September 1999:
A Tale of Two Vans, Pt. 1

I'm going to attempt to enter a little passage each day of this trip to give a glimpse of what it's like to be on the road with "America's most comfortably dressed band"*.

-Jon

*Rave On Magazine 1999 readers poll.

We drove all day yesterday and pulled into this nice little hamlet @ around 10:30 PM. The drive was pretty uneventful-we only stopped to refuel a few times. Usually we end up making lots of stops to check out things that look interesting: Louie Anderson's boyhood home (Connersville, MN), the corpse of the largest grasshopper ever found in Maine (Lewisburgh, ME), "Pudding City U.S.A." (Northam, NM) etc·

Our dining options were just about non-existent last night because of our late arrival. We set out for the much-maligned Denny's establishment but were shocked to find that the booths were covered in plastic tarp. We concluded that they were either renovating or cleaning up after a shooting.

It was with much trepidation that we headed to the only restaurant in town that still had its lights on·Hooters.

This would mark the first time that any of us had ever dined at one of these soft-core eateries and I must say that Laura actually seemed the most excited.

I'm sorry to say that the experience was a little disappointing. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing like eating a soggy Caesar salad while being pummeled by a P.A. speaker that blasts the best tunes the 80's had to offer. Factor in also the sight of a man that can only be described as a former high school jazz band instructor leering at a traditionally-dressed (skin-tight orange shorts, two sizes too small T-shirt, ultra-thick hose) Hooters Girl as she bends over to retrieve some change she dropped and you've got the makings of a great night out. I dunno, maybe it has something to do with my getting rebuked by our waitress Erin after I tried to dance with her when "Love Plus One" came on.

On to Lawrence Kansas.

September 1 Lawrence, KS.

Up kind of early (for me anyway) at 10:00 am. Had a great time last night. I always forget how much I like Lawrence. It puts me in mind of a nicer Athens, GA. We ate at a nice South American restaurant and then went to see Bowfinger.

This was the first Steve Martin film I'd been anticipating in quite a while. Although I am a big fan of several of his films like The Jerk, The Man with Two Brains and The Lonely Guy, I have not been that into his recent work. Until now. Great story and another surprisingly great performance by Eddie Murphy. The fact that I enjoyed the film eased the pain of my disappointment with Albert Brooks' The Muse. Brooks is my favorite screenwriter but I'm sorry to say that the new one is not his finest (says me).

It's strange being out on the road for a few days and not having done a show yet. Hope I remember how to play tonight. This will probably be the 5th time we've played the Bottleneck. First time was in '91. Last time was in '98. I remember sitting in the upper dressing room with the NMH guys and seeing some guy run up the stairs and into the toilet stall. Everybody looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. Somebody finally asked, "who the fuck is that?" as the young man bolted out of the stall and made his way to the stairs. "I'm the guy that just paid $7.00 to see you play tonight", he replied as he ran down to meet his friends. Yes, I am still annoyed by this incident.

Gotta go into town and kick that guy's ass now.

September 2 Driving

Mac, Laura, Jim and I are riding in Red Willow, the van we've owned since '92. I'm sorry to say that this might be RW's final appearance on the nation's highways. May you rest easy dear friend, you served us well. Ol' Red only broke down once in 7 years, ironically in Lawrence, Kansas.

Listening to a pretty cool classic rock station that seems to specialize in long-forgotten regional hits. One dollar to anyone out there that can tell me the band responsible for the early-80's chestnut that contains the following uplifting chorus: "Might as well go for a soda/Nobody's hurt and nobody cries".

Our tour manager/soundman/keyboardist Jason Ward is currently barreling through the prairie with our friend/helper/aux. guitarist Matt Gentling in a separate van affectionately known as "Chad".

Pretty good one last night. Maybe the first time a first-show-of-tour wasn't hampered by technical glitches. Oh wait, I forgot about Matt Gentling smashing the acoustic guitar to pieces when the pick-up slipped out. Pretty uneventful otherwise.

Before we went on I caught a little bit of an interesting yet very one-sided conversation between a drunk patron and one of the club's P.A. speakers. It went something like this:
Patron:
(rubbing the speaker)
Play some great songs little friend.
Speaker:
(silence).

The anti-Chunk graffiti is, I'm happy to report, still gracing the backstage walls.

September 3, Denver 2:00 PM

Sitting in the hotel here on Colfax. Just went out for a stroll. We're in a kind of dismal part of town. Weird to walk past all the cruddy little closed-up shops and adult bookstores and come upon a church that John Paul II visited a few years ago. I have a hunch they cleaned the street up a little bit for him. They probably do the same when Bob Weir comes through town.

Saw Teaching Mrs. Tingle last night. Nothing more need be added.

Wow, I've already received three e-mails informing me that Canadian rocker Kim Mitchell recorded "Go For a Soda". Fellow Canuck (do Canadians take that as an insult?) Matthew writes: "I don't know if you've seen the video for 'Go For a Soda', but the concept is creepily similar to the concept for the 'Watery Hands' video, now that I think of it." Great minds·

September 4 Driving

Heading out of Denver. The show last night at the Bluebird Theater was great. Maybe the loudest crowd we've ever played to outside of Brazil. I wish we were able to come through here more often.

We've recently been trying to throw some older, more obscure numbers into the set to make things a little more interesting. We tried "Shallow End" and "Kicked In" last night. People seemed to recognize them as songs.

Did a verse of "Myage" during the switch in "Fishing" in honor of the Descendents who reside in nearby Ft. Collins. A kid told me I was "no Milo".

We're on our way to Albuquerque, NM- a town we've not been to for six years and we are more than a little apprehensive. We've never done especially well in the Southwest, (excepting Texas) and judging by the traditional first day of tour turnout predictions, tonight and tomorrow (Tempe AZ) should be "caves". A cave is, in Superchunkspeak, when the number of attendees at a show is so modest that the lack of bodies makes the hall resemble a large, empty subterranean chamber. You know it's going to be bad when Jason comes backstage a few minutes before showtime and asks us if we are "ready to go spelunking".

Just passed the exit for Littleton.

We're stuck in traffic now. Jim is driving and I think he's taking the gridlock personally. My suggestion that we should just pull over and get ice cream cones at Bronco Mike's Ice Cream Stable have thus far been ignored.

September 5 Driving

I think I remember why we haven't played in Albuquerque in six years. We arrived at the club at the appointed time of 6:00 PM with the idea that soundcheck would commence soon thereafter. We then proceeded to sit around for two hours waiting for the house soundman to show up. The promoter also added a third band to the bill, which meant that our set time would be later than in was supposed to be. I know I'm whining, but when you do this for a living you hope that the people you're working with will hold up their end of the bargain. At least he didn't ask for money back at the end of the night like he did once before.

It's weird to play in a city where there is so little interest in "our kind of music". Those that did attend (150 or so) were nice folks. We thank you for coming out. The show was pretty good, although I couldn't help but be distracted by one man's repeated shouts of the word "betrayal". Your guess is as good as mine.

Just ate breakfast at a 50's-themed restaurant called the Route 66 Diner. There was mild disappointment in our ranks when we realized this was not a "performance-driven" 50's- themed restaurant like Johnny Rockets or Ed Debevics. We entered with hopes of having "The Book of Love" sung at us by a spunky, bobby sox-wearing, gum snapping waitress while two Richie Cunningham lookalike busboys did the hand jive. What we got was a nice, cheerful young (non-singing) waiter named, and I'm just relating exactly what appeared on his nametag· Grasshopper. Grasshopper said he was required to ask us if we were interested in capping off our meals with milkshakes. Hmmm, what kind of shake does go best with oatmeal?

I'm presently savoring the last half of a book I purchased in Lawrence-"Andy Kaufman Revealed"by Bob Zmuda. Zmuda was Andy's best friend/writer/minder throughout his astonishing but unfortunately brief career and the stories he tells in this thing are really incredible. Can't wait for Man On The Moon, the film version of this story to open in December. I have never appreciated the talents of Jim Carrey but he is supposed to have done a stellar job portraying Andy in the film.

September 6, Driving
Hot. My eyes caught a glimpse of a temperature/time display last night as we pulled into Tempe and I did a picture-perfect double take. 104 degrees?! At 5:30 PM?! It was so nice in Albuquerque when we left, 78 degrees tops. I unrolled the window, stuck my face out and was hit with a blast of incredibly dry, hot air. When I got out of the van it felt just like a sauna. I actually came to enjoy it after a while.

Phoenix clubs have a couple strange policies. To their credit, many of them do allow underage kids to attend shows. But how do you keep the under-21's from mixing with the older people and sneaking drinks? Simple, construct a chainlink fence that runs down the middle of the dance floor and separate them. This has always seemed a little ·barbaric is too strong a word· excessive to me. My unasked question regarding what happens when your "love interest" is underage and you are not was answered when I saw a young couple holding hands through the spaces in the links during "Like A Fool?".

One is also not allowed to have alcoholic beverages onstage while performing in Phoenix. Phoenix is of course the town where Budweiser's Guided By Voices, legend has it, cancelled a gig just hours before showtime when hit with this bit of news. Props to Bob and company for taking a stand. Don't these fat-cat city officials realize that we need our fuel? What will it take to bring about new legislation?! Wake up people!!

The show? Let's just say things might have been better had we stuck to the original plan of opening with "Low Branches". Mac heard someone shouting for "Her Royal Fisticuffs" and decided to pull an audible. It seemed like a good 45 seconds of the song had gone by before we were all playing the same song. Playing a song not everybody in the band knows that well anymore can actually be fun when it comes in the middle of the set. Beginning the whole show with one of those songs can have an adverse effect. It seemed like things didn't really get back on track 'til the very end of the set. I doubt anybody else noticed.

Pretty good turnout considering we were up against Great White and local heroes Dokken. Probably not much crossover potential there now that I think of it.

I'll sign off with some words of wisdom I spotted on the mensroom wall last night: "Death is life's only reward".

September 8 Los Angeles
Just got up. The first show of our two-night stand at the Roxy club in the city of angels is behind us. When I was 15 I owned a Warren Zevon album that was recorded at the Roxy. I was surprised at how small the place actually is. Can't say it was a great experience. The show was fine but I don't like the way they herd people out immediately afterwards. I came down to see some friends no more than 10 minutes after we finished and everybody was gone. Seems a little·barbaric is too strong a word·excessive. (wink)

I'm sitting here now, waiting to do an interview with a Brazilian reporter. Hope there isn't too much of a language barrier. It's difficult enough to make yourself understood to an American reporter. I once did an interview with a fellow from Billboard magazine and he misquoted me as saying that we were "not going to play any fast and loud songs anymore".

This reminds me of a "rock sketch" that we sometimes perform when things have gone "horribly pear-shaped" overseas. It goes something like this:
German rock writer: (delivered in a slow monotone with the last word of every sentence lilted upwards) So your new album is out·and· it is·very bad compared to your early ones·which were not so good either?
Chunk: Um, what?!
German writer: Yes·and why are there no good· American rock groups·besides·Steel Pole Bathtub·Chokebore·and· Universal Congress Of?
Chunk: Universal Congress Of?!
German reporter: And why do you think·that·you should be·playing such·bad music for·nobody in Germany·and nobody knows who·you are?
Chunk: This interview is over.

Ok, going to go down to Venice Beach and make my presence known.

September 9 Driving
En route to San Diego right now. There were more people at last night's show than Tuesday's, but Tuesday's crowd seemed more vocal. Maybe they were turned off by the impromptu wet bikini briefs contest we held while Mac changed a broken string.

Had a quick drink at the world famous Rainbow bar and grill before the show last night. The Rainbow was ground zero for the hard partying rock 'n' rollers of the 70's and 80's. No star sightings tonight (not counting David Cross and Tommy Stinson) but I did get to see several interesting posters for mega-haired groups with names like Trashed Gypsy, Smashed Gladys and Wet Cherry.

Our friend David P. agreed to sell merch for us the other night and informed us that the star of the TV show The Pretender purchased a shirt. I'm ashamed to say that I have never heard of this program. Please don't judge me.

Just passed the nuclear tits (another nod to the kings of fishing punk).

We're in SD now. I'm quite looking forward to eating at a restaurant down the street from the club that we went to last time. Hope they'll serve me, cause I ain't going to be wearing a shirt during any portion of this evening.

On to soundcheck.

September 10 Driving
Last night was interesting. Ate at the good place in Little Italy and then went to the set of Cheer Fever, a film that our friend Peyton Reed is directing. Peyton is the man responsible for the "Package Thief" and "Driveway To Driveway" videos, as well as several episodes of Mr.Show and The Weird Al Yankovic Show. This is his first feature-length film and it was wild to see him in action, calling the shots for a production of this magnitude. Peyton really runs a tight ship. I realize that some of these actors need to be reminded of who is really in charge on the set, but don't you think that his insisting that he be addressed as "M'Lord" is a little·excessive?

Soon after we arrived, Peyton introduced us to the star of Cheer Fever- Ms. Kirstin Dunst. She was a very nice young lady-a real good kid, see. She remarked that one of her male co-stars was recently approached by a record producer to join a "boy band" he was putting together. I thought these groups just formed organically- the same way rock bands do. I figured it was just a coincidence that each member of these groups happens to dance like a professional aerobics instructor and has movie star good looks. Another illusion shattered.

We soon found ourselves taking part in a good-natured prank involving one of Cheer Fever's female co-stars. It seems that this actress (I don't remember her name-she is a member of the Buffy The Vampire Slayer cast) recently had a somewhat disturbing run-in with a super fan. Peyton called her over to where we were standing. I started to breathe very heavily while she walked towards us. By the time she was in our presence I was out of breath and shaking. Peyton introduced her to us by saying that we were big fans and webmasters of a site called www.buffslayer.com. We stared at her like complete idiots. It went a little like this:

Her: (shaking Mac's hand) Nice to meet you.
Mac: (nervously) um·hi·
Her: (shaking my hand) Hello.
Me: (breathing heavily and looking like I'm about to go in my pants as I squeeze the arm of Peyton's chair) umm·(gasp) hi (gasp).
Peyton: Hey, these guys want to know if you'd be interested in hanging out with them tonight.
Her: (now looking worried but not wanting to be rude) Tonight?
Me: (gasp) ALL NIGHT (gasp).
UNCOMFORTABLE SILENCE

Peyton soon came clean and informed her that we were harmless. She was a very good sport about it and I was pleased when she said that I'd frightened her. It's the little things y'know?

The show? Great crowd but unfortunately not one of our best performances. Not one but two false starts right out of the gate. The clamming (the making of mistakes) was contagious-I joined in when I forgot how "The Question Is How Fast" went. Hey, at least we showed up, right?

September 11 Driving out of Pomona
Last night was our first show in the "Inland Empire" since 1992. That show took place on a tiny makeshift stage in the backroom of a restaurant in Pomona called Munchies. I remember a sportily attired Ed Crawford joining us onstage for "Slack MF".

We were a little unsure of what to expect from Pomona this time around. Last night's venue was a fairly new establishment called the Glass House. The place is a little impersonal for our kind of "rocking experience" but a great place to see a show nonetheless. Great crew also. More importantly, it had one of the nicest backstages we've ever seen.

I don't think I'm off base by saying that the quality of the backstage area has a direct effect on the night's performance. Let me just say that we're not the kind of group that throws tantrums if things aren't to our liking, but is it too much too ask for a semi-clean, ventilated, penis graffiti-free room?

Anyway, the kids came out in force last night, thanks in part to our co-headliners bis. We pulled the "Fishing" switcheroo at the end of the set and I dedicated the final section of the song to Pomona's own Bob Durkee. Bob was the CEO of a Pomona-based punk rock label in the mid-eighties called Fartblossom Enterprises. Fartblossom was home to such North Carolina hardcore outfits as Subculture (featuring Squirrel Nut Zipper drummer Chris Phillips-or "Sweet D" as he was then known), Ugly Americans and A Number Of Things (which at one point included future Slush Puppie Mac McCaughan). Wait, don't tell me you don't remember ANOT's Toasterhead album!

Imagine my surprise when a man comes up to me after the show and introduces himself as the one and only Bob Durkee. Now, I have never met the guy, so I'm suspicious. People go around all the time impersonating record company big wigs, right? I ask to see his ID. He whips it out and I'm satisfied*. Bob informs me that it is his 35th birthday. That's some crazy shit, huh?

At this point I'm going to give a special shout out to The California 3: Lucinda, Kenny and Dean. These fine people have somehow managed to see just about every show of ours in California since 1995. Always a pleasure to see you guys- thanks for being there for us.

*This marks what might be the first ever appearance of this exact sentence outside the context of the publication Panty Boys.

September 12 San Francisco
Our usual S.F. hotel was booked solid so we're holed up in a movie-themed lodge in a not so nice part of town. Each room is named after a famous film and Jim and I are staying in Lenny. I feel bad for Jason and Laura, they're in Dunston Checks In. I can hear the winos out on the street yelling at each other. I'm sure I'll miss it when we leave in a couple days.

Just returned from seeing Mystery Men. I don't know what was worse, the movie or the theater. The place had to have been a porno joint in another era. As I made my way inside I spotted an open side door. There in the alley stood seven disheveled older men smoking cigarettes. These guys didn't look like your typical Garafalo/Stiller fans. There was not a goatee among them. As I bought my popcorn I noticed a young man standing to my left. I could tell there was something a little "off" about this guy. It could have been his hairstyle (shockingly close to mine-never a good sign). No, I know what it was, it was the stuffed teddy bear he had under his sweatshirt that he stroked lovingly. I hadn't even been inside the theater and the show had already begun.

As I made my way through the discarded liquor bottles and attempted to locate a safe spot, I noticed several slumbering gentlemen that were obviously there for the duration. I found a section far from everybody and sat in a seat that I'm 100% sure has not been cleaned since the Nixon administration. The lights went down and the film started immediately. No previews, no Coke commercial, no nothing.

Is anyone else out there a magnet for "movie laughers"? Without fail, I end up sitting just a seat away from the guy or girl that thinks every single mildly humorous line, gesture and or situation is the most hilarious thing they've ever seen. And boy do they want me and the rest of the theater to know it.

Just as I thought I was in the clear, a man sat down right across the aisle from me. I was treated to not only his hysterical laughter at everything "Spleen"-related (just when you thought Jar Jar Binks had wrapped up the "Most Annoying Character in a Feature-Length Film" award, along comes this guy- I guess that old axiom is true:"farts do=laughs"), but also the smoke from the 5 or six cigarettes he lit up. Several times he was so blown away by what he was seeing that he could only muster a full-volume "Oh my God!" Come to think of it, that was the same reaction I had to the film!

Palo Alto? Good stuff! We played in a community center auditorium under white lights. I liked it. Made me feel like I was in Fugazi (or in an elementary school Christmas choral concert). Thanks for comin' out.

Oh that's nice. I just peered out of my window and saw a man shaking his crotch at a bus while calling it "bitch". I guess that's about as good a place as any to stop.

September 13/14 San Francisco
Just had a priceless moment. Jim and I had just split away from the rest of our dinner party (the others were going out to drink more alcohol) and were making our way back to our hotel. We walked down Market Street past all the scuzzy porno theaters, pimps and degenerates. Jim remarked that this was humanity at its worst. At that very moment, I looked down and stepped on my own face. There on the sidewalk, under my foot, rested a page of the SF Weekly that contained an article on Superchunk. "You couldn't write a scene like that", Jim stated.

*SKIP THIS NEXT BIT IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.

An interesting bit of information presented itself at dinner tonight when the subject of The Blair Witch Project came up. In early July I had the opportunity to see an advance copy of this, the most talked about film of the summer. It turns out that the version I saw did not include a key explanative scene that appeared in the theatrical version. One of our local SF dinner companions explained that the scene in which a local Burkitsville, MD man explains that the old man/witch made his victims stand in the corner while he murdered their friends was not included in the original version of the film.

I went to see the film at the Uptown Theater in Minneapolis a few weeks after its release. The couple behind us ruined the viewing experience for me. Yes, they were laughers. They were also victims of the hype that surrounded the film. Of course they hated it and made us all know it. I liked the original version a lot better.

The show tonight at the Great American Music Hall was one of those rare life-affirming experiences. The audience was great and I felt like we·caught a groove (please forgive me). SF is always great to us. Maybe our favorite town to play.

Saw Stir Of Echos today. I liked it okay. Weird seeing Kevin Bacon in Social Distortion and Dead Kennedys shirts. Caught the following continuity error: there is a block party scene where an off-duty police officer is speaking. There is a shot where he takes a drink from a beer-filled cup. There is another shot during the same scene where he is holding what is supposed to be the same cup, but this time it is filled with a cloudy, red substance and a cigarette butt! A second later we see another angle of the officer during the same scene. He takes a drink from the original beer-filled cup. I mean, whazup with that?!

I want to put in a plug for Outside Providence (saw it in L.A.). There is a scene in it that made me laugh harder than I have laughed in months. I don't want to ruin it for ya.

I'm watching Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin on Oprah right now. Ok, it's official·I give up. Popular Music is beyond rescue. I'm not trying to be an asshole, but does anyone else agree? Are there any hit songs on top 40 radio that have actual solid, memorable melodies that were performed by human musicians and not typed on a computer? I just don't understand it.

Ok, enough ranting. Goodnight.

September 15 Driving
Goodbye San Fran. Note to self: never take a nap before rockin'. I zonked out for a good hour and a half before showtime and woke up while Gardener were in the midst of their set. It was hard to get in gear when it came time to mount the stage (nice visual, huh?). Had a good one nonetheless.

Went to see Stigmata yesterday. I didn't like it very much but Jim proclaimed it to be "one of the worst films ever made." That dude is harsh.

Ok, we're in Portland now. Just got back to the hotel. Watching CNN and checking out the hurricane news. Hope our house is still in one piece.

September 17 Driving
Just woke up from a nap. Jim is at the wheel as our van zooms through ye olde Tacoma, Washington. Three honks for our brothers in Seaweed. Didn't drink anything at all yesterday. This might be the plan from here on out.

Spent yesterday doing the things we usually do when we're in Portland. Jim rose early and got the van's oil changed at a place that had an all-female staff. We ate at the Cup and Spoon (or was it the Fork and Plate?) and proceeded directly to Powells Books. Powells is the largest and greatest bookstore that I know of. The place is massive and has a pretty great selection of hard to find books. I got lucky and found the very gift book I've been searching for these past few months. I wish we could have had a couple more hours to roam around in there.

There was a small blurb in the local weekly that put forth the notion that the members of Superchunk were once known to scrawl "Young Rock Revolution" on bare walls. Now, I don't mind at all if you think that we're lame-an opinion this fellow made perfectly clear-but come on guy, don't make up shit that never happened. Yeah, I know that a small portion of the stuff I write in this thing is somewhat embellished, but this is not professional journalism. Nowhumsayin?

We played last night at the fabulous Crystal Ballroom with two great bands from Scotland: Mogwai and Ganger. I spent most of the evening enjoying the luxurious confines of our dressing room. I figured I'd better make the most of it because in 24 hours I'd be sitting on a filthy couch in a grimy backstage area in Vancouver, staring at penis-grafittied walls.

People have been inquiring why I rarely write anything about the actual shows we've been playing. I guess that's because most of the shows seem pretty uneventful to me. Not bad by any means, just without incident. Check out Henry Rollins' Get In The Van for the other side of the coin. It seems that nary a gig went by without some kind of mid-show punch-up, equipment fuck-up or police confrontation. It's big news at one of our shows if someone loses their glasses. I guess it beats having your shorts pulled off while a bunch of idiots scream "Six Pack" in your face all night.

Another great scene. Jim just came within a couple feet of brushing a car that was parked in front of the gas station where we're refueling. Next thing we know, we hear someone in the car yelling. We peered out the window and saw that the car contained four fratish looking dudes who just purchased beer. The driver of the car was telling his friends what just happened. He looked very mad. We decided it might be a good idea to wait for them to leave before we got out of the van. The angry driver pulled the car forward and was about to confront us when he saw Laura sitting in the front passenger seat. His scowl changed instantly to a smile as he puts on his best "scoring" face. It was amazing to see all that anger replaced by optimism in just the blink of an eye. "Brad" and his brothers shared a round of hi-fives as they sped out of the parking lot. Guys kick ass.

September 18 Driving
Stuck inside of Vancouver with the·oh forget it. What day is this, Saturday? What's with all the traffic?

Vancouver never disappoints. Another warm reception from the B.C. contingent. A pre-show interviewer presented us with his "dream set list". We have been known to attempt the playing of such fan-submitted sets on occasion, and we thought we'd give it a try last night. Luckily, we happened to actually know how to play all but two of the songs on the list. We took the concept a step further then usual and played the songs in the exact order in which they appeared on his list. The pacing was a little weird but it made it more interesting for us.

We also attempted "Why Do You Have To Put A Date On Everything", a song we haven't aired out since 1995. My attention was drawn to a young man who magically appeared in the front row at the very beginning of the song. His interpretive dance/pantomime reminded me of a creepy shot in Gimme Shelter which features an insane looking, drug-addled Hells Angel doing a remarkably similar routine while an oblivious Mick Jagger sings "Under My Thumb". The guy in the front disappeared at song's end. Mac couldn't remember the lyrics to "Go For a Soda", so he sang a few lines from "Limelight" during the breakdown in "Fishing".

Got to sleep in a bed with Jim last night.

September 19 Driving (very far)
We're in the midst of a real hell-drive here. No one was really looking forward to 2 1/2 days of driving, so we lingered for quite some time after breakfast. Jim is at the wheel. I wonder how long he can last. The guys who worked on our van put the tape deck in upside down and we are tuneless. I'm going to ask Mac if I can borrow his CD of Ken Burns' baseball documentary. Yes, it's come to that.

Last night's show was by far the hottest of the tour. Man, was it stuffy onstage. I can't imagine what it was like in 'the pit'. I thought we did well but it was a little tough to keep the energy up at the end of the show. Those four strawberry Yoo-Hoos I chugged right before the encore section only made my tummy hurt.

It was nice to see lots of old familiar faces last night: assorted Chapel Hill/Seattle transplants; members of Seaweed, Gas Huffer, S-K, Built to Spill, Bingo Handjob; and many of the fine folks who have come to see us here over the years. But where was Lukin?!

Just started reading Peter Guralnick's new (ish) Elvis bio, Careless Love. I quite enjoyed the first volume and this one is supposed to be even better. I'm not an Elvis aficionado by any stretch of the imagination but I find his story pretty fascinating. I like the way Guralnick's books are, for the most part, purely reportage. I don't want to read some writer's deep insight into why E liked to watch girls in white panties wrassle, I just wanna know that he did it! Alright, I'm done.

September 20 Bismarck, ND 11:45 PM
WE ARE EXPERIENCING TRANSMISSION TROUBLES. WE WILL TRY OUR BEST TO MAKE IT TO MINNEAPOLIS. THIS COULD BE IT FOR RED WILLOW. WE MIGHT HAVE TO RENT A VAN AND LEAVE YOU BEHIND, OLD PAL. PLEASE CALL THE CLUB FOR MORE INFO. PRAY FOR US!!

September 21 Minneapolis
We made it. Thanks for coming out. More tomorrow.

September 22 Driving
Poor Jim and Matt. Those two troopers are really earning their gold stars today. So, the van's transmission started to go Monday night as we approached Bismarck, ND. We decided to take our chances by driving the faltering Red Willow to Leon's Transmission in downtown Bismarck, shoving the key and a note under the door and getting a cab to the nearest hotel. Things weren't looking too good and we tried to forget our problems by losing ourselves in the classic slasher/comedy Student Bodies.

We were very fortunate that Leon (or was it Ike) actually looked at the van first thing in the morning. He informed us that the van could be fixed but it would not be ready until this morning (Wednesday). We rented a minivan, loaded our in our luggage and proceeded to Minneapolis.

It was a long drive and we were extremely happy to see the familiar, smiling faces of Conrad and Ron, two of the great in-house staff members at First Avenue. We didn't have time to soundcheck or eat dinner before the show. No big deal, but I never really felt like I warmed up at all during the gig. The audience was great as always- lotsa dancin' and shoutin'. It was the first show with our current tourmates, Rainer Maria. Good people.

As soon as the show was over, Jim and Mr.Gentling made a beeline for the rental van and began the lonesome 7-hour drive back to Bismarck to retrieve Red Willow. They hoped to check back into the hotel, grab two or three hours of sleep, pick up Red Willow and make the 11-hour drive to Iowa City. Ugh.

The rest of us went to a cool bar/restaurant called Grumpy's for a late night dinner. Had a veggie burger and punched up some local faves ("Tied To The Tracks", "All Tensed Up","Alex Chilton ", etc) on the jukebox. Hit the sack a few hours later wondering where Jim and Matt were.

September 24 Driving
Jim, Matt and Red Willow arrived safely in Iowa City at around 8:00 PM last night. They looked not unlike zombies- understandable for two guys that just spent all but three of the last 24 hours in a van.

We first played at Gabe's Oasis on my first tour with the band in 1991. It was a dump then just as it is now. I don't say this to be insulting. I'm sure the people that run it have heard it many times before. The backstage, essentially a nook, is probably the worst in America; the stage is dilapidated and tiny. There is also something undeniably charming about Gabe's. I remember hearing that Evan Dando, at the height of his Lemonheads fame, insisted on being booked into Gabe's on a solo tour he was undertaking.

Every time we come to Gabe's I feel like I'm being transported back to the mid-80's. This time was no different. I walked through the door and was instantly greeted by the sound of Tommy Keene's 1985 classic Places That Are Gone album. I peeked in the dressing nook to see if the 1st Scruffy the Cat album was still stapled to the wall. It was. Same goes for the Government Cheese stickers. * Next stop was the back bar and the many 8X10s that adorn its walls. I always enjoy looking at the photos of these bands- most of which no longer exist- and thinking about how different things were when they were giving it a go. The "establishment" didn't care one iota about you or your music and the possibility of getting above ground radio or video airplay was out of the question. Wait, that sounds like the way it is now. I guess things aren't that different at all anymore.

The rock concert was good although I always feel like I need to play quieter at Gabe's because of the small stage. If I play too loud the audience gets a wash of cymbals through Mac's vocal mic. Oh, the sacrifice. Great crowd once again and the crew and staff were most kind.

Jim and I couldn't sleep when we got back to the hotel so we watched the second half of an HBO special about exotic dancers. There was once scene where a dancer goes to a plastic surgeon to get a breast enlargement and liposuction. Dear God, was it brutal. I'm seriously starting to reconsider my fanny tuck.

On to Champaign. Hope we get there before the guided REO Speedwagon tour shuts down for the day.

*I've never actually heard GC's music but I have read a pretty funny/sad account of their grab for the brass ring entitled, The Cheese Chronicles (the story of a band you've never heard of). The book was written by their guitarist and is worth picking up.

September 24 Chicago
Ugh. I've been in a horrible mood all day. I'm ready to be home for a while. Not that much to go. One thing I will definitely not miss when my touring days are over is "group dining". It's got nothing to do with the people I'm with-I just like to get in and get out. I received Mike Watt's fall itinerary yesterday. The guy is doing 38 shows in a row. How on earth does he do it? I would be ready for the happy hatch by the end of something like that.

Last night in Champaign was good except for some technical difficulties. Mac's amp died during the first song and Ranier were kind enough to lend us theirs for the rest of the show. This was followed by the crapping out of both my snare drums. Everything else was good. Great crowd. Talked to a guy named Darren last night. He reminded me of our last visit to Champaign and how I signed an autograph for his mother. Hmmm.

Just wandered away from an excruciating interview. The guy's questions were somewhat insulting ("So I know you're last record sold quite a bit less that the previous ones, does this bother you?"), and when he was done asking the other two he had written down, he started "chatting" with us. There is nothing worse than the interviewer that thinks he will just "shoot the shit" with you in order to get his story. It always ends with, "So what do you guys want to say?" I want to say "goodbye" to you. Sorry I left you hanging Jim.

We're not on 'til 12:45 A.M. It's gonna be a long night.

September 25 Driving
Great show. Maybe one of our best ever in Chicago. I don't mean our performance particularly, just the overall -and it kills me to say this-"vibe" of the evening. We shared the stage last night with The Pinehurst Kids, Rainer Maria and And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead. Good kids, every one of 'em.

It was nice to see our Chicago crew -the Touch and Go posse, Pegboys and Gates- once again. Thanks yooz guys.

We didn't get out of the Metro until around 3:30. Jim talked me out of going across the street to the all-night taco stand. I'm the better for it. Had some tough luck finding parking for the vans. We didn't want to leave 'em on the street after hearing of Son Volt's van theft in the windy city just a few weeks ago. What's up with the rash of van/gear heists lately? Sonics, Cibo, Sun Ball, JSBX·will it never end?

Went back to Jason's new pad and slept for a few hours.

We're on our way to Detroit for the last show of this tour. It's been great but I am ready to be out of the van for a while.