A DUTCH BLOG, A SPANISH VILLA AND A FIVE SHOWS IN A ROW BOOGALOO
YIKES..........I sign on to the blog page and it is completely in Dutch/Flemish as I am in Brussels Belgium today. So I cant figure out how to sign on . So I unplug the computer and trundle all the way down to the front desk for some translation help. Oh by the way I decided to do the blog because it is sunday in Brussels and It is completely shut down. Man they take sunday serious here . There isnt as much as a tumbleweed blowing in the street ! So then nick down at the front desk is helping me and to no avail and I go back up to my room and I am telling him dutch words in my murderous dutch. Finally we get it untangled and here I am .
So last time we talked we were about to embark on a five day swing which ,if you dont know , is unusual. Because it puts quite a burden on the throat . We did 2 nights in Dublin which is a mighty fine city . And we had never played there before in all this time. People were coming up to me and admonishing me as to why we had never been to Dublin. Stuff like "Man I had to go to Orlando to see you guys ." That should be punishment enough ....nah.....I am just kidding you .....They tell me the hotel we stayed at in Dublin is owned by Bono . I tried to get ahold of him to tell him my toilet was clogged but he never called me back. So that was two shows in Dublin . Then we got up at 4;30 in the morning to make a flight to Barcelona and of course it had to connect thru Heathrow . Man that Heathrow is defintely the crossroads of the world . It is the best people watching in the world . You half expect little green men to walk by on the way to their connecting flight . Everyone goes thru Heathrow. So we get to our Hotel in Barcelona at around noon and everyone else is going back ot bed . But Rafael and I say no way and we went into town . There was no way I was going to miss Barcelona . I have been to Barcelona several times and it is a wonderful city . Matter of fact Spain is one of my favorite countries. Rafael and I had lunch and I think the Spainish people like Anchovies even more than I do !
So let me tell you about the show in Spain . Man o' man .....we drive out to this Spainish Villa about 40 minutes outside of town and it is absouletly gorgeous . It is a private show for an american company. The villa was built in the 1800s and it used to be a casino at one time . I went snooping all over the place because we were there for hours and there was no one telling me I could'nt ! The old casino is now a dining room and it looks like the set for "Casino Royale" the James Bond movie. In the garden was a small little statue to the memory of Grace Kelly or Princess Grace of Monoco to you . Supposedly she was friends with the owner. But the wiedest thing was this run down amphitheater in the back grounds of the villa . It was all grown over with weeds but still cool looking so I go over to snoop and the stage was really strange . All around the top and sides of the stage was this metal railing and shelving and I could'nt figure out what in the heck it would be for . So I asked the lady running the thing and she said that at one time it had been an exact replica of the "Tropicana " stage in Havana Cuba
complete with dancing girls running all around and over the stage . WOW.....can you just picture it and outside ta boot . And from the balcony of the villa I could see another huge villa/winery about 5 miles away with lots of wine bushes in between . It was stunning . So we played the party and all the people were from the states and they partied mighty hard . So that is three shows . Next day we flew up to Heathrow and our bus picked us up for a 3 hour drive thru the English county side . We were on our way to WOLVERHAMPTON. We had played there in 1993 and so I had memories of the place . It is a real nice room . I was starting to croak a bit from the singing but Gillian always has some throat coat tea ready at hand . That stuff is great for helping the singing throat . I am not classically trained in anything so I am sure I sing wrong but I manage none the less.
After Wolverhampton we drive into london to play the historic hammersmith . It reminds me of that Motorhead album " No sleep till Hammersmith" Anywho we stayed down in kensington where I have been many times over the years and it has really changed . But it is still really cool. Matter of fact London has never looked better . It was a great night in London the crowd was great it sounded great and I had a marvelous time . 5 in a row.... done and done .......
Your Pal
KENNEY DALE
So last time we talked we were about to embark on a five day swing which ,if you dont know , is unusual. Because it puts quite a burden on the throat . We did 2 nights in Dublin which is a mighty fine city . And we had never played there before in all this time. People were coming up to me and admonishing me as to why we had never been to Dublin. Stuff like "Man I had to go to Orlando to see you guys ." That should be punishment enough ....nah.....I am just kidding you .....They tell me the hotel we stayed at in Dublin is owned by Bono . I tried to get ahold of him to tell him my toilet was clogged but he never called me back. So that was two shows in Dublin . Then we got up at 4;30 in the morning to make a flight to Barcelona and of course it had to connect thru Heathrow . Man that Heathrow is defintely the crossroads of the world . It is the best people watching in the world . You half expect little green men to walk by on the way to their connecting flight . Everyone goes thru Heathrow. So we get to our Hotel in Barcelona at around noon and everyone else is going back ot bed . But Rafael and I say no way and we went into town . There was no way I was going to miss Barcelona . I have been to Barcelona several times and it is a wonderful city . Matter of fact Spain is one of my favorite countries. Rafael and I had lunch and I think the Spainish people like Anchovies even more than I do !
So let me tell you about the show in Spain . Man o' man .....we drive out to this Spainish Villa about 40 minutes outside of town and it is absouletly gorgeous . It is a private show for an american company. The villa was built in the 1800s and it used to be a casino at one time . I went snooping all over the place because we were there for hours and there was no one telling me I could'nt ! The old casino is now a dining room and it looks like the set for "Casino Royale" the James Bond movie. In the garden was a small little statue to the memory of Grace Kelly or Princess Grace of Monoco to you . Supposedly she was friends with the owner. But the wiedest thing was this run down amphitheater in the back grounds of the villa . It was all grown over with weeds but still cool looking so I go over to snoop and the stage was really strange . All around the top and sides of the stage was this metal railing and shelving and I could'nt figure out what in the heck it would be for . So I asked the lady running the thing and she said that at one time it had been an exact replica of the "Tropicana " stage in Havana Cuba
complete with dancing girls running all around and over the stage . WOW.....can you just picture it and outside ta boot . And from the balcony of the villa I could see another huge villa/winery about 5 miles away with lots of wine bushes in between . It was stunning . So we played the party and all the people were from the states and they partied mighty hard . So that is three shows . Next day we flew up to Heathrow and our bus picked us up for a 3 hour drive thru the English county side . We were on our way to WOLVERHAMPTON. We had played there in 1993 and so I had memories of the place . It is a real nice room . I was starting to croak a bit from the singing but Gillian always has some throat coat tea ready at hand . That stuff is great for helping the singing throat . I am not classically trained in anything so I am sure I sing wrong but I manage none the less.
After Wolverhampton we drive into london to play the historic hammersmith . It reminds me of that Motorhead album " No sleep till Hammersmith" Anywho we stayed down in kensington where I have been many times over the years and it has really changed . But it is still really cool. Matter of fact London has never looked better . It was a great night in London the crowd was great it sounded great and I had a marvelous time . 5 in a row.... done and done .......
Your Pal
KENNEY DALE
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