Surrender

You guys asked for more video, and how could I deny you?

Occasionally during soundcheck, we like to change it up. Stacy pulls an American Hi Fi and becomes lead-singer guy, Jamie puts down his guitar and plays drums and we all join in playing some random tune.

Leaving the Lights Behind

We just finished a wonderful three-day run in Vegas. The longest run we've had on the tour. It was nice to stay in one place for awhile.

So what happened while we were in Vegas:

1. Stacy got a bronchial infection. Currently coughing up neon green.
2. Kay passed out and hit her head really hard on the floor. Freaked us all out.
   
3. Almost all my aunts were in town, as were my sweet parents. Family reunion!
   
4. All the Hollywood Records and Disney execs came to show #1. Scary. We were told to bring our "A" game. So we did.
   
5. John Mayer came to show #2. Cool.
   
6. Johnny Depp came to show #3. Very cool.
   
7. We spent a night clubhopping, as Cowboy the rigger got us an amazing VIP booth at Moon and VIP treatment at some other clubs as well, and Jamie complained (in an entertaining way) the entire night.
8. We had a big jam session in the desert, at drum tech Benoit's house, funking out with Aly and AJ's band. Dancers on drums, guitarists on bongos. A very fun mess.
   

And now we're on the bus, trekking to Phoenix for a day off. Sweet sleep, how I've missed you.

Recap/It's All Blurring Together

We played a fairly sober show in Hartford, Connecticut. Jaime, Stacy and Kay demanded Pepe's Pizza, cause I don't know, it brough back fuzzy memories or something. So it ended up on our bus after the show. And it was a good dinner.

And a mediocre breakfast. And a sketchy dinner the next day. Honestly, we'll probably eat it today too. I think it's coming to the end of its lifespan. There sure was a lot of it, though.

Last night we played a rip-roaring rambunctious show in Providence, Rhode Island. That audience was crazy. They even stomped their feet for the encore.

Now we've just got a show tonight and tomorrow night in Worcester (hooray for staying in the same place for two nights! Yay! I can almost move in!), and then we're all flying to our families for a brief (3 day) Christmas break.

James and John Part Two

So it turns out, the other night after my little run-in with John C. Reilly, Jaime ended up hanging out with him in his hotel room along with band members Mike Viola, formerly of the Candy Butchers (of whom I'm also a big fan) and Inara George (who we just interviewed for the Samantha Murphy Show in August). Small world. Apparently, they're touring as a band, promoting the Judd Apatow-produced movie "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" (which I saw back in July - funny stuff).

Why do I always miss the good parties? Oh right, cause I go to bed early.

On The Bayou

Despite the mania and excitement provided by Ally and Stormy, the Dallas audience was shockingly sedate; the quietest we've experienced so far. Towards the end, Miley was saying things along the lines of "come on guys, don't fall asleep on me."

In contrast, tonight's audience in Shreveport, Louisiana was a rambunctious bunch that would have been swinging from the rafters if there were any to swing from.

After the show, Jaime, Stacy, Vishon and Jaco all packed and left the band bus to board the management bus. They're flying back to L.A. to film Miley's video for "Start All Over." Apparently there was not enough room on the stage for a keyboard player or background vocalists. Boo.

A group of us got tired of waiting for the buses to leave, which was going to be a couple hours, so we took a van to a local casino and quickly gambled away all our income from the tour. Okay, that's a large exaggeration. Gambled away a tiny bit of today's per diem. We're a practical bunch.

Kay, Candice and I are on the bus headed to Florida right this second, and we have three days off while the guys film. This marks the very first time we've ever had more than one day off in a row.

And when in Florida, what are a bunch of singing pacifists to do? We're gonna go shoot some guns. Oh you wish I was kidding!

StripHouse/MuteMath

Last night I went a-wandering the streets Houston looking for food. Once again, the pickings were pretty slim. I straggled into a steak place called The Strip House. Other than the dicey name, it looked pretty nice, and as I wandered in I saw Stacy, Jaime and Kay at the bar. A while later, Charlie (asst tour manager) and Vishon (bassist) walked in. I would say "what a coincidence!" but it was truly the only thing open.

We had a lovely (albeit extremely pricy) meal of delicious strip steak, goose fat potatoes, and about 92 different side dishes.

Then as if by magic, we found ourselves at the Warehouse watching MuteMath play their little hearts out. It was an incredible show and it really inspired all of us, even curmudgeonly Jaime, who doesn't generally like any music released after 1975. The lead singer was doing handstands on his Rhodes, they were picking up pieces of the drum kit and reconfiguring them, climbing the rafters, it was pretty crazy and pretty awesome. I was already a fan, but many of the other band members were converted. These guys are amazing musicians and amazing entertainers, which is a tough combination to find these days.

Tonight's show in San Antonio was a blast. Miley brought her cute little doggie to soundcheck.

And now we're headed to Dallas. I'm looking forward to seeing some friends there.

Okey Dokey Oakland - Hello L.A.!

Good show tonight. Billy Ray came out at the end and we played "Ready, Set, Don't Go," a tune the whole band is really enjoying. Jaime made a good observation that Miley sounds a bit like Stevie Nicks on this one; very strong. The Oprah crew was grabbing footage, so keep an eye out for that, and also Miley mentioned that what they taped tonight might be airing as a music video on the Disney Channel as well.

Now we're on our way home to LA. Everybody in the band is really excited about that, except for me. I made the mistake of calling my wife to let her know that I really would like to see Noah while I'm there, hoping that she'd be happy to let me take him off her hands for a while. But instead she was just mad that I didn't tell her earlier, cause she's working on a paper tomorrow. I don't know why I keep hoping she'll be kind and rational. It's not gonna happen. She's just not there anymore. Every time we talk, it escalates into a horrible and depressing fight...until she hangs up. And I cry. But not anymore.

I'm just gonna live my life and do what I have to do: laundry, unpacking and repacking (you never know exactly what you're gonna need and what you're not), running errands, seeing my beautiful baby boy, and hanging out with my dear friend Ben. Life is good.

The people in the band are so amazing. I've really grown to love them all. Such a good group of people. Kay and Jaime stayed up with me and listened and were just amazing and wise and helpful and sweet. I feel so incredibly blessed to be on this amazing tour at such a terrible time in my life. Despite the fact that any thought of my wife sends me into a depressed stupor, I've been very happy most of the time. God bless Hannah Montana.