Paging Mr. Herman/Menlove Ave.
Hey Soul Mates,
it still makes me laugh at myself when I see a celebrity around town. Heart skips as I try to place the face with a name. Today I saw a handful. At the grocery store, there was Jon Cryer ("Two And A Half Men," "Pretty In Pink"). I should have said hello to him. Last time I saw him was backstage at the Beastie Boys concert. He's a charming guy. But, he seemed preoccupied. Channel 2 news personality, Lisa Joyner was also at the market. The best of the day however, was seeing Paul Reubens at the Galleria. I immediately called my boy, Mikey in Jax. The opportunity to ask Mr. Reubens for the word of the day just didn't present itself. Back in the day, Mike and I watched the Pee-Wee Herman Show and would memorize parts to aggravate teachers every Monday morning. Good times. I was even Cowboy Curtis one Halloween.
Day 6 of the tour is posted. This was a very emotional day for me. Visiting John Lennon's childhood home in Menlove Ave. was a religious experience. To stand in his driveway and feel the pavement. To look up the street toward McCartney's house (Paul used to ride his bicycle up the road to visit John). To look into the upstairs windows and at the side yard. To touch the fence and smell the flowers. To know that John Lennon was surely taken away from us too soon. Yoko recently bought the property and had it refurbished. It looks splendid. I didn't know this picture was taken of me, but I can tell you that I was thinking of how much we, as a species, were blessed by John Lennon's art. Without him, I don't know if I would make music. Thanks, Johnny.
I talked to two school boys from the street who were tossing a ball on the sidewalk. They had politely stopped when the band walked up to the house. I introduced myself to them (Michael & Philip). They asked if I had "come to see John Lennon." I told them yes and gave them a brief history of Rush Hour Soul. They told me "lots of Asians, by the busload" come to see the house. I asked them if they lived in Menlove, Philip said, "yeah, right next to John Lennon." After our goodbyes, I thought to myself, how wonderful that these lads would refer to Lennon in present tense. It was all I could do to breathe and not let loose a mess of tears. Thanks, Liverpool.
We also got some great photos at Strawberry Field, just up the hill. I managed to turn into the actual drive of the orphanage, not the famous wrought iron gate. The groundskeepers were nice enough to let us park, so we could properly get some pictures. It's amazing, all of the locals are interested to know if we are in a band, where we are from, what kind of music we play and what we think of Liverpool. With pride, I tell them we played the Cavern Club the night before. They are impressed and pleased with their city at the same time. The picture of Bryan, Doug and myself standing at the Strawberry Field Gate is a favorite. Oh, by the way, Lennon added the "s" to Field for the song.
Later that night, we had our show at the Roman Baths in the old medieval town of York. We shared the bill with the WizeGuys, who were kind enough to have us on short notice. Thanks, too, to Mandy for liasing. The show was brilliant. What we thought was going to be an acoustic set quickly became a full-tilt electric set. I'd have to review the tapes to get the set list right. But I know we played Fall Out, Everyone's Ingenue, A Talent For Loving, Love Someone, Down By Love and U Had The $. I'm pretty sure we did Hold On, I'm Coming and Everything My Heart Desires. But don't quote me on those. The energy in the room was great for a last minute show on a Tuesday night in York. The band also enjoyed some local brews after and meeting the people. Good folks in Yorkshire.
Time to resume my Friday night. Pat K (another school chum) has been enlisted to help with the message board for RHS.com. It's coming soon. I promise.
All you need is Love (Power, Peace)!
it still makes me laugh at myself when I see a celebrity around town. Heart skips as I try to place the face with a name. Today I saw a handful. At the grocery store, there was Jon Cryer ("Two And A Half Men," "Pretty In Pink"). I should have said hello to him. Last time I saw him was backstage at the Beastie Boys concert. He's a charming guy. But, he seemed preoccupied. Channel 2 news personality, Lisa Joyner was also at the market. The best of the day however, was seeing Paul Reubens at the Galleria. I immediately called my boy, Mikey in Jax. The opportunity to ask Mr. Reubens for the word of the day just didn't present itself. Back in the day, Mike and I watched the Pee-Wee Herman Show and would memorize parts to aggravate teachers every Monday morning. Good times. I was even Cowboy Curtis one Halloween.
Day 6 of the tour is posted. This was a very emotional day for me. Visiting John Lennon's childhood home in Menlove Ave. was a religious experience. To stand in his driveway and feel the pavement. To look up the street toward McCartney's house (Paul used to ride his bicycle up the road to visit John). To look into the upstairs windows and at the side yard. To touch the fence and smell the flowers. To know that John Lennon was surely taken away from us too soon. Yoko recently bought the property and had it refurbished. It looks splendid. I didn't know this picture was taken of me, but I can tell you that I was thinking of how much we, as a species, were blessed by John Lennon's art. Without him, I don't know if I would make music. Thanks, Johnny.
I talked to two school boys from the street who were tossing a ball on the sidewalk. They had politely stopped when the band walked up to the house. I introduced myself to them (Michael & Philip). They asked if I had "come to see John Lennon." I told them yes and gave them a brief history of Rush Hour Soul. They told me "lots of Asians, by the busload" come to see the house. I asked them if they lived in Menlove, Philip said, "yeah, right next to John Lennon." After our goodbyes, I thought to myself, how wonderful that these lads would refer to Lennon in present tense. It was all I could do to breathe and not let loose a mess of tears. Thanks, Liverpool.
We also got some great photos at Strawberry Field, just up the hill. I managed to turn into the actual drive of the orphanage, not the famous wrought iron gate. The groundskeepers were nice enough to let us park, so we could properly get some pictures. It's amazing, all of the locals are interested to know if we are in a band, where we are from, what kind of music we play and what we think of Liverpool. With pride, I tell them we played the Cavern Club the night before. They are impressed and pleased with their city at the same time. The picture of Bryan, Doug and myself standing at the Strawberry Field Gate is a favorite. Oh, by the way, Lennon added the "s" to Field for the song.
Later that night, we had our show at the Roman Baths in the old medieval town of York. We shared the bill with the WizeGuys, who were kind enough to have us on short notice. Thanks, too, to Mandy for liasing. The show was brilliant. What we thought was going to be an acoustic set quickly became a full-tilt electric set. I'd have to review the tapes to get the set list right. But I know we played Fall Out, Everyone's Ingenue, A Talent For Loving, Love Someone, Down By Love and U Had The $. I'm pretty sure we did Hold On, I'm Coming and Everything My Heart Desires. But don't quote me on those. The energy in the room was great for a last minute show on a Tuesday night in York. The band also enjoyed some local brews after and meeting the people. Good folks in Yorkshire.
Time to resume my Friday night. Pat K (another school chum) has been enlisted to help with the message board for RHS.com. It's coming soon. I promise.
All you need is Love (Power, Peace)!
posted by Norman K at 9:30 PM
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