Thoughts On The 7/18 Dudley Manlove Quartet Gig (And Airport Security And SF Tourism)
On Saturday I performed a show in Napa Valley with The Dudley Manlove Quartet. This was a trip that included the usual fun and strangeness of a band tour. In Seattle the airport security screening team was baffled at the xray image of my guitar. Whenever I fly with it I try to select the line with the youngest-looking operator, reasoning that they are most likely to understand what it is they are looking at. It turned out the xray tech was troubled by what appeared to be wiring inside my guitar. He said “it looks like there are wires inside this instrument”. I replied that indeed there were. For a moment I had a mental image of being forced to disassemble the guitar to show him where the wires are and what they do. He decided it wasn’t worth continuing to discus and sent me on my way. Our flight to Oakland was fairly uneventful, and we arrived more or less on time. When I retrieved my checked baggage I discovered the TSA had decided to open my flight case and “inspect” my pedalboard. It’s reassuring to know that my POD XT Live has been approved by the TSA. You wouldn’t want to be modeling amplifiers or effects without their clearance.
Stag’s Leap Winery is beautiful. I enjoyed spending time wandering around before we played, and took note of the amazing sights. There were a large number of hummingbirds and hawks in the air, which was very interesting to see. I also did a bit of exploring the tunnels where the wine barrels are placed to age.
The wine barrels were stacked against the walls of tunnels that seemingly went on for hundreds of yards. During our wandering in the labyrinth we expected to encounter a minotaur or something. Alas, no monsters were discovered. We did come upon a side corridor that terminated in a room where a Foucault Pendulum was gracefully swinging. Being a geek, I was delighted to blather on about the purpose and history of this device. My bandmates appeared to be captivated, perhaps because I was blocking the exit.
Our home away from home in San Francisco was Tommy’s Joynt, a legendary BBQ eatery and bar on Van Ness. They had a glorious selection of international beers, knowledgeable bartenders, and (we discovered sometime later that evening) a pretty tasty kamikaze. Much fun was had therein, with enjoyable conversation and beverages in abundance. During our evening wandering on Sunday we decided to have dinner in North Beach at a lovely Italian restaurant. It was a great way to end the day, although we did find ourselves back at Tommy’s for a nightcap…