Playing in front of 80 000 people in Dallas was great, and Puerto Rico is always interesting. Dokken opened for us the second half of the tour. It was funny watching the heavy metal Dokken fans all decked out, singing and swaying to This Could Be the Night!
The crew did a great job, especially our sound guys. Last tour, we were doing sound checks for two hours everyday. With these guys, we didn't need them. It made life more relaxed. We didn't have to get up to do a sound check after partying-drudgery in the afternoon.
I go on the road to party and to play, not to sightsee. On a day off, I'd sleep or otherwise relax because every day off, we partied the night before. We did more partying than on other tours. There's some stories I'd like to tell but I can't; I can't tell anybody!
The best parties were in Charlotte, Indianapolis, and naturally, the tour closer in Springfield, the last day of August. We played a few more dates after that, but we had the party there. It was in a Holiday Inn. We had a jam session with a bunch of equipment and Porque and the other roadies singing and joining in.
Other than the partying, I went to a lot of guitar stores, visiting dealers and did a few promotional appearances for my guitar line. Since I've been home, I haven't really done anything other than write . . .I took my Corvette out to a racetrack and drove it as fast as I could. That was great. . .
I really enjoyed this tour. I really like playing live. That's what this whole thing is about--we make records to promote the tours, we don't tour to support an album. The record is a taste of what you're gonna get.
Mike:
I never thought I'd be nervous going into a show, but for the first few weeks on tour, I was so nervous . . .I guess it was just the shock of being back after two years off. I was really psyched up for the tour, especially the last three weeks before we went out. We had been writing, we were practicing, the record was on the charts, and people were buying tickets for the shows. . .It was really happening.
It would build before each show.
Everybody's getting in the groove, the equipment's getting set up and everything's getting closer and all of a sudden at nine-twenty, BANG, we're on! And around eleven o'clock, eleven-thirty, we're all sitting around--like a big sigh of relief--going "That was great. . . "
The one-on-one with the people was the best part, the contact . . . to look down into the audienceand know you're affecting them. They really think I'm special and that's really a neat feeling, because what I do, I do naturally just like anybody else.
There was a song where once in a while I'd mix up one or two of the lines. Somebody would smile at me in the audience and my mind would go blank. It was once in a blue moon, but it still worried me, which made it worse. So I wrote the lyrics out and I put them underneath the stage where I could see through the grid, and just knowing they were there, I never had to look at them! Sometimes I'd sneak a peek for reassurance. My private little sanction . . .
I got out fishing and golfing as much as I could. We'd all group together a lot and do something--a movie or dinner. Or I'd sit and watch TV with my buddy Scott. The whole band spent a lot of time together. We were all rooming side by side, so we'd all open the doors. It was like camp or a football team.
But I did really miss my dogs. When we left to go on the road, my dog was only 6 months old. I came home and he was big. This next tour, maybe I'll take them with me . . .
Scott:
I got a lot of enjoyment out of playing a good evening, and not making too many mistakes. I was singing lots which was one more little musical challenge to keep me really interested. I look forward to getting up there, and giving everybody a good show and playing the best I can.
The first show I definitely had a few butterflies. But after we'd done a few, it came back to me. It wasn't a negative nervousness, it was like running a race. You get the adrenaline flowing, but it's directed towards doing a good job. And you feed off the energy the audience gives back to you.
You just sweat so much that you lose weight during the show and then naturally you have to replace the fluids so you have a few beers. I look forward to that, there's always a couple of cold beers after the show, and watching a movie or reading a book. Not really going too crazy, there's always another show to do the next day.
The good side of it is that you travel and you're seeing different parts of the world. Travelling I think is something everyone enjoys doing, seeing new places, meeting new people, and seeing different cultures. We got days off to go out and do all the touristy stuff. That's the fun side. The hard side is living in hotel rooms. The tendency is to go into a self-destruct mode.
I would try to find a good hockey game or something else to remind me of home. Or we'd make an evening of going out and having a real nice dinner or something with Mike or Mattie or one of the guys. And I spent some time getting down the inter-band, inter-crew gossip--which is usually x-rated--in "The Tattler", our road newsletter. I'd write it all, and we'd put it together on our lightman, Robbie's MacIntosh.
Now that I've got some time off, I don't just throw the band and the music out. I try to do it schematically every day, go downstairs, turn on the drum machine and work out some songs, do some singing . . .I'll have a game of pool, and then I'll come back with another idea, put it down, then go work out a little . . .
Doug:
A lot of people think that being on the road is really tiring. It can be a little tedious after a while, and constantly changing environments can be quite stressful . . .But it's not such a grind. You can hang around the hotel, go out shopping, go to a restaurant, a movie, whatever. You meet new people, see new places. . .I enjoy being on the road.
The worst part was the disorientation. I'd be in the hallway, heading for the weight room and realize I wasn't in the same hotel . . .The most gratifying part was playing and dancing around on stage looking out at the crowd and seeing everybody with their arms outstretched, smiling and having a good time . . .My favorite part was my sax solo.
What I missed the most about home was just being in a familiar environment. I missed getting up in the morning, going downstairs and playing my piano for a while and puttering around. Just doing my routine sort of things. Knowing where everything is, knowing that there's order in your life . . .
But when the lights go down, and the crowd roars, it's a phenomenal rush for the next ninety minutes. Then you've done your last encore, and you have to taper it down. I'd have a shower and get cleaned up, then sit around with a beer. Then we'd usually fly to the next city. I'd usually go to my room, watch TV or read, then go to sleep. I brought along a four track portable studio with a drum machine and keyboard set-up, so I puttered around on it, and wrote new material.
I started missing the road about a week after we got home. It gets into your system, and when you get home it's such a different lifestyle. You go into withdrawals. But I'm over that now, and I feel quite comfortable being home. I plan on skiing, playing tennis, maybe go scuba-diving . . .
Musically, I want to do all kinds of things. I've taken up classical guitar, and I want to play a little bit of sax now and then, jam with different bands. I want to go four-by-fouring, I have a jeep that I like to take up into the bush. . .
Matt:
The exciting part of any live concert is between the band and the audience. How the two meet . . .They expect something from you, so you've got to give it. Then you expect something from them . . .I like to lock eyes, even from back behind my drum kit, cuz if you get somebody who's gettin' their money's worth, I'll tell you they make my whole night. That's what it's all about.
The other thing is being able to perform the songs live. You can go into the studio and work for months and months and record a song and you're not ever really sure if you've totally captured it until you go and play it live.
Before the show, I'd sit in the dressing room and think about my solo, or bringing Working for the Weekend in just the right way, or how I'm going to peak in the set, but not peak too early physically. I'm always nervous before going on. If I'm not, I don't perform as well. But if I'm too hyper, I can't hold the groove. It's got to be controlled. I was a long distance runner in school, and I had to psyche before a race. I was so nervous I would get sick before I had to run.
The really important shows were hard on me, New York, Vancouver, Dallas--big shows like that. I'd get so nervous I couldn't talk to anybody, I couldn't do anything. After the shows, it would take me anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour just to find my space again. I'd relax and maybe listen to some music on headphones, do something real laid back. I don't necessarily always have to go out and party.
Every night was special, and every city was special from another city. New Orleans was different than New York, and they reacted differently than Seattle, or Montreal or Dallas. That to me was exciting, I really liked that change of pace.
I liked the closeness with the band . . . getting in the plane after, and talking about the show, somebody's solo, or somebody messing up, and joke a bit and rib a bit. I'm glad we'll be getting together again soon . . .