Yeah yeah! Welcome back to the Notebook. Let’s jump right into it, so we pick up with the show at Calypso Bay Casino in North Lake Tahoe. Not only was there beautiful scenery, there was a fun lighting system full of Martin Mac spots and washes. The Martin light jockey was used for the systems control via an ETC smartfade along with some par cans and a calibrated computer touch screen monitor. The gig was a great success and I got to win $50 on slots afterwards. I soon headed back to the hotel to catch some shut eye for a long few travel days over to Florida.
We pull into Florida and check into our hotel right outside of Tampa. The gig is a very special show at Skipper’s Smokehouse because it not only with Bonerama, but also with Porter-Batiste-Stoltz. For those of you who aren’t hip to those names you most certainly should be. George Porter Jr. is an original member of The Funky Meters and an icon for all bass players. Russell Batiste Jr. is a drummer who comes from a long line of musicians in his family. He plays in many projects including his own Russell Batiste and Friends and Vida Blue with Phish keyboard player Page McConnell. Brian Stoltz comes from great guitar influences such as Jimi Hendrix. He has been involved in studio work sessions with Bob Dylan and apart of the Neville Brothers organization playing guitar inspired by the great Art Neville. These three men have come together making a super group that perfectly represents what New Orleans music and family is all about. Getting back to the gig I am on my way to load in and George Porter Jr. is with me in the van on the way over. We arrive to the gig and as I’m setting up he’s getting his rig straight and checking out the room specs before anyone else is there. I really like to see that because he’s all about how the room is sounding, himself, and the overall show. That’s how the ideal veteran rolls and it’s a good feeling dudes like that are still performing on stage. The gig went was great, Bonerama started the early part of the evening, then Porter-Batiste-Stoltz followed with their set, and a final set with both groups on stage to slam everyone. It was an extra treat for me since my brother got to come to the show and hang with me for a few days. After Tampa we finished up at Hollywood Beach for a two day festival in a crazy and fun tropical storm with music from both bands on this weekend.
Festivals I can tell are going to be a lot of fun in this career for a multitude of reasons. Some examples would be: that you get to meet some really cool musicians, hear great music for a few days, have pretty nice accommodations, and run (on average) a decent size rig (if your on a big stage). This weekend we got both. The big stage had around 12 moving fixtures on a Hog 1000 and a conventional system of pars on a Leprechaun console. Here are some pics from Porter-Batiste-Stoltz on the big stage and Bonerama’s smoking set on stage numero dos.:PBS 
BONERAMA 
On my first tour I learned a lot. What to pack, what not to pack, what supplies you need on the road, etc. It was a great experience and a breath of fresh air to know I can handle it as long as you show up ready to work, communicate with people, and be prepared as much as you can. Next blog I’ll talk a little about what I’ve been doing on my down time and start right back into the new chapter with my next tour: Porter-Batiste-Stoltz and maybe some random Halloween pics dressed up as Borat… "very nice how much?"…Thanks again for reading. ~T
Song of the week: Epitaph- “This is for real”
Movie of the week: Halloween… duh =p
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