hello again......

.....I hope everyone is beginning to enjoy the first few weeks of summer. I sit here on a saturday night, listening to some live James Taylor.....and just finished checking out the rainbow we had after the rain storm that just passed thru Columbia.......alot of people ask me what I do when we aren't playing on weekends.....for me just hanging out, listening to music, visiting with friends, etc. is a good thing.......when we have gigs on the weekends, some can take up to 12 hours of a saturday, depending on the travel time, load in, sound check, grabbing a bite to eat and then playing. Last weekend the band had three gigs over two days......unfortunately I couldn't play any of them , but I heard they went well......the first was friday, down out Coopers landing......so by the time you check your gear you'll need, pack it up if you've been using it thru the week, clean up, load up, drive down there, unload, set up, do a sound check, grab a bite to eat and then start playing, you've usually eaten up about 2-3 hours.......you play for three hours, then some mingle with the fans, some start tearing down and packing up the gear...so usually anywhere from an hour or two you're finally ready to head home, then a lot of times, you'll unload the gear and then about an hour or two later, you head to bed........so a normal gig, close to home can take about 6-8 hours total, then when you do it again the next day all over again, if you get to sleep a full eight hours, your weekend is usually used up and sunday is used just to sleep and try to relax or sunday is used to get the stuff done you couldn't do on saturday, or you're drining back on sunday........on the out of town gigs that we spend the night at, you have more free time, if you don't have to drive real far to the next town, but you're usually stuck at the venue for quite a few hours, or you visit places on the way if you have time......so you nap, visit, read, play, or what ever there is to occupy your time........there is a lot of hurry up and wait involved with gigs, considering the time to get there, load in, set up, sound check, etc. On the gigs when we've opened for some one...there is a specific time you need to be there, then you unload the gear, then you wait for the opening act to do their soundcheck, then they get the stage ready for you, you set up your gear, do a sound check, then you usually have an hour or two before you play, so you look for someplace to eat , if meals aren't provided, with a designated time to return to the venue, which is usually 30 minutes before you go on.....in that time you're occupying your time the best you can,....there are always interesting sound people, musicians. or road crew to visit with or the actual crowd outside, or you can be immersed in any pre-preperation you need to be ready to hit the stage when it's your time........with the wonderful bunch of folks around you, I don't think any of us have ever,.... never had anything to keep use intertained while we wait....there is always something or someone to keep your interest, or you can take a walk around the area, depending where its located...... the music business is full of really interesting characters, and a bunch are always full of road stories, jokes or love to talk gear, or sports or music. or whatever........it is really a very interesting community of folks, whether they are a player, singer, tech of some sort, runs lights, sells merch, takes tickets, a bartender, the caterer, etc....this is their "day" job and its an interesting one at that.....so with all of the "hurry up and wait syndrome" , you are usually occupied with something, or just watching the people, and all the dynamics involved, there is always something to do.....being from both sides of the fence, a normal "9 to 5" day job thru the week, then the life of a musician on weekends, you get to see and meet all kinds of people..... the interesting part with The Hilary Scott Band, is the weekend musicians life is starting to creep into the normal "9 to 5" job.....so hopefully this time next year, we'll be writing as only a musician, 7 days a week, with the "9 to 5" being replaced with the adventurous life on the road.......so with your help, hopefully Hilary will be on the road full time....it's not an easy job, it can be more tiring then the "9 to 5", .....you have to live off broken times of sleep, sleeping in a van going down the road late at night, but when you wake the next day, get to the venue, and step on that stage and start to play, it then all seems so much worth the time and trouble....and thats why we do this......the feeling of playing great music , giving you the fans, our best, night after night, is so rewarding, it's unbelievable......so thank you once again for supporting Hilary and the band...without you , we wouldn't be doing this...and this is such a wonderful thing to be doing......thank you again.....see you out there soon.....here's some places we'll be in the next few months and don't forget to check in to the website....and purchase your "Road to Hope Roadie Package".....that will be a great time and your name will be on the new CD "Road To Hope" due out this fall..........
June 24th - Knuckleheads, Kansas City, Mo.
June 28th - The Blue Note Streetfest, Columbia, Mo.
June 30th - The Coco Cafe, Nashville, Tenn.
July 9th - Shelter Gardens Concert Series, Columbia, Mo.
July 13th - Club Tavern, Middleton, Wisc. ( Madison area)
July 14th - somewhere in between here and there
July 15th - Aroma Coffehouse, Champaign, Ill.
Aug 4th - Sandpoint Music Festival, Sandpoint, Idaho ( opening f/Tanya Tucker)
Aug 25th - Dylan Tribute Cd Release Party, The Blue Note, Columbia, Mo.
Oct. 7th - Road To Hope Roadies show ( private, roadies package members only)
Nov. 4th - Uncommon Ground, Chicago, Ill.
...if you know anyone in any of these areas, please incourage them to come out to the shows, or
take a road trip yourselves, we'd welcome the familair faces in the crowd in a new venue...
......thanks again....B.A.