North America Tour Blog - Halloween Hauntings and Other Happenings

Moving back north from Atlanta to Akron and then west to Joliet, all the shows took off like a rocket with ecstatic crowds and band totally going for it!

We particularly enjoyed the Ryman in Nashville, which has such a strong atmosphere with those memories of its days as the Grand Ol' Oprey. We could feel the spirits of those country legends like Johnny Cash. The night we played there was Halloween, and the band had fun backstage with the scary masks. It was also good to catch up with Chester Thompson, his son Akil and Neil Morse as well.

Pals Ian and Mark drove Jo and me between Atlanta and Columbus, which also gave the chance to take some turns off the beaten tour track! We enjoyed a good visit to the beautiful Hocking Hills, where the trees sparkled in the sunlight with all their autumnal colours. There we visited Ash Cave, an impressive rock formation, once inhabited by earlier populations...

The following day the four of us drove to the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, where the Shawshank Redemption was filmed. In the old Gothic style house at the front is a great museum including a lot of info on that incredible movie. Closed in 1990, the prison had become one of the worst in the USA. We could feel the howls of the traumatised inmates as we walked the gantry between the dark, rusty cramped cells on our left and the vertigo inducing drop on our right. Not surprisingly, it's believed to be haunted and many people have experienced weird phenomena there.

Following two fun shows in Columbus and Akron, we traveled on to Joliet, near Chicago. The promotor invited us to visit the Illinois Rock 'n Roll Museum, which was full of wonderful memorabilia. With some pals we also enjoyed walking around the extraordinary Rialto Theatre where we played, with its stunning architecture, artwork and chandeliers, reminiscent of a European city opera house. Roger had the chance to play the venue's beautiful organ to begin the song Devil's Cathedral.

The Rialto Theatre is another reputedly haunted place, where there have been many sightings. This Halloween period has indeed felt like a week of hauntings!

My thanks as always to the agents and the whole team.

We're now in the Wild West, but that will be part of another story in my next blog...