The Steel Guitar Forum

For me it was this past weekend. I drove approx. 1000 miles round-trip, to perform a 15 minute set. From the Bay area in N. CA to San Diego. The band leader felt it was worth doing and picked up the bulk of the hotel and traveling expenses for the band. It was for a chance to play a 15 minute showcase in front of the Wetern Fairs Assn., who are always looking to hire entertainment for their various fairs, festivals, rodeos, etc. I guess we'll know later this year, if it was a worthwhile trip, when we see if we get a significant amount of more Fair venue gigs from it. -- Marc
PS -- We were the only country act on the day we played. We did a good job and sounded pretty darn good! They actually had better than average equipment for everyone, as when they saw me setting up my steel, they brought over a Nashville 400 for me to play through. (I had all of my steel & keyboard equipment with me anyway, just in case I needed any of it)

We once traveled to New York state from Southern Arkansas and did about a 30 minute show. Then we crawled right back in that volkswagon beetle,....... no I'm only kidding about the volkswagon. I would think that's close to 1200 miles(one way). We did stop in Nashville for a day or two on the way back. Just young and crazy I guess, or maybe just crazy.

Ken<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Ken Williams on 08 January 2003 at 12:24 PM.]</p></FONT><FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Ken Williams on 08 January 2003 at 12:26 PM.]</p></FONT>

I flew with a lap steel from California to Pennsylvania, to participate in a steel jam. I probably didn't play for more than 15 minutes total, but I sat there waiting my turn (and listening to some great pedal pickers) for several hours.

I don't think that counts, though, as I didn't drive and it wasn't really a gig. Good topic starter, Marc!

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<small><img align=right src="http://b0b.com/b0b.gif" width="64" height="64">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (Emaj9, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic), Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6), Roland Handsonic

I rented an RV and drove from LA to Black Rock desert, 120 miles or so north east of Reno for Burning Man 2000, to play a 45 minute set one night and then a 1hr set with the opera that tuned into a 3+ hr set where the stage and the desert in front of us was filled with naked people dancing. I would have played all night
and then some. It cost me a small fortune and I'd do it again in an instant.

This won't count, as I didn't drive - but they flew us from Heathrow, London to Oman in the Middle East to do a twenty-five minute spot for Prince Someone-or-other.

That was with singer Clodagh Rodgers - I only played on two of the tunes, too!

'First Class' both ways on British Airways, and a pretty good check at the end of it - one of those every week would solve a few problems....

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Roger Rettig

In June 1983 flew with a band from Scotland to play fifteen minutes at Fanfair Nashville then on July 1983 flew again from Scotland to Fort Worth Texas to play a thirty minute spot. In 1984 flew from Scotland to Quatar in the Gulf to play two one hour spots.

Allan might have me beat, but in 1996 I flew to Zurich, Switzerland from Nashville, then rode 2 1/2 hours to Interlaken, to play a truckers convention. I think the set was around 40 minutes or so. Then turned around and came right back. It was worth it because I got to play through the best Session 500 I have ever heard. Must be the voltage.

Then in '97 I flew from Nashville to Zurich again to play on Valentines Day, then came right back again.

So, do I win cause I did it twice??? LOL
OK, so I really only "drove" to the airport, LOL.

God Bless,
Michael T

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UTILITY MAN PRODUCTIONS
'73 EMMONS D10 FATBACK, '92 EMMONS D10 LASHLEY LEGRANDE,
'85 DOBRO 60DS, '95 DOBRO F60S,
'95 MELOBAR CUSTOM, 1955 FENDER TRIPLE NECK STRINGMASTER. EVANS, FENDER, PEAVEY,
and MESA BOOGIE Amps.

I played a gig with Vern Gosdin and went from Nashville to Oakwood, Texas. The trouble is we went all the way down I-65 and over to I-10 right through New Orleans and from Houston up to Oakwood. Oakwood is between Dallas and Houston so the right way to go would have been straight down through Arkansas. Somebody thought the gig was farther south. We played at a private party for a construction company way back in the woods. We drove a bus about 5 miles down through a very narrow dirt road scraping the trees along the way. Vern was very ill to say the least when we finally got there. We played two sets, sold some records and shirts and got right back in the bus and went home. The driver got less than two hours sleep from Friday evening until Sunday evening and did all of the driving but about 80 miles. Vern drove that 80 miles and it's the most scared I've ever been. He hardly ever looked at the road and was turning every switch in that bus the whole time. We were all over that road going about 80 miles an hour. The bus had no bunks to sleep in at all. It had been converted to a camper when he sold the bus to somebody and then got it back because the guy didn't pay him. I tried to sleep sitting in a chair with no arms on it. Worst trip I ever was on I think.

With all due respect, and I mean this in the nicest way -- you people are CRAZY, man!!

This past 12/07/02 I drove from Nashville Tn. to Gulfport, Ms. and played for 30 mins. for N/C because I am a member of the D.S.S.G.&M.A. That's the "Deep South Steel Guitar & Musician Association" The trip was about 535 miles one way and well worth the time and effort. You can view a picture of the event below. "Big John" http://community.webtv.net/KeoniNui/doc0

Flew from Las Vegas to Chicago then drove to Peoria checked into a motel got a nap and shower then drove to some little town 30 miles from Peoria to play 8 songs with Rex Allen Jr. then drove back to Chicago got on a plane and flew back to Vegas.

WE played a gig in Austin(where we live) then at the end of the gig at 2am; we drove 800 miles to Nashville to play the Opry plaza for a 1 hour show; then jumped right back in the Van; and drove home(to Austin)and played a gig that night. So that's 1600 miles for a 1 hour gig on one evening in Nashville right between two Austin gigs...ha
Ricky

ABOUT 550+ MILES!!! I (& others) had put together a weekend "good-bye jam", for a guitarist I had played a with lot in Upland, Ca. He was moving to the Sacramento area. I loaded up a whole PA, all (and back then that was a LOT of crap) my guitar stuff, percussion, small recording rig, this / that, all the bells & whistles...and drove the 225 mi. to our bass player's house in Rialto. After we did about 15 min. of stiff playing trying to warm up, the guitarist "called it", and said he couldn't get in the mood (since he was moving away from his forever stomping grounds for the first time in his life), I was pretty bummed out about that, but I could sure dig where he "was at".
He split and the rest of us went to Red Lobster for a serious food fix, wound up messing around in the bassist's decent little home studio.
One of those empty moments; when playing music just don't go right (and after playing for 20 years or so, ONE of those is PLENTY enough to go through, IMHO!).

In 83 drove from Nashville to Dallas Texas pulling a trailer with a station wagon, no aor conditioner, end of June, did a 2 hour show at a high school, packed up, went got something to eat, got back opn the road, drove all night in order to get back to Nashville so two of the guys could appear on Opry that night. about half way back it started to raining the old wagon started to hitting on about six and a half plugs. And yep, I wasn't driving, my wife drove the whole 1400 miles round trip. The old wagon was doing some hard puffing to get a hill and when it did, my wife let it roll, a state tropper tried to get her to slow it down and she signaled to him that she couldn't cause it would die on us, so he just pulled in front turned on his big lights and led us home. Areal super nice patrolman.

We did one of those Fair showcase jobs last year. We drove from Edmonton, Alberta to Tacoma, Washington. That is about 1000 miles each way. We played our 15 minutes and came back home.

The summer before, we played in Edmonton, drove for 42 hours and did the Wisconson State fair for four days. We packed up on the last day and drove over 40 hours to Port Townsend, Washington just in time to set up and play. Did one more night in Washington and then drove back to do the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines. We drove back from there just in time to set up and play in Edmonton. That is the most traveling that I have ever done.

Well at least you got to play. I have been driving 600 miles one way ever year for 23 years just to hear someone else play. My wife thinks that is crazy too. See you in St Louis Labor Day.<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by louie hallford on 09 January 2003 at 10:15 PM.]</p></FONT>

I lost count, Am I still winning??? LOL

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UTILITY MAN PRODUCTIONS
'73 EMMONS D10 FATBACK, '92 EMMONS D10 LASHLEY LEGRANDE,
'85 DOBRO 60DS, '95 DOBRO F60S,
'95 MELOBAR CUSTOM, 1955 FENDER TRIPLE NECK STRINGMASTER. EVANS, FENDER, PEAVEY,
and MESA BOOGIE Amps.

Put my rig on a 4-wheel cart and rolled it a block and a half to a local hole that aspires to some day become a dive, played 3-4 hours, rolled a block and a half back home. Oh--I guess I got this topic kinda backwards....well, let's use this as my answer to the 'perfect gig' thread then.

I drove from Kentville to Moncton and back (about 400km each way) in one day to play ONE tune for a television taping. I didn't even know what the tune was until I picked up the guitar player. It was "Scarborough Fair" in B minor. We did do a couple of takes.

Hee, hee, funny thread. In 1994 I drove from Cincinnati to NYC and back to play for 40 min at a basement club called the Cooler. We made $50.00. So that's 1300 miles roundtrip, I should mention I drove both ways, and it snowed continuously from Jersey all the way back to Cincinnati. I think the chances of my doing that again are slim to none! Now that gig Jon Light has sounds like a good one. Where is it Jon? Hee hee.

Smiley Roberts drove (well I did all the driving)er rode 2600 miles round trip last september for a 30 minute spot in New England.

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CJC

About 1993 I was living in Nashville and working with Marty Haggard I believe at the time. Had a few weeks off so I took a week long gig with a guy named Jim Purty and drove from Nashville to Norfolk Va in a crowded van pulling a trailer. Before we even started playing, this goofy drummer named Jim fell backward off the drum riser and took my 2 Session 400's with him, (They were on and had the reverb units still in use). Well we started and played about 10 minutes and the club owner came up and said you guys suck and would you please vacate the premisis at once! Well what had happened was that the singer was a really flaming gay acting guy and that really didn't go over very well in a big Navy Base town. So back in the crowded van we got and drove straight back to Nashville. Yes, it really did suck!

Took a lap steel from L.A. to Korea in my seabag. Didn't play much; forgot the amp.