April 16th. St Petersburg (Florida, not Russia)
So the first gig of the US tour was just outside Tampa, Florida. A black box type rock venue and the back stage facilities were not great to be honest, and there was no rider. Not the best start. There were some technical problems and it was not possible to put up the gauze for the front and back projections which are important eg for 'Index' and 'The Watchmaker', so we were to do the gig without this. Incidentally Steven posted today on YouTube the live video of the band playing 'the Watchmaker' live in Germany from the recent Neu-Isenberg gig (see below). I think it looks and sounds pretty good.
Before the gig I went to eat at a Thai place near the venue with Guthrie and Chad and had a good chat. Some more great stories from Chad about touring with James Taylor (the American 'Sweet Baby James' one not the English acid jazz one) which sounds amazing and extraordinary. Also heard some good Zappa stories, like when you auditioned for his band, he would say 'Do something fantastic for me'. This could be musical, technical, theatrical or off the wall and if he liked it and you were 'in' he would compose something to incorporate your special fantastic thing into the music for the band.
It was Chad's first gig with the band so I think he was a little apprehensive as there is an enormous amount to remember, even with reminder notes. Well, he was extraordinary. Absolutely superb. Hats off to him. I was very impressed and loved what he did.
The crowd went wild and that was very encouraging and positive. Especially as it was hot onstage and there had been some problems. I got a surprise during my alto flute improv' on the acoustic section of Raider 2, when I felt drops of water landing on my shoulder. Very off putting. It happened again in 'the Raven' and 'Radioactive Toy', though then it was dripping on my head. I looked up but could not see anything, so maybe it was leaking air conditioning or something. Anyway, these things happen and you can't let them put you off.
The cheers at the end of the gig were amazing. We all got a nice surprise when during the band introductions we saw on the screen that a sketch by Hajo of Chad had been done to accompany his introduction and bow. Lovely touch.
Theo Travis
