North America Guitar Tour
Sunnyvale
June 18, 2014
The San Francisco skyline that can be seen on the right as you cross the Bay Bridge is one of the best views in America to me. When I crossed the bridge for the first time, it was so beautiful that I immediately turned back and crossed it again, even though it was a toll. When songs like Tony Bennett's "San Francisco" play on the radio, you're in a movie world.
On this day, I was invited by Mr. M to do a house concert in Sunnyvale, a town on the outskirts of San Francisco. As I drove south without any other information, I passed San Francisco without realizing it, and checked into a motel near the house where I was going to play that night at around 2:00 without seeing the cityscape I was looking forward to. I realized that this is what happens when you rely on navigation. There was still quite a bit of time before the appointed time, so I arranged Weather Report's "Birdland", which I had been listening to on random play on my iPod touch on the way there, and an idea came to me. Although it was still in alpha version, I recorded it and uploaded it to YouTube as a promotional video for the night. I would come u>p with an idea on the way there and record it as soon as I got into the motel, and this will happen many times in the future.
It seems that I was nervous because it was my first time playing at a house on this trip. I forgot to turn on the camera I set up, and the volume was too low due to a mistake in the recording settings. According to Mr. M, I would be playing while the owner of the house was out. I didn't understand the situation right away, but the point is that I rented it for a few hours for this party. As for the performance itself, I think I was able to perform the best I could at that point, thanks to the fact that I had warmed up my fingers at the motel. However, now I have no idea what I played. It was a truly homey live performance with conversations between a few couples and a few customers. After the show, the homeowners returned home, and taking advantage of the opportunity, I played a few more songs at their request.
The next day, I had a long drive to LA, so I went straight back to the motel. I was disappointed that both the recording and the video had failed, but I was satisfied that it had turned out pretty well considering how bad it had been, and fell asleep again. As with the last time, I slept right on the bedcover holding guitar, so it must have been very easy to make.
*People mentioned in this article are listed by their initials until their identities can be confirmed.
Contents
Introduction
Until Departure
Seattle
To California
Day Off
Sunnyvale
To La
LA 2 Days
To Tucson
Albuquerque
To Colorado (beginning of Miracle)
Berthoud
Denver
to Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City 2 days
To Texas
San Antonio
Georgetown
Dallas
Houston 2 Days
Benton
Nashville (CAAS)
Roswell
Tampa 2 Days
Miami
Orland 2 Days
Myrtle Beach
Chapel Hill 3 Days
Kingsport
To Indiana
Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar Festival
To Staten Island
Manhattan
Phillipsburg
Nazareth (Martin Guitar Factory)
To Massachusetts (end of Miracle)
Methuen
To Montreal
To Buffalo
Meadvill A Day Before
Meadvill Ghost Hotel
Detroit
Chicago
Minneapolice
Spin Off #1
Spin Off #2 "EU Tour IN 2008 / Until Departure
Czech 1
Czech 2
London
Liverpool
Chesham
To Germany
Lemgo
Ingolstadt
Bregenz
To Italy
Florence
The Last Gig
Going Home