New Photo Blog… Tour with Jason Webley… WITH VIDEO, and MORE!!!!! – May 17, 2007

This was an amazing month. The shows with Jason Webley were legendary. But first…

This blog starts in Clarksdale, MS at the Juke Joint Festival. This year was a great year at the Juke Joint, and we had a great time. The fest is like a family reunion in a way.

Here I am hanging out with Clarksdale legend… Mr. Tater. His music is as raw as it gets folks. We are hanging out in front of Cat Head the coolest place in the universe. If I had a store – it would be Cat Head.

This pic is really for those who know Mr. Tater. For some reason he had perfectly flattened this 40 ounce beer can and placed it in his pocket. I don’t know why.

This is Stan Street has is a painter who plays harmonica too. He set up a studio and gallery in Clarksdale, and his place is one of those great places that makes the world a better place.

On the way out west we played some great shows, but on the way to Aspen we stopped back by Glenwood Canyon. Where Grizzly Creek meets the Colorado River.

I decided to wet a line.

But catching fish there was not to be. A swarm of flies came in. This is what the whole river looked like. A bunch of fisherman showed up and left. I stayed. It didn’t matter if I caught anything anyway. It is a beautiful place.

Aspen was a great show. During the second song this young lady got to dancing so hard she split her head open. I hope she is ok. They took her away in an ambulance.

On the way to Phoenix we saw some great places in Southern Utah.

This is kinda a tourist destination, but it is worth a stop.

There are all kinds of folk art sculptures around.

Of course the main attraction is a whole house built into the mountain.

This sign was on a stuffed goat, and made me laugh out loud.

This bull is entirely just found scrap metal.

More great americana.

The Hole in the Rock even has a petting zoo.

Before we made it to Phoenix, we stopped off to see the Grand Canyon. This picture is almost an insult to it. Nothing could do it justice. When we walked over a hill to it… the sight of it about knocked me down.

I was really in awe of it. If you want a real holy pilgrimage forget churches or other religious places. If you want to be close to God, then go there. I never felt so small. One sad note… they said that all of the haze that has settled in the canyon used to not be there. It is all pollution from LA and Phoenix.

Here is an interesting picture. Maybe someone out there can explain. This picture was taken by me out the side of the window as we pulled away. We were stopped first by border patrol at this check point in the middle of a desert in California. The led us over through some cones to where that white truck is parked. Some armed US military officers forced us all out of the van, and then the arm that is coming off of that unmarked truck was ran around the van and then back and forth across the van. I said, “What is going on.” One of the camo’d officers said, I cannot tell you.” Jayme said, “Is that an X-Ray machine?” His respomse was, “I cannot tell you what the machine is or what we are looking for.” Then they sent us on out into the desert.

We met up with our old friend Chris Francis. Check out earlier blogs to learn more about this legend. Here he is holding his girlfriends dog.

In LA we played at the amazing Safari Sam’s. That show kicked off the tour with Jason Webley, and it was awesome… However we have no pictures from the show. (If you do send ‘em in!) What we do have is a picture of this meat bearing our name. We bought it across the parking lot from Sam’s at a dollar store. Somewhere we have relatives making meat.

Here are the ingredients. YUMMY!

One of the highlights of the tour with Jason was Gilman St. Project in Berkely, CA. This is a picture of the place when we were loading in.

This is what it looked like when Jason was performing. (If anyone has any pics from these shows please send em in!)

Here we all are together on stage.

Jason decided to get a Pinata for Cinco de Mayo for the Gilman show. We filled it with Ramen, Bisquick, Toilet Paper, Artichokes, and all kinds of wierd stuff.

Here is a still photo of the bisquick getting beat out of it.

This sign is painted behind the stage at Gilman. It also made me laugh.

Here are some zines they were selling inside of Gilman. It is an Anarchist collective that is all ages and all volunteer run. Not many places like that for kids to go see live music. I wish I had had a place like that. I had to make a fake ID when I was in High School so I could go see bands.

The record that we made with Jason is really fun, and this picture shows all of the volunteers at UC Davis who helped us assemble them. This project was so DIY we had to hand insert the records, CD’s, inserts, and dictionaries. Special thanks to this awesome team of volunteers that made this possible. Especially Rob Roy who is the guy in the red shirt.

This is us mailing out all of the pre-orders in Arcata, CA. We had to hand stamp them. But it was awesome, because 1/3rd of the records were sold pre-sale before the thing was released.

On the way to Oregon we passed through the Redwood forest. These trees are amazing. It looks like a fairy tale land. I felt like a gnome.

It makes you almost believe that Paul Bunyon could exist. The trees are spectacular.

Jayme really loved the forest. He especially liked this moss.

This is the coast through the Redwood forest. Pretty neat.

Jason climbed down on this rock, and it looked like he belonged there. Like he was part of the rocks.

Here you can see the forest in the mist. The little red car in front of us is Jason’s Tomato car.

This is my favorite pic in the blog. I know it is kinda blurry, but Breezy had to zoom way in. I snuck up on these Elk, and hung out with them. I know you probably shouldn’t do that, but I did and it was awesome. At one point they kicked at the ground at me and snorted at me. I thought the big one was going to charge, but then they seemed to get used to me. I posed for this pic and then slowly walked away.

Jayme wanted nothing to do with sneaking up on the Elk. He figured me for dead. He stayed on the other side of the road.

This is the Smith River. Pretty unbelievable.

The water is beautiful.

It looks like pool water.

The rocks got real narrow here, and it was so fast and loud. I wanted to drink the water.

This is Jason Webley’s dad. We stayed with him in Seattle for a night. He makes these abstract sculptures out of rocks.

I thought they were pretty cool.

This is where Jason Webley lives. In the little house boat behind the Saint Joan. We didn’t stay here over night, but we hung out here before we parted ways.

Jayme is standing in front of Jason’s house boat.

This is inside the Iowa 80 truck stop. The largest truck stop in the world.

The floor below the truck spun around.

Here is the sign.

This is Breezy riding a giant Jackalope at Wall Drug in Wall, SD.

This is also at Wall Drug.

This is where the blog should end. This guy is hilarious. I kicked Jayme’s cymbal a bunch during the show in Seattle, and it broke and fell off the stand. This guy bought it from us and sent us these pictures. Check out his page for the rest. They are awesome.

If you don’t have the record and you want it, then you better act fast. Only 1111 will ever be made, and almost 900 have been sold.

Flogging Molly, SXSW, Pinetop Perkins, and more! – April 02, 2007

The last few weeks have been killer. Touring with Flogging Molly, SXSW, hanging with Pinetop Perkins, and so much more but… The blog has to start here. Winter died hard, and you can see the ice on the Big Damn Van horns. This is part of the ice storm as seen from an overpass looking out at I-70 in Putnam County, Indiana. Picking up where the last blog left off, this is right off the Wabash River in Lafayette, IN. Breezy owns the Washboard. Jayme rocks the drums The show in Lafayette was really special. This is Clark’s Hill lake in Georgia. We did some fishing here, and I caught a beautiful Bass, but Jayme and Breezy mysteriously didn’t get a photo. I think they were jealous. These pics from the Map Room in Charleston, SC sent in by Big Damn Fan, Keith Morgan. These pics from the Map Room in Charleston, SC sent in by Big Damn Fan, Keith Morgan. This is blues legend Pinetop Perkins. He came to our show at the Bamboo Room in Lake Worth, FL. What an honor. Pinetop was the piano player for Muddy Waters, he is 93 years old, and he has been touring for almost 70 years. There is a great story here, so here goes… Pinetop sat in the front row, and he was pounding his cane and cheering during our whole set. During a break in playing he came up to me and said, “See that piano over there, tell them to hook it up. I love what you are doing, and I want to get up there and play with you.” Well needless to say we were crazy excited. I went over to the soundman, and asked if we could get it hooked up. He said, “Pinetop won’t like it… it is a Hammond Organ.” Well I go back to Pinetop and relay the message, but he says hook it up anyway. So they did. Well… He gets up on stage with us, and I asked him what we were going to play, and he said, “We’ll play something in G and Got My Mojo Workin’ in E.” Now Got My Mojo Workin’ is one of the most overplayed songs in the blues world, but you gotta understand Pinetop played on the original Chess recording with Muddy Waters. Pinetop then sits on the stool and he starts banging away on the keys. And he says, “This sounds like an Organ. I don’t like the sound of this at all.” After messing with it for a few minutes he got up and walked off stage. He kept saying, “I can’t play that, it is an organ.” Well it was hilarious, amazing, and heartbreaking all at the same time. You gotta cut him some slack though. He is a 93 year old legend. We are lucky to have had him out. This is the view from a balcony in Lake Worth, FL. This is Breezy and I during the setting of the sun in Clearwater, FL I told Breezy to stand next to the pelican, but she wouldn’t get any closer. Clearwater Beach, FL. More of the sunset in Clearwater, FL. Breezy took this picture of a crane on a beach near Clearwater, FL. This sign hung over a pier near Clearwater beach. We are always working on the Big Damn Van, and in Atlanta our cousin Jake really saved us by changing out our fouled up spark plugs and giving us a great place to stay. Jake makes coming to Hotlanta that much sweeter. Well the highlight of this month was being on tour with Flogging Molly. That band is kick ass, and they are just as cool to hang out with. The shows were really special for us. The crowds were so kind to us. Here we are at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa on the road with Flogging Molly. Cain’s has so much history and you can see above the stage it says, “Home of Bob Wills.” The crowds really made us feel like home. This is during our set in Tulsa. More Big Damn Band at Cain’s Ballroom. In Tennessee the van was giving us some problems so we took this exit for luck. It paid off, because they couldn’t find anything wrong with it, and we didn’t have anymore problems until Louisiana. We eventually had to get a new starter. Nathan the bass player for Flogging Molly throws a cheers to us with his Guinness from the stage. Nathan is quick to share anything, Guinness, pizza, stories, good times, whatever he has. Flogging Molly at Cain’s Another pic of Flogging Molly rocking out. Here I am hanging out with Dennis, the guitar player for Flogging Molly. This was after the show in Nashville, and we were talking about country blues and trading licks on my old gibson. It was awesome. Dennis loves music, and it really shows. This whole night was just one I’ll remember forever. It was just one of those special days. Here I am with Dave King, the lead singer for Flogging Molly. He is an intense guy. If you haven’t seen the Flogging Molly DVD they just released, I highly suggest it. This is more backstage in Tulsa. I love these pics where there are multiple cameras, and nobody knows which way to look. We have members of Flogging Molly, twopointeight, the Street Dogs, and of course The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band pictured here. This is, Mike McColgan, the frontman of the Street Dogs backstage. The Street Dogs and a band from Sweden called twopointeight were also on the Flogging Molly shows. It was a pleasure hanging out and playing with them as well. This is Fred from twopointeight. He is obviously a wildman. He is also a big sweet guy. Those Swedish guys were super kind to us. This is George the drummer for Flogging Molly with Jayme. George is really low key off stage. You wouldn’t guess just how good he is on stage. This is Jayme with Bob from Flogging Molly. He mainly plays banjo and mandolin for FM, but he can play damn near anything. This was right before we were parting ways with Fred and the guys from twopointeight. I hope we run into them again soon. SXSW this year was better than last year. There were so many great people who made it out to the show. We only had one official show this year, and there is so much competition, but it ended up being packed and it made for a great show. Austin, TX is one of the best places for music in the US. We played at the underground punk showcase FXFU again this year. It is put on by Australian Cattle God records, and as you can see the show was crazy. One of the craziest shows ever. We loved it. This is our Old Man at the Alamo. Steve Peyton. We are on the road so much we don’t get to see him enough, and he is such a good sport about all the songs I have written about him. We decided for his Birthday we all would chip in and get him a plane ticket from Texas back to Indiana. All he would have to do is get a ride from a buddy to Nashville, TN and he could ride in the van with us and see what it is like to be on tour with the Big Damn Band. He got to drink Guinness and Moonshine backstage with Flogging Molly, and he was with us for the whole SXSW experience. I think he hated living in the van, but I think he had fun too. I don’t know if he’ll do it again anytime soon though! Life on the road can be hard. We love him though and we loved having him. He is the one who taught me how to play the guitar. The Old Man hasn’t travelled much, and someday I hope he can see the whole country with us. Two things do not belong. The Peyton’s on a log at the Alamo. Poor Breezy isn’t in the picture because she took the picture. She was pretty sick here, and we were all starting to get sick. I ended up with Pneumonia and Strep throat a few days later. I played a couple more shows, but I had to cancel a few. I had a temperature of 103, and the doctor said my heart wasn’t getting enough oxygen. I had no choice but to cancel. I feel real bad about it, but I promise we’ll be back. We are just getting started in 2007. Thanks to you all for everything. I know the next few weeks will be great too. 9:48 PM – 24 Comments – 34 Kudos - Add Comment

Big Damn Tattoo – We have made it… Current mood: jubilant BIG DAMN TATTOO Well I think one way or another we have made it. Yes Gang that is the tattoo of Craig a Big Damn Fan from Pekin, Illinois. He took this… And he modified it to make the tattoo. We love it of course, and we couldn’t be more proud. We have some amazing things happening this year, and the last few weeks have been really special. Be on the look out for another BIG DAMN photo blog coming in about a week. We have a busy week coming up, on tour with Flogging Molly, SXSW, etc. Come out and say hello if we are in your town, and tune into Sirius Satellite Radio on March 15th for the My Old Kentucky Blog Radio hour. We are performing live, and talking about some stuff coming up. If you have fan pics, tattoos, fan art, photos, etc., please send them in – we’ll put them on our blog and love you forever.

ROBBED in TN and Pics from CO to GA Photo Blog – February 15, 2007

Yes we were robbed. The bastards stole Breezy’s purse in Knox County, TN with a lot of our tour money in it. Don’t worry we are all right. There are a lot of good people out there, but there are some bad ones too. We have a lot of great things happening in the coming months, great tours, recording, and more! Scroll down to see the latest photo blog and get the details. What we need from you all is to just keep doing what you are doing. Keep telling your friends, keep coming out to shows, and keep buying Big Damn Nation! If you are on here on myspace add a song to your profile, and if you have any kind of web page feel free to add the new clickable graphic “badge” that is on our myspace page as well! Oh and Hooded Sweatshirts are now available for sale at www.bigdamnband.com. And now some photos from the last few weeks in no particular order…

Somewhere in Colorado coming around a bend. They got a couple of feet of snow, and it was -17 degrees a couple of days we were there. I tell ya what – the people sure were warm to us.

Someone hauling a snowmobile and an elk in Wyoming.

A little slice of Americana from Missouri.

We felt like it was a good idea to obey the sign here in the Savannah Wildlife Refuge.

Photo of the show at Fiery Ron’s in Charleston, SC taken by Merideth Garrigan.

Another fun photo of the show at Fiery Ron’s in Charleston, SC taken by Merideth Garrigan.

This photo taken by Merideth Garrigan shows head chef Taylor showing us the smoker at Fiery Ron’s BBQ. He said, “when people ask what kind of sauce I use, I say none… I cook the meat for 16 hours. It doesn’t need sauce.”

A little civil war era reenactment at Fort Jackson in Savannah, GA.

FIRE!

The sign says stay off!

Jayme is riding a cannon at Fort Moultrie, SC.

This is Jayme wielding a spotlight of historical significance at Fort Moultrie.

Can you see me? A great tree in the Savannah Wildlife Refuge.

This is Walter and Marion. They were busking by the river in Savannah, GA. Marion had actually worked out full dance routines for each of the songs. It was pretty fun to watch.

Walter broke a string, so I went and got him one while we were hanging out. So they asked me to play a few. They watched me for a while, and then joined in on an old gospel song.

The Peyton Brothers in Colonial Park Cemetery Savannah, GA.

Jayme running on the beach in Charleston, SC.

A church somewhere between Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA.

A very disappointing lighthouse on Sullivan’s Island, SC

A cool lighthouse on Tybee Island, GA

We passed a sign that said Wildlife Viewing area and found this spot near Beaufort, SC.

We had some time off and no money. We decided to loiter around near Savannah, GA for a couple of days. That is why there are so many pics from that area. In Savannah you could tell that spring was coming before too long, but this tree was still holding onto fall. The leaves were still stuck on the tree, and they were glowing orange in the sun. The whole thing was bathed in Spanish Moss.

I snapped this of Breezy in Forsythe Park in Savannah.

The Fountain at Forsythe Park in Savannah.

Another picture inside of Colonial Cemetery in Savannah.

Breezy took this one looking up at some spanish moss.

What more can you ask for? Off of highway 17 in South Carolina.

We heard about this lake where there was great fishing. We caught nothing. Here Breezy is giving it her best effort.

Found these goose eggs while fishing.

Charleston Harbor.

Superbowl night we decided to pool our money together and get a room because we had the night off, and we needed a shower. Jayme snapped this picture. He said put it in the blog and call it “Super Bowl Party ‘07.” I am sitting on the edge of the bed eating ramen noodles.

Swamp in South Carolina

Swamp in Georgia.

Another picture inside of Colonial Cemetery in Savannah.

This goose is ugly.

Jayme is fixing the van in Winston-Salem, NC. We had some good times, and we were really taken care of by the people there. Can’t wait to get back. North Carolina has always been good to us.

We were at a Krystal in Knox County, TN, and someone stole Breezy’s purse. It just happened to have all of our cash from the last few days in it. Well we have since changed that policy, but it was too late then. The staff at the Krystal was suspicious and not helpful at all. However, Officer Babaoglu was very kind. He jumped into the dumpster behind the Krystal with his pocketknife and tried to see if it had been tossed by the people that worked there. No luck, but I promised we would give him a good word in our photo blog for being so helpful. Cops have hassled us a little from time to time, they have helped a little from time to time, but we found the one cop in Eastern Tennessee who was a Widespread Panic fan. I have nothing but good things to say about him. As for us, well we’ll chalk this one up to life on the road and move on. On a side note – we would have been completely stranded if Breezy hadn’t found a 100 dollar bill the day before. (all of our cards had to be cancelled) She put the bill in her back pocket instead of the purse. The 100 dollars was exactly the amount of money we needed to pay for the gas. Sometimes the universe has a way of looking out for you. We have some great things coming up. Be on the look out.

BEST PHOTO BLOG YET – LIVE CHICKEN IN VAN ETC. – December 12, 2006

Well the photo blog starts here this time. Thanksgiving Dinner, Waffle and Steak somewhere in Arkansas.

This is King Coffee, drummer for the Butthole Surfers. I was so glad he came out to our show in Austin, TX. We owed him a GIANT thank you for making us so many friends in that town and at SXSW.

This fine couple made us some great BBQ inside the Continental Club in Houston, TX. That show was a highlight of the tour for sure, and this man seemed almost like a shaman to us. He blessed our van and the tour, and I think it is working.

Peyton Brothers remembering the Alamo.

This is Ward Johnson a street preacher singing in San Antonio, TX.

A Tumbleweed blows past a Lincoln Continental with a Kinky Friedman bumper sticker – Van Horn, TX

The sun sets over Mexico just east of El, Paso.

Jayme is feeding deer somewhere between Tucson and Phoenix, AZ.

Jayme is feeding an Ostrich somewhere between Tucson and Phoenix, AZ. (Same Farm)

Onstage at Club Congress in Tucson, AZ. This show was so much fun, and the people at the Hotel Congress really took care of us.

More at Club Congress in Hotel Congress.

Onstage in Phoenix, AZ. The Hillgrass Bluebilly boys promoted this one, and it was fantastic. Their shows always are. They have a special thing happening in Phoenix.

Our show in LA was huge. We played on Sunset at Safari Sam’s. Big Sandy of Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys came to the show. What an honor. I am a huge fan of his.

We opened for Wanye the Train Hancock, and he was great on-stage and off.

The real hero of the night was Sam himself. His heart is huge, and he is a legend among real music fans in LA. Safari Sam’s is back with a vengeance.

In LA we picked up our friend Chris Francis. You want to talk about a legend, this guys has done it all. His artwork can be seen on the covers of albums by Otis Gibbs and Utah Phillips, etc., he lived on Freight Trains for 6 years, he has been a tree topper, a sword fisherman, you name it. He is hitching a ride back to Kokomo, Indiana (his place of birth), and acting as our merch guy/stage manager. A little over qualified… yes.

When we got to Frisco I took this picture, which made these people in Chinatown really mad. Upon closer review of this pic, I was able to read that sign and we knew why.

China town in San Francisco is an interesting place. Here clothes hang out to dry in an alley.

While walking around in Chinatown, we ran into a store that sold live chickens, pigeons, quail, and other live birds for eating. I eat chicken, but the small confinement of the chickens really made us upset, so we decided to buy one and rescue it.

We fell in love with it, and it travelled around with us in SF while we had three shows there. Originally we planned on trading the chicken to some nice hippy kids we met, who raised chickens for eggs in Oakland. However they flaked out and never made it to the shows. We were stuck with caring for the chicken on our own.

The Chicken went to the gigs, and we kept it outside on a leash,

We named it SUM YUNG HEN since we purchased her in Chinatown.

The chicken rode the trolley with us as we travelled around Frisco.

The chicken got to go to the beach for the first time, and really seemed to enjoy it.

When it was time to head to Vegas for the show at the Double Down Saloon, we knew the chicken just couldn’t come. It was heart breaking.

These nice kids we met at Haight and Ashbury said they would see to it that the chicken would be safe.

So we hit the road and took the long way to Vegas via Route 66. Here you can see the steer horns on the front of the Big Damn Van.

Chris Francis wanted us to see Oatman, AZ.

Oatman, AZ is famous for having wild donkeys that roam the streets. They were abandoned when the silver mines closed.

The Donkeys thrived though, and the people in Oatman look after them now.

These donkeys are amazing and friendly. We hung out with them, hugging them and petting them. They love people. The Big Damn Band loved them right back.

We had good times in Vegas. I think gambling is for suckers, but be that as it may… we won 40 bucks, and had Vegas Buffet food!.

The folks at the Double Down saloon were awesome, but it was time to head out toward Joshua Tree. Here the Big Damn Van can be seen travelling down a dirt road somewhere in Joshua Tree National Park.

Here I am walking in Joshua Tree.

This guy was busking outside the Wal-Mart in Yucca Valley, CA. He was pretty good, and really friendly.

This is us onstage at the world famous Pappy and Harriet’s in Pioneertown, CA in Joshua Tree.

I had to get my picture with the horns onstage at Pappy and Harriet’s.

Joshua Tree is a beautiful place, and the trees are really something to see.

On the way toward El Centro, CA we stopped off at the Salton Sea. These birds attacked Jayme.

Here Jayme and I are on the beach at the Salton Sea.

A volunteer at the Salton Sea state park told us about Salvation Mountain in Slab City, CA. It is the largest piece of folk art in the world.

This is Leonard Knight. He built Salvation Mountain, and not only is he a kind hearted and wonderful human being, but we got to hang out with him, and he showed us how he built it, and then we sang songs.

Washboard Breezy stands on top of Salvation Mountain.

Breezy snapped this photo of Jayme, Chris Francis, and myself.

This is how the mountain looks inside made entirely out of adobe, hay, and sticks and items found in the desert.

Here I stand inside Salvation Mountain.

I snapped this one of Breezy and me at the mountain.

Chris Francis stands proud.

This is more inside the mountain.

Another view of Salvation Mountain.

Leonard let me play his guitar, and we sang gospel songs.

Here we are picking and singing together an old spiritual song.

Leonard and Rev. Peyton at Salvation Mountain.

This woman and her friend came to see the mountain and stayed to watch us sing. She began to cry and then wanted to hug me. I am not religious, and I especially don’t like organized religion, but art and blues and music and old spiritual songs are very dear to me. There was something powerful there that day, and we all felt it. My eyes watered up a little bit. The women didn’t say their name or why they were there, but somehow I felt like maybe we all were there for them.

The face of Chris Francis pretty much sums it up here.

When the sun went down it was time to head to El Centro.

El Centro is right on the border, and the place was electric. People danced on the bar. I didn’t see any fights this time, and I think everyone danced. It was a special night for sure.

This was the view from the stage. The faces have been removed to protect the innocent. All in all it was a hell of a day.

Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois – November 21, 2006

Here is a new photo blog from the last couple of weeks.

Here are some random pictures from Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, and more!

Someone is raising their kids up right.

Custom BIG DAMN BAND Harley Helmet. Photo taken in Kalamazoo, MI.

Jayme hanging out with our friend Patrick (on tour with us helping to sell merch)on the coast of Lake Michigan in Chicago, IL.

Is it Maine? Florida? Is it SoCal? Nope – Michigan City, Indiana.

This Bison is sticking his tongue out at us in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Jayme and Breezy sitting on the bank of the South Platte River in Bailey, CO.

Here is a pic from the Uptowner in Charleston, IL.

Eat Here Get Worms on a VERY cold day right where the Illinois River meets the Mississippi River.

Wall at the same place.

My secret fishing spot, Southern Indiana.

A Bass that was a team effort catch by Breezy and I. It bit on her pole, but broke the line on some reeds. I jumped in the lake to get it. I claim the catch since I actually brought it to shore, but Breezy technically caught it on her line. I just didn’t want it to have to live life with a hook in its mouth. We just catch and release so we can catch again another day.

This is a shot out the window of the van somewhere in Iowa.

New Photo Blog… Tour with Jason Webley… WITH VIDEO, and MORE!!!!!

This was an amazing month. The shows with Jason Webley were legendary. But first…

This blog starts in Clarksdale, MS at the Juke Joint Festival. This year was a great year at the Juke Joint, and we had a great time. The fest is like a family reunion in a way.

Here I am hanging out with Clarksdale legend… Mr. Tater. His music is as raw as it gets folks. We are hanging out in front of Cat Head the coolest place in the universe. If I had a store – it would be Cat Head.

This pic is really for those who know Mr. Tater. For some reason he had perfectly flattened this 40 ounce beer can and placed it in his pocket. I don’t know why.

This is Stan Street has is a painter who plays harmonica too. He set up a studio and gallery in Clarksdale, and his place is one of those great places that makes the world a better place.

On the way out west we played some great shows, but on the way to Aspen we stopped back by Glenwood Canyon. Where Grizzly Creek meets the Colorado River.

I decided to wet a line.

But catching fish there was not to be. A swarm of flies came in. This is what the whole river looked like. A bunch of fisherman showed up and left. I stayed. It didn’t matter if I caught anything anyway. It is a beautiful place.

Aspen was a great show. During the second song this young lady got to dancing so hard she split her head open. I hope she is ok. They took her away in an ambulance.

On the way to Phoenix we saw some great places in Southern Utah.

This is kinda a tourist destination, but it is worth a stop.

There are all kinds of folk art sculptures around.

Of course the main attraction is a whole house built into the mountain.

This sign was on a stuffed goat, and made me laugh out loud.

This bull is entirely just found scrap metal.

More great americana.

The Hole in the Rock even has a petting zoo.

Before we made it to Phoenix, we stopped off to see the Grand Canyon. This picture is almost an insult to it. Nothing could do it justice. When we walked over a hill to it… the sight of it about knocked me down.

I was really in awe of it. If you want a real holy pilgrimage forget churches or other religious places. If you want to be close to God, then go there. I never felt so small. One sad note… they said that all of the haze that has settled in the canyon used to not be there. It is all pollution from LA and Phoenix.

Here is an interesting picture. Maybe someone out there can explain. This picture was taken by me out the side of the window as we pulled away. We were stopped first by border patrol at this check point in the middle of a desert in California. The led us over through some cones to where that white truck is parked. Some armed US military officers forced us all out of the van, and then the arm that is coming off of that unmarked truck was ran around the van and then back and forth across the van. I said, “What is going on.” One of the camo’d officers said, I cannot tell you.” Jayme said, “Is that an X-Ray machine?” His respomse was, “I cannot tell you what the machine is or what we are looking for.” Then they sent us on out into the desert.

We met up with our old friend Chris Francis. Check out earlier blogs to learn more about this legend. Here he is holding his girlfriends dog.

In LA we played at the amazing Safari Sam’s. That show kicked off the tour with Jason Webley, and it was awesome… However we have no pictures from the show. (If you do send ‘em in!) What we do have is a picture of this meat bearing our name. We bought it across the parking lot from Sam’s at a dollar store. Somewhere we have relatives making meat.

Here are the ingredients. YUMMY!

One of the highlights of the tour with Jason was Gilman St. Project in Berkely, CA. This is a picture of the place when we were loading in.

This is what it looked like when Jason was performing. (If anyone has any pics from these shows please send em in!)

Here we all are together on stage.

Jason decided to get a Pinata for Cinco de Mayo for the Gilman show. We filled it with Ramen, Bisquick, Toilet Paper, Artichokes, and all kinds of wierd stuff.

Here is a still photo of the bisquick getting beat out of it, but the video below is the best – check it out…

Check out Breezy beating the pinata with the washboard.

This sign is painted behind the stage at Gilman. It also made me laugh.

Here are some zines they were selling inside of Gilman. It is an Anarchist collective that is all ages and all volunteer run. Not many places like that for kids to go see live music. I wish I had had a place like that. I had to make a fake ID when I was in High School so I could go see bands.

The record that we made with Jason is really fun, and this picture shows all of the volunteers at UC Davis who helped us assemble them. This project was so DIY we had to hand insert the records, CD’s, inserts, and dictionaries. Special thanks to this awesome team of volunteers that made this possible. Especially Rob Roy who is the guy in the red shirt.

This is us mailing out all of the pre-orders in Arcata, CA. We had to hand stamp them. But it was awesome, because 1/3rd of the records were sold pre-sale before the thing was released.

On the way to Oregon we passed through the Redwood forest. These trees are amazing. It looks like a fairy tale land. I felt like a gnome.

It makes you almost believe that Paul Bunyon could exist. The trees are spectacular.

Jayme really loved the forest. He especially liked this moss.

This is the coast through the Redwood forest. Pretty neat.

Jason climbed down on this rock, and it looked like he belonged there. Like he was part of the rocks.

Here you can see the forest in the mist. The little red car in front of us is Jason’s Tomato car.

This is my favorite pic in the blog. I know it is kinda blurry, but Breezy had to zoom way in. I snuck up on these Elk, and hung out with them. I know you probably shouldn’t do that, but I did and it was awesome. At one point they kicked at the ground at me and snorted at me. I thought the big one was going to charge, but then they seemed to get used to me. I posed for this pic and then slowly walked away.

Jayme wanted nothing to do with sneaking up on the Elk. He figured me for dead. He stayed on the other side of the road.

This is the Smith River. Pretty unbelievable.

The water is beautiful.

It looks like pool water.

The rocks got real narrow here, and it was so fast and loud. I wanted to drink the water.

This is Jason Webley’s dad. We stayed with him in Seattle for a night. He makes these abstract sculptures out of rocks.

I thought they were pretty cool.

This is where Jason Webley lives. In the little house boat behind the Saint Joan. We didn’t stay here over night, but we hung out here before we parted ways.

Jayme is standing in front of Jason’s house boat.

This is inside the Iowa 80 truck stop. The largest truck stop in the world.

The floor below the truck spun around.

Here is the sign.

This is Breezy riding a giant Jackalope at Wall Drug in Wall, SD.

This is also at Wall Drug.

This is where the blog should end. This guy is hilarious. I kicked Jayme’s cymbal a bunch during the show in Seattle, and it broke and fell off the stand. This guy bought it from us and sent us these pictures. Check out his page for the rest. They are awesome.

If you don’t have the record and you want it, then you better act fast. Only 1111 will ever be made, and almost 900 have been sold.