RON'S 2009 TOUR JOURNAL

THE RF'S - LACEY SPRING FUN FAIR

A few weeks ago, the RF's reunited after taking the winter off. It was good to be back together, jamming at Bow Lake Elementary in Seatac. Every year for the past 9 years I have played the Lacey Spring Fun Fair at St. Martin's College, sometimes with the band, sometimes on my own, but I prefer having the band there. The stage is large enough to comfortably fit all of us on it, and they have an excellent sound system. The sound crew always does an excellent job at mixing us, which makes performing much easier. This year, we did a lot of our 'standards' - "Tales to Here", "Heidi", "Here Come the Two RF's", "Summertime Love", and "War Games". We also introduced our version of the Stealers Wheel hit "Stuck in the Middle With You". My voice was in good shape, I felt good. Jeff Fowler held down the bottom end on electric and acoustic bass guitars, and Alan Fowler kept a perfect beat for us on drums. Dave Park was on lead guitar, possibly the last time with us. I'm really sad to see him go, but he's got other priorities right now. One of the best things about playing fairs is the food - yep, I love the greasy, artery clogging curly fries and corn dogs and ice cold water! The classic car show during the fair is also fun to check out (I should've brought my 65 Mustang). It doesn't hurt that there are pretty girls everywhere I look! I'd rather sing a love song to a cute girl than...well, the alternative. And I'm not putting anything down, and I'm not picking anything up, either! I'm not advocating anything! It was a perfect day, sunshine and warm. I hope we get to return next year.

FEDERAL WAY FARMERS MARKET

First performance on my own this year, Saturday May 30th, @ Federal Way Farmers Market (@ "the Commons", aka "the mall"). I played here for the first time last year, and made a lot of good friends (but I didn't see Mysto the Magician this time). If you've seen me play in recent years, you know some of the songs I do in my set - Lovin' You, Heartbeat, Never Be Anyone Else But You, I'd Love You to Want Me, I've Got You In My Heart, Long Lonesome Highway, Lonely Summer, Where You Belong, One More Chance, You and I, Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You....to name a few. I throw in different songs from show to show, depending on my mood, or the audience. Today I tried a few things I don't usually do - This Boy (the Beatles song), I'll Remember You (popularized by Don Ho and Elvis Presley), Devoted to You (by the Everly Brothers). Only one minor problem early one - when the wind pushed the stage cover back, but the crew got things in control immediately. I gotta thank Karla and Rose for bringing me back here, and the vendors that were so appreciative of my performance.

WENATCHEE VALLEY FARMER'S MARKET

A couple weeks went by while I was occupied with other stuff (most notably, the annual Tacoma Record Collector's Show hosted by Don Kirsch June 7th), then it was time to pack up the car again and head east. I played in Wenatchee for the first time in June 2006, it's a very beautiful city, the Columbia River running through, and mountains surrounding it. The market itself is along the river, it's really a picturesque setting. Saturday morning, June 20th, I drove down to the market, and set up. I played for 2 1/2 hours, from 10:30 a.m. till just a little after 1 p.m. (with a short break in the middle). There was a dj from Apple FM doing a live broadcast in the parking lot, he mentioned my name on the air a couple times, and enjoyed my choice of songs. I flubbed a few lyrics in the first set, but nobody seemed to notice. Tried out some different ones in the second set - "Woodstock" (the Matthews Southern Comfort version), Lobo's "I'm the Only One", Eddy Arnold's "Anytime", also got a request for some Merle Haggard so I did a couple verses of "Okie from Muskogee" and "Today I Started Loving You Again". I try things out, see if they work or not. If they do, I'll do them in the next show. If they don't.....oh well. I gotta thank Julie Mitchell with the market for inviting me back the last 2 years, and the people of Wenatchee for being so appreciative. This is a town that loves music. There's a lot to see and do while you're here - the old fashioned soda fountain (Owl's) in downtown Wenatchee; the trail that follows the Columbia River (including the pedestrian bridge across the river); several antique shops downtown; even a train that runs through the riverfront park. A fun place to spend the weekend.

KELSO BRIDGE MARKET

Sunday, June 28th, I was down south at the Kelso Bridge Market with Jeff Fowler. I've played here so many times I know most of the vendors, and they enjoy having entertainment - particularly when it's music that they LIKE! So I did a set on my own, then Jeff joined me on a semi-unplugged set. Took a break, then came back for another solo set, before ending with some loud rock and roll. I like playing farmers markets, because there are all ages of people to play for, people are generally in a good mood, and I can play anything I want to. I also like the idea of supporting independent farmers and merchants. Our culture is dominated by corporate controls, the farmers markets are one of the few places where this is not so. The vendors here put a lot of love into their work. Another attraction in Kelso is Cap'n Yoby's - the best place for halibut and chips. There aren't many of these mom and pop restaurants left.

BURIEN PARK

Jeff, Alan and I were at the "Stone Canyon"...uh...."Stone Circle" on July 4th, but where was Dave Park? This used to be his favorite place to play. Maybe I should file a missing persons report. Things went fine until some moron set off an M-80 in the park - and I'm not talking about a guitar amp, git-git-git-git-git!

AUBURN INTERNATIONAL FARMERS MARKET

I must be crazy, agreeing to play the morning after the 4th of July ruckus! And at a market I've never been to before! It's right in the heart of downtown Auburn, next to the transit center, so there were buses and trains going by all afternoon. Mark Wayne was on before me, doing Kenny Rankin style versions of Beatles and Ricky Nelson songs. I did two sets - actually one long set, no break in between. It went as well as could be expected the day after the 4th. There were some very nice people that stopped by to listen, and the market p.a. worked well for me. This was the rare occasion when I was actually told to crank up the volume! I was going to eat at Herfy's after the show, but it was closed. I think the Auburn Herfy's is the only one that stayed in business, the others died out decades ago, although a chain of them has opened up again in recent years.

VANCOUVER FARMERS MARKET

Saturday, July 11, the RF's were back on I-5 south, heading south to Vancouver. As has become the custom, we stayed at the Sunnyside Motel in Hazel Dell - we have some fans there. They saw us driving up and said "they're back!" Got to hang out at Crossroads Music in Portland for a couple hours, and eat at one of the few remaining Skippers restaurants in Hazel Dell. Sunday, we played at the Vancouver Farmers Market. Opening act was a female bluegrass quartet that sounded very nice. I was kind of scared trying to follow them with our loud rock and roll, but we did fine. We're at the stage now where we've been playing a lot, and getting "tight", like a real touring rock and roll band. Also, too, I think the contrast of styles we play - some heavy rock, and some softer songs - helps. We even got one girl dancing near the end of the show. The only problem today was a faulty cord for the keyboard. Time to visit Sluggo Music again!

FEDERAL WAY FARMERS MARKET

Saturday, July 25th, a hot day in Federal Way, but that didn't deter folks from coming to the farmers market. Once again, the staff made me feel welcome here, and the vendors were friendly. I got a request for "I'd Love You To Want Me', also played a few songs for a nice Hawaiian lady - "Can't Help Falling in Love", "Hawaiian Wedding Song", "I'll Remember You" and "Blue Hawaii". She was dancing the hula with some friends. After the show, I walked over to the mall for a double scoop of Baskin Robbins ice cream - boy, that was good!

SEATAC FARMERS MARKET

Somewhere between Seattle and Tacoma lies the town of Seatac - home of an international airport, and a farmers market. Sunday, July 26th, I was the entertainment for 3 hours - that's right, 3 full hours of me singing and strumming my guitar, and nobody complained! I tried out a lot of songs I hadn't done before - ("Dream Lover"), and some I hadn't played recently ("Send Me Somebody to Love"). Got great response for "Lonesome Town" from a Rick Nelson fan (he said he'd just watched a tribute tape hosted by Rick's twins). Once again, it was very hot - I went through several bottles of water this afternoon. This is a new market at a new location, but it shows great potential. I'm honored to be invited to be a part of it.

WENATCHEE FARMERS MARKET

Okay, I thought 94 degrees was hot. That was before I played in 106 degree weather! Saturday August 1st I was back at the Wenatchee Farmers Market, which is becoming my favorite place to play. Julie Mitchell is the kindest market manager, and keeps things so well organized. I never have any problems here, and the vendors are also very welcoming. I probably had the best spot in the lot - at least there was a little breeze from time to time. One of the vendors kept bringing me ice water, I appreciated that. After the first set, a girl came up and said "you just played my favorite Bob Dylan song" - "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You" - so I gave her a cd. BTW, if you're ever in Wenatchee, make sure you stop in at the Owl Soda Fountain downtown. They make things the old fashioned way. The chocolate milkshake I had there today was the best I've had in years. The antique shops are also fun to browse, and Hastings - Wenatchee's only book/music store is worth spending a couple hours in, too.

AUBURN INTERNATIONAL FARMERS MARKET

Wenatchee is like a dream come true. This place is like a nightmare. Sunday, August 2nd, I was scheduled to play at 1:30 - at least according to the email I recieved several weeks ago. I showed up, and didn't see my name anywhere on the schedule, so I tracked down the market manager, and she had me listed for the following Sunday. I don't know how she got the two dates mixed up, but I checked my emails again when I got home, and found the original message. Yup. Sunday, August 2nd, not August 9th. So it wasn't my mistake. I won't take the blame for this. I guess things had been going a little too well this summer, it was time for a minor disaster. I hope it's the last one.

PROCTOR FARMERS MARKET

Saturday, August 8th, I was in Tacoma at the Proctor Farmers Market. I used to play here several times a year, but this was my first time here since last August. I'm glad people remember me - this used to be my neighborhood. It was nice to see some familiar faces. I appreciate them having a sound system set up here so I don't have to bring anything but my guitars, keyboard, and a couple microphones. Makes for a lot less work on my part. I'd been fighting off some kind of throat problem for a few days, so I was a bit worried about how I would sound, but there were no problems. Resting my voice is important, though, especially at a time I have a lot of gigs yet to do. I dropped in on my friends at House of Records after the show and bought a couple albums. Definately a place to visit if you are in Tacoma.

6TH AVENUE FARMERS MARKET

Still in Tacoma, on Tuesday August 11th, playing for the first time at the new 6th Avenue Farmers Market. Again, I was in very familiar territory - right down the street from House of Records, Golden Oldies and Sluggo Music. Sluggo is where I've bought a lot of my stuff - guitar strings, cords, harmonicas, even my recording equipment. The performers area was right next to the donut vendor, and she was sweet enough to give me a bag of warm donuts - delicious! Again, it was nice to see some friends and be welcomed to the new market. I never get over the feeling before a show of "what if they don't like me?" It's always a relief to know that I've pleased some people.

HOMEGROWN FESTIVAL

It's been a strange summer here in the Northwest, some days over 100 degrees, and other days cloudy and gray. I drove up north to Marysville Thursday afternoon, and part of the time it was sunny, part of the time it was raining. I was able to take in much of the town that evening before the rain started again. Friday, August 14, I was the afternoon entertainment at the Homegrown Festival. This was my first time here on my own, I've always had some kind of group here before, but it actually seemed to go better this year. Maybe it was the songs, maybe the people, whatever it was it was nice to get a better response. It's always inspiring to see someone singing along with me, or get requests. Everywhere I go, people love hearing "Take Me Home, Country Roads". It's just one of those songs that connects with a lot of people - maybe it's memories of home, or family. The stage here is also very nice, a good setting. I enjoyed the morning entertainment, the Old Time Fiddlers, a quartet of two fiddles, guitar and banjo, playing traditonal songs. Nice people, very good entertainers.

PUYALLUP FARMER'S MARKET

The following morning, Saturday August 15, I was at the Puyallup Farmer's Market for the first time this year. I've played here probably more than anywhere, but I'm still meeting new people. I'm kind of jammed in next to the vendors here, so I can't play loud, but the people are still very appreciative. It's always an ego boost to hear women say "you have a good voice", see parents dance with their kids to the songs they like, and have people actually want to pay money for my cd so they can listen to the music at home. It doesn't hurt, either, that there is a Krispy Kreme shop nearby!

KELSO BRIDGE MARKET

Sunday, August 23, I was down south again at the Kelso Bridge Market, with Jeff Fowler on electric and acoustic bass guitar. It was a very quiet day. Not many vendors at the market, and not many people passing through. There just wasn't any energy, I know I didn't play my best. Oh well. Sometimes you just have to get through it. The only way you get any better is just to keep playing. The highlight of the day for me was the Kelso rooster sitting in on keyboards with us.

WESTFIELD MALL

I haven't played in Olympia in a long time - the last time I remember was Olympia Harbor Days in 1999, and that gig may have been the worst ever for Jeff and the RF's - our lead guitarist ditched us, the bass player's amp was fried, and Rob Jones, terrible drummer, seemed intent on living up to his billing. So it was important for me to make a good impression this time, at the Westfield Mall, aka Capitol Mall, Friday, August 28, as part of their Back to School event. This was also my first performance in a mall since the old days of the Lakewood Mall. Soundwise, it's far from ideal, but I got a good little crowd for my hour long set.

FEDERAL WAY FARMER'S MARKET

Saturday, August 29th, I was back at the Federal Way Farmer's Market. I always see some friends here, and the market managers Karla and Rose always make me feel welcome here. I had some very appreciative listeners today, again, it's an ego boost, but I don't think it's unhealthy. Do I get tired of doing the same songs week after week? No, because each time I do them, someone is hearing me do them for the first time, and I have to do it the best I can. I can't just coast through and say "these people don't matter". On a day like this one, of course, I was able to try a few things I don't play all the time, but I always do "One More Chance", "Where You Belong", "Safe from Harm", the core songs of my solo shows. If I leave something out, someone will say "how come you didn't do -----?", so I try to do the ones that get the best response, and then throw in a few of my personal favorites. At the end of the show, the market bakers gave gave me a a loaf of fresh homemade bread, and that was good! Just one of the perks of playing at a market.

AUBURN INTERNATIONAL FARMERS MARKET

Sunday, August 30th, back in Auburn, and all the donut shops in town are out of donuts. DOH! So I had to settle for Hostess Chocodiles for my pre-show snack. I listened to the opening artist playing Hawaiian music on his lap steel, very nice sounds. Nice guy, too. This time went much better for me than last time, it's actually a nice setting, with the buses and trains going by. In fact, a freight train went by just as I started "The City of New Orleans" - perfect timing! The market manager let's us play loud here, and that probably added to the energy of my performance. Also, too, with the Auburn market's resident star, Mark Wayne watching me, I had to give it everything I had. I closed with a couple Beatles songs, "I Need You" and "This Boy', because they're his favorite band. I was exhausted after this set, but I hung around the market, just relaxing and enjoying the music.

LARRABEE STATE PARK

Many, many years ago, our family camped at Larrabee State Park near Bellingham. I was probably 10 years old, and I noticed the large stage in the picnic area of the park. I wasn't playing an instrument yet, but I knew I loved music, and wanted to play and sing for people someday. Labor Day weekend, Sunday, September 6th, and I finally was able to live out my dream - playing rock and roll with my brothers on the stage in this great park. It rained through our first few songs, ,but the sky cleared up as we played. I brought out the Marshall stack today, the Fender twin just isn't getting the job done. Jeff used his bass amp disguised as a boom box. It was a great setting, in this beautiful park, with the trains running behind us, and people playing on the lawn. Lucky for us, we stopped at the right time, because the rain came down hard after we left the stage.

COMMUNITY FARMERS MARKET

Wednesday, September 15, I drove down to Chehalis, to play at their Community Farmers Market, downtown near the old train station. This was my first time playing in this town since I did their SW Washington Fair in 2002, a night I'll never forget. I played for about 3 & 1/2 hours this time, tired a lot of songs I haven't done recently, some I haven't done at all. All of this, despite not feeling particularly energetic - maybe it was the drive down, or just not sleeping well lately. I just felt I was dragging, but I guess it didn't show. Now how do I deal with women walking up and saying "I love your voice"? Sure feels good, that's all I can say.

GRAYLAND BEACH STATE PARK

The RF's returned to Grayland Beach September 19 and 20, on the great stage in the yurt village. We had a nice trip over here, stopping at McDonald's for breakfast....hotcakes and sausage...delicious! I love the stage in the park, it's just the right size for us, and the setting, with all the trees is very scenic. I got plenty of volume out of my Marshall stack, although my cord came unplugged from it a couple times, but we just roll along. You can't stop the song just because of technical difficulties. Alan was a little sluggish on Sunday (he said he was running on empty, he had an energy crunch), but Jeff and I were ready to rock! I've had to take over the lead guitar role since Dave Park left, and I still make mistakes onstage, but I'm slowly getting more confident. Most of my songs are more rhythm driven, but I'm working out the solos to songs like "Heidi" and "Making Dreams Reality". Actually, I did a few guitar leads in our year with Adam Finley, "War Games" (which I did on the record), "Summertime Love", "Tales to Here", so this is not completely foreign territory to me, but it's something I never really wanted to do. I'm a rhythm fanatic. I don't care for a lot of flashy lead, so maybe it's better this way. Too often the flashy guitar solos detracted from the songs instead of enhancing them.

FEDERAL WAY FARMERS MARKET

Saturday, September 26, I was back at the Federal Way Farmers Market, without a sound system, just my Marshall stack and Fender Twin amp. It was not a good day, but I still got some nice compliments from people back in my corner of the market.

SEATAC FARMERS MARKET

Sunday, October 4, a beatiful sunny, but windy day at the Seatac Farmers Market. The park was full of kids skateboarding, playing soccer, bicycling, and familes eating lunch. I did 4 sets - all the songs I usually do, and more, I was the only entertainment today. This is a good group of people, the staff was very helpful with setting up, and the vendors all appreciated the music. It's nice that we have warm sunny days in October, I tend to go into hibernation when winter comes, but I'm in no hurry for it to get here.

COMMUNITY FARMERS MARKET

Tuesday, October 13, I was back in Chehalis for the downtown farmers market. I drove down the afternoon before, and spent the day seeing the sites - the old Chehalis train station (closed long ago, now it's a history museum), the comparitively new train station in Centralia, and the legendary Yard Birds store (http://www.yardbirdshistory.com). Enjoyed dinner at the newly reopened Skippers restaurant, and listened to great oldies on KITI 1420 AM. Stayed at the lakeside Best Value Inn. Tuesday morning looked bad, torrentail rain coming down, but by the time I got to the market, the sky was clearing up. The people here are some of the nicest I've met, I played (with breaks) from 1 to 4:45, and got to try a few songs I haven't done before - "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter", "P.S. I Love You", "It's Up to You", "Wake Up Little Susie", "Dandy", "She Belongs to Me". It's always fun - and challenging - to try different songs. Some of them I will try recording in the off season. I always have doubts about my own abilities - as a singer, as a guitarist, as a performer. Thanks, Chehalis, for supporting me.

VANCOUVER FARMERS MARKET

Sunday, October 18th, Jeff, Alan and myself were back at Vancouver Farmers Market, and it was a warm, sunny day - amazing, because Saturday was cold, windy, and rainy. Just goes to show how unpredictable the weather can be in the Northwest. The opening act was a 10 piece band with saxes, trumpets, keyboard, guitar, bass, drums and percussion. I thought their song selection was very predictable (why is it that every 60's cover band has to do "Mustang Sally"? Wilson Pickett had many other great songs), but they played well, and most importantly, appeared to be having a good time. How could we follow that? It wasn't easy, all we could do was play our songs to the best of our ability, and although the market was not nearly as busy as it was in the summertime, we got a good response. The only downer was only being able to do one set, because of other events happening in the park. I like doing longer shows, more stage time means being able to do more songs, particularly the ones we don't do all the time. It's been a good year, though. I got to go a lot of places and meet a lot of people, now it's time to hibernate and see if I can make some time to finish the recordings I've been working on.