"City of Roses"and"All America City"Shows

Portland,Tacoma, Spokane, and Boise

Portland, Tacoma, Spokane, and Boise

by Gary Bickmore : TheotherGB@aol.com

What do these numbers have to do with AMERICA? Well....... 3 states, 4 shows, and 1828 miles later, we are home. Yes, it was time for another road trip. When we saw the schedule early in the year and noticed the shows lined up in the Pacific Northwest, we decided "here's our chance". The trip was timely for three reasons. First, we had never been to that section of the US. Second, we wanted to visit with our very good friends, Rick and Mary Wahlgren. And lastly (sort of), there were three shows in the area (more on that later).

It all started last Saturday, April 18th. We flew to Seattle and rented a car. Then the short scenic trip to Rick's place in northern Washington. They have a lovely home on several wooded acres. After Rick's expertly guided sightseeing tour, we had a wonderful dinner overlooking the water in Vancouver, BC (thanks again, R+M). The next morning Barb and I headed for Portland, OR. We arrived a day early to allow time to sightsee. What a beautiful city! But of course, the main attraction was still yet to come.

We got lucky in our choice of hotel in Portland. It was within easy walking distance of the Memorial Coliseum. The show started with The Lovin' Spoonful taking the stage at 7:30 p.m. As usual, we were not too excited to sit through an opening act......we were there to see AMERICA!!! But wow, was I surprised!! They put on a great show. No, John Sebastian was not there but he wasn't missed either. The Lovin' Spoonful played all their "hits"......and more......including a group whistle- and sing-along. It was a wonderful trip down memory lane.

AMERICA took the stage right on time at 8:45 p.m. for their "greatest hits" show. The guys played with great enthusiam, helping to keep these songs fresh. Songs like "Never Be Lonely" and the new intro to "Sandman" also added some spark to the familiar mix. The audience was up and dancing before the third song. Like most AMERICA shows, it was over way too soon.

The quality of the sound was impressive for a large arena (thanks to Bill's expertise!). It was also encouraging to see such a tremendous turnout when Sarah McLachlan and Lisa Loeb were performing right next door. All of these shows had larger audiences than I am used to, and it was fantastic seeing everyone enjoying themselves so.

As Rick said, we followed the bus up to Tacoma on Tuesday. The Tacoma Dome is soooooo huge that they can set up a football field inside. But this night it was reserved for music!!! The guys really rocked the place, and the appreciative fans were singing along. I'll always remember the girl sitting next to me. When Gerry started to play "I Need You", she started to melt down in her chair. I thought that we'd have to scrape her off the floor. Fortunately, she seemed to recover in time for the rest of the show.

On this particular night, Pete was not "The Lonely Guy". Instead, Barb and I were spotlighted as "The Lonely Couple" (gee thanks, Ger). And the guys thanked all of us (Rick, Mary, Barb and I) for attending (thanks back at ya, guys!).

A banner in the Tacoma Dome proclaimed Tacoma to be an "All America City", and on this night, it definitely was!!

On to Spokane.......another beautiful Washington city. It was a long drive but the diverse scenery made it well worthwhile. Once again, the show was in a large venue.....the Spokane Arena. This arena was located near a riverfront park with waterfalls, an amusement park, and the biggest red wagon I've ever seen!! It was so so big that the handle was a slide for kids. Once again we were lucky to see The Lovin' Spoonful perform. They really got the crowd into it with their sing-along (hint-hint).

AMERICA came on and performed flawlessly. The set list was the same, but to the unsuspecting fan, it seemed as if AMERICA were playing the songs for the very first time. As Joe Butler of The Lovin' Spoonful would remark to Dewey later, AMERICA is "so smooth". It always amazes me how the guys can perform nite after nite and keep up their grueling schedule as they do!!! The guys traveled all nite to get to Spokane, having left Tacoma at 2:00 a.m.

That about does it for our "scheduled" trip. We had planned to return to Seattle for more of our vacation but....................to be continued!!!!!!

We knew that the guys were headed for Boise after Spokane but that was just too far to drive, or was it??? We figured out the mileage.....tough, but "dew"able. The problem was going to be the return trip to Seattle. This is where Head or Heart comes in. Do you follow your Head and go back, or do you follow your Heart and go to Boise for another show? Well.......with a little encouragement from the guys and after a "short" eight hour drive, we arrived in Boise. The weather was threatening all the way and just as we exited the freeway all "hail" broke loose. We made it to the hotel just in time. Like the previous three shows, this one was in an arena and was also a benefit for the Firefighters Association.

Inside the Boise State University Pavillion, they have a cow. Not just any cow, but a 30 foot inflatable "Got Milk" cow which flew over the crowd mooing and dropping gift certificates. They have unusual forms of entertainment in Boise!!! Joe Butler (lead singer of The Lovin' Spoonful) thought it was "udderly" ridiculous.

Again we enjoyed The Lovin' Spoonful. They had CDs for sale and after each show they generously signed autographs and posed for pictures. We were introduced to them early in the trip and they all seem like extremely nice guys (and gal).

Finally our "last" show began. The playlist was the same as the other nites and it sounded just as sweet to our ears. Once again, AMERICA captivated the audience with their splendid sounds. We dared Gerry and Dewey to add "California Dreamin'" on this evening but they didn't. (No offense to The Lovin' Spoonful, but AMERICA's version is 10 times better!) Knowing this was "the end" for awhile didn't help. It's so sad when they start "Sandman" because we know there are only three songs left. The night ended with a rousing rendition of "Horse" and it was over.

Salt Lake City?.......hmmmmmm? Could we?? Should we?? No, we didn't travel to SLC! We had already extended "our trip" and now it was time to head home. As we pulled out from the hotel, sadly the bus went one way and we went the other.

Barb and I would like to thank everyone involved this past week for the wonderful time we had. Gerry, Dewey, Will, Brad, Woodz, Scotty, Bill, Pete, Rooster, and John, the promoter, THANK YOU so very much!!! Hope to see you all soon. ---------------

Portland and Tacoma

by Rick Wahlgren (wahlgren@pacificrim.net)

Mary and I got back late last night from the Portland and Tacoma shows, and they were spectacular!!!

We raced down I-5 for five hours after work to Portland........got there only 10 minutes before the show started........met Barb and Gary and the guys..........and then walked in backstage to a darkened Portland Memorial Coliseum. (home of the Trail Blazers) Suddenly, the lights came on and there was a THUNDEROUS greeting for America by 8000 plus fans!!!!

America was off to a magnificent start of the Human Nature tour in the Rose City......and the Portland fans were very greatful when America said a special thank you with "Three Roses."

This intense crowd started singing, dancing, and celebrating right away and were thrilled to see America........and didn't slow down all night.

The next morning we went up to Tacoma with the "Ameribus,"..........checked out the concert arrangement inside the beautiful Tacoma Dome.......and later went on a Mississippi River steamboat, which now serves as a casino on the Puyallup Indian Reservation.

Tacoma's nickname is the "All America City"...............so could it live up to its image by matching Portland's wonderful welcome???? The answer was..........."YES" times 12,000 appreciative fans!!!!! The Tacoma Dome was packed!!!!!!

Since Gary has filled in the gaps about the shows........there was something rather special that happened after the show. We went back to see the guys, and they were in a locker room........the *exact* locker room our basketball team used in '90 and '91 when they won two state boy's basketball championships!! I found myself looking for our kids in their white, green, and gold uniforms.......the chalkboard with our game plan.......could almost hear the kids saying the team prayer........their cheers, tears of joy, hugs and laughter afterwards.

But.......this night it was another brilliant team of winners in the Tacoma Dome.......Gerry, Dewey, Woodz, Willie, and Brad.........true champions that night in the "All America City."