Well, I’m heading to the West Coast again. It’s been a while since I’ve been back there with my solo project. I’m looking forward to a week of Pacific Coast hospitality.
When traveling with SCI, this was one of the first places I played on tour. I remember coming down into the Bay Area after a grueling, 26-hour drive from Boulder. It was like wandering into Wonderland. Everything was green, lush and so foreign to my cold Colorado winter.
I had never been to the Pacific Coast before and I was amazed at this land of the counter culture, Haight-Ashbury and the roots of the “Jam” culture. I had never seen a Whole Foods, met a vegan or walked through giant redwoods. And driving on Route 1 was spectacular, but always a bit unnerving, while at the wheel of a 32-foot ski bus named Bussy. That time was an awakening for me, not just musically, but also personally.
We played many cities and venues in those early tours, from San Diego to Seattle. It was a blast to leave my day job and join forces with this super vibrant, energetic crew of freaks. With Kristen the “merch goddess” and JonO our sound man, we traveled the West trying to convert young open-minded people to our musical style.
Last weekend’s epic set with Keller Williams and Steve Kimock at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival got me thinking of all the great times I’ve had on the West Coast as I prepare for a West Coast tour next week.
In the next few days, I’ll be posting about my memories from early SCI gigs in each of my West Coast stops on this KHB tour.
I hope you can tune in.
Kyle
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