Casey Henry
This is the second in my series of tour blogs from the American Revival concerts. In order for you to make sense of them you’ll need to know this: The Dixie Bee-Liners are Brandi Hart (guitar, vocals), Buddy Woodward (mandolin), Rachel Johnson (fiddle), Jeremy Darrow (bass), Robin Davis (guitar), and myself Casey Henry on banjo.
Today started with a drive—around six hours from North Carolina to Maryland. There was a flurry as the three vans were leaving the hotel as we figured out whether we were going to caravan or drive separately. We decided to each make our own way and we got on the road a little after nine.
When we loaded the van I noticed that some of the other band members had cups and bags from Brueggers Bagels. The hotel didn’t have a complimentary breakfast, so I figured we’d stop at Starbucks or something. But Robin said they had actually gone to Brueggers. When we were all in the van I said, “You know what was really cool? When you told me and Rachel that you were going to Brueggers and we all went together and it was a great band bonding experience!” Jeremy was duly apologetic, but I won’t let him forget it…
Rachel had decided to ride with Clay Hess (guitar player with Sierra Hull) and his wife Samantha, who were driving their own car, so I had the whole rear seat of the van to myself. I took advantage of that by sleeping for most of the trip. I did wake up for our coffee stop in Richmond. We got off the interstate, heading toward a Starbucks, but every single attempt we made to find the store was thwarted. In driving fruitlessly around Virginia’s capitol we wasted more than half an hour, never found out Starbucks, and ended up patronizing a more local establishment.
Duly caffined up we got back on the interstate and I promptly went back to sleep.
The Dixie Bee-Liners at the Weinberg Center for the Arts, Frederick, MD
When we got to the Weinberg Center for the Arts in Frederick, we did the usual loading in and sound checking. Today our sound check was incredibly long because they were trying to sort out channels leading from our in-ear monitor rig to the house sound system, which took probably close to an hour. I took pictures and tweeted while they were doing that, since setting up sound is not part of my job. It is Jeremy’s job, and we all felt sorry for all the rigmarole he had to deal with. I’m sure we tried the sound man’s patience, but he was a good sport.
We opened the show tonight and our set felt a little smoother than yesterday. We’re still settling in. Tour management doesn’t want band members in the lobby at intermission, only after the show, so we get to hang out back stage, visit and snack, if we’re not up watching the show, until after our final group number.
I had a strange moment in the lobby of the theater. We’d been there for several hours, and I’d been in the lobby at least once. I was in the lobby again looking at a picture on the wall and suddenly I realized that I had been there before. The Maryland Banjo Academy, a camp sponsored by Banjo Newsletter, had one of their concerts here. I distinctly remember playing “Real Women Drive Trucks” on that show. It was startling to realize that I’d been in here for hours and not recognized the place.
The slam-bang finish...
Post-show we signed and visited in the lobby. Murphy Method student Susan Morrison came out to the show, as did our friends Archie and Priscilla Warnock. It means a lot to us when our friends and family come see us. It makes the whole show experience more fun.
After spending the night at a nearby hotel, we’re headed out to Hampton, VA this morning. Both Rachel and I have gotten up and worked out two mornings in a row, and we’re quite proud of ourselves. We’ll see if we can keep that up!!
Tags: American Revival, dixie bee-liners, tour
To: Sussan Morrison
Way to go Sussan! This is great news that you were able to support your friend and teacher the way you did. My hat’s off to you.