Old Tour Diary

IRELAND/SWEDEN/DENMARK JAN/FEB 2006

Tues Feb 21 Dublin.....Last week something very unusual happened in New York. I beat Jack at pool. This hasn't happened in many many years. We were both in shock . The following evening I played a show at the Sidewalk Cafe on Avenue A and 6th St. A small but appreciative crowd. Bruce Henderson dropped in with his lovely wife. We had never met before, but we had corresponded by email and spoke on the phone a few times. He helped me out with information on German label Ulftone who he done a deal with. I was in the process of doing the same thing myself, but I decided against it. Bruce also introduced me to CD Baby, who are our main online retailer.

Back in the Emerald Isle, work recommenced with Paul Thomas. Tried a few mixes, and got Ger Kiely in to add lap-steel to 5 songs. He also played mando-guitar, electric and acoustic guitar and it all sounds great. Down at the Madison for a few drinks I bump into Justin Healy just arrived back from Dubai via Berlin. Justin used to play with The Golden Horde way back . He also toured with The Racketeers, playing a very mad tour of Sweden Finland and Estonia. He wouldn't talk to me for two years after the tour, then came to the realization I hadn't ripped him off and it's now all water under the bridge. (It wasn't my fault he blew most of his hard earned cash on Estonian prostitutes!)

Played three gigs last week, and rode off into the sunset with a roll of notes in my pocket. Yesterday was spent at JJ Smyth's bar. Brian Smyth was kind enough to allow us spend the afternoon in the upstairs venue recording drums. I watched as Mr. Teusner hit his big green premier kit very hard. Paul engineered as usual and we both needed a few drinks. Ate at Govindas wonderful vegetarian restaurant, met Mado, Eric, tattoo artist Dave, drummer Cathal and Fiachra Shanks. Relocated to Anseo on Camden Street and then back to my humble abode to crack open the wine. Fiachra told me how much he liked the painting hanging over the table in the living room. So I gave it to him.

Tues Feb 28 The sky darkened and down lashed the snow. I was having a cup of tea, unwinding after a hectic week. Recording last Monday and Tuesday, and trying to mix at the same time. Then on Wednesday, Nikki Sudden arrived over and we did a gig together at JJ Smyth's Bar on Aungier St. Many drinks were had, and Nikki smoked enough cigarettes for an army. Ger Sweeny, an old painter friend of mine opened a new show in a gallery off South Anne Street, selling his pictures for 8 grand, and more.
I played a DJ set at the Gaiety Theatre, blasting out tunes by Elvis, The Stones, Nikki Sudden, Little Junior Parker , Warren Smith, The Cramps, Jonathan Richman, Dave Berry, Johnny Thunders and many more geniuses.

Saturday was spent trying to record a couple of bass parts, and Ger Sweeny hooked up with us and crashed out here following wine, tequila, beer and food...in that order. He told me he had sold 10 paintings since the opening on Thursday. To celebrate on Sunday morning, we went to some big Art gallery to see paintings by Howard Hodgkins. Really impressive abstract expressionistic stuff.
Interestingly, some of the rooms in the gallery were painted mint green, some others gold. I gotta get a gold room at some point. Then on to a bar on the North side of the city in what used to be a church. A string quartet playing away ...nice vibe. I don't know much about classical music, so I can't say what the played, apart from Danny Boy. Asa insisted on pizza in an Italian place on the corner of Dame St. (Swedes always want pizza on a Sunday)

Meanwhile, Nikki had trekked off to Waterford, Wexford and Sligo playing gigs, as musicians do. Yesterday was spent with Paul Thomas bouncing tracks and listening back to some of the recent work. Nikki arrives back from his Irish tour, and off we three ramble for a few beers. Back at my place wine and brandy keeps us going as Nikki records a new song, which might be called 'The Way Things Used To Be'...or maybe it's called 'Smoking In Dublin'...not sure. Mr. Sudden sang and played my Epiphone Casino, I played my Epiphone Jumbo Acoustic and added harp and it all sounds great. And that was my week........

Fri Jan 6 Dublin............Played The Belvedere last night. Eoin Byrne was support. Currently living in Berlin, he's taking a break from sculpture/painting to try his hand at making noise, and a good noise he makes too. Enjoyed his set, and after Terry and his van dropped us off, I stashed my gear and we headed out for a late drink or seven.

Thankfully all that New Year/Xmas crap is over. Ireland is a dreadful place at this time of year. It just drags on and on making it difficult to get anything done. I had my thinking cap on a few weeks back, and organized things in such a way that we could work through the festivities.

Off to Sweden tomorrow, playing Whoopsi Daisy,Wieselgrensplatsen 11, in Gothenburg. I'll hang out for a few days and meet some friends, buy a few records and travel to Copenhagen for a show next week. It's -10 Celsius there at the moment and tons of white snow drape the landscape.
I need a break from recording. It's beginning to drive me mad. All I can hear are mistakes ! An eternal optimist, I posted a few rough mixes to Sheila Sullivan. The idea of a string section on a song or two appeals to me.

Sat 7 Jan 291 KIlometers to Gothenburg I am reliably informed by a very big Danish road sign. We drive over one of the longest bridges in the world, past the reservoirs shaped like alien spacecraft, past red-painted wooden farm houses smothered in snow.

Eventually arriving in the Swedish stygian darkness at 7pm. A quick drink in a kip near Central Station and Annelie arrives in the car. Tonight's gig is at the oddly named Whoopsy Daisy. I've never been here before. The PA seems to work, dinner arrives and all is good. Christopher Matthason is support and seems pissed off that his name isn't on the posters. After his set I do my thing and a few folks get up to dance, stumble around the place and generally behave the way Swedes do when they're a bit tanked up. Its all good fun though.

An arguement starts between Christopher and the bar staff over something or other. Its all in Swedish so I've no idea what its about and I couldn't care less. I played the gig, I got paid and Im ready to leave. Pedal to the metal and off we go to Lerum.

Wed 11 Jan Gothenburg.....The snow is starting to melt, slippery slush making it hard to navigate the streets. A visit to Skivandel Record Store down in Jontorget provided me with a wedge of vinyl. For a decent price, I picked up the first two Pretenders LP's, plus records by Fats Domino, Green on Red, an early Rod Stewart LP, Chuck Berry, Chris Spedding and a few other delights. I also got my hands on a few reggae 7inches, Jamaican pressings on the Diamond Rush label (Tony Curtis) and on the Rasta Vibes label a great cut by George Nooks "Come Go With Me"

At Musik Mint I picked up records by Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Bobby Gentry and some Hungarian folk music, part of the Musique Folklorique Du Monde series on the French Musidisc label. Also an LP by by Jerry Lee...The Killer ! Ike and Tina Turner's "River Deep Mountain High" proved a bargain at 20KR.

Visited Carolin and Arvid, knocked back a few beers and DJ'd for a while digging deep into Arvid's collection to find The Clash, Gregory Isaacs, The Stones....Went to some Club, slipped and fell on the ice trying to make it up a steep hill in Lerum. No bones broken, no harm done.

Thurs 12 Jan Copenhagen.....Haven't played this city in three years and tonight's gig at Bloomsday Bar on Niels Hemmingsendegad was a good one. Promoter, Eugene introduced me to lots of people including singer-songwriter Sean Needam who lives here these days. The sound was good, the gig was well attended and it went down well. Sold CD's, hung out and had a few drinks....well, in fact we all had a lot of drinks. Stayed in Christiania with E.G. listening to Bonnie Prince Billy before we crashed at 5.30am. I'd forgotten just how good his "Ease Down The Road " LP is. Off to the land of nod with "Just To See My Holly Home" floating around in my tired old brain

2005

Sat 10 Dec Nothing like a deadline. We've been busy working on a whole bunch of songs...23 at the last count, but it looks like we will try to finish 17. With Paul Thomas (who did Exit Hellsville...as well as work with Thin Lizzy, Horslips, Whipping Boy, U2..) things are going good. The rhythm section is sounding tight and I reckon I'm singing in tune...most of the time !

Played a gig on Thursday night, and was up cock crow yesterday morning re-recording "Evil".... the last version was too fast. I've been listening to Loretta Lynn's Greatest Hits these past few days. It's good to have a break from my own songs. I saw the wonderful "Coalminers Daughter" a few weeks back starring Sissy Spacek as Loretta. THE best movie I've ever seen when it comes to depicting the music business in a true manner. Fascinating to see the way things were done in those days.
I kind of miss being out on the road, but I'm sure 2006 will keep me busy, especially if we can get this new stuff sounding good, get it out into the world....the road will beckon....and I'll be gone. Already there's a few gigs in the diary for Switzerland/Denmark/Sweden. But first we gotta get these songs down. Bukowski talks about 'getting the word down on the page' . I know what he means. We got to 'get the song down on the tape'

Tues 13 Dec Dublin........Where does all the time go ? On Sunday night we went down to Pravda for The Sunday Roast Club. David Judson Clemmons and Mark Mulholland were both on the bill. I got to know Mark in Berlin almost two years ago when he did sound for one of my gigs in that fine city. We stayed in touch via email, swapping info on gigs. In fact, a few of the dates on the Irish leg of their current tour are due to my contacts. Mark played a great set, as did David, who I'd not seen before. After a few Brahma Beers (quality Indian stuff) we headed out into the night looking for a late drink. Following a bit of headless chicken type confusion, the posse arrived at Sin E, where I haven't been in over a year. We got a lock-in organized. Before long I was bugging Mark about getting The Racketeers distribution in Germany, and he seemed up for getting involved, but that's a story for another day.

Monday afternoon was spent trying to bounce songs from one hard-drive to another. While the computers where in cahoots, we grabbed the cure in Madisons Pub, Rathmines. Later, Chris got some drum parts down, Paul Thomas taking care of business, Joy and Åsa knocking back the wine. However, the gremlins in the software woke up again and we had to abandon the session. It was late anyway and we got some things achieved, but we're running a bit behind schedule. Also, Xmas is coming and its difficult to get anything done around this time of year. I hate Xmas, and I hate it more every year. ...Jingle Bells !

Sat 17 Dec Loosing one of my rings was a bad start to the day. It seems to have slipped off my finger on a trip to the shoe repair man. (I don't actually own any shoes, boots only)
It's cold outside, so I presume it slipped off as my fingers got skinny. It was a silver ring I've owned a long time. I've had it at least 13 years, but only started to wear it again recently. An black onyx stone between two triple spirals. I've never seen another like it, and now it's gone.

I realized to my horror last night that come Xmas Day, I'll probably not have had a day off in three weeks. Keeping busy is something I'm all in favour of. The other day it took me two hours to put down a kick drum track down. Another hour or so to get a simple guitar part done. Other days we can fly through stuff, I can nip out to the post office, check emails, make a million phone calls and still get closer to throwing a shape on the new LP. A working title that I can't shake off is 'Silver and Dust'....thanks in part, to Gustav Meyrinks' 'Angel At The West Window.' I've been reading it , on and off for the past few weeks. A fictionalized account of the life of John Dee, court astrologer/occult advisor to Queen Elizabeth 1. It's mostly set in Prague where he hung out with the Czech Emperor Rudolf.

Sat 24 Dec A week of recording and mixing and going mad. Thursday was the only day I wasn't with Paul Thomas. That night I had a gig to play. Jimmy turned up, we had a few late drinks and then a taxi to my place where I played him a few rough mixes, listened to his CD of his band in rehearsal (recorded on a Dictaphone) and then various soul records were taken down and given a spin. Jimmy split and I fell into bed at 4.30.

Up bright and early, recorded a few vocals, a guitar part too. Brian swung around for some bass over-dubs, another bottle of wine was opened. Later, Cormac Figgis called in. Cormac's getting ideas together for the sleeve. Finish up around 10pm. Have a few drinks in a local bar. Today we're off across the country to the real Wild West. Two days off, and I do need the break.....jingle bells...

Wed Dec 28 Spent two days in South Mayo for the xmas. Played a few tunes on the fiddle with my Dad. He's 82, but still plays great. I've seen him suddenly lash into a tune, off into that realm where only great musicians go when they hit those notes...the way Rory Gallagher did, the way Van did and occasionally still does. Then my old man will say..."I haven't played that tune in forty years." Magic.

Back to work for me. Recording yesterday and the day before and tomorrow etc...etc...
Paul Thomas brought me "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Musical Instruments" as a present. It a great book and includes hundreds of strange and beautiful instruments from pre-history up to the present day, including a Racket, a wind instrument from the 15th and 16th centuries. The illustration shows one that belongs to the Bombard family of Vienna. Apparently it makes a tone that is soft and pleasant. It's a double reeded instrument with a coiled tube enclosed in a dragon-shaped casing. I should get one. Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind getting my hands on a Sumerian 11-stringed Lyre made of silver. Better wait for the next Royalty cheque before I get too excited.

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DENMARK / SPAIN / NEW YORK 2005

Mon 29 Aug Just got back from Sweden via Copenhagen. Met Donal Lunny in the Airport and we had a chat. Last night in Lerum we watched a great documentary on one of my favourite writers-Charles Bukowski. Actually only caught the last forty minutes, so we missed most of it. Seemed to be put together by one of the Swedish channels.
So I've got seven hours in Dublin before I'm off again. Enough time for dinner, a shit a shower and a shave. Going to Spain in a few hours. Gotta dash...............

Tues 30 Aug Three hours sleep, taxi, bus and airplane in that order. Arrive in one piece at Sevilla Airport. Mado picks me up. We drive through what I imagine Mexico would look like. The occasional Hacienda in a vast expanse of dead land. A lunar landscape of 37 degrees Celsius. White-washed bodegas where they make the famous Andalusian sherry. After an hour or so we arrive at Mado's Mansion. It's siesta, so there's not much happening. A few hours pass and we go to the beach. When I say we went to the beach I don't mean we go swimming and chatting up senoritas. We find a table about 100 yards from the sand, order tapas and a drink or two. I'm surprised to find Alan is actually off the booze. He seems content with non alcoholic beer. My beer is real.
Later we organize getting extra posters printed and ramble around El Puerto de Santa Maria. Get something to eat and meet a lot of people. I haven't a word of Spanish. Later I get to see Mado's band, with Mercedes on vocals. They do a set in Barsito, a tiny little bar down a side street, and they're great. Mercedes doesn't want to do 'I shot the sheriff' so I give it a go. Realizing I haven't heard the record in years I can't remember the words, but Mercedes prompts me and we all have a good time. She downs a few large (very large) whiskeys and isn't feeling too good afterwards.

Thurs 1 Sept El Puerto de Santa Maria, Spain......Last night we played a short set in Barsito to promote our proper gig in the town on Saturday night. A quiet night in El Puerto, not a lot going on. We had late drinks in a club where it was mostly hip hop or flamenco influenced dance music. "Lick my neck, lick my back, my pussy and my crack.." goes the lyric to one tune I heard tonight. Classic.
Got to bed around five a.m. last night. Up around 10, and hopped on the bike and got bread, fruit, yogurt and wine in a local shop. Cycled off into the wilderness, horses grazing in the fields on whatever little grass they could find, past the Booty Bars (brothels masquerading as hotels) past the poor folks farm houses, past the derelict factories and apartment blocks, ghosts from the Franco era. Democracy is here but they're still under some of the influence of the old days. Even the feudal system has left it's mark. Rehearsed for a while, listened to some records, stories, tall tales, more wine, something to eat locally, sangria.......Si, Si Senor...perfecto...

Fri 2 Sept Rota.........Drive to Jerez, a local town. Have a look around, see some cool snake skin cowboy boots at the right price, but it's siesta so everything is closed. I got a new pair of western boots anyway a few weeks back so I'm content with the current state of footwear. We call to visit Nacho. He sorts me out with a glass of beer and a PA for tonight's gig. Later we rehearse using Nach's PA, and the sweat is dripping off me all over my Epiphone acoustic guitar. Sounds good though.
After checking emails and we hit the road for Rota, I almost nod off on the way, but manage to stay awake somehow. Pat, who runs the bar, is a sweet guy and makes me feel welcome. There's a big lighthouse right beside the bar which is handy as I've a terrible sense of direction. The gig is great. Alan joins for the latter half of the show. Sell a few cd's and have a few drinks.

Sat 3 Sept El Puerto de Santa Maria.........The ghost of Count O'Reilly presides over Cadiz. A lot of Irish moved here during the Flight of the Earls. They were accepted and even allowed to inter-marry with the Spanish Royals. Many made a precarious living as mercenaries while others got into the wine/sherry business. The name Garvey adorns the wall of one of the biggest Bodegas in the area.
Over in El Puerto it's a hot and humid evening, the sun slowly sliding down the arc of the globe.

Milwaukee is a big barn of a place. There's a disco bar out front, then a big spooky courtyard, and at the back a big room where the gig is. The stage is a decent size, but the PA needs re-wiring. Luckily we've brought our own mixing desk. The sound is good and a nice crowd arrive. Tequila and pineapple juice for refreshments afterwards. Lots of photos are taken. The whole town seems to have gone mad tonight. A lot of folks are well out of it. Well, it is Saturday night.

Wed 14 Sept New York.......It's always good to be back in one of the best cities in the world. Great to see Jack again, and it certainly doesn't feel like six months since I was last here. After he helps me drag my bags and guitar up four flights of stairs, we phone for some Chinese food. Within an hour we're back on the subway bound for Brooklyn. Then it's a few blocks on the bus and a short walk down lonesome deserted streets. The occasional car drives by. Knee-high grass and weeds sprout from the cracks in the sidewalk. I expect to see tumbleweed roll by. We hang a right on ghost town and down past the enormous sinister satellite dish we find Sonny's Bar.

Megan Van Dusen is playing a show and we grab a few drinks, say hello to Megan and enjoy the evening. Sonny's is the sort of place you'd expect to see a bunch of pirates drop in for a drink, sit in the corner and not bother anybody. The place apparently only opens Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. What they have against Thursday beats me. Megan's songs are great and the audience really pay attention. I get thinking to myself, I'd like to do a solo gig here sometime.

Thurs 15 Sept Manhattan, New York.....While out on a ramble I get this melody swirling around in my head. After visiting Kim's wonderful record store up on St. Marks, and a few other places, the tune is still in my head. Back to base, grab a guitar and start getting it down. I get two verses and reckon it doesn't need a third. Another slow slow song, but what can I do? I have too many real good slow ones at the moment waiting to be recorded. The next LP should have a bunch of good rockers....there's at least five I can think of off the top of my head, but three slow songs is enough on an album, unless you're going for the full-on laid back vibe ala Nick Cave's 'Boatman's Call' or Bonny Prince Billy's 'I See A Darkness.'

We take a short walk from Stanton Street, up past Broadway to the pool hall, meeting a few of the guys from Dublin band The Radio along the way. They're in town for the CMJ Festival. Nice to see them. I tell them I had no idea such an event was on. CMJ is one of those industry get togethers. Lots of gigs nobody gets paid for, A+R men are supposedly on the prowl for hot new acts ........you get the picture.
CMJ is of no use to me. Most of the time I don't feel like I've anything whatsoever to do with the music "industry".

Of course, Jack beats me at pool. I win one game, he wins four. Later, my gig at the Sidewalk Cafe is not well attended, but I enjoy myself and I entertain the good folks in attendance to the best of my ability. The sound engineer tells me how great I am, and how cool I am etc. So I suggest, next time I'm back he should get the booker to put me on at perhaps 10pm on a Saturday night, as opposed to 8pm on a Thursday.

Sun 18 Sept New York........Haven't been shopping much. Picked up two americana compilations and The Warlocks wonderful "Surgery" album. Jacks been listening to a lot of the White Stripes and The Stooges. Bumped into Leagues O Toole on Houston yesterday and we rambled up Lafayette together. A few years ago Leagues gave Long Time Gone a great review in the Dublin Event Guide.
"An accomplished and rich sound, augmented by the liquid boogie of a Wurlitzer, a mournful fiddle, and the dexterous pen of Mr. Dowd....they come close to cruising with the harmonic country-rock of The Band. On other occasions the simply rely on a fantastic vulnerable voice, and are the sound of a band both touching the heart of this city and following it's lineage to America and beyond." He's right too you know !
That was when the Dublin Event Guide was still a great paper. Now it's crap.

Hot and humid. 82 Fahrenheit during the day, it only drops to 77 at dusk. Tonight's gig is at the Swift Hibernian Lounge between Lafayette and Broadway on 4th Street. A good crowd, some nice folks. Sound is ok. I do the show, have a few drinks, get the money, all is as it should be. Didn't get around to doing the song I wrote last Thursday, which incidentally is called "Don't Walk Away". I don't feel fully comfortable with it yet.

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Sat 20 Aug Walking around in the rain at 5am carrying two guitars (Damian had the other) is not the glamorous rock 'n' roll lifestyle I had envisioned for myself when I was 18. Trying to get a taxi on a Saturday night is not always easy. Eventually I thought to myself, fuck this, went back to the Hotel and got the guitars locked up and had another late drink. Eventually made it home. The following afternoon Steve (my driver for the day) who I'd never met before arrives in his jeep. Steve plays bass in Chris's other band Communal. Throw my bag in the back, hop in and drive to the scene of last nights crime. Pick up the backline, Chris and Brian are in another wagon, and off we go, a bright sunny day, bound for the South East. See my first I Pod. Had no idea what the thing was.
Four hours later we're sound checking in Tramore, a sea-side town down south. Sounds alright. Last time I played Tramore was twelve years ago.
The guys grab something to eat, I'm not hungry. Have a drink instead...I am thirsty. All in all, not a bad gig. A bit of hard work never killed anybody, as the saying goes, although I think there may not be much truth in that. I'm sure hard work has killed a LOT of people. Sleep for a bit on the way back, arriving home around 5am. Have a drink or three, crash out around 7am.
A few days later I was in Waterford for a show in an Art Gallery, and then one with Anto White, who is a much better singer/songwriter than a lot of the current crop.
Today, my office job. Get gigs in New York sorted and a phone call from Spain brings good news. Last time I was in Spain was 1986. I'll be there again in two weeks time.

Tues 23 Aug Dublin........Recording is never easy, even listening back to stuff that had been put down a week ago. Some of it sounds a bit rough, so I manage to get a few good vocal takes. One on a new song 'Gone Again' and another vocal on 'Five Pointed Star'.
Been listening to a lot of Deep Soul, stuff that's re-issued on Dave Godins series entitled Deep Soul Treasures on the Kent label. Doris Duke, Jimmy Robins, The Knight Brothers, The Incredibles. Also Green On Red, 'Thirteen' by Big Star and The Pretty Things are on the stereo a lot.
Got an email today from Wally at the Beautiful Music record label to let me know who's been playing us on the radio in Canada. Apparently five or six different DJ's on CKCU have been playing tracks from Exit Hellsville. So that's good news. Also got some email saying something about that Hard Working Class Heroes festival that takes place this weekend. Nobody I know whose playing is getting paid, so what sort of a 'festival' is that ? There's too much of that these days, and it makes it harder for those of us who are in it for the long haul, not just to impress girlfriends or family members. Those of us who remember what its like to get paid. Thankfully I wont be around. I'm off to Sweden bright and early tomorrow morning where I WILL be getting paid and generally treated like royalty....and proper order too. Then onwards to Spain for a few gigs. See you out there......

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Thur 16 June Mullingar .......Not a bad night by any standards. Felt tired and disinterested all day, but once I got out of Dublin and on the road I felt better. Good audience, good vibe, chatted to some local guys afterwards and Finbar and Lucila from Celtic Ninja Construction were kind enough to give me a place to crash after we dropped off for a bag of chips on the way to their house. Ended up reading the tarot for Lucila at about 3am. Slept for a few hours, and got to see the two Ninja videos in the morning, one which was shot in Argentina.

Thur 7 July Dublin....Linda Lucas is support at The Belvedere on Gardiner Row. She plays a great set, but it's not really an ideal place for a gig....too big...too empty, but I need the money. Simple as that.
Earlier in the day I made several phone calls, scoring a few gigs in the process, including a nice one in New York. (I'll be there in September)

Been listening to The Radiants, a lot of Ann Peebles and I've sort of got addicted to Urge Overkill 'Goodbye to Guyville'. It's got an incredible guitar sound.
I was in Sweden for a couple of gigs last month and I didn't get around to writing anything in this diary about it, but as usual I picked up a lot of records...The Stones 'Stripped'...Hank Williams, Warren Zevon, an old rock 'n' roll compilation, Green on Red, Charlie Rich, The Cramps.....they're all on the turn-table a lot these days....

Sat 9 July Frank Rynne (and un-named guitarist) are support tonight. I know Frank from his day's fronting The Baby Snakes, before they moved to London. An acoustic set from Frank tonight, although he had expressed a desire to bring down his Vox AC30, the one he got from Jeffrey Lee Pierce, but it seemed like too much hassle.
Our own set was good, but not as on the button as two weeks ago when we were here at the Mezz. Good crowd though, considering the Oxygen Festival is on this weekend. A lot of familiar faces, some old friends...a lot of hand shakes.

Liis from Tallinn, Estonia shows up. Hadn't seen her since our last trip to the fine Baltic country, when (her then boyfriend) Max tour managed us on our adventures down south, and boy did we need a tour manager. We were in pretty bad shape after Estonia. By that point we were out on the road for only three weeks, but we'd been burning the candle at both ends and 14 gigs in Finland lay ahead, mostly one night stands !! Those were (not) the days and now they're gone.
After the gig, have a few drinks, get paid, change into a dry shirt and go for a late drink to Carnival with Åsa and Liis where we hook up with Steve Wall, Ollie Cole, Daniell and a few other folks.

Sun 10 July Not big on Festivals, especially something like Oxygen, but when I get a call from my old friend Jona Cox I change my mind. These days Jona is taking care of The La's who are playing Oxygen, so I'm on the guest list. Armed with a bottle of vodka and accompanied by Miss Karrman, I make my way out to wherever the fuck it's happening....a big field in the country ! (I later learn it's actually Punchestown Race Course)
It's real hot, 29 degrees Celsius, so a few beers are required. Meet up with Jona at the mixing desk while the La's are on. Later, we're all backstage for beers and a chat, Åsa is up on top of the tour bus sun-bathing, I'm on the phone organizing transport for a gig in Tramore.

The only dilemma of the day is the fact that soul brother number one, Mr James Brown is on at 10 o clock, the same time Foo Fighters are on. What is one to do ? As the Foo FIghters are on the main stage way off in the distance and James Brown is booked to appear on a stage right beside where I'm at, the decision is made. I'm in the toilet when James' van pulls up, so I don't get to see him close up, but Åsa gets a kick out of being within a few yards of this living legend. We watch the gig from the side of the stage and it surely is some show. Wonderful stuff. I was blown away.

Sun 17 July I have great neighbours. They never complain when I stay up playing records until dawn. Sometimes on my own, sometimes with a bunch of merry pranksters. They never complain either when I'm doing work with my little home studio. Spent the last few days working on a bunch of new songs, putting down electric guitar parts....very loud....using my Marshall Valve State and my new acquired Fender amp. Got a lot done in three days, drank some wine, made phone calls, scored a few gigs, got a few things in the pipe line. Life is good, most of the time.
Paul (who was at a gig last weekend) is a man of his word and sent me a copy of The Ramones documentary "End Of The Century." I watched it the other night and enjoyed it immensely. Phoned up Jack in New York to check if he'd seen it yet (I thought he had) and I was right.
This evening I needed a lie down after dinner and was awakened by my missus playing The Racketeers on the stereo. Every now and then she does this........and I don't really like it. Don't like having to listening to my own records as all I can hear is half finished songs, badly played parts, stuff that needs to be remixed. I'm reminded of dreadful record sales, being ripped off by assholes, being banned from venues, people being hospitalized in Finland, armed border police, broken bones in South East Asia, badness in the Baltics and too many hours spent on the ferry.
But then I think of the songs we got right....the stuff that still sounds good, that would knock the shit out of a lot of the current pretenders. I think of the great folks I've met along the way, the mad mad times from Donegal to Dattingen.....the rolls of cash in my pocket coming through Dublin airport. The fact that I'm here at all is a bit of an achievement, and I think of what adventures lie ahead. As Vinny O'Connor's swirling organ drifts through the air I know I'm going to sleep good tonight. See you out there........

THIS ROAD IS ROCKY TOUR - APRIL - MAY 2005

Thur 7 April Dublin...........Meet up with Brian down at the Viper Rooms along the banks of the smelly ole River Liffey. Had spent a few hours at home having a few beers and grooving away to Clarence Carter records and Loretta Lynn too. It turns out that Gavin Glass runs a little acoustic gig here and he wants us to do a slot in a few weeks. Why not !
After a few liquid refreshments, we pile into the taxi for the East Wall Road, way down past the Point Theatre where Kylie had a gig tonight. We're doing an interview and playing two songs live on a show called Mishmash which broadcasts on Anna Livia 103.2FM. Daryl is the DJ and we have a good laugh, tell a few stories, play acoustic versions of 'Come On Little Baby' and 'Nowhere Fast'. Then it's back to the Viper Rooms for a drink or two, Gavin does a great version of the Stones 'Wild Horses' pounding it out on the piano, and eventually it's off into the night....southbound.

Fri 8 April Bray..........Been listening to a lot of deep soul, a title coined by some Brit enthusiast (whose name I can't recall) but fair play to him, he's dug out a lot of classics for this Kent compilation. The Knight Brothers, Larry Banks, an old fave of mine: Irma Thomas is in there, along with The Incredibles, Van and Titus, Bessie Banks, Raw Spitt and the amazing Jaibi. Trying to finish off reading DBC Pierre's novel 'Vernon God Little.' Started reading it in Sweden a few weeks ago, but somehow or other I've kept getting sidetracked into doing other things...gigs, writing, and I've started re-reading a lot of Peter J. Carrolls' books, as he's one of the best writers on sorcery these days, even though his best output was in the early 80's.
The gig in Bray was a bazaar affair as Bray often is. However I got a kick out of it and a few of the lunatics in attendance seemed to enjoy it. Then I got the money real quick and was gone.....

Tues. 12 April Dublin.......The sound is good, as it usually is at this acoustic gig as part of the Ruby Sessions. The weekly show hosts 4 acts and all the money goes to the Simon Community, a very worthy cause as we have an unbelievable number of homeless people in Dublin and it seems to be getting worse. We play 'Evil' for the second time, the first being at Annesley House a week ago. It worked well and I used the wasabi delay pedal I acquired recently. It will also do a reverse delay, an effect I have never used live, but it might come in handy recording.
Hung out with Brian and Darren for a while after and saw some of the gig. Chris taught me how to say ' I haven't a clue what you're on about' in German as preparation for the upcoming tour. Ate a falafel on Dame St before hopping into a taxi.

Wed. 13 April The new album from Swedish band Moneybrother arrives. They're really wearing their influences on their sleeve. I can hear the Clash influence and the Northern Soul vibe too. It's a very good album. 'You got Me' by Jaibi is getting a lot of spins here too, as is an Incredibles 'Best Of' called 'Heart and Soul'.
Need to get the material that makes up the 'Hellsville' LP plus some acoustic tracks off Paul Thomas's Pro Tools set up and onto another hard drive. A Lacie Drive was delivered here yesterday so off I go down to Paul's place and the job is done. We retire to the Harold House Pub, just down the road and we have more pints than I bargained for, but I always have a good time with Mr PT. Unfortunately this means that a few things didn't get taken care of. I needed to fax my lawyer ( I can do that from Germany) and I needed to pay the rent ( I can do that when I get back). A quiet night in might have been an idea, as I have to get up at 4am to make it to the airport in time for my early flight to Frankfurt. Doing this with a hang over is not much fun.

Thurs 14 April Frieburg..................Arrive in one piece. Couldn't get to sleep on the plane. Gotta hang around in the airport for an hour before my train and I get taking to an Irish guy from a band called The Prophets ( Ithink). He's doing a few solo gigs himself. We have a beer in the bar to kill time, and I DO need the cure.
Mick Morrissey is at the station in Freiburg to meet me off the train. We drop in to the nearby Jos Fritz Cafe where tonights show is. Eat a bit of apple pie, two drinks and off for a lie down My head hardly hits the pillow when it's time to get up again and sound check, although it is an hour and a half later. After sound check we eat some pasta in a place around the corner. Mick and Nikol are now called Summer Bride and are support on all the gigs (except Greiz). The sound is real good, great acoustics etc. My set goes down very well, one of the best solo acoustic gigs ever. Afterwards its nice to hang out and meet some folks I last met in Staufen last year...Wolfgang, Ralf, Norman...A great night...late drinks with Gunther who owns the place and tells me I must come back again.....yes...this is why I do it. Sometimes it's easy to forget.

Fri 15 April Greiz.....What a day. After three hours sleep, I'm up, quick brekki and off to catch the 9am train to East Germany. Summer Bride aren't playing tonight so I'm all on my own, hungover, and I have to change trains four or five times so grabbing a bit of kip is an impossibility. It's a hot sunny day as we roll across the German countryside. The first indication that we are in what used to be east Germany is the amount of graffiti. Its everywhere, and I mean everywhere.
After seven hous I finally disembark in Gera. Norbert picks me up. He has hardly any English, and all I can say in German is "dangeshan" (thank you) and yes, of course I've spelt it wrong. So, with the language barrier we don't get around to discussing the Anglo Irish Agreement. I do however learn that Griez is actually 40 kilometers away, so it's another hour on the road. Eat, soundcheck, and Norbert's PA people drive me out into the countryside to this little pension type Hotel. Relax for about half an hour and then back for the gig. The place is called Peanuts. It's real small, but full, and they seem to like what I do. A lady at the bar is taking photos with her little digital camera and then before I know it there's a guy in front of me lying on his back on the floor (to get a cool angel, I presume) with a huge lens, click click click...lots of photos. Afterwards I learn he's Karsten Schaarschmidt from a local paper and is both a photographer and a journalist.
I need to eat something, and a cheese sandwich with some salad does the trick. Norbert wants me to have a Jameson Whiskey, but I decline explaining that whiskey drives me mental, so I wash down the sandwich with vodka instead.

Sat 16 April Griez.....I'm all alone for breakfast in the ghost hotel. Earlier I saw two old ladies on a balcony having a cigarette and I politely said 'gutten morgan' (however you spell it) but since then not a soul. The food is all laid out for me and I gulp it down, cos it's gonna be a long day. Another 8 hours on the train. Norbert turns up at 9.30 as planned and drives me in the morning sunshine to the station. I've got a Wordsworth Dictionary of Mythology with me so I'm reading about Gilgamesh, the Sumerian goddess Inanna, the Nordic goddess Frejya and various dragon myths. (This sort of stuff stimulates the brain...believe it or not).
Later in the afternoon I venture as far as the dining carriage and order a baked potato with salad and this is washed down with a solitary glass of beer. Then, back to my book.
Mick is at the station in Frieburg to meet me. We take the short walk to his fave book shop which also has a little cafe where you can read the English newspapers. This he does, while I drink strawberry juice and check my emails. As it turns out our respective drinks are on the house, cos the girl working in the cafe heard my accent, reckoned I was Irish, and seeing as she lived in Cork for a while, she's given us our tea and juice for free. You can't argue with that !
Find a bar for a drink, but the only other customers are two middle aged guys and a fight is brewing. One of the guys seems really pissed off with his buddy and they're bickering and after one beer we nip next door to Atlantik. This turns out to be a good move. It's a venue as well as a bar, posters for The Misfits upcoming show are on the wall, and one for Nashville Pussy. I like it here although the service is real slow, but the beer is cool and inexpensive and when it came to dinner, the meal was excellent. Later we hook up with Wolfgang in some terrible Paddy Pub. Get caught in the rain and in the final bar of the night some guy wants to know if I'm Spider Stacy. Get a pair of glasses son. Goodnight Frieburg.

Mon April 18 Sultzburg........I'm in Sultzburg as I write having taken the train through Dattingen, with a change at Mullheim and enough time to send a fax to my solicitor (don't ask) and to buy an envelope before catching the bus here to Sultzburg. Seems like a quiet laid back town. I had a ramble around, sat by the river for a while, made a phone call, walked back here and fell asleep on the sofa. Mick's gone off to some early evening party where parents and kids will attend. I hang at the flat, and start reading Ian Hunters excellent 'Diary Of A Rock 'n' Roll Star'. Later I get some work done, finally getting a much needed second verse to a song I started writing in Sweden a few weeks ago. It may be called 'Swedish Eyes, Russian Blood' but I may change the title later.
Earlier I had been saying to Mick how I've grown weary of the road and I might stop touring and have a re-think. Then I notice that the pen I'm writing this diary with came from Lafitte Guest House 1003 Bourbon St. New Orleans. Its a place I've never been but a place that has been talked about . I'd like to swing down there in the next year to check it out and if possible, do a few gigs so I could have some cash to play with. So perhaps this pen is telling me my rambling days are not over yet.

Tues April 19 Schallstadt.........After a few hours rambling the streets of Frieburg I head towards the station. I've just bought a much needed umbrella and a shirt for seven euro. Train stations are the same all over the world. Populated by the dissolute and the deranged. I have a beer in the midst of the low life's and read Ian Hunters great tales of touring the USA in 1972. Take the 6.46 train (on time as always) to Schallstadt and Wolfgang meets me at the station. Tonight, I'm dinner guest to Wolfgang and his lovely wife Daniella. Of course the media are getting great mileage out of the fact that today the first German pope in 900 years or so, has been elected. Apparently this guy is even more conservative and fucked-up than the last guy. The TV is turned of and the records come on. Wolfgang is DJ for hours and he really takes his music seriously. He's really a huge fan of the whole Americana / alternative country stuff. Dinner is great, a few beers and lots of wine, good conversation...what more could you want.

Wed April 20 Kandern.........After breakfast, we feed the rabbits, take pain-killers, and watch a DVD of The White Stripes live from Blackpool, which is excellent. Listen to a bundle of stuff including Duane Jarvis. Wolfgang drives me to Sultzburg and Nikol has just arrived. Out of one car and into the other. We got two guitars, a PA, piano, box of CD's and various bit 'n' pieces crammed into this station wagon. Rain is coming down in bucketfulls. Takes about an hour or so to get to Kandern, tonight's stop on the This Road Is Rocky Tour. (it's good to have titles, in case you get too disorientated, as I did a few days ago and started rambling on about retiring).
A Wednesday night, pissing down rain, a small town in the Black Forest area of Germany.....given such conditions you don't expect much. But how wrong we were. A great crowd turns up, Summer Bride get an encore, so when I go on (after a shot of tequila) I've got them in the palm of my hand. They're clapping along, shouting up stuff, and staying (sort of) quiet on the slow quiet songs. Everything about the gig was great, dinner was Thai food at its best, the shape of the room was ideal, the PA, the lights and of course the crowd. We all played well and a few late drinks were in order. Hopefully, we'll be back again in Chanderer Bahnhofle.

Thurs April 21 Denzingen..........Visit the post office and drink ice tea in the afternoon sunshine. In Hetiersheim we have tea and cheesecake, before continuing on to Denzlingen . Mick gave me a present of a little clip on mic holder that I can attach to a regular stand so I can have my stomping foot miked up. My left foot becomes a human drum machine on these solo dates. The venue is Humpen, and it's tiny and owned by the Harrold, same guy who owne's the place we were last night. He seems like a nice fellow.
Nikol is complaining he's feeling real horny and has been for days. Over at the magazine rack I find a copy of Maxim and he's flicking through it, which is probably making him even more edgy. I glance at some photos of a Miss Jakki Degg (27) from Staffordshire. There's an interview with Miss Degg (it's in German, so I'm none the wiser) Nikol thinks she's hot and I'm thinking to myself that this lady looks a lot like my missus : Å.K.
It's a real sweaty gig, (three encores !!) and I didn't bring a change of clothes, and I'm completely soaked afterwards. Harrold is talking about the full band coming next time and I'm all on for that. I explain how much cash we would need and perhaps we could do the show in Kandern.

Fri. April 22 Emmendingen.....In the afternoon we walk up to the old Jewish Cemetery. It's dated back to the 13th Century and it's a bit of a miracle that it's still here as the Nazis destroyed virtually everything to do with Judaism during their reign of terror and ignorance. A spooky place but with a charm. Then again, I've always felt very at home in any sort of spooky environment.
The bar is right beside the main railroad tracks that lead all the way from Amsterdam down to Switzerland and it makes some racket as it whizzes by at top speed. No messing with precision German engineering. Played very well tonight, the sound was great, but a poor attendance.
A slightly deranged lady arrives after the gig and is pissed off cos she thought she might have caught the last hour !!?! I can't deal with this, but Mick, being the gentleman that he is, gets out his Guild acoustic and sings the Jarvis/Williams composition 'Still I long For Your Kiss' . I think to myself, what the hell, so I sing 'Drunken Angel' sitting at the table especially for this lady and her boyfriend. They seem to be genuinely grateful that we made the effort.
Later a few people join us at the table, but I smell trouble. One of the cunts starts saying he's offended by my language...I use the word 'fuck' too much. So I go " fuck...fuck...fuck...cunt...fuck...fucketty ...fuck !" He doesn't seem amused. He storms off in a huff, and his friend joins me at the bar, where I've moved to, to get away from the madness at the table. The guy apologizes profusely for his friends rude behavior and buys me a Jagermeister and down the hatch it goes. Ten minutes later we're on the road, the gig just a memory...................

Sat 23 April Titisee-Neustadt is actually two towns that have grown together. The gig at the Kultur Kafe is on the Neustadt side. We're way up in the mountains and the scenery was beautiful on the drive up. Again, we're playing in a place that has wonderful acoustics, especially for an acoustic / unplugged type show.
Dinner is the best all week. Potatoes (fried) with sheep's cheese and a great salad. In case you don't know this, dinner is very important for the itinerant musician. It may be you're only chance for a proper meal all day, and if the food is shit, or worse still, there's none, the gig is going to suffer. Likewise, you shouldn't eat too much too soon before the gig.
After dinner we go for a bit of a ramble, only to discover that the nearest bar, about 100 yards down the road has a big neon sign outside boasting "all drinks 99cents." How are we supposed to compete with that ? It's 8Euro in to see us, so as you can imagine, not many alcoholics show up for the gig.
The show itself was nothing to write home about....a small crowd. I enjoyed playing however, and 'Swedish Eyes' could become a great song. It's my second night playing it..
A bit of a bummer to end the tour on a low note, but it just goes to show, you never can tell what's around that next corner.

Sat 30 April Dublin......Been living a bit like a recluse for the past few days. After a tour I sometimes need to disappear from the world for a while. Spoke to a lot of people on the phone but the only person I actually saw was Steve Wall, who I bumped into outside, and Carl upstairs who kindly collected my mail while I was away.
Today I'm recording. Got a good version of 'Caroline Says' down. Four hours it took me to get three acoustic guitar parts down, electric guitar, vocals and back-up double tracked vocals. It doesn't sound bad at all. It seems mostly in tune too !

Sun 1 May Kilkenny......My instincts told me to watch out ! After consulting the tarot I was prepared for disappointment, but all is not lost was the message, the problem could be dealt with...etc. It's not easy read for yourself. So, I decided to put my vintage Burns amp in the van, just in case my regular amp gave me any hassle.
It's a bright sunny day and after our two and a half hour drive we roll into KIlkenny and witness a party atmosphere on the streets, which is what one would expect at the Rhythm and Roots Festival.
We're playing at the Kyteler Inn, named after the 12th century witch Dame Alice Kyteler. And just as I had feared, my Marshall Valve State amp is fucked. It was ok during yesterdays recording session, although the reverb wouldn't do it's thing. Today, it's useless, royally fucked. I plug in the old Burns amp, given to me by my old buddy David Bickley in Cornwall back in '95 I think. It really doesn't have enough poke for a loud gig like this but it will have to do. I need a certain overdriven sound and the Burns is too clean. Again, luck is on my side as our van driver JP happens to have a Boss distortion pedal on the dash-board, so together with my Rat pedal I've got all the dirt I need.

During soundcheck some people wander in, one guy, obviously into old amps, takes a photo of the Burns...and not of any of us humans. Sheila Sullivan (who played fiddle on both "By Hook" and "Long Time Gone" and gigged with us through from '97-'99) is in town and arrives down for sound check. It's good to see my old friend and she tells me she's off to play a few gigs in England with the Dead Plants. Si from Dead Plants use to drive for us back in '97 and '98, and his band played support to us in Galway once. I have fond memories of that big blue Mercedes van. And I recall the night we nearly got thrown out of a hotel because our post gig session was turning into a gig in my room, Seb had the double bass out and I'm not sure who else was there, most of the Racketeers, Si of course was there and I remember his missus was downing most of the bottle of tequila given to us by the promoter.
The gig kicks off and Sheila joins us for "Apology Not Accepted" "Racketeers Lament" and "Too Far Gone". It sounds great, and I reckon we must get her to guest with us again soon, a Dublin gig hopefully. WE sell a few CD's sign some autographs and after a quick two drinks we hit the road.

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WINTER OF DISCONTENT TOUR (Jan-March 2005)
Switzerland/Ireland/Sweden/New York

Wed. Jan 26 Switzerland...........After a midday flight I'm sitting on a train whizzing through the snow-covered Swiss countryside, leaving Zurich behind. The onetime hotbed of Dadaist activity must surely have some great Art Museums. Hopefully someday I'll have a chance to spend enough time there to look into it. Its minus 8 degrees, with a nasty wind blowing in from the farmlands when we reach Biberist, me, Brian O'Toole and Al Cowan. Al is an old friend of mine from the eighties and he's filling in for Teusner on drums. Chris wants to cool his heels after 6 or 7 weeks in Australia. We've a few rehearsals with Al under our belts, he knew most of the stuff anyway as he recorded most of the first album at his Sonic Studios back in '97.
After getting set-up and checking out the rented backline, there's time for a drink and dinner before the gig. Somehow or other I manage to fall out of bed, whacking my mouth on a bedside glass of water, luckily not breaking the glass, but still managing to give myself a cut lip. Could have been worse. A close call.

Thurs. Jan 27 Biberist.............The guys want coffee in the new upstairs Cafe at the Co-op store. I have a beer. Back at the bar, eat and take the train into Solothurn, leaving village life behind for a slightly more urban vibe. It's cold so we go to Solheur for a few drinks and a really interesting chat about all sorts of things. Later, the Bistro over near the train station. Later we check out two of the subterranean bars in the actual station. Keep missing the train, but eventually do catch one back to Biberist in time for dinner..
I'm reading Last Train To Memphis, Peter Guralick's tale of the rise of Elvis. A present from the wife. I've brought a walkman with me too, but haven't got around to listening to it yet. Not enough time. The gig is another gig.

Fri. Jan 28 Mathias, our old friend, drives in and after hanging out in the next door music store, we drive out to his place. Can't remember the name of the town, but it was a hour well spent. See a bit of the countryside, dwarfed by the mountains towering over us, a different type of civilization.
Kris DJ's before we go on, playing all his fave English bands, and a lot of Welch one's. He's from Cardiff and a patriot. The gig is enjoyable, with several songs dedicated to Anita Blond, Lea Martini and Brian's fan, Michelle Wild !
The drinks keep on arriving afterwards, as does very hot pizza (too much chili) and this plays havoc with my stomach. We all stay up late, Al telling how we first met up at Clonegal Castle, where the Fellowship of Isis were having their Spring Equinox celebrations. I think it was 1986 or '87. The wonderful Honourable Olivia Robertson presided, as did her brother Baron Strathlock. He's no longer with us, but Olivia is still alive and well and is now a Lady.
A few years later I did some recording at his Studio, as did our old buddy from HyperBorea, David Bickley. It all seems like a previous lifetime, and I suppose it was. Folks drift off and crash out, but me and Kris drink until around 7.30am.

Sat. Jan 29 Biberist......Don't get out of bed until 7pm, and feel terrible. Can't face food. Seems I've caught a terrible bug. Just about manage to get through the gig and feel so fucked up I can't join in and of the late night shenanigans. Get the money, sign the relevant paper-work and instead of partying, I lie in bed tossing and turning with a real bad throat a headache and sweating profusely.

Sun. Jan 30 Zurich......At the airport I manage to eat a chocolate bun, washed down with a cup of tea, the only thing I've eaten since a banana yesterday. After paying our excess baggage bill, Brian and I are approached by some autograph hunters, who want us to sign their notebooks, have their photos taken with us etc. I'm not sure if they're mixing us up with somebody else, or if they know who we are or what's really going on, but we sign everything, do the photo routine, act polite. I n a newsagents I manage to loose our boarding passes. Later, I find them, and due to lack of sleep everything seems complicated. Loose a bag with about 800Euros worth of gear, but luckily I find that again. Change the money from Swiss Franks into Euro, stash the bookers 15%, and do the split, a fat roll of notes in my pocket. Back in Dublin, I manage to get to sleep at around 1am....after 30 hours without shut eye.

Tues. Feb 1 Dublin.....Yesterday I did absolutely nothing, apart from go to the doc, get antibiotics for my throat infection and an anesthetic spray. Been taking lots of hot lemon drinks, trying to eat some decent food into me and get some rest. A compilation CD from Paddy Lynch in NYC arrives in the post. It's got a great version of The Lowlands of Holland by Susan McKeown with some great eastern sounding violins, either Japananese or Chinese, can't tell. First time I heard this song, it was sung by Dolores Keane, a magical version with John Faulkner on guitar. The CD also contains the spooky Incantation by John Zorn and a track by the Carmelite Nun of Lucon. Nothing to do with the 70's movie I presume.
Later in the evening I'm beginning to feel the drugs kick in so I manage to get some of the recording machinery turned on and lash out rough mixes of 13 songs. Bang 'em onto a cassette for Chris who is curious to hear the new material I've been working on while he was down under (in Oz). Then off to bed.

Wed. Feb 2 Galway..............An email informs me we made it into some local papers, photo as well. Its a long day in the van. There's a serious crash, a truck and a few cars all in a pile up on the motorway, so we loose a good hour in the tailback. Realize I haven't approached Galway from the Dublin side of things for many years. Although The Galway Advertiser claims it's two years since we last played this western city, it's actually almost 4, and how things have changed. The last time we drove into Galway we were coming from Sligo, up north, so it's an eye opener to see all the new buildings, even villages that didn't exist before.
After soundcheck I meet up with Killian and Thor who have organized the gig, as well as brothers Noel and Aidan Furey who I haven't seen in years. Also Olly Longhair, the Saw Doctors live sound engineer. We do the gig, and although it's a small crowd, they're really into what we do and after we sell a few CD's and have a quick drink before hitting the road again.

Fri. Feb 4 Dublin.....A trip to the bank and the Post Office. Also, I collect my ticket for Gothenburg. Pick up a Northern Soul CD with Frank Wilson, Terry Callier, Jerry Butler, Edwin Starr and a bunch of other great floor fillers. Also got a thing called 'Texas Troubadours' which includes a few great tracks from the likes of Rosie Flores and Slaid Cleaves. T Rex's 'Electric Warrior' arrives in the post and I get a letter from the Customs and Excise people to say they've got another package and they want my permission to x-ray it, which I give, and apparently it's also a CD and not a home bomb making kit !!
Word comes through from the US from a label who are looking for a track for a future release on that side of the Atlantic. Which reminds me, I have a trip to the States planned for March so I'd better get a ticket organized. On TV I see a documentary that refutes a lot of the theories put forward by the Da Vinci Code. The most important part for me was the notion the the Priory of Sion was a mere hoax with a surrealist subtext. In looking for the Holy Grail, the presenter Tony Robinson has the revelation that if your looking for a physical cup or drinking vessel you'll never find it, because it doesn't really exist ...it's just a story !! Now, take that very same revelation and replace the words 'Holy Grail' with 'Jesus Christ' you'll be getting somewhere..................Goodnight.

Sat. Feb 6 Dublin...........A good lie in...recharge the batteries, fighting fit for the gig in The Mezz in the middle of Dublin's tourist hang-out area. Not a bad gig at all. Jimmy is there, shouting up "Midsummers Eve".....a track off Long Time Gone, and if memory serves me correctly, only ever played live twice. Once, in The Pine Lodge, Myrtleville, County Cork (before it was recorded) and once in Helsinki, where I think we made a balls of it. It's time for a resurrection. If we can get a few rehearsals in to try out some of these new songs I've written maybe we can do a re-arrangement on Midsummers Eve too. Million Miles Away could do with a dusting off as well. That was only played live a handful of times back in '99. Sold some CD's, collected a few email addresses from people who had never heard of us before, and it's always good to see people turned on by what we do.
What do we do ??? Americana ? Rock 'n' Roll ? Alt. Country ? Outsider Rock 'n' Roll ??? I like the phrase outsider.....

Sun. Feb 6 Arvid, my reggae loving friend in Gothenburg is going to be the recipient of a couple of cassettes of the hardest hitting stuff to have come out of Jamaica during that golden period from the late 60's to the end of the '70's. I'll throw on a few rock steady classics too. Arvid, unlike most of the Sweden is not appalled by tapes, vinyl or other such analogue formats. Most of my best reggae , Bluebeat, Ska and Rocksteady stuff is on vinyl, and even if the computer/burner was working, its too time consuming to get the songs onto the hard drive then burn them. Straight to tape is quickest.
Write a bunch of emails, phone calls, no time for the Sunday papers. Off to Bray to do a gig, after that I reckon I'll catch about 4 hours in the land of nod, and then off to Sweden, where I'm gonna be for three weeks. See you later Alligator...............

Thurs. Feb 10 Gothenburg, Sweden........Picked up a few records...Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, the soundtrack to that great movie, 'Round Midnight ' starring Dextor Gordon and a Russian pressing of a Stones compilation called 'All Together Volume 12 !! It's got a whole bunch of early obscure early tracks, plus a few I know like 'Yesterdays Papers'. These I bought at Mynt and Musik down on Friggagatan. Over at another shop I got Elvis Costeeoe's 'My Aim Is True' (never owned that before) a couple of early rock 'n' roll samplers and an Iggy Pop LP. Problem is, everything I bought is on vinyl and there's no record player where I'm staying. The one CD I found worth spening money on is a compilation of stuff that Presley covered early in his carre and stuff that influenced him. Big Mama Thornton, Lowell Fulsome, Carl Perkins etc.
I'm still reading Peter Gularnick's biography of Presley. Now, I knew he was white trash, but I hadn't realized he was such a mama's boy, so I've used this line in a new song I wrote today called 'Roll Away.' The line goes..."Elvis was the King alright, the King of mama's boys..."
It's a good song and I'll be performing it tomorrow night for the good people of Gothenburg.

Fri. Feb. 11 Gothenburg......The gig is at Kom Musik bar on Olivesdalgatan. A good crowd are in and they listen to every note, so it's just as well I'm on the ball tonight. A great gig, get an encore, chat to some new fans, sell a few CD's. Meet up with Alex Niitsoo from local band Guru Baba who reckons he can help me out with some new contacts. Annalie, Pieter, Carolin, Arvid are all down for the gig. Meet Arvids cousin Andreas who is a great guy and we all wander off into the night in the direction of Jantorget. Have a few drinks in Louisse Bar which I like a lot.

Sat. Feb 12 Gothenburg......Swedish TV is truly terrible. Bad enough giving Cagney and Lacy a prime time slot, they've gone mental on reality shows, home produced and imported. Paradice Island, Big fucking Brother, Poor Little Rich Girl, Babes in The Bush, Nanny 911...the list is fucking endless. There's one about a middle aged big titted lady who has had more plastic surgery than Michael Jackson. She's the ex-wife of some mafia Don and she's looking for a new husband. Good luck !
On Channel Z I see a great band called Vijaya, but after doing some research I'm told they released one single a year ago, no album available, so thats it.
While taking the piss out of Swedish TV commercials I slip on the frosty grass and land badly...flat out .... really hurt my back. I reckon Loki (Nordic trickster archetype) is responsible, decided to teach me a lesson for taking the piss, and perhaps I deserved it.
Later at night we have a few drinks (in fact we have quite a lot of drinks) down town. On our way to meet up with Andreas at Sticky Fingers I fall for the second time. At least this time I can blame it on the snow which has been falling steadily for the past few hours. Luckily no bones are broken and we have a wild time at the club.

Wed. Feb. 16 Stockholm.........Roll out of bed after four hours shut-eye. Grab a coffee and catch the 8am bus. Luckily I sleep for most of the seven hour bus ride. The place we're staying in is a hell of a lot better than the kip we stayed in the last time we were in this town. One's got to be careful walking around in the snow and ice. Don't want to fall again. The gig at Wirstroms in Gamlastan is ok. Hang out with Swifty's old friend Furnace who organized it for me. He's got a baby due any day now, but his mobile doesn't ring, so it's not tonight.

Thurs Feb 17 Stockholm.....After checking my emails and generally TCB (taking care of business) I call the Frames management in Ireland to get the OK to play support to them in Gothenburg next Saturday night. The venue people are cool, they're saying, get the OK from the band, which I do. So, there's another gig for me.
Then its time to get down to Central Station. I buy Lemmy's autobiography 'White Line Fever' and hop on the bus for the 700 Kilometer drive west. By the time we reach our destination I've finished Lemmy's literary classic. It made me laugh out loud more than once, which isn't a bad complaint.

Sat Feb 19 Gothenburg......................Blame it on the beer packages. As an enticement to customers if you buy a beer they give you a bottle of the same brand for free. It's called a beer package and a lot of the bars do it. I kind of over-did the beer packages last night. Got out of it, fell over, couldn't get up. Eventually got into a taxi but the guy thought I was gonna puke. Åsa convinced him I'm not a puker. Once every four years or so.
Now, Brian O Toole is a great man for what he describes as "the casual puke". Nip around the corner, throw up and then he's back in business. Åsa K- she'll say ..."I don't feel so good.." Into the toilet, a few minutes later she emerges a little red-eyed but soon she's knocking them back again. By the time we get to Kaggeledstorget I've lost my serial killer hat, but the taxi driver is kind enough to carry me to the door. Of course I can't remember any of this. First I heard about it was when I woke up this afternoon at 2.30........Can it be true ???
On the way to the venue I stop off to buy another hat identical to the one I lost. It was very good to me, looked good, kept head warm and my ears safe from the bitter Nordic wind. (Andreas says it makes me look like a serial killer, but I can live with that)
Tonight's venue is Sticky Fingers and I'm opening for the Frames. Meet Glen Hansard right inside the door. We shake hands. It's been a long time. "I bet you're wondering what the fuck I'm doing here" I ask.
"Actually Yeah" he says. I explain the venue wanted me, but I have got the ok from mission control in Ireland.
The E.Q. for the monitors breaks down during sound check and it never gets going again so the onstage sound is thin, and front of house could be louder, but generally it's an ok gig. The venue owner goes over to Alex and says "I only have to hear 15 seconds of this guy to know he's good". This I take to be a compliment. Hang around and watch The Frames. Haven't seen them in a few years, in fact it's about 8 years ! Afterwards we drift towards the dressing room.. The bass player reckons we met before in Dublin and I don't doubt him one bit. I give Glen a copy of Exit Hellsville, he gives me a contact for Prague and the tour manager gives me another beer from the fridge. Just like that.

Sun. March 6 Dublin......Spring sunshine streaming through the window. Cup of tea and Swedish biscuits. Life is good. Dreamt last night I was in New York, and having a bad time. I AM going to NYC on Tuesday, but as always I'm going to have a good time.
Last night's gig in town was fun. Thin Lizzy's 'Boys are Back in Town' on the PA before we went on was a good omen, and put me in good form instantly.
Enjoyed myself, amused myself and I think I'm correct when I say the audience were entertained, and that's what it's all about. Chris played great as always. He's much better when he leaves his ear-plugs out. If he has them in , he hits the drums even harder, if he leaves them out, there's more dynamic, and he's a hard hitter anyway.
T-Bone came by to check us out, gave me a copy of his new CD. A few familiar faces in the crowd which is always nice. Chat with Tom from Cork and his buddy. Also meet up with Rob Murphy and Cormac, a friend of his that I hadn't seen in about fifteen years, or more.

Tues. March 15 New York.....Played earlier at The Sidewalk Cafe to a decent crowd. I played well and handled the occasion admirably. A few nights ago I caught up with Bronagh Gallagher. She and her band played a gig down at the Crash Mansion, followed by Mainline, who certainly have been studying Black Rebel Motorcyle Club. They were good, but maybe took themselves a bit too seriously. And the name is a bit of a joke....I can't imagine any of these black clad middle class boys dabbling with smack.
Jack's guitar playing has come on a lot and we've have a great time hanging out. A few days ago we visited the Chelsea Museum of Modern Art and saw a lot of cool installations and some great paintings. Saw 'The Village' on DVD. Really liked it. Bought a few records and battled my way through a snow storm.

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Tues. 2 Nov. Golden Autumn evening sunshine lighting up the room. Dusk is an inspiring time of day at this time of year.
On Hallow'een (Samhain) we visited my old friend Jos Braddell who publishes The Handstand. Had some wine and food, while outside fireworks lit up the sky. Yesterday some photos arrived from Paddy who took a bunch of shots in Waterford a few weeks ago. There I am, playing away in the Arts Center with very expensive Pauline Bewick paintings hanging on the wall behind me. Some were listed in the catalogue for up to 27,000 Euro.!
Played at a Holiday Inn tonight. Good PA, very good sound, on stage and front of house, but not many people in. This was because the promoter fucked off to Australia with some band. The Hotel manager does a runner, and we don't get paid.

Wed. 3 November After several calls to the Holiday Inn I'm getting the feeling I'm getting the run-around. There's a dispute over our fee. Eventually talk to the Hotel owner (via email) and as soon as the guy in Australia is contacted we can hopefully get our cash. I've been ripped off too many times. Those cunts who run the Dubliner Pub in Copenhagen...also, in the same city, that fucking weasel Mick Foley ripped us off. His downfall is expected soon. As for Eindhoven, the owner of that kip ended up in prison.
Collected my ticket for the States, on the day we all learn the bad news that the good folk of the US have elected a lying fundamentalist retard to be their president for another 4 years. Armageddon time.

Thurs 4 Nov. Locate the confirmation email which proves our guaranteed fee for last Tuesdays gig.
Yesterday I spent some time checking out different effect units. Tried out one of those Zoom multi effects, but I just got confused. Too many dials, and pads, and as for programming, well leave me out. I like a good old-fashioned pedal. Step on it and you know what to expect. Keep it simple and keep it sounding old. Flicked through a few catalogues, a quick search on the internet, and I reckon I might do some retro shopping in NYC next week. Now, I gotta go and play another gig.........

Wed 10 Nov. Celebrity doesn't interest me, so when I see famous people or I even have a chance to meet somebody who I might be a fan of, I usually decline. What's the point ?
A few years back, a cold winters morning I was checking in at Dublin Airport, bound (I think) for Denmark. A few desks up from me was Andy Irvine. As a kid I was a huge fan of Planxty, and later, of Andy's solo work. I thought I should perhaps go over and say hello and tell him I was a fan, and thank him for all the great music, but I didn't. It was early, I might be bugging him and it wasn't what I normally do anyway.
A few weeks later I met somebody in a bar in Galway and Andy's name was mentioned. I said how I had seen him in the airport and I didn't go over to say hello. My friend went on to explain that he knew Andy well, and how he felt he was sort of forgotten and that he would have loved some youngish rock 'n' roller to shake his hand, even if it was 6.30am. Now, this all happened long before it was cool or popular to say you were a Planxty fan. I had worked with Donal Lunny once, and during a break in the recording session I asked him if Planxty would ever reform, and he replied, " I hope not!" Even Donal didn't seem interested then in Planxty. How times have changed !
This morning, coming through Heathrow (London) I turn around to pick up my guitar and bag as it's coming through the x-ray machine and there's Glen Matlock, the Sex Pistols bass player. I remember the Andy Irvine episode, and being aware that Glen co-wrote some of the best Pistols songs, only to get fired and replaced by Sid Vicious, who couldn't play and quickly descended into junky hell, I reckon Glen had bad luck. Its not every day you rub shoulders with a Sex Pistol, so I said hello, introduced myself, shook hands and he enquired as to how I got my guitar on the plane. "They never let me bring my bass on" he complained. Glen went on to tell me about his new band, and he seemed a bit excited about that, and I told him I was off to New York for a few gigs etc. He went one way and I went the other.

Fri. 12 Nov North Arlington N.J....Rain lashing down as I'm desperately trying to catch a cab at the corner of Houston and Second Avenue. Taxi driver tries to give me a tenner change, out of a fifty!!?! Either the guy is on valium or he's trying to rip me off. Fuck that shit.
Bus ride from Port Authority to the town of North Arlington in Jersey. Justine is already there and the PA is up and ready to roll. Eat pizza and have a drink or two. The gig is hard work, but after a while they seem to get into it. Jersey has such a different vibe. Nothing like New York. I'm back on the bus by 10.30 with a roll of notes in my pocket.

Sun 14 Nov New York...HBO show films all day long. I'm out of the scratcher by 8.30,, tea, toast and on Jack's recommendation I watch "Catch Me If You Can." He goes to a football game, I phone Asa in Ireland, take a shower and go for a ramble. Buy a Kinks album, and two samplers, an 'americana' one with Jim Lauderdale, Tift Merritt, BR549, and so on and so forth, and a bluegrass sampler, brand new but only 99 cents. As soon as I check my emails I got a few more calls to make, get some food and maybe figure out a set list for tomorrow night. Need to change the lyrics and the title of a new song. It was called "Five Pointed Star" but I don't like the sound of that. Doesn't roll off the tongue, too hard to say.
Found a book on the shelf here about the Romans, and I want to understand how their Empire fell, so I can have a more informed guess as to when the Empire of the USA is to come crashing down.

Wed 17 Nov. New York…..On Monday I played a few songs at the Anti Hootenanny at The Sidewalk Cafe, got a plug in for Tuesdays gig and saw a few acts. Its been really warm here, which is unusual for November. I’ve been wandering around wearing the same gear I wear in Ireland during the summer.
Been listening to The Legendry Shack Shakers new CD and a few old country tunes. Got a new melody scribbled down on a scrap of paper that I intend to tackle later this evening.
Tuesday nights show at the Sidewalk was great. I was on the ball and the set went down really well. Kelly from Koala Bear Records came down as did Beau Johnson, who has a gig there on Saturday, and he gave me a copy of his album ”Take your Time.” Went for a few drinks around the corner to Sofies Bar, where I hadn’t been since ’99. The bar man had been at the gig and refused to accept my money….so Guinness and tequila kept on arriving in front of me.

Thurs. 18 Nov Word of advice…don’t have anything to do with the Holiday Inn in Dublin. If you’re a musician, don’t play there and if you want to see a gig, go elsewhere. Con men, two-faced assholes. Its been a bad year for bad business. Don Coyote in Holland, Molly’s in Helsinki…still, there’s some good honest people out there. Gotta keep on drifting and avoid the icebergs. Enchantments, the occult supply store is only eight blocks away. Must stock up on supplies. As the song says…”revenge is sweet, if you can have it.”

Fri 19 Nov. Lower East Side of New York is where I still am. Tried to buy a book, but didn't find anything inspiring. I've been re-reading Emily Brontes "Wuthering Heights", but I know I won't finish it.
Picked up Born Bad Volume 1V today. It's got the Ventures, The Sonics and a great track from J.J. Jackson called "Oo-Ma-Liddi." No idea what J.J. is on about.
It's just past 9pm and I have a few business type phone calls to make, and then perhaps get some food delivered. Just had an odd deja vu, so I better stop typing now, as I don't want the future to turn out the way my instincts are hinting at.

Fri 26 Nov. Dublin......Had my first good nights sleep in a long while. Eight or nine hours in the Land of Nod. Feel refreshed and optimistic. Some calls to be made. An email from Holland to confirm a gig in Deventer, a phone call from MIck in Germany about some dates in April, and I hear the recently released radio promo EP has been getting air-play in Belgium, so all in all it's a good day.
Tonights gig at the Mezz gets off to a later than anticipated start, but everybody seems to enjoy themselves. Dave from Triphazzard, writer John Fleming, Mark and Toova and many others I know are there. Glen, the booker, arrives and we have a few late drinks. In fact we have quite a lot of drinks, as we go into the basement venue (the hub) and don't leave 'til 5.30. Don't remember getting home, but there's nothing new in that I suppose.

Sat 27 Nov. Sligo.........The very talented Leon Mooney is support in McGarrigles, Sligo. A small but very appreciative crowd. A great gig really, the sort that reminds me why I bother doing it at all ! Although I was very tired before I went on, I seem to have got a second wind, so afterwards it's over to the Garavogue, Leon is DJ, Gary is there, the drink is flowing. A guy approaches me claiming he saw a gig we did in Phuket, Thailand back in spring 2002. I believe his claims 'cos he remembered me saying I couldn't wait to get out of the place. And that was very true.

Thurs 2 Dec Amsterdam....Eat a Falafel in the same place I dined in, in 1998 ! You can just hang out there, eat a bit, add more toppings, eat more and so on, so I had a good feed. The gig was fine, Jimmy from Kildare showed up and afterward I met up with Jacqueline, a booking agent and friend of Wim from Enschede. We all went for late drinks to some bar that was packed but a cool place all the same. Met a guy from Dublin who tells me I negotiated with bouncers once in a club there, to prevent him from being thrown out. This I have no recollection of what so ever.
Jimmy's expense account covers the 50Euro taxi ride to Almera, where I decide to spend the night rather than the place organized by the bar. We stop off on the way for a piss and to pick up orange juice. Get to the place and crack open a bottle of vodka. Jimmy's a big fan of Nick Cave and the recent album sounds good.

Fri 3 Dec Almera.....Only manage about 5 hours sleep, so I read for a few hours before rolling out of the bed, shower, medication (prescription medication I wish to point out !) and taxi to the town center. It seems to be a bit of a dump. In a bar I get a real half hearted attempt at a sandwich. The cheese is only half melted, there's no mustard and Jimmy gets what looks like raw meat spread on a lump of ill-shapen bread. Two drinks later I'm on the train down through Arhem, Apeldoorn and other places with unpronounceable names. At Zutphen Mark picks me up. Get a beer and dinner. Make a phone call and we drive to Deventer.
The gig is in Cafe de Heks and once I walk in I know it's going to be great. Soundcheck, a drink or two and on we go. A great vibe, Mark's is hitting out at a bodhran with a mic gaffa taped to it. He's also doing backing vocals and playing wind modulator, which is sort of like an electronic sax or clarinet. "Come On Little Baby" is great. Very different to the LP version. Wouldn't be out of place on Springsteens Ghost of Tom Joad album. We've been talking about recording it together. The place is packed and afterwards I sell CD's and then ramble off into the fog looking for something to eat. The town looks very gothic and beautiful at 2 am.

Sat 4 Dec Deventer....A couple of phonecalls after food and we're talking about the possibility of a few gigs for the Queens Festival which is on May Day. Tales of Mark meeting Johnny Cash, and what was said between Ronnie Drew and Peter O Toole, but I can't write about that.
Get to Enschede at around 5pm. Its freezing cold here...and it's Xmas !!! In Holland Santa comes tonight so theres a big ferris wheel in the square in front of where tomorrows gig is, ice-skating, merry-go-round, hot-dogs. A friend of Wim's picks me up after I have a ramble around the town and takes me over to Wims place. Here,I got 60 tv channels, beers in the fridge, the use of this computer, and many hours to kill, which is why I'm writing this at this point in time!
Now, I'm going to put on THAT Loretta Lynn album, eat something and go ramble off around town for a while.

Sun 5 Dec Enschede.......Champagne and beer to sip and I'm only on the first song of the set. It's going to be a good day.
An early gig (4.30) for me. An exhibition by Norbert Sauer has just opened and Wim makes a speech by way of introduction to Norberts pictures and then to my set. (I can't speak Dutch, so I've no idea what was said, but I'm sure it was good.)
The people seem to like me. A nice crowd generally hangs out here at Cafe Jansen and Janssen. A bit of a festival atmosphere, with the fun-fair literally outside the door. Spend much of the evening drinking with Frank from local band Porpoise Spit. A good interesting chat. Later with Wim I watch a few DVD's, including interesting footage of Miles Davis.

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2004 September - October

Sat. 18 Sept    The new version of Exit Hellsville arrived yesterday. The new cover looks great. It was designed by Cormac Figgis, he took the photos came up with the design, got it all sorted out. Canadian label The Beautiful Music are taking care of business for us on that side of the Atlantic and they wanted a new sleeve, so they got one. The gig down at the Mezz is a good one. We got Danny Monaghan joining in on lap-steel. Its good to change things around a bit every now and then. Try out some new sounds, see what works and what doesn't.

Mon. 20 Sept Dublin..... Exit Hellsville goes into the record shops. Same price as before, but it looks better. Post off a box to Canada, and a few other packages go out to Music Mags. in the US and Holland.
Brian calls around and we drink a pot or 3 of coffee and then go for pints to a local bar, Mother Reilly's in Rathmines. Phone calls to the US takes up a while later in the evening.
"Wisconsin Death Trip" is worth watching....saw it the other day. Reckon I'll get a song out of it.

Wed. 22 Sept Waterford......Not big on bestsellar type novels, but my missus gave me Holy Fools by Joanne Harris and said I'd like it. Set in seventeenth-century France against a backdrop of witch trials, regicide, religious frenzy and carnival life, it's entertaining enough to keep my mind occupied on a day when I'm on the road for seven hours. Three hours to get there, four to get back. The review from The New Statesman compares Harris's prose style to that of Angela Carter, who is one of my favourite writers, especially her short stories. Wonderfully twisted gothic (faery) tales. The plague, executions, dark sexual fantasies, vampires, carnivals. Angela is no longer with us, and I've read everything she wrote. Joanne Harris is no substitute, but she's a good writer in her own right.
There's no PA at Greyfriars Arts Center. A bit of a fuck up on their behalf. Eat chocolate and strawberry cake. Eventually the PA arrives. Pauline Bewick paintings are on exhibition, some fetch up to twenty-seven grand ! Wish I could get that for a gig. Photos are taken etc..etc.

Thurs. 23 Sept Bray, Co. Wicklow.........Seaside towns always seem to have a hidden agenda and Bray is no different in this respect. It can be heavy on the streets here and I nearly got a punch thrown at me last week. The Atmospheric Bar is right beside the train station and although the staff are cool and the bar itself looks good you never can tell what sort of a lunatic is going to walk in. Tonight, more than a few people seem to appreciate what I'm doing, so there's no agro.
Back in town at new venue Crawdaddy, I hook up with Steve, Joe and in fact all of the Walls band. Later, it's off to the Portobello, where I haven't been in about 2 years. Back at my place me and Joe play records 'til dawn.

Sat. 25 Sept According to my black notebook (which I consult every morning) I'm supposed to go to Cork, but I've changed my mind. I'm entitled to do that....................
In Whelan's I meet Jimmy (on the way to rehearsals) and on and on we go. A new harmonica sets me back 25Euro and Smokey Robinsons "Going to a Go Go" on 7 inch vinyl sets me back 3.99. Having spent time in a few bars, including one with fat goldfish swimming around under the perspex floor, me and Åsa are at home with an empty vodka bottle, and a half full Tequilla bottle. Get a phone call from my old friend, semi-famous painter Ger Sweeny who is in town, needs a place to stay etc. etc. Later, having a piss on Fleet St (up against the wall) along come the coppers and I'm almost arrested. Don't they have something better to do? Our corrupt government are trying to sneak in a Public Order Offence bill in a few weeks where the pigs can give you an on the spot 100Euro fine, at their discretion if they think your a 'bad citizen'..... and they're talking about closing bars earlier too. What's this poxy country coming to???

Tues. 28 Sept Been sick the past few days, bad throat, fever.....feel like I've been in a car crash ! Get an offer of a few gigs in Switzerland but unfortunately they clash with gigs in Ireland that can't be rescheduled. A Belgian radio station are looking for a copy of "Exit Hellsville" as are Clare FM in the west of this emerald Isle, so a trip to the post office is undertaken. This also means I can stock up on Rubex, a phial of Guarana and other goodies from the chemist. It's been a while since I invested in a Vitamin B12 injection. A few years back we were heading off on a 2 week tour of Holland and Denmark and I got a B12 jab from my doc, and I felt great. It was the depths of winter, freezing cold and although the van we had was in good nick I wasn't taking any risks getting the flu.
I've been in Ireland now for 12 weeks, the longest time without leaving the country for a few years. I enjoy being home, but it's beginning to wear thin. So I booked a flight to NYC. A few gigs are lined up for New York and New Jersey.

Thurs. 30 Sept According to my black notebook (see Sat 25 above) I'm supposed to be in Munich, but I'm in Bray instead. Those German dates were cancelled a few weeks back but not tippexed out. I'll re-schedule them for early 2005 I think. I'll try, that's all that can be done. Austria too.
Anyway, after the gig I'm getting all these frantic text messages and calls from Stef Hanvey, whose new album is ready to roll. My phone is on the blink, on it's last legs, royally fucked, one foot in the grave, ready to meet it's maker, ready to meet Elvis, heading for the scrap yard, it keeps breaking down....so he has to keep calling me back. On Dawson St I bump into Dave from Trip Hazzard who gives me a copy of his bands great new EP. We chat a bit and eventually meet a very wired Stef. A few drinks later we're back at my place and around 5 am he disappears. I turned around and he was gone !! Haven't heard from him since. Bermuda Triangle vibe methinks.

Fri. 31 Sept Dublin......When mobile phones break down, everything slows down. This is a fact. OK?
Eventually get my ticket to the States sorted, hear we're on the radio in Canada and its good to be the eternal optimist. A naggen of vodka washed down with Coke (the real thing, not the choice of the new generation), followed by a few Guinness, tequila courtesy of some guy whose birthday is being celebrated and its time for some live music. At the Mezz Bar to see Kieran McEvoy's band we hook up with Mado (Alan Madigan) Racketeers guitarist 1996-2000, currently residing in Spain. Bob is there, and the taxi ride home is a vague memory. A good time was had by all.

Wed. 6 Oct Gillian Welch's 'Soul Journey' album is close to perfect. It's been on a lot these past few weeks, and seems to be a suitable backdrop to this windy Autumn weather we have in Dublin at the moment. First time I heard it was after sound check on a very wet and humid summers evening in Waldhut-Tiengen, Germany. Different weather conditions and different head-space. Another wonderful Autumn LP is Van Morrison's 'Hard Nose The Highway.' Gonna have to dig that one out and put on 'Snow in San Anselmo' and be transported off to .......someplace else.
Other stuff I've been listening to is Janie Jones 'House of the Ju Ju Queen' (backed up by the Clash circa 1979), Tift Merritt 'Bramble Rose' Mercury Rev 'Little Rhymes' from their 'All is Dream' album. Also Lee Dorsey, Lee Hazelwood's '13' and a Tony McMahon LP from way back.
Played down at the Ruby Sessions last night. The set went down really well. Boy, do they pay attention to every note! ! First time I was nervous on stage in a long time.

Thurs. 7 Oct   I'm on the phone trying to get the next few months of my life sorted. Eventually track down Mick Morrissey in Germany and he's thinking of bringing a band over to Ireland, and I'm looking into some German dates for myself in 2005. Bump into Klarkey (ex-Racketeers drummer, 1997-2000) now resident in Helsinki and he's got tales of playing in about four bands and a bit of gossip from that city that I've played so many gigs in.
Play a 'pay the rent' gig in Bray County Wicklow, and afterwards I drop in to the nappers' birthday bash in Mother Redcaps pub. Meet up with Swifty and a few folk who say they know me, but my memory seems to get worse and worse all the time. I used to take pride in the fact that I never forgot a face, but these days I'm afraid I have to admit the booze has fucked with my brain big time. At least I can still turn out a good tune every few days. Earlier I played a new one at my gig. It could be called 'Queen of the Night' but then again I might change it's title to 'Rosaleen'. It's about Australian painter and witch Rosaleen Norton.

Wed. 27 Oct Up early, but feeling good. In fact, feeling a lot better than the past few days. A good few gigs have been played this past while (since the last entry) and there's been a lot of late late nights. Falling into bed at 7am, that kind of thing. But it's all part of the job. Gate crashed a wrap-party for some movie with Foxy a few nights back after a gig, got a few free CD's, the Walls new single, Pete PAMF's excellent album. Visited a few peoples houses for parties. At one house Tarot was read, and at another I smashed a chair. A few hours later, and very hung-over, I was picked up in a taxi and whizzed down to do an interview with Newstalk FM 106 on the Arts and Entertainment Show.
Today there's a storm brewing outside. We've been told by the weather forecast people to expect floods, fallen trees, ferry cancellations and structural damage !! It's wet and windy, Autumn leaves whipping up against the window, streets deserted. The day got off to a good start with the offer of two trips to Switzerland for early 2005. Alton Ellis on the stereo, coffee in hand and a few new half written songs scattered about the flat deserving attention.

Fri. 29 Oct Played Bray last night. Another gig, another fist-full of cash. Collect the new ( eamonn racketeer) posters, designed by Cormac Figgis. They look great and will be used to publicize the up-coming solo gigs in North Arlington N.J., New York, Sligo and Holland. We'll probably get band posters with a similar design soon.
A million phone calls later and I still seem to be getting nowhere, so its open the wine and stick on the Thin Lizzy documentary.

Sat. 30 Oct. Just about to kick into the first song of the night at Annesely House when Mado comes up to the stage to say 'hello.' He was with the band '96 - '01 but we had dealings going back a lot longer than that. Lives in the South of Spain these days. He's got a bunch of people with him too. The sound is crap early on, but things improve. At the end of the gig, Alan gets up and plays with us...we do a version of Bob's "All Along the Watchtower."
Afterwards I pick up Åsa and with Mado and Mercedes we have late late drinks down at the Harcourt Hotel, hiding away in a back room until 4 a.m.
Some folks from the gig are there. Irish ladies sniffing around, getting nowhere. A crap bartender who can't get the drinks out quick enough.
Back at home The Birthday Party end up on the turntable and a bottle of wine is opened.

Fri. April 23 New York City.........Bump into Kevin Lynch on Broadway. He's telling me I got to see some guy playing down at CBGB's with Hank Williams' III backing band. But I can't make it, 'cos my son Jack is having the opening night of his play at Downtown Art, a Theatre on 4th Street, Manhattan. So me and Åsa get seats second row from the front. It's a great play, really funny. I'm proud of my boy. Earlier in the day I bought him a Stratocaster copy, a good one made by Yamaha, and an amp to go with it. He's going through a big Nirvana phase, but is open-minded enough to listen to all sorts of stuff. After the show, Jack wants to hang out with his thespian friends, so it's down to the Sidewalk Cafe for a few drinks.

Sat. April 24 It's a hot sunny day, and we take the subway out to Coney Island. Jack has brought along his buddy Christian and with Åsa they have a few goes on the huge roller-coaster. I'm no good at this shit. Freaks me out. I could get a heart-attack..! The bumper cars are great though. I can handle that. But then Åsa insists we try this other ride, and I know I've made a big mistake by allowing myself be talked into having a go. It spins around, and darts here and there. The best way to describe it is if you could imagine being in a tiny out of control space ship, hurtling through space at great speed dodging it's way through an asteroid belt......or something along those lines. Ten minutes of HELL is another apt description. Getting off this thing I feel as if my brain has swiveled around in my skull. Christian pukes and we all need to sit down. At a little market I find some records. Rufus Thomas "Walking The Dog" and The Impressions "Aint Got Time" for $1 each. Sleep on the subway back to the lower east side. Up at Penn station I'm not sure if I've got the right phone number with me, as we need to be collected at the station in Red Bank, New Jersey. Miss the train, get a later one, and it takes about one and a half hours to get to Red Bank. Eat pasta, drink wine, and after a few minutes in a photographers studio we have drinks in the Smokers Club where everybody smokes big fat cigars.

Sun. April 25 Red Bank, New Jersey......Kevin Brown gets us up at 8.30 am !!! Breakfast..Kirsten not feeling too good. Drive to Asbury Park and on to Ocean Grove which was a big haven for Christians, but now is mostly gay. The train ride out of here is slow and the seats uncomfortable, but I do manage to get an hours sleep before the gig. I'm playing on Avenue B and 3rd street. The sound is great and I have a good time. Justine is in from N.J. and has brought all sorts of presents. Cosmetics for Åsa, and a few books for me...D.J. Conway, Laurie Cabot, and some others.

Mon. April 26 New York City.......I'm down at B3, a little basement venue in the east village and I'm watching the wonderful Jamie Lilly play again....she's like a cross between Keith Richards and Patti Smith. Great great songs. Jack has come down to see me play. His friend Temmy is there too, and of course - Åsa Karrman. The gig is good. I feel confident, which probably has something to do with the sound being so good. Didn't catch the name of the band on before me, they disappeared real quick, but they were cool. Rain rain rain on the way back to my bed.

Tues. April 27 Get an email from Finland. An urgent request for a mail-order copy of "Long Time Gone". Luckily I can locate one here in N.Y. and I pop it in the post. Hope it gets there on time...and Happy Birthday !! Beki Bindle who played with The Mary Stokes Blues Band about 14 years ago emailed from Woodstock looking for a phone number for Vedic Astrologer Matt O' Dowd (no relation). Glad to oblige. Find a shop on Essex and Lexington ( I think) where I buy 13 singles, or 45's as they call them here. Clarence Carter, Betty Lavette, The Trammps, Harold Melvin, Toussaint McCall, Johnny Taylor, Staple Singers etc..etc..Find another place where I buy LP's by Pablo Moses and Alton Ellis. I also get Born Bad Volume IV with tracks by The Embers, Gene Summers, Link Wray, Charlie Feathers and a host of other outsider stars. More of my hard earned dollars is spent on Las Vegas Grind Volume III. It's not such a bad life really. Get Chinese food delivered and watch a movie.

Sat. May 8 Dublin......Spent the last few day's following up contacts made in New York, playing records and generally feeling a bit perplexed. Arvid and Carolin from Sweden visited for the weekend and Arvid kindly brought me CD-R's of the recently released Johnny Cash Box Set. Last night we were in a few bars in town and locally too, meeting up with Al from Sonic Studios/Caliban. So it was a late one, as is tonight in The Gaiety. The new stage they've built is typically too small. But we enjoy the gig, but the bouncers are wankers. What is it with these fools??!

Wed. May 12 Chris Teusner has been ordered by doctors to rest so we rehearse with Martin Murphy who will play drums on Friday night. Earlier in the day I had a trip to the post office, and along the way picked up a book on Viking Mythology, which reminds me of the night we camped in a field right next to an ancient Viking burial ground in Sweden, someplace around Vastra Gotland if memory serves me correctly. It was a very spooky night and there was a very heavy 'presence'. This huge field was full of huge standing stones, many inscribed with runes and other Nordic symbols. However, there was nothing malevolent about the presence. In the morning I got the stove on, made coffee and grilled a few veggie sausages for breakfast...packed up the tent and hit the road. But I'll never forget that night.

Thurs. May 13 Dublin......A flyer for next weeks gig in the Winzerkeller, Staufen (Germany) arrives in the post. I believe the poster is the same. Justine Scott from North Arlington N.J. (USA) sent me a postcard too, with news of her progress with spreading the racketeering vibe stateside. She also tells me she went to see Jack's play and laughed til she cried. The postcard is from Puffy's Tavern on Hudson St. in Lower Manhattan. Apparently the last time (the only time) I was there with Justine I fell asleep at the bar ! Well. it had been a long day.
Don, who is booking dates in Holland needs to be contacted, but that, my friend is easier said than done. The Be Good Tanya's "Chinatown" album is on the CD player. Roger Eno's "Flatlands" gets played when I need to chill. A new electric piano/keyboard...whatever you want to call it, lies untouched in my room. Specifically bought for writing/recording, it hasn't been made use of yet. When I finish the German/Swiss tour I'll get around to making use of it recording some new ideas I have. But I've been playing guitar along to Waylon Jenning's version of "T For Texas" in between phone calls and those never-ending text messages. I'm sick of texting. Are people afraid to talk these days ?

Fri. May 14 Dublin......Lots of running around getting the stuff one needs for survival on the road, guitar strings, batteries, socks (!) basically stuff you don't want to have to deal with in some town you've never been in before. And you always have to have a good book. I made the mistake of going on a five week tour a few years back with ONE book. By the second week I'd read it. We got into Estonia and were having so much fun there was no time for reading, but the final two weeks of the tour comprised of 14 gigs all over Finland. We even played way up north over the Arctic Circle. I don't know if you know much about Finland, but most of the smaller cities/towns don't stock any books in English. Most days we had five or six hour drives, and with nothing to read I nearly lost what was left of my mind !
Get the dates from Don Coyote for June. Two in Holland, one in Germany and one in Belgium. Never played Belgium before. Got to check out prices of plane tickets. Eat some food, the phone doesn't stop ringing, and I gotta play The Mezz at midnight.

Sat. May 15 Didn't get around to packing after I got home last night, so I have to do it this morning. And it always takes for ages, as I hate arriving someplace and realizing I forgot to bring batteries, or enough shirts or a walkman. These days, no matter where you go it seems to take all day, so at 10.30pm I finally find myself in Berlin. A bus ride and an attempt at navigating my way around the U-Bahn gets me real confused. I end up asking advice from a talking machine at one point. (At least I think it's a machine). Eventually I hop in a taxi, spend a fiver and arrive at Oranienstrasse. Meet my friend Cormac outside a club called SO 36. He's there with Catherine, a buddy of his and it so happens I know her too from Dublin. Across the road in Franken we get bottles of Becks for 2 Euro ! Catherine tells me her boyfriend Mick is living in Berlin at the moment editing a TV documentary. When he arrives, I realize I know him too. In fact I've known Mick for about 15 years. Small world etc. ..and I recognize his buddy. Eat across the road in a Thai place and end up drinking until 8.30am. The bars never close here.

Sun.May 16 Berlin....When I awake (at around 3pm) I realize I've slept in my suit again. I'm a fucking disgrace. Our hosts, Emma and Isobel (?) have gone. I get Cormac up and we take a cab across town to a flea market. It's brilliant, loads of mad stuff, and it's even better after I have a falafel. Cormac buys a few records and a shirt. I pick up a Fats Domino LP (vinyl) and would have liked to buy more but I hate the responsibility of carrying vinyl around when I'm on the road. So easy to break and I'm not in a baby-sitting mood. A few afternoon drinks seems like a good idea.. Pick up my gear and down to The Butterclub in Friedrichann . Sound check is followed by a few more drinks. Catherine, Mick etc...the gang from last night...Anto who used to work here...they're all down for the gig. I enjoy it and soundman Mark gets me a good sound. Proprietor Bruno says I fit in with the mad bunch who seem to hang out here and we have a few Jagemeisters together. Later, there's some sort of open-mike session on. In the early hours of the morning I'm back up on stage accompanying Bruno as he does a few songs. One of them was Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Morning Coming Down," can't remember the others, but it was good fun. A memorable night.

Mon. May 17 Berlin...Feel rough. Not looking forward to the 9 hour train ride down south. Get a taxi to Zoo Station, buy painkillers, miss the train, make a phone call, get the next train and feel like death. Andrea (who I never met before) picks me up at Frieburg and drives me out to Dattingen where she lives with Mick Morrissey and their two kids. Mick has booked the next five gigs for me. He's gonna be playing a set on each night, so we stay up and I have some much needed food, a beer or two and crash for twelve hours.

Tues. May 18 Dattingen.....After breakfast I go for a stroll. We are out in a little picturesque village, not even a shop, just a bunch of houses and lots of bikes. Its also really hot, must be about 25 degrees Celsius. Listened to some Gene Clarke album and me and Mick talk about all sorts of stuff. Later, we take a bus to Mullheim (Baden), and then the train to Freiburg. The gig is in a place called Brauereischrank where the food is shit, but the beer is fine and the gig is fine too. I think they liked us....and why wouldn't they !

Wed. May 19 Lorrach.......Andrea drives us all into the magnificent countryside. Here, on the edge of the Black Forest it's very beautiful at this time of year. Mountains, sunshine, little villages where you'd expect to bump into Hansel and Gretel. We find a tree for shelter on the edge of the forest and have a picnic. Nearby stands a great old mansion with a little cafe out on the veranda. Cake, ice-cream and coffee. Talk of the Jesus cult (or scam), Mithrais, the similar Persian god and all sorts of stuff. A few hours later in Lorrach , where tonight's gig is, I buy new shades for a fiver. The gig is outdoors so the sound is a bit odd, still it goes down well and even though all my drinks are on the house, some people keep sending more over to my table after I've finished. We are then joined by the Serbian owner of Brauhaus (whose name I can't remember) and he has a tray of tequila's for us. More and more shots of tequila arrive and it's one of those nights. On the drive back to Mick's place the exhaust on the van is fucked and we have to put up with the fumes. Roll down the windows and try not to breath...easier said than done.

Thurs. May 20 Dattingen.....I've been thinking of changing my name by deed poll. For a week or so I had thought I'd like to be a Count, and decided to keep the Eamonn bit, but to spell it as the Ancient Egyptians - Amun. The Mansion we visited after yesterday's picnic seemed to have it's catering supplied from Kaffeerosterei : Oltmansstr. I had read this wrong from the napkin when I decided yesterday my new surname should be Von Oltmann. So I must inform my booking agent in Holland from now on I want Count Amun Von Oltmann on the posters.
Apart from this train of mad thought, I spend some hours lying in bed reading a book Mick lent me. Zen koans gone mad. I got a four hour journey for my solo acoustic gig in Heidelburg. Mick isn't playing tonight either. A few drunk dumb Americans are up front and I can't wait to get out of there. I'm staying across the bridge in the Neckar Hotel. Turn on the TV and catch the news on CNN. Change my strings (saves the hassle tomorrow) and try and read some Thomas Pynchon. Great use of the English language, but I find it hard going trying to follow exactly what he's on about.

Fri. May 21 Heidelberg.......Up just in time for breakfast. Very hot outside as I try and find my way back to the train station, and nearly get knocked down by a tram in the process. Buy a copy of The Guardian newspaper to follow up on the information I got from CNN last night. Thomas Pynchon is too much like hard work anyway, so the paper is light relief, even though it's full of bad news, as are all newspapers. Five hours later I'm back in Dattingen, so we quickly grab some food, which should sort us out before our three hour drive to yet another gig. Just as we load the P.A and all the gear into Nicoli's wagon, the rain starts lashing down. We get wet, but what can you do. It's not all glamour, this itinerant lifestyle. In fact, very little of it is glamorous. On a good day it's a never-ending adventure, on a bad day it's a job. Drive through all sorts of towns and villages, past those Sex Roadhouses, motorway madness. I nod off to sleep and wake up as we roll intoWaldhut-Tiengen. Still raining. We're playing in Schlosskeller, a sort of community hall. A very big stage, nice dressing-rooms, but not many people. Mick's set is great. He plays some songs that are new to me, with Nicoli joining him on trumpet and piano for selected songs. We've got a few crates of left over beer with us for the drive back, stopping off for pisses on the roadside.

Sat. May 22 Staufen......... The home of Goethe, and a beautiful town too. Mick takes a picture with this great gothic hilltop ruin behind me. During sound-check I remember "Let's Stay Out Late Tonight", so it gets added to the set list and goes down great. (Recorded it recently at home). The Winzerkeller is a great venue. Wonderful acoustics, and a very appreciative audience. Best gig all week, and I'm on the ball. Two encores. Meet up with people afterwards who had got "Exit Hellsville" and off we go to a party across town. Nicoli is in a great mood, he's got a camcorder and is happily running around filming everything. Mick is up dancing and I'm getting stuck into the carrot cake and cream pies. I got a sweet tooth. In fact, I've lost a few teeth over the years and if I loose any more I'll be pissed off ! Then I tackle a crate of Becks. Chat to Wolfgang about music, records, gigs he's been to. We swap email addresses. Low are being played by the DJ and I crash out around 7.

Sun. May 23 Staufen.............Wake up cold...a damp place to sleep. It's a sort of commune. The place here has a hippy vibe, without the people looking like hippies. Mick has disappeared, but I locate the kitchen, get some coffee, and chat to a few folks who have just woken up too. They seem amused by my confused state of mind. I don't know how to get out of this town, my guitar and gear is in Nicloi's car, which is gone, and I have to go to Switzerland this afternoon !! After a while Nicoli arrives. He's as perplexed as I am as to Mick's whereabouts. He seems to be in a hurry, so we drive to Dattingen. Mick eventually phones and all is well. We have lunch out in the garden, and Andrea kindly drives us across the border to Basel. After getting a bit lost we locate the train station. Andrea has a present for me, but I mustn't open it until I'm on the train. Run inside, change Euro's into Swiss Franks, buy a ticket and get on the train. No time to thank Mick properly for booking the gigs, giving me a bed, food, and being an all-round great guy...I hop on the train, the doors slide closed and we pull out of the station straight away. A few hours later I'm in Biberist. Have a shower and a lie down after getting the sound sorted out. It's a quiet gig. What could you expect in a little town in Switzerland on a sunny Sunday night.

Mon. May 24 Biberist, Switzerland....Up at 7am. Downstairs Kris has arrived and he kindly drives to Solothurn, where I hop on the train bound for Zurich Airport. (The shades I bought a few days ago in Lorrach have already broken). Have a beer and charge up my mobile phone in Schipol, Amsterdam. I'm home sweet home by 6.30pm.

Fri. June 24 Venlo, Holland.....Having been back in the Emerald Isle to play a few gigs, I'm here in The Netherlands in the summer sunshine. Last nights gig in Belgium was cancelled because of the football. The European Championship is on and Holland keep winning matches, to everyone's surprise. I know nothing about football, but all this shit is fucking up the gigs. Everybody is worked up into some group-mind patriotic phony frenzy. Not as bad as the Irish though. With Don (booking agent) we hang out a bit at Stanley's wonderful bar , and meet some friendly folks out at the camping place who offer beer, vodka and other goodies. Tonight's gig at The Reflex Rock Cafe is ok, if a bit low key.

Sat. June 25 Tegelen....Go for a ramble around Venlo. Don't buy anything. Antoinette runs the bar here at De Ondeste Molen where I'm playing tonight. She's ordered in Guinness for the occasion so I have to sample a few. The gig is going to be 12 midnight, instead of 9, so that everybody can watch the fucking football ! Going on to a bunch of pissed football fans isn't much fun, but at least they won. Would have been worse if the lost. Afterwards we're invited down to somebody's place where there's a BBQ and a bar, a few late tunes, and a long chat until dawn.

Mon. 28 June Holland.....Don Coyote (Quixote !) has done a disappearing act, but he's a freemason, so I know I'll get the money owed to me. Train to Venlo, and wait over an hour for the connection to Dusseldorf, but it never comes. Confusion at the train station. We are told to wait for a bus as the train is broke down. The bus never materializes. I contemplate a taxi but that could be 50 or 60 Euro. Eventually another train comes and I'm soon out of Holland and into Germany again. Get to the airport in Dusseldorf and meet a couple of guys I know from home. A drink or two and back to Dublin.

Tues. 29 June Dublin.....Beautiful Music in Canada want to come on board with radio promo etc..so that's good news. Write some emails, answer some emails and make countless phone-calls. A couple of CD's arrived in the post the day before I flew over to Dusseldorf, and I didn't have the chance to give them enough attention, so they're on the stereo today. A compilation of Johnny Thunders stuff and the Best of Lefty Frizzell. I have a few new songs on the go, but I'm really stuck for lyrics. Record a vibraphone part onto "Let's Stay Out Late Tonight". That's enough work for one day. Now, where's the cork-screw?

Wed. 30 June Lerum, Sweden.......Grab a pizza and take the train into Gothenburg. Drinks with Arvid and Caroline in a few places. It's warm and sunny and I'm happy to be able to avail of the beer packages on offer. Basically a beer package is the Swedish way of getting punters into the bars. Buy a pint and get a bottle free. 2 beers for the price of one, all night long. Not a bad deal. Sweden is cheaper than Ireland now, but it wasn't always like this. First time I toured the Land of the Blondes was in 1997, and I was afraid to buy can of coke the place was so expensive. But now the tables have turned and Ireland must be the biggest rip-off in Europe...and with shit weather too, plus crap Health Care, crap telephone companies (eircom) crap public transport, corrupt politicians...the list is endless.

Thurs. 1 July Goteburg.....Call to visit Henrik in Off The Record who are helping us out here. He's in the middle of writing a book for Independent musicians which has advance sales of 1,000 copies...and it's only half written!! Wish I could sell records like that. The gig at Kom Musik Bar is cool. A nice reception and it's good to see Karin again. She is insisting I come back before the year is over, but I think it may be January before I'm back in Sweden. Time will tell. Tomorrow we gotta go to Stockholm as some friends are getting married.

Thurs. 15 July Dublin.....Recording again. A long slow process, but progress is being made. A photo shoot is organized for next week. Exit Hellsville is going to be repackaged and given another push in the Autumn to coincide with the release of Come On Little Baby as a promo single, so we need some new photos. An email tells me we are on the radio again in Holland and Belgium.

Fri. 16 July Sligo.....A solo acoustic gig in Bar Eile, beside The Garavogue. Great hospitality. My pasta dinner is top class, washed down with Corona. The talented Leon Mooney opens up the evening's entertainment, and then I'm on. Enjoyed playing, sound was fine and the crowd appreciated the whole shebang. Even sold a few CD's. The drinks kept on coming...and endless supply of Corona and Vodka. Later we adjourned to the flat Leon shares with his brother where I was educated into an appreciation of Dean Martin. By 6am I'm in a taxi on the way to the B+B.

Sat. 17 July The lady who owns the B+B gives me a lift to the bus station, but not before showing Lough Gill outside the town. It's here that Fionn MacCoole met with the wizard/shaman who had caught the salmon of knowledge.
Back in Dublin, on the short walk from the bus stop to my pad I bump into Stef Hanvey who is all ready for the release of his album. He needs a pint, so I can't refuse. Later, I get the chance to crash out for an hour before I get my gear together and into The Gaiety for a gig, which turns out to be great. I was getting really sick of the place, but tonight, all was good.

Wed. 21 July The afternoon is spent putting the finishing touches to 4 or 5 songs that have been half finished for too long. Come up with a few good sets of lyrics...I surprise myself!
We rehearse in the Temple Bar Music Center and get a few old songs resurrected...'Woke up Monday Morning', and 'Four o'clock in the Morning' which haven't been played live for years. New songs that are beaten into shape include 'Real Good Time' and 'One Way Ticket' plus our version of 'T for Texas'....in honour of Waylon Jennings, although it was written by Jimmy Rodgers! We'll be playing all these songs in The Mezz on Saturday night. After rehearsal we do the photo-shoot with Cormac as planned, swiftly followed