Journal
Dec 3, 2004
“Give me a sound warning. Give me a trace of love. Give me Hell for effort. Listen to the crows cry for sustenance – they know more than we give them credit for.
My story is a long time coming…”
I’ve been AWOL for some time now and I promise that I will try to give a [...]
Dec 2, 2003
I’ve not written for sometime - not sure what happened though… When we played in Saskatoon last week, I went out a few days early to hang with Don and Jacque at their new house north of the city, which, by-the-way, is fabulous. Very private and very quiet. We ate and drank and watched movies [...]
Sept 19, 2003
Iron Horse, Kingston. We’ve had a hit and miss history with Kingston. I remember some great gigs and a couple of disasters and some strange, “coming of age” times as well. Lakeview Manor was an early show experience here—and my first exposure to bill sharing with women who wear little-to-no clothing. We played a show [...]
Sept 18, 2003
I love my cowboy suit. I love the hat. I feel like Tim McGraw when I put it on. I feel like a mysterious, dangerous character. I feel like a fun-loving redneck ready for a rock’n good time.
The first few numbers in the set are very upbeat and with the cowboy suits it’s like HeeHaw [...]
Sept 17, 2003
Cambridge. Fiddler’s Green. Some shows are difficult to describe only because I can’t remember anything of any real significance happening. We played and it all came together nicely. I think we have mastered the ability of putting on a solid show that continually builds through out the night. When you have as many relatively recognized [...]
Sept 12, 2003
Every now and then, we play a gig that’s a bit of a freak show. The venue or the audience or a certain combination of both qualify the gig to “freak status”. Enter the Brampton Fairgrounds. This one was certainly hovering close to freak status. We were picking up after the demolition derby and the [...]
Aug 4, 2003
Right: The Pikes and Rob Wells aka Ricky from Trailer Park Boys
This is arguably the tastiest date on this little tour - figuratively and literally. The Marquee club is owned and operated by one of the coolest guys in town: Victor Syperek. The host of hosts makes us feel like royalty when we are there. [...]
Aug 3, 2003
Last night we played a private party in Fredericton. Super-fans Krista & Geoffrey Downey celebrated their recent marriage (together 12 years before tying the knot - heads up to all of you twenty somethings wanting to get married!!!) by throwing an amazing bash at a beautiful hotel on the outskirts of town. Two tons of [...]
Aug 2, 2003
OK Enough loafing around. Time to get back to work. New Glasgow’s Jubilee Festival last night. Pretty typical show for us. Several thousand people seemed to have a good time. Weather was perfect. Patrick was a great help. And a fantastic venue! Thank you Emma.
Got back to the hotel in time to see the second [...]
July 29, 2003
Left: Jay, Merl, Jeffrey Liberty, Don & Bryan
Good morning Fish-Heads. O’Leary’s in St. John last night. Absolutely amazing. A small club filled to the rafters. The best kind of shows. The audience was so much fun to play for. Hot, sticky, sweaty fun. Steve, Craig, Sherrie and Stephanie were all very kind and generous. Tech-extrordinaire and [...]
July 28, 2003
Greetings from Eastern Canada. We’re en route to St. John NB this morning. Last night’s gig in Port Hawkesbury was interesting. Temperamental weather played havoc on the set and things got pretty wet up there - I hope the gear works tonight! Do you know how cool Don looks when water is pouring down from [...]
July 28, 2003
Greetings from Eastern Canada. We’re en route to St. John NB this morning. Last night’s gig in Port Hawkesbury was interesting. Temperamental weather played havoc on the set and things got pretty wet up there - I hope the gear works tonight! Do you know how cool Don looks when water is pouring down from [...]
Sept 18, 2003
I love my cowboy suit. I love the hat. I feel like Tim McGraw when I put it on. I feel like a mysterious, dangerous character. I feel like a fun-loving redneck ready for a rock’n good time.
The first few numbers in the set are very upbeat and with the cowboy suits it’s like HeeHaw gone plum-loco. And I think it’s fitting really: there has always been a “twang” in the Pikes—musically and philosophically. I doubt we will ever a make a Goth album and wear capes on stage. We are from the hinterland, the boonies, the tundra where the men eat cow (mad or not mad) and so do the women.
Wakefield PQ is a picturesque village 25 minutes from Ottawa in/near the Gatineau. When you look up ‘quaint’ in the dictionary there is a photo of Wakefield. Paul Syme, the Inn Keeper at the Black Sheep has been a friend of the Pikes for a number of years now. It’s the nicest “dive” we’ve ever stayed at. We are treated very kindly but probably the greatest attribute to the place is Paul’s fussy tastes when booking talent for the room. The result is a club that continually presents very high quality entertainment. And we are honored to be part of that fraternity. (For those of you who don’t know, we recorded a portion of our Live 2000 album at the Black Sheep Inn). It’s the kind of place that you could just show up on any given night with no idea who is playing and if you are a music fan you will be presented with a great show.
My old Barstool Prophets buddy Graham Greer opened tonight. He is immensely talented and it should only be a matter of time before hoards of people begin to figure that out.
The show was a lot of fun!!! Montreal was in the house. It was all good.
Billy fed us with his awesome meals. Paul kept us in drink. We chatted all night.
Merl and I were having a beer outside the club before the gig and it was the perfect night—warm, no wind, the sky was lit up. Beautiful. Wakefield rocks.