Kennedy from the Independent. San Francisco 24th April 2010.

THE BARMY ARMY GOING DAFT IN SAN FRANCISCO

The Wedding Present's Bizarro Barmy Army 2010 US Tour. San Francisco.

FERGAL'S SIGNED POSTER FROM THE SAN FRANCISCO GIG.

We had originally planned to set off for SF at 6am Saturday morning, but due to last minute notification of a Mark Burgess gig in Eagle Rock in L.A. we hastily rescheduled for 8am instead.
The Mark Burgess gig was awesome, it was at some tiny loft in L.A., full of goths and he performed with his usual gusto and pretty much played a Chameleons greatest hits set.
At the end of the show he asked if the audience could take a couple of more songs, naturally we all screamed "Yeah".
Then he looked at me and said "Unfortunately I'm not as cool as David Gedge, I do encores"
The comment may have been lost on most of his audience, but it certainly gave me, Kellie and Mark a chuckle.


MARK BURGESS @ THE SHOWCAVE IN EAGLE ROCK, LOS ANGELES.



So with our late 8am start we set off up the 101 freeway heading north, we could have taken Interstate 5 but we didn't want to be too cliched.
For the trip the car rental company had given us a VW Beetle (It wasn't green, thankfully) I drove and Mark took the passenger seat while Kellie and Lori squeezed into the back. I still had to move my seat way forward as well so my knees were touching the bottom of the steering wheel.
"F**k" I thought, "this is going to be one hell of a trip"
I wasn't wrong, we finally arrived in Sunnyvale at 1pm after a couple of pit stops for gas, McDonald's and an iced coffee.
We checked in and I had a quick shower then it was off to Frisco in search of the venue so I could drop a bag of merchandise off for the band.
I had my Man City shirt on and intended to wear it for the gig, but like a twat I spilt Thai curry down the front of it at dinner so had to change into my ManU barmy army shirt.
I chatted to David in the dressing room and informed him that I had bumped into three Indian Wedding Present fans outside the venue and one of them was really keen and very, very excited.


GIG FLYER AT THE VENUE.



This chap turned out to be sUKy (That's how he likes it to be written), he was certainly a character, and them some.
He informed us of how he has been a fan since 1987 and seeing he is a bit of a lad, his mum would give him a bit of stick asking him
"Why can't you be more like your friends?"
"Why can't you like proper music?"
"Why do you drink" You should be a good boy like your friends"
I should tell you at this point that sUKy was raised as a Sikh, but obviously a beer swilling, gig going, Derby County loving Sikh is not the norm.
That aside he was certainly a top lad and had us roaring with laughter with his tales of following The Wedding Present over the years and his quest to befriend fellow fans.
His two mates, while happy to be there, weren't quite as enthusiastic, but then again, who was?






THE LADS IN THE NOC NOC BAR. (cool place actually)


We had a few drinks in the Mad Dog in the Fog on Haight Street, before moving on to the Noc Noc bar across the street. This palce could best be described as "cave chic".
I felt like I had just stumbled onto the set of Stig of the Dump.



UGLY SHIRT FROM THE BAR, BUT I LIKE IT.

A great place though, I was so moved that I actually bought a dodgy t-shirt from the bar. Day-glo yellow is making a come back apparently.


TWP ONSTAGE @ THE INDEPENDENT

The gig was brilliant, probably the best I had seen outside of New York. They did make a couple of mistakes, David fluffed a line in Granadaland and actually forgot the words during Bewitched. He eventually remembered and even managed to squeeze an apology into the next verse.
Despite malicious and false rumours circulated among the east coast barmy army by my "beloved" Kellie, I managed to pogo, mosh and generally jump around for every song of the gig.
My calf's are paying for it today mind, but last night was f**king immense.
A great time was had by all up front, with me, Kia, Fergal, Jason, sUKy and his brother in-law setting the tones for the rest of the audience.
There was one couple who got a bit stroppy with us, but we generally ignored the twats. Stick to f**king Coldplay gigs in future people!!!!!
I managed to get sUKy a setlist and he offered for me to "Name my price" for barmy army shirt. I got his e-mail address and said I'd send him one for now't.
After the show, Charlie invited us to stay and have a few drinks with them in the dressing rooms, but the girls were knackered, it was past 2am so Mark and I reluctantly declined. (We were f**king gutted to be honest)
Thanks anyway Charlie.
So we said our goodbyes and "Thanks" to the band, Jessica, Andrew and the lovely Melinda who saved me from a fate on the merch table. As much as I enjoy doing it, I'd rather be down front jumping up and down like a lunatic with like minded individuals.




MARK EARNS HIS FRONT SEAT STATUS.

We got up the next morning, has some brekkie and set off for L.A. at 10.30am.
Thanks to me, speed racer, we made really good time and even made it for a late lunch at Andersen's Pea Soup. I love that place, all you can eat for $8.95.
The girls could only manage 2 bowls while me and Mark only ate 3 each.
I asked the waiter if they knew what the record was and he replied that it
"Was 17 bowls"
"F**k me" I said "was it a really great big fat person then?"
"No" he assured us "a normal sized person, just really tall"
"Hollow legs" quipped Mark.



"NO SOUP FOR YOU"

We got back into Simi Valley at about 4pm, which was bloody good going, so a pat on the back for myself.
Another great weekend only soured by the fact that we have no gigs to look forward to for a while.
Oh well, goodbye April 2010, you were a great month and will be missed.

Bizarro 21 Barmy Army shirts.

The original idea for this year's Barmy Army shirts came from Ian of Ian and Steph fame.
I spoke to him via transatlantic phone conversations and he came up with the idea of a shirt based on the Man United jersey with a Bizarro splodge for a badge, DLG instead of the AIG United shirt sponsor and the player's name and number GEDGE 50 on the back.
Despite being a staunch Man City fan I am always on board for anything based around football and music as I am obviously obsessed with both.


WP gig poster from the Casbah in San Diego in February 2006.



While I loved Ian's original idea, I offered to improve on it with my expert opinion, nothing too drastic, just a bit of tweaking here and there.
"How about we base the badge on the United/WP logo from the Casbah gig?"
"Sounds good" said Ian

"How about instead of DLG we put TWP for the sponsor logo and add something about the Barmy Army underneath the box?"
"Great"
Easy peasy.
The above conversation may or may not have gone quite down like that word for word and Ian may well have thought I was a cheeky twat for improving on his brilliant idea, but I digress.



Casbah gig inspired badge on Barmy Army shirt.



Two weeks before the tour was about to start I sent Ian a pm on scopitones as I knew he had been out of town of business and I hadn't heard anything from him for a while
"How are the shirts coming along?" I asked
"The design is there (I'll send you the mock ups) but time and cost are prohibitive. Steph is looking to see if there are any options with any of her clients. Unfortunately Alan, who prints the scopi calendars for us, no longer does t-shirts. It's not looking good."
"Oh bugger" I thought.


Front of Barmy Army "ManU" shirt.



I suppose I could have just left it there and nobody would have been any wiser as the shirts were supposed to be a surprise, but I desperately wanted to keep the tradition of the Barmy Army shirts going.
The guy I used last time took ages to make the last batch, so I didn't think he'd be any use to us this time around.
So knowing that Derek was in the media based business I figured that there was a slim chance he'd be able to help.




Front and back of Barmy Army shirt.



So I put in an emergency call and asked if he could do it.
I think we only had 10 days left before the Hoboken gig, so it was real tall order.
"I'll see what I can do" said Derek, "I know a couple of people but there might not be enough time to do it"
Once Derek confirmed it was on, I became a constant thorn in his side regarding the finer details.
Derek said the badge might hold up the process, I then informed instead of just making the shirts in red and black, that we should make more colours specific for the teams the Barmy Army travellers support back home.
So we had maroon for Kirk and Gav (Hearts and Northampton) green for Harry (Celtic), navy blue for Phil and Ian (Everton and Leicester City), sky blue for me (Man City) and despite Swindon Town wearing red Mark declined a red one because it was too ManU.


Other colour choices on Barmy Army shirt.



Derek wisely contacted me and asked if he could change the GEDGE 50 to BIZARRO 21
as it wouldn't be good PR for the band and would probably offend David.
In a split second I agreed with him, David probably wouldn't be too chuffed with his age plastered on the back of the shirt (This was later confirmed by Jessica)
And in fairness I wouldn't be too pleased if someone made a shirt with GILLESPIE 35 on the back of it, would I?




Barmy Army shirt as worn by our four stunning Barmy Army models.



So the details were finalised and it was touch and go as to whether they'd be done on time or not. Derek called me on Thursday and said they'd be done by the end of the business day and he'd be able to pick them up Friday afternoon.
After being designated to carry 3 boxes of Bizarro shirts from Boston to NYC for the band, Mark and I volunteered to get the bus from NJ to meet up and help him carry them back.
Of course the first thing we did was grab a box each, find and Irish bar and open up Derek's bag in order to see the Barmy Army shirts.
The first one out of the bag was a red one.
"F**k me, they're good" I said "too f**king good really"
And they were, it was like looking at a real United shirt.
I was excited to see the new shirts, but a bit gutted that they looked so good and so realistic.
But seeing a lot of the details were my idea I obviously had to swallow my pride and take one for the team.
David even sent me a text taunting me that "It must have killed me to wear those shirts"
Well I wouldn't go that far but after breaking out in a rash after wearing it to the Hoboken gig, I had to wear my City shirt for the Bowery.
Jokes aside, the shirts were brilliant and worthy successors to the original Barmy Army shirts of 2008.
So congratulations to Ian for the original idea, obviously me for improving it and especially Derek for enthusuiastically coming through under extreme pressure and saving the day for the Barmy Army.
Everyone in the gang loved them despite a strong dislike of Man United.
Now we'll really have to come up with something extra special to top them for the Seamonsters tour.

The Wedding Present's Bizarro Barmy Army 2010 Tour (Part Four)

GETTING READY TO LEAVE NEW JERSEY.

So came the last gig day of our east coast jaunt.
Harry, Kirk, Mark, Derek, Kellie and myself checked out of the hotel, rented the van and then drove back to Hoboken in order to pick up Ian and Steph from Ian and Steph.
I don't normally offer such exclusive services but I'll make an exception for this pair.
We had a quick lunch and then hit the road for the long drive to Boston.
The drive was a bit shit to be honest, we couldn't hook up the i-pod and radio reception was dire. Just how many times does one need to hear Billy f**king Joel over a three day span?
At one point Derek found the Red Sox game on AM Radio.
Now Derek is a lovely fellow and I actually don't mind watching baseball, but a van load of Brit's listening to the Red Sox isn't the ideal combination.
I finally broke down and put my i-pod on for myself (selfish twat) while the others read the "action" on www.scopitones.co.uk via their phones.
Cait said "Tell gk he's a twat"
We finally got to our motel and despite what "certain" people said about it looking like something out of Pulp Fiction, I thought it was actually quite nice.
We went to the liquor store next door, bought some booze and consumed it while we got ready.
Then we then moved on to Boston and sat outside the hotel with the engine running like fugitives while Kirk and Ian and Steph from Ian and Steph checked in.




THE BARMY ARMY EATING AND DRINKING AGAIN, THIS TIME IN BOSTON.

We went to an Irish bar that Derek had recommended and had a couple of drinks and dinner, it was probably the nicest meal we had the entire weekend.
Seeing I only had fish and chips, that tells you a lot about some of the crap we ate on the east coast.
It was good fish and chips though, Mark and Kirk had the same while Harry opted for some posh burger, mind you he is posh, he eats his chips with a knife and fork.




THE FOUR AMIGO'S.

During the meal we were joined by EdA from the forum and Brad a friend of Derek's.
Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to chat as they were at the opposite end of the banquet table.
We finally moved on for the gig, the venue was pretty grungy and rock 'n roll, I liked it but Harry had a run in with the people on the door which tainted the experience a bit.
The security were knobs really, they seemed a bit heavy handed with the punters when it came to booze patrol.
The main tosser was a bloke who could best be described as a giant sized 13 year old boy with a blonde hairstyle right out of the 70's.
He seemed to be texting the entire time, would do this for 10 minutes or so then look up and scan the crowd for somebody to harass.
Needless to say, it made my night when the fat f**ker fell off his seat.






THE MIDDLE EAST, LAST VENUE FOR THE REMAINING BARMY ARMY.

The gig was very good, the support band Girl in a Coma were most excellent and the lead singer was as fit as a butchers dog.
Yeah, she'd "get it"
Unfortunately the barmy army were well knackered from the rest of the weekend and quite subdued. We tried to get a decent mosh going a couple of times, but to no avail.
Graeme finally broke a string on his guitar, David was so shocked that he announced it to the crowd.
Not to be outdone he broke two himself in quick succession.
Final score: Ramsey Rovers 1 - Gedge United 2.
David tried out a few new jokes in between songs which didn't really go down to well, I think anal retentive Cambridge man stole his thunder.




ME AND THE LOVELY MELINDA.
FELLOW WP MERCHANDISER AND MOZ OBSESSIVE.

After the gig, we hung out and chatted while Jessica gave us some WP/Dirty Harry posters from the Atlanta gig and I hounded the band and got them signed.
David was worried that the gig might have been a bad one as we didn't seem very enthusiastic from the stage, "It was great" I assured him "we were just a bit knackered"
We said our goodbyes to the band and dropped Kirk and the "other two" off at their hotel before driving back to our motel in Derek's hometown.
It was a bloody long drive and once again we didn't get back until after 2am.
We still found time to chat and have a couple of beers while waiting for Derek to show up and drop off the directions back to the van rental in New Jersey.
Good work fella, there is no way we would have found our way back otherwise






FINAL FAREWELL BY THE TOUR VAN.


OKAY, THIS IS THE FINAL FAREWELL BY THE TOUR VAN.


The next morning we got up early and said a sad/dour farewell to to our favourite Glaswegian.
I'll not bore you with a long drawn out description of our travel high jinks back to NJ/NY/JFK but we saw a green beetle (hmm fear), I had pizza for breakfast and we got lost in the Bronx.
Overall we all had a great time, despite a few setbacks of getting lost, not being able to find a liquor store in the hell hole that is known as North Bergen and not getting hardly any sleep.
So I would like to take this opportunity to thank David and Jessica, the rest of the band, Graeme, Terry and Charlie, with a special mention to the lovely ladies Tigi and Melinda.
I'd also like to say thanks to the barmy army, Ian and Steph from Ian and Steph, Kirk, Harry, Phil, Jen, Sally, Gav, Derek (the t-shirts were brilliant) and my good friend Mark, glad you came along mate.
Most of all I'd like to thank Kellie for being my main travel companion. Nice having somebody to cuddle up to after a long and tiring day.
Also a big "Hello" to everyone we met along the way, it just confirms that Wedding Present fans are nice no matter where you are.
Hopefully we'll get to do this all over again for the next tour be it a new album or (gasp) for Seamonsters.
Who knows, maybe 2010 will be the year I finally see The Wedding Present do a gig in the UK?
Thank you, love from Andy and Kellie, roll on San Francisco on the 24th.


and finally........


GREEN BEETLE ON THE DRIVE OUT OF BOSTON.
RUNAWAY!!!!!!

The Wedding Present's Bizarro Barmy Army 2010 US Tour (Part Three)

THE BOWERY, NYC.



SUBWAY.

So we decided to do the tourist bit on Saturday, hang out in NYC all day looking at the various sights and then head off straight to the gig.
The original plan included getting up early and finding a pub to watch the Man City match in, but after a late and fairly sleepless night we decided to watch it in our room on Mark's computer.
Harry and Kirk gave the game a miss and went off in search of photo opportunities.
As for the match, it was a corker as City stuffed Birmingham 5-1 with Tevez and Adebayor looking like scoring every time they got the ball.




STATUE OF LIBERTY.

We finally got to Manhattan in the afternoon and took the free ferry across the Hudson River to get a good view of the Statue of Liberty.
I have been here in the US for 22 years and to be honest seeing the grand lady of New York was an honour and fulfilled an ambition I have had since I was small child.
I would have liked to have got up close, but it wasn't feasible.
Oh well, next time.
Our group consisting of Derek, Mark, Kirk, Harry, Kellie and myself wandered to streets for hours, taking in Beaver Street, Wall Street, the famous bull and it's balls and many others.
One of the most exciting things for me was spotting a skateboarding teenager wearing a Buzzcocks t-shirt.




THE BOYS DRINKING AT IGGY'S BAR NEAR THE BOWERY.

We finally headed off to the Bowery and once found, we decided to look for a bar.
We were going around in circles like headless chickens and tensions were running high until some Russian geezer directed us to a place called Iggy's Bar just around the corner.
It turned out to be a good call as the Ramones were blasting through the P.A. when we walked through the door.
Turns out that they were having an extended happy hour and all draught beers including Boddingtons were $4 a pint.
We ended up staying for a couple of hours, which was the perfect way of unwinding before the gig after our exhausting day of sight seeing.
Right on cue the rest of the barmy army joined us as we were leaving the bar and heading to the Bowery.
We got to the Bowery and despite it looking like a dump from the outside, inside was a different story.
You entered the venue through the bar and the place was packed, full of fans young and old.
Various classic shirts were spotted, Seamonsters and original Bizarro and a Mini one.
The place was buzzing and people seemed pretty excited.
While in the bar a guy approached me and introduced himself as "Brian", someone who had commented on my previous barmy army blog. We exchanged greetings and then he announced that he could get a Bizarro t-shirt as he wore XXL and they had sold out.
"Hang on" I said and ran over to the coat check girl and grabbed my backpack.
I pulled out my favourite blue stripey 2008 barmy army shirt and gave it to Brian as it was pretty baggy on me these days.
Brian's face lit up and I thought he might even cry, keep that a secret people, I don't want my reputation to be ruined and word getting out that I might actually be a nice guy.
After the support band finished we moved into the concert hall and found Ian and Steph from Ian and Steph up front and centre, we muscled our way up to them and nobody seemed to object.



GRAEME WEARING HIS BARMY ARMY SHIRT DURING THE SOUNDCHECK.



BIZARRO KEG????


The floor was full and David later confirmed that the gig eventually sold out.
We were quite pleased to spot Graeme wear his barmy army shirt for the sound check.
The gig started and it was obvious from the first couple of songs that this was going to be a special show, the place was rocking and with the barmy army bouncing up and down like it was 1989, most people around us joined in.
There was a dodgy Brix Smith look-a-like near Steph from Ian and Steph doing some vintage 80's dance moves and just behind us I was shocked to spot the forum's very own Keg. On closer inspection it wasn't really him, but it certainly gave us lot a chuckle or two or more.
The crowd was already into the set and leaping about, but things kicked into overdrive when the Bizarro songs started.
Despite everyone jumping around and people getting knocked over from time to time, not one person objected, this wouldn't have been the way in L.A. I can assure you of that.
Down the front were a few small young women and they rolled their sleeves up and were moshing with the rest of us, it was fucking brilliant to be honest.
Unfortunately all good things come to an end and before we knew it the final bars of Be Honest sounded and the show was over.



US WITH GAV AND SALLY AT THE BOWERY.

So it was back down to the bar where we chatted amongst ourselves, with members of Jet Age who bought me a pint, result.
Sally even got chatted up by two members of Girl in a Coma, unfortunately (for the lads) it wasn't the gorgeous lead singer.
We chatted with TWP and David reckoned it was one of the best shows he had ever played, not one of us disagreed.




DLG & ME AFTER THE GIG.

After leaving the venue we said our farewells to Gav and Sally and Phil and Jen who wouldn't be joining us in Cambridge for the next gig.
Then the real fun began.
We struggled to find our way back to the hotel in a scene straight out of 70's cult movie The Warriors.
It was 1am and the subway station was shut so we once again had to wander the mean streets of New York and an effort to find the right train.
Hilarity followed as Harry and Kirk's Scottish rivalries came out and they sniped at each other like an old married couple.



We eventually got back to the hotel at 2.30am and it would have been a lot worse had it not been for the helpful people we met along the way. In spite of New York's horrible reputation, everyone we met was nice, polite, very courteous and extremely patient despite one of two of us being a bit crabby due to tiredness and the stress of not thinking we'd ever see our hotel room again.

To be continued......

Martin P. Smurf on tour with The Wedding Present.

While on the east coast we bumped into this guy following the tour.
Apparently he is the smurferator on smurfitones.co.uk.
What an adorable little chap, unlike the other one we all know and "love"


AT THE EDGE OF THE SMURF.



LOST PANDA??





EVERYONE SMURFS HE LOOKS DAFT.



PERFECT BLUE SKIN


DON'T SMURF ME HOME UNTIL I'M DRUNK.



BESMURFED


MY FAVOURITE SMURF
Blog fan Brian poses with Martin P. Smurf while sporting old school barmy army shirt.
I'll miss that shirt, but it goes to a good home.


GIVE MY SMURF TO GAVIN.







THIS SMURF CAN WAIT.



NOT FROM WHERE I'M SMURFING.



NOBODY'S SMURFING YOUR ARM



DON'T SMURF, JUST KISS.



DON'T SMURF THAT DIAL.

The Wedding Present's Bizarro Barmy Army 2010 US Tour (Part Two)

BARMY ARMY, HOWARD JOHNSON'S, NORTH BERGEN, NJ.
(The Indie Tele Tubbies)


So Mark, Kellie and I took the red eye to New York on Friday night and arrived at JFK at 5.30am the next morning.
We caught the subway (E train no less) and then the 125 bus and arrived in North Bergen NJ at 7.30am. A slight problem as we couldn't check into our room until 3pm.
We tried calling Harry but there was no answer, I even battered his hotel room door but he obviously wasn't in there, bummer.
Luckily the lady on the front desk found us a room that was ready and let us check in 7 hours early, we later found out that Harry had gone into NY early so he could watch Celtic on the telly
They lost, that'll teach him.
Seeing we got zero sleep on the flight in, Kellie decided to have a nap while me and Mark took off on the hotel shuttle to Manhattan to meet Derek and help him with 3 boxes of Bizarro t-shirts that he was carrying for the band.
We met up and carried the boxes for about 3 blocks until we decided that they were so heavy we must have a pint or two or three in some lovely Irish bar we found.
Fast forward several hours and our group moved onto Hoboken for the gig.
While we were waiting for our cab to the venue a car load of knobs looking like extras from the Jersey Shore drove by and screamed "Irish niggers" at us before racing off.
Well me, Mark, Derek and Harry might be a bit pasty and non-Italian looking and we can handle being called "niggers", but we take great exception to being referred to as Irish.
It was very amusing though.


OUTSIDE MAXWELL'S


We found a decent enough bar, had a few drinks and arranged to meet the others.
Kirk arrived with suitcase in hand and was soon followed by Ian and Steph from Ian and Steph, Phil and Jen and last but not least, Gavin and Sally.


We necked down a few more beers and discussed how shit the pub juke box was.
It was truly dire, so bad in fact that after making a few picks, Derek gave up and asked me to take over as he was stumped.
It was hard worked but I managed to pick out 7 or 8 songs that while "not good", weren't too horrible.






The venue (Maxwells) just might be the smallest I have ever seen. It was literally just slightly bigger than the average living room with a tiny stage at one end and a bar at the other. I guessed it held anywhere between 200 and 250 which explained why it was the first venue on the tour to sell out.
I insisted that the barmy army check out the support band The Jet Age and the ones that watched were very impressed.
The Wedding Present came on and delivered for a captive audience, the barmy army were on form as well bouncing about like rabid easter bunnies, other members of the audience were only too eager to join in and a fine time was had by all.
The highlights for me were No and Bewitched.
Graeme's strumming on No is very impressive and I'd just like to remind you that he is onstage to do just that and not to upstage DLG by leaping about and doing the windmill like Pete Townsend in his prime, so stop f**king moaning about it.
I would also like to state that Charlie Layton is the best, I repeat, the best drummer I have seen in The Wedding Present.
I know that may upset Simon Smith enthusiasts, but it's my opinion and my blog, so there.
We chatted to the band and other fans after the gig, then headed off for a few slices of pizza down the road.
Beer, a great gig and tasty pizza, it really doesn't get any better than that.

To be continued...

The Wedding Present's Bizarro Barmy Army 2010 US tour. (Part One.)

There was good news and bad news as the second "official" barmy army tour kicked off as usual in San Diego.
The bad news was that the usual suspects weren't around for the launch party.
The good news was that most of them would be there for dates on the east coast instead, exciting times indeed.
But I'm sure their hearts were with us on the west coast and the start of The Wedding Present's "historical" Bizarro 21 tour.
New barmy army recruits Fergal, Mark and Kia were along for the ride and we were also due to meet up with friends Lori, Dolly and Paul, so there would be a few familiar faces in the crowd.


NOW I KNOW HOW MPS FEELS.
SHE WASN'T WEARING ANY BY THE WAY.



FERGAL & MARK IN THEIR "COZY" ROOM.

Kellie, Fergal, Mark and I arrived at about noon in San Diego, we couldn't check into the hotel until 3pm so we wandered around and explored our surroundings.
This included walking around the gaslight district for a curry and avoiding eye contact with the massive homeless population as this encourages panhandling.
We also walked around the wharf, checked out a few boats (as you do) took a few pictures and then cut things short as it was getting a bit chilly.
We checked in at the "plush" Motel 6, and it actually wasn't that bad.
The downside was we didn't realise until we got there that all the rooms were single with only one double bed. Fine for me and Kellie, but a bit of a nightmare for Mark and Fergal.
Not sure how they handled their sleeping arrangements, but they looked very cozy.
The colour scheme in the rooms was orange, brown and white which reminded me of the buses back in Manchester during the 70's & 80's.
We settled in and had a few beers, Kia arrived at about 7pm and we left for the gig shortly after that.




THE VENUE.

We arrived at the Casbah, parked up and headed for our traditional Subway sarnie across the street.
Dolly and Paul joined our group, we ate and chatted while waiting for the venue to open.
The band joined us a bit later, we talked for a bit and then headed off, leaving them to eat while we went to the Casbah in search of something stronger to drink.
I love the Casbah, it's a tiny and scruffy venue situated at the end of the runway at San Diego airport.
A plane flies overhead literally every five minutes just a couple of hundred feet above the venue, it sounds bad, but it's fucking ace.
Fergal and I attempted to have a game or two of pool, but the table would not comply and decided to keep taking our money and not dispense all the balls, so despite help from the beautiful barmaid, we gave up.
I tried to buy a Casbah t-shirt but all they have were shirts for little women.
Clearly this wouldn't do, I have been called a big woman on many occasions, but never a little one. And even though I probably could have used the shirt as a bandana, I passed.



"D'YA WANNA BUY A T-SHIRT MATE?"

Speaking to Jessica in the weeks leading up to the gig, ticket sales had been really weak and they were worried about the gig and if anyone would turn up.
In the end San Diego came through and we ended up with a bigger crowd than on the "El Rey" tour.
This time around we obviously had Bizarro t-shirts, El Rey vinyl, Wedding Present bags and other stuff.
The merchandise sold very well, they sold out of Sheperds Bush dvd's and David regretted his decision to only bring 4 copies, doh!!!!!!
Bearing in mind that last time I only sold 12 t-shirts and 9 of them were to the barmy army (including Kellie), I was quite shocked at how much we sold.
My "helper" this time around was drummer Charlie's girlfriend the very lovely Sarah, who I managed to insult by saying she didn't sound German enough.
My excuse was that the gig was very loud so I couldn't hear properly, plus I had a bit to drink, a shabby excuse, I know, but I'm sticking with it.




FERGAL and TERRY DECASTRO AFTER THE GIG AT THE CASBAH.

Despite one or two gaffs by the "band" (By band I mean DLG), the gig was very enjoyable. The small crowd while not jumping about much was very enthusiastic and very appreciative.
The setlist was great, we had three (yes three) new songs and a few older classics such as Corduroy before the band launched into Bizarro.
With the three new songs David hadn't quite learned all the lyrics yet so he kept glancing at notes on the stage floor. After each song he would hand them back to Jessica for safe keeping as they were the only copies.
LOL, I guess they couldn't find a Kinko's before the gig to make a few copies.
A good time was had by all.
After another chat with the band we eventually got back to the hotel at 1.30am. Kellie went to bed while me, Kia, Mark and Fergal headed to the lads room for a few more drinks and to listen to the gig again recorded by Mark.
It sounded great and we must have been a bit too enthusiastic as security showed up and told us to turn things down.
I eventually called it a night at 2.30am and everyone agreed to get up and have breakfast in Old Town the next morning, or should I say, a few hours later?





THE BEST BREAKFAST EVER IN OLD TOWN SAN DIEGO.

After a couple of attempts to rally the troops, Kellie and me headed off the Old Town at 9am and the little Mexican restaurant Jessica had recommended.
A good call Miss MacMillan because it was delicious.
They make their own tortillas on the premises and they are wonderful. Still warm and fresh when they arrive at your table and really thick and chewy.
I had huevos rancheros and it was the best Mexican breakfast I have ever had.
On the drive back to L.A. we stopped in Carlsbad for gas, after filling up I pulled the car over to the front of the gas station and almost immediately a massive swarm of bee's took over the premises. There were thousands of the pesky blighters and the car was covered in them, luckily I had the AC on and all the windows in the car were firmly closed.
We escaped onto Interstate 5 still covered in bee's, they may have been killer bee's for all I know, but I didn't ask.
Anyway some clung to the wing mirrors and windscreen for dear life, I think the last one stayed on us for about 8 miles.
Yellow and black striped, stinging bastards, God I f**king hate bee's man!!!!




PRE-GIG CURRY at THE GATE OF INDIA on SUNSET BLVD.

For the Troubadour gig, my old friend Brett drove out from Nevada to re-live our 1990 experience, we were also joined by my mate Neil from Blackburn and my 13 year old son Liam.
Another pre-gig curry was the order of the night.
No Keanu Reeves this time around but Langley/Middleton legend Mark Burgess of The Chameleons was in attendance which was far more exciting than Keanu for me.
I chatted with Mark about City, David chucked in a couple of light hearted comments regarding his love of the shite from Salford.
These came back to haunt him the next day as Chelsea beat them at the swamp and we stuffed Burnley at Turf Moor............ brilliant.
We saw quite a few familiar faces at the venue and not to say the San Diego performance was poor, but the L.A. gig blew it out of the water.
I managed to grab a Troubadour venue t-shirt and very snazzy it was as well. Ha, in your face Casbah!!!!!!





MIDDLETON LEGENDS DLG, MARK BURGESS AND ERRR...... ME AT THE TROUBADOUR.

After another few hours sleep everyone was up by 9am the next morning, I played the "Hostess with the mostess" and made our group breakfast burrito's. They were delicious even if I do say so myself. We watched City v Burnley and before you knew it the time had come for our guests to bugger off home.
Brett drove back to Nevada and Liam and me took Fergal for a short trip to Hollywood where we did a bit of shopping at Amoeba and had lunch and a pint at the Cat and Fiddle.
A great weekend in all, here's to the east coast.

To be continued.......