Thoughts

The band has had some interesting hotel experiences on this trip. So much so that it’s clear that the AAA diamond star rating doesn’t really tell the full story, so I’ve decided to come up with my own rating system. My system is based on raspberries and is the opposite of diamonds - the more raspberries, the worse the hotel is.

Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

3 Raspberries.

There is an ice machine right next to every room which churns away loudly all night.
The hotel management rent a herd of elephants to walk around every floor except the first in order to drown out the noise of the ice machine.
Every room is no more than 50 feet from a major freeway and the windows are single glazed and don’t close properly.
The plug in the washbasin does not close properly so it’s impossible to fill the basin with more that one tenth of an inch of water.
The water coming out of the faucets is either scalding hot or icy cold, nothing in between.
The carpet sticks to the soles of your shoes.
No air conditioning

2 Raspberries

The ice machines are only next to every third room.
No elephants, just animals the size of a grizzly bear making similar noises.
Rooms are still close to the freeway but windows are double glazed.
The washbasin can be filled but the water leaks out within 3 minutes.
The water in the faucets is always lukewarm so you can’t scald yourself.
Carpet doe not stick to your feet
There is an air conditioner but id doesn’t appear to have any purpose except to bring the noise level in the room back up to the level it was at when the elephants were marching around upstairs.

1 Raspberry

Only 1 ice machine per floor.
No elephants or grizzly bears, just people who run their car engines unattended for 15 minutes at 6 am every morning.
The plug in the washbasin works perfectly, but it tkaes approximately 17 minutes for the water to fully drain from the basin.
The water temperature in the washbasin and the shower can be adjusted perfectly, but the water flows at the rate of about 1/4 of an inch every 10 minutes.
Air conditioner works but produces an air temperature equivalent to living in a canvas then at the North Pole. (I suspect this is to attract polar bears to march up and down all night at no cost to the management).

So, there is my guide to hotel ratings. I think we’ve experienced at least one hotel of each rating during this trip.


On the music side of things, we had a nice midday gig in McMinnville on Thursday 8/25. A great little town with some really neat stores and wonderful Farmers Market. The gig was notable for two reasons. We finally discovered a great sound engineer, Mr. Robbie T. He had us set up and running in no time, eq’d out any feedback issues (and there weren’t many), and just generally gave us a great sound. Great job Robbie!! I was also told by an old lady in a wheelchair of Welsh extraction that if we didn't play some Welsh music next time we came to town, she would kick my butt!

Lynda and I, jOhn, Suna, and Tyler have been staying with some old friends from Sunnyvale, Denis and Janet, who now live in Corvallis. They treated us all to a wonderful dinner of London Broil and all the fixings followed by a wonderful peach cobbler. That may have been the best London Broil I’ve ever tasted.

Just a few more gigs to go before the long drive back to California.

Pete

Reed between the lines!!!!

New Bagpipe Reed

About every two months, a new reed for the chanter of the highland pipes must be broken in. A reed, when it gets old and has been frequently played, begins to rise in pitch, squeak on certain notes, and is even more temperamental than usual. Frequent playing in hot dry climates accelerates the decay; the concert in Woodburn marked the end of the road for this old reed. This reed has seen me through teaching at the Monterey and Santa Cruz music workshops, fourth of July in Iowa, the Montana trip, and half of this Oregon adventure so it’s served it time.

Breaking in a new reed is not something most people would enjoy hearing , even when done by an accomplished piper.... and not knowing the Salem area, I set off in search of the nearest abandoned field. I thought I’d found one but it turned out that this field bordered the common ground of the Oregon State Penitentiary--not an ideal audience for such an activity. Luckily I found a large field further down, where I proceeded to serenade the Marion County Fire Station. Some passer-by’s also stopped to listen (once I got the reed sounding good anyway!).

It then takes some time, under normal circumstances, to get to know the personality of the reed but I had to hope this new reed would behave as I was already running late to the nights show.


We arrived at Sam Bonds Garage in Eugene and began to set up. The Garage is a cozy, low-key pub with soft colorful lighting that reminded me of a few places I’d been to in Australia so right away I felt at home. A very eclectic audience gathered once we began playing--filling the front room. It was a great night of fiery fast tunes and nicely tuned bagpipes! Success...my efforts on the new reed had paid off. After the show we chatted with the regulars for a bit and indulged in free sushi given to me by a nice couple in the parking lot.

And a late, late night fades into an early, early morning....time for the next show!

David

Sleepless in Springfield

Tuesday, August something or other,

Good Gig, Baaad Hotel!!


Just played the concert in the park series in Woodburn. Played outside of the public library on an elevated cement stage in front of a very large, receptive audience. Very fun gig indeed. Met a lot of nice people. David had his folks drive down from LaCenter for the show, and Pete’s GPS system got him there without a hitch. One of the great features of this gig is our hotel.

It’s quiet.

Last night found my wife Suna and I trying to pacify Tyler (our boy) in a noisy hotel.

Okay, I’m going to digress and rant a little. NEVER stay at a Crossroads Inn!!! Just say no. I don’t know who rents in there, but we were right underneath an elephant-sized man who paced all night, very loudly, until we finally moved rooms at 6 in the morning. Loud voices, moving furniture all night, people loudly walking and yelling right above us. I went outside at one point to find a mutant he/she/it person smoking a cigarette by our room and he/she/it just sort of stared at me with beady little rodent eyes in a way that said. . . “Stay back.” In short, I think it probable we had a meth-amphetamine outfit right above us. I called the front desk on numerous occasions, and they did nothing. Big zero.

Sorry to go this route, but life in hotel rooms can be a little trying sometimes. Especially at a Crossroads Inn, where they rent studios to apparently anybody for long periods of time. I think you get a discount if you tell them you are planning on selling dangerous narcotics out of your room. I wish that David could have been there to play his pipes for our upstairs neighbors.

Ah. . .Seriously though, life on the road is very cool. Oregon (with the exception of the Crossroads Inn) is a wonderfully beautiful and mellow state, and the band and our little entourage is having some good clean fun.

Wishing you all prosperity and good tidings,
John

Sunday in Winston/Sutherlin

Hello there folks! This weekend has been a fun filled event, but what should you expect, right? After all it is Molly's Revenge. The Winston games were a wee bit toasty, but fun all in all. It was great seeing people that had been there last year. I'm sure that good ole papa Pete has told you about the ingrown toe nails, he said that there were pictures on the web, I haven't checked it out yet, but we shall see. David MacDonald, from White Horse Coffee, took care of it. Actually he fixed half of it. You see I got them on both feet. He made the right toe better, and the left toe worse. But they're on the road to recovery. The nights have been filled with long Epsom salt soaking, an occasional icing, neosporan, but it is ALL worth it. Plus I've been through this a few times before.
The guys did a lovely little diddy at the coffee shop; it was a full house. Towards the end of the night David (MacDonald) and I went for a little spin around the dance floor. We wove in and out of the isles in-between the tables, then came to a wonderful clearing where we frolicked, and went for a twirl. Now the ending was quite a big finnish, first I went down, then nearly got smashed by David, he did an amazing tumble move. That's how you know the dancing great, when you get someone up dancing with you and then land on the floor. The band has been having an awesome time. Look forward to seeing you all soon. But until then, be careful of the leprechauns! Should you encounter them be sure to have your shiliei sticks ready and use those legs, remember what I told you before, they are your best weapon. Bethany (the dancer!)

A Very Pipey Sunday, Indeed

Hi Gang, Stu again.

Yesterday was the last day of the Southern Oregon Highland Games, and as before we have had a great time playing and singing and dancing all weekend. We topped off the weekend with a free acoustic concert at White Horse Coffee and Tea in Sutherlin. The crowd was so warm and appreciative, we took the opportunity to test the waters with some of the new sets we worked out the week before. And Pete surprised us with a very folkie rendition of "The Banks of the Bann," wherein we learned to our surprise that it's a part of the traditional folk process to begin a song in one key and then immediately change it to another key. :)

Last night was the night of Bethany's Revenge, as she danced around the room with proprietor David MacDonald and swung him in circles until they fell together in a heap, flinging David's kilt in the air, and answering once and for all the age-old question, wahat does a Scotsman wear beneath his kilt??

A plethora of pipes were in abundance, as David broke out his uillean set, his border pipes, and his small pipes, and we were treated to a few tunes on the highland pipes by one of our local friends. My ears are still ringing (the next morning). FOLK IS THE NEW ROCK! Indeed.

--Stu

Sunny Saturday, Winston Games

Today was the first full day of the Southern Oregon Highland Games, and a hot one it was! Not sure how hot it was today, but we have been seeing temperatures in the upper 90s on a regular basis up here and it has apparently been like that for the last month or so. Which reminds me of that wise old Lancashire saying “If your sunscreen you do spurn, all day long like hell you’ll burn” - we Lancastrians have some experience with the sun you know, but I digress!


Started out the day in fine style with breakfast at the White Horse Coffee Shop in Sutherlin, owned by our good friend David Macdonald. If you’re ever in this part of Oregon, be sure to stop in his coffee shop, the coffee is great and the food is wonderful. Just drive down the main street and watch out for the amazing sculptures of white horses. We will be playing an acoustic set there on Sunday evening after the games.

The games organizers had thoughtfully arranged for an RV complete with air conditioning to be available as a retreat for the performers. We’re seriously thinking of renting one for the weekend of the Pleasanton Games. Hell, I bet we could charge a couple of bucks for people to spend a few minutes in it and get the cost back that way!

Got the sound going nicely this morning thanks to the resident sound engineer, Sean. We’re beginning to realize just how important it is to have a sound engineer who is familiar with our music when we’re not using our own rig. Maybe one day we’ll be famous enough to have our own traveling sound engineer, but until then, we’ll just grin and keep saying “turn the bouzouki down”!


David turned up today in his very smart kilt attire but wearing the ugliest pair of white tennis shoes I have ever seen, as you can see from the accompanying photograph - I think a band fine may very well result from this faux pas!

Spotted a lady with a couple of dogs just like ours at home, a spaniel and a collie. Couldn’t resist going over and stroking them as surrogates for Charlie and Sally.




Bethany danced her heart out today and ended up with a couple of sore big toes. As you can see in the photograph, our good friend David Macdonald is not only a connoisseur of fine coffees but also a doctor of some skill, as he tended to Bethany’s injuries.



Went to Carlos’ Restaurant for some great Mexican food after the games. There were a lot of people from the games eating there. Is it me, or is there something slightly weird about a bunch of people in kilts eating in a Mexican Restaurant?!? The most satisfying part of the evening was leaving Bethany’s Jetta in the Murano’s dust on the way back to the hotel. Iceberg indeed!

So, one more day of the games to go, then 1 day off, followed by a hectic schedule of gigs in Woodburn, Eugene, McMinnville, Corvallis, Albany, and Oregon.

Pete, the loud bouzouki player

Freaky Friday: Winston Games, OR

David here. We left the La Center Ranch with a full stomach after an amazing breakfast of blackberry pancakes with blackberry syrup, blackberry jam toast, and fresh baked scones smothered in...BLACKBERRIES! (thanks Mom+Dad!). And little did we know how much we were going to need that big breakfast to make it through the day that was about to come....
We drove down I-5 for four hours and along the way, blazed past the slow moving Nissan Morano ice burg that is Peters car. We checked into the lovely Sutherlin Inn were we'd stayed the year before, where Micky Rooney had also previously stayed. Not much had changed but that is alright in a world bursting with change.
With a few hours before load-in we recovered from the drive by watching some good motel cable. When the time came we found the venue right away (it's hard to miss a giant wooden caber tossing Scotsman! Especially when he it resembles Pete). Bagpipers were already getting tuned on the grounds, including a talented young MacGregor clansman of mine, 10 year old Jesse the piper. Pete got on great with the sound crew right away after he drove his Moron-o over thier fragile sound snake cable (a fine ambasador). With no hard feelings we all set to work on what would prove to be a trying sound check. The banshees were afoot in the sound system in the form of sonic frequencies capable of shattering fine crystal. A very good size crowd gathered as the time for performing approached. Letting the chips fall where they may, we concieded to the banshees and began our show a few minutes late.

Despite the tribulations which consistantly accompany such circumstances, the band rocked out and by the end of the set the audience was on thier feet demanding another number. Was one delivered? Oh ya...
Cheers, David (the guy with the bagpipes)

Steelhead

Hello again--Stu here, writing from Sutherlin, Oregon. We're working this weekend at the Southern Oregon Highland Games in Winston. David and the folks at White Horse Coffee always take such good care of us. Thanks y'all!

Joyce and I went fishing on the Rogue River yesterday with Don Kirkendall of Arrowhead River Adventures. They say a picture is worth a thousand words...so here they are!--Stu

Blackberries and Beacons

Hello and good tidings from the land of the free,

John here writing a belated blog. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. . .Just arrived in Sutherlin, Oregon where we are staying at the Sutherlin Inn, a pretty darn nice (air conditioned) establishment. Getting ready to play the Sutherlin Scottish Games festival. If it's anything like last year, we're in for some good craic!

Last few days have been fun. . .The band had a couple days off, and we spent it in beautiful LaCenter, Washington at the Brewer Ranch. David's folks live there currently, and they welcomed us with open arms. We were well cared for, well fed, and watered. The band had a few very productive all-day practice sessions (it's tough work!), and material for our new CD
seems to be in abundance. Of course I am biased, but I think we've got some serious celtic-winners comin' your way!

The lovely ladies of Molly's Revenge(and my son Tyler) spent the days foraging in the woods for blackberries. I swear I've got them comming out of my ears. Very good blackberry jam, blackberry ice-cream, blackberry cobbler, blackberry scones, blackberry pancakes, blackberry steak, blackberry chutney. . .did I leave anything off? Probably.

Yesterday I took the family up to Beacon Rock, right on the Columbia River, to do some hiking and much needed exercise. Not really band-related, but if you ever get the chance, it is a beautiful state park. Some amazing 50
mile views of the rivers, and some lush waterfalls too. I'm out of shape, though.

Well, that's enough of my yappin'. Cheerio -

I'm John, and I play the fiddle

La Center - Day 2

Hey There, Bethany here. Today started off a wee bit cloudy, but eventually cleared to a nice blue, fluffy clouded sky. A perfect afternoon for picking amazing enormous, sweet blackberries. The girls of Molly's Revenge picked the berries, and were taken aback by how great these blackberries were, and how many there were. We left here completely empty handed and by the time we returned we had enough to make 12 jars of jam, and a huge blackberry crumble. It’s the life to pick, and eat berries, and drink Starbucks coffee. But have no fear, I did get a good amount of practice in working on some jigs, and hornpipes. Let’s not forget about the guys; they put together an exciting toe-taping set of reels. The last few days have been great because we haven’t had any wild adventures to take us on long tours that are hours out of the way, and we have been on time everywhere. Amazing right? The last few days have been devoted to practice and berry picking, along with some sleep. So until next time may the luck of the Irish be with you, and should you encounter any leprechauns be sure to use your legs, THEY ARE your weapon!

Bethany

Monday 8/15 - Rest Day in La Center

After 3 days of what seems like almost nonstop driving and hotel rooms that decrease in size daily, we finally have a day off - at least from public performance. My GPS navigation system (Noreen the Navigator) is having a hissy fit right now as we refused to come of I5 where she wanted us to! Oh well, she’ll get over it!

We are spending a few days at David’s parents’ place in La Center (yes, there really is such a place!), and a beautiful spot it is too. However, we are by no means lounging about and doing nothing. Spent the afternoon working on some new material for our next CD. Can’t divulge any details yet but we have some really cool (and quite different) tunes and songs in store.

Notable events of the day:

- Freshly picked blackberries and ice cream
- Bethany’s quote “If you have long legs, you should use them; they are your best weapon”
- John and Suna’s son, Tyler, getting his first taste of steak
- The friendly bat that flew into our practice room

Tomorrow brings more practice time and who knows what else....

Pete

Mt Shasta to Lake Oswego (via Eureka!)

Yes, detour is an understatement for the little adventure Bethany and I found ours selves on after leaving Santa Rosa on our way to the Stage Door in Shasta. Nine hours of straight driving off course and $69 in gas before a show would put most people in a sour mood but once we arrived, the others in the band quickly made me realize things would be ok. And hey, we got to see the Big Foot Museum, Confusion Hill, and the Trinity River....all while doing 90 mph!
After a great show at the Stage door we enjoyed a good nights sleep, only the occasional freight train whizzing by with whistle ablaze. John slept well with his car keys in hand after we had to break into his car with a hanger to retrieve them. A typical night....
The next day, we safely passed through the State of Jefferson and arrived in Lake Oswego with just enough time to pretend we sound checked. With the art and wine festival bustling around us, it was difficult to get things dialed. We started the show anyway for the large and seemingly friendly crowd that had gathered. Despite the challenges, the Lancashire born sound man, Sam, worked the board like a mad man and by the end of the show things were on fire on stage and off. During the final number, everyone in the audience seemed to have their own private bottle of wine, Bethany pulled a young Irish dancer out of the crowd and they began dancing a two hand reel, and out of nowhere a young lad jumped up with some serious breakdancing moves. If only Kevin Burke had been there to see....well, maybe he was.
After the show was over and we’d finished chatting with audience and friends, we left the Thomas Kinkade-esque surroundings of Millennium Plaza in search of our lodging....another adventure was about to begin...would Pete’s GPS deliver....

David

Portland, Oregon

I'm writing this from Giovanni's Pizza and Espresso and Video rentals in La Center, Washington. The gig yesterday was good, if a bit rocky, as we launched into our first set without the benefit of a sound check (!!). Through it all, the good people of Lake Oswego seemed to enjoy our show as they danced and wined away the warm evening by the lake. John and Suna had a brutal afternoon as they were stuck in traffic on I-5 with an unhappy Tyler in the back seat and 100-degree weather. You couldn't tell it from John's performance though!

Joyce and I stayed the night at our good friends the Mullens--see side photo of their twin boys, Julian and Dennis. :)

We now have four days off, our next gig being the Scottish Games in Winston, Oregon. Our plan is to spend a couple days here in La Center, rehearsing for the new record, and then spend a couple days fishing with friends for salmon and steelhead on the Rogue River. Stay tuned! --Stu

Shasta City Report

Hello and good tidings to all you "Molly-heads,"

Welp, we are officially two for two. Two fun-filled enthusiastic shows. We had a full house tonight at the Stage Door venue in Mt. Shasta city. David and Bethany got lost somewhere on 101 North on the way here. . .I think they ended up in Eureka or somewhere there abouts, but they made it for tip-off. No major disasters, and they now have a more intimate understanding of connecting state roads between I-5 and 101.

I'm writing this from tonight's venue on Stu's handy-dandy laptop. We finally managed to get him off the internet porn sites so I could make today's entry, but I digress. Today made me wish I'd coffed up the bucks and fixed my air-conditioning in my Volvo 240. My beautiful wife Suna doesn't like 106+ degree weather apparently, and we brought the boy (Tyler is now 11 months old).

Beautiful mountains, good tunes, good eats, but missing all of you guys!

May you enjoy the scenery while doing the detour,
John

Pictures from The Black Rose 8/12/05

Got a great reception from the crowd at the Black Rose! Here's some photos.

Report from Santa Rosa

First night of the tour was great. Played two sets at the Black Rose Pub in Santa Rosa, after battling wicked traffic all afternoon from SLO up through the Golden Gate. Joyce fed me cateloupe cubes skewered on her knitting needle as I cursed the cars on 101. The crowd was wonderful, the food good and I didn't fall off the wagon! :)

Next stop is Mount Shasta City, where last year we stumbled upon a cool little venue called the Stage Door. I love how that huge snowy mountain looms over the little town of Shasta.

I'm sooooo ready to cross that border into Oregon, the land of big salmon and piney green forests. We'll have a 4-day breal after the Lake Oswego (Portland) gig, and are planning to rehearse for the new record at our secret retreat in Washington state. But after that, Joyce and I are also going fishing with our friends Anne and Don with Arrowhead River Adventures outside Medford, on rthe Rogue. Yesss!


--Stu

Pacific NW Tour

Just in from Bozeman Montana, where the steaks are big and the sky is bigger, and we're off to Oregon this Friday for two weeks on the road. Stay tuned for our tales from the road! I'm off to get my truck tuned up and re-tired, and drop my mandola off at Blue Note for a refret. I'm sooo lucky that Jonas is willing to loan me his mandola for this tour. Thanks buddy! --Stu