You know those days when so much happens, you look at each other and say, “Did that actually happen THIS morning?”, or “Wait! How was that just THIS afternoon? It felt like a week ago!” Yes. Such was Day 6 of tour.
Knowing we still had just under 3 hours to go to get to Steve and Ginger’s place in Boise (see August 2021 tour blog post: “Day 21 and Day 22” for a refresher course on who Steve n Ginger are), we decided to get up around 7:30 and immediately get on the road. We found a coffee stop 20 miles away that we plugged into Google on my phone, Steve and Ginger’s address into Jared’s phone, and were off. Well, we got distracted chatting and Jared politely asked, “What was my exit again?”…I said, “It WAS that one.” Oops. Another 17 miles to coffee. Gas station coffee. I guess that’s what I get for blabbing.
Caffeinated properly, we bounced along the highway enjoying the small town vibe, picturesque in the Idaho morning sun. Birds racing alongside our truck as we drove through rural America and joyfully readied ourselves to see our friends again and play a show.
When we originally contacted them about a potential spring tour, we said we could make a Sunday show happen after our Denver gig on Friday. Within moments, Steve excitedly responded, letting us know he was retiring, would throw a party and we could be the evening’s entertainment. Seeing as how Steve and Ginger have made a full time job of supporting and promoting local and original musicians, and our last time with them at their summer house concert was incredible, we knew this would be amazing and quickly agreed.
We rolled into the familiar neighborhood around 11:00 a.m. and were greeted with huge hugs and open arms. A shower, some laundry, light lunch, sweet catch up conversation, and a little rest and we were thoroughly rejuvenated and ready for the night!
Steve had rented out an intimate theater space for the concert and invited 60 or so of his work friends and music friends to come celebrate with him. It was a beautiful venue and perfect to capture the party vibe he wanted, as well as a great performance space for us. Win/win!!! We also had plenty of area to spread out all of our merchandise. When it’s all on display like that, it feels really impressive!
Since my reunion with my older sister last summer in Boise, we have had great communication and so I was excited to see her again this trip. Steve was 100% ok with her and her husband going the party for the night, so she got to come see me perform for the first time ever!! She sat right in the front row and smiled the whole time! Soon, the 50+ chairs behind her filled quickly and we were surrounded by attentive, music loving humans that had no idea what kind of journey they were in for!
It’s always a beautiful thing to be in the middle of when the night goes from “audience watching band” to “audience enjoying band” to “auBdAieNncDe”. By the end, we’ve created a relationship that exceeds the boundaries of “this is a band I saw”, and “this is and audience we had”, and brings it to, “these are people I love and spent an evening with”.
I say this all the time, but the truth of it never escapes me. People aren’t forced to watch us. They have made a choice to be with us in a shared space for a couple hours. I have ultimate respect for that, and always want to honor the time they are gifting us. To do so, Jared and I strive to create a full immersive experience that gives people something to walk away with. A challenge, an emotion, a conviction, a full blown belly laugh, a sense that we are not alone. These are basic fundamentals of human connectivity. The “shared experience”. We are not separate from it. We are IN it…together. The return fans get it. The new fans catch on quick. It’s an honor to be part of it all.
Watching Steve’s face as we guided the audience through our life, weaving songs and stories together, I knew we were in the exact place we were meant to be. Present fully in this snapshot where his life and ours crossed paths, signifying the monumental end of a 33 year career and the precipice of the next chapter of adventure for him and his family. He said at the end, “I’m sure we will have many adventures with you guys, but this one was REALLY special.” We felt the same and were honored to be part of it. Thank you for trusting us and sharing us with your most loved humans. It was definitely “Type 1” fun. Congratulations on your retirement!
We capped our evening off drinking whiskey in sweat pants (an excellent song concept, if you ask me), and made poor Ginger stay up waaaay too late to have to teach kindergarten the next morning. But she powered through and we all embraced, and with sleepy eyes, buzzed brains, and full hearts we toddled off to bed around midnight. Can’t wait to come back. 💖
