Roadie Report 59- July- September 2011 by Camilla McGuinn

July 2011

The downtown in Mobile, Alabama is easy to navigate on foot. Skyscrapers have been gently nestled next to historical renovations in this 300 year old port city. There are several hotels, but the Hampton Inn and Suites was perfect for us and the van. By arriving a day early we were able to enjoy walking the streets and a delicious dinner at the Café Royal on Royal St.

The historic Saenger Theater was erected in 1927 and has been beautifully restored. This European-style stage has been graced by thousands of performers throughout its many years and on July 23, 2011 Roger was honored to be singing, telling stories and playing his guitars and banjo on that stage.

Our next stop was Tucson, Arizona for two very important occasions. Roger’s mother, Dorothy, was going to celebrate her 101st birthday and Roger was performing at the Fox Tucson Theater. We had hoped that Dorothy would be up to going to the theater, but she is very comfortable staying home.

We did have a gathering at her house. Celebrating 101 years is an amazing moment, but there was another highlight in the evening. James McGuinn, Roger’s grandson, walked in wearing a shirt we’d had custom made for Roger in 1978. I sent the boys, James and Ciaron, a large box of Rock and Roll memorabilia the year before. The shirt, embroidered with the Thunderbyrd album cover on the back, was in the box.

As the evening progressed, a few guitars came out. We were delighted to hear James playing. He hadn’t had lessons yet, but we are sure the music legacy is continuing. I drafted James to be Roger’s guitar tech for the concert on July 30.

Interstate 10 has long stretches of desert. The one advantage is that in parts of Texas the speed limit is 85mph on the highways that have long sightlines. We were headed to Austin for a concert but we scheduled our driving time to arrive in Fredericksburg in time to explore the small German settlement nestled in the Hill Country of West Texas. The town boasts of a variety of good restaurants, but we always walk from the Hampton Inn to the Navajo Grill. Some places are just like going home.

After a few days rest in Orlando, we hit the road again. A concert in Bartlett, TN at the lovely Performing Arts Center gave us a chance to explore a part of Tennessee we had never seen. In September we headed north to some of our favorite venues in Albany, Syracuse, Bay Shore, and South Orange,NJ.

While we were traveling from city to city, Roger’s International Booking Agent, Nick Peel was working on the paper work for a December concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina. We needed to get a work permit from the Argentinian Embassy in New York City. Fortunately we had a few days to get to the Grand Theater in Frankfort, KY. I made a reservation at our favorite hotel, the Sheraton Lincoln Harbor, and arranged to meet with an official at the embassy for a fast track procedure.

I am an optimist and thought if we got to the embassy as soon as it opened, our passports would be stamped and we could be on our way to John and MaryAnn’s house in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Well optimism doesn’t hold water with bureaucracy. No matter how I worded my request the answer was always the same. ”Come back at 4:30pm.”

It was early, so we spent the morning sitting in the embassy enjoying the art work. At 11am, I checked one more time with the official gate keeper. ”Come back at 4:30pm.” We had checked out of the hotel, but we did not want to join rush hour traffic, so I called Michael, the concierge, and asked if he could arrange a miracle since the hotel was booked full. He found us a last minute cancellation.

Now all we had to do was amuse ourselves until 4:30pm. One of our favorite restaurants wasn’t too far away. Our stomachs began making noises; our feet began walking to Café Fiorello at 1900 Broadway.

I found this Italian restaurant one Thanksgiving when Pat, Theresa and I were cold and thirsty after watching the Macy’s parade. That day we sat at the antipasto bar and didn’t move until we were to meet Roger and the rest of our friends for Thanksgiving supper at 7pm. That is the Thanksgiving I will always remember as having had two feasts.

Roger and I arrived at the Café just as the doors were opening for lunch. We settled on our favorite stools at the antipasto bar and chatted away with the server. There was no rush, so we ordered slowly and when we weren’t ordering something, the server would surprise us with a tidbit to taste. The restaurant filled quickly and I noticed the maitre d’ was in a bit of a flutter about someone. As the lunch crowd left, and we were still enjoying the ambience,conversation with other folks sitting at the bar and the slow stream of food, I saw three people move from the back room to the table right behind us.

I knew I recognized the man, but I couldn’t place him. I told Roger that the man behind us is famous and I think his name is Roger too. I received one of those knowing smiles and was offered some more champagne. My husband never turned around to look, so I was left racking my brain by myself. Roger who?

The threesome left and then shortly afterward, a man came to our section calling for Roger. I turned and recognized Gary Louris from the Jayhawks. The Jayhawks recorded the bonus tracks for “Live From Mars” with Roger in 1996. I said, “Here’s Roger.” Gary was stunned and immediately came over. “Roger McGuinn! Wow, this is amazing, I was looking for Roger Daltrey. I was told he was over here.” So THAT was the Roger I couldn’t place! The dude from THE WHO! The re-union with Gary was very sweet. We hadn’t seen him in years.

After almost five hours of watching the world go by at Café Fiorello, Roger and I slowly walked back through the bustling crowds on the sidewalks of New York to the Argentinian Embassy. Our passports were stamped! We were going to Buenos Aires in December.

Well you never know what a day may bring forth!

Next adventure - A train ride, a ship ride, a birthday and a drive through Europe!

The Roadie Report 58- June 2011 by Camilla

June 2011

We were one hundred miles from home on Interstate 75, when I hollered to Roger from the driver’s seat, “Did you remember your hat?” I couldn’t recall packing it in the van. He immediately ended his telephone conversation with his mother and I took the first exit. I was ready to drive back home, but Roger was sure we could get one in Chicago, our next concert stop.

Arriving in the Southside of Chicago after 5pm made it too late to go into the city to find a hat store. At that point, the warm summer air helped us make the decision for Roger to go hatless at the Beverly Center concert. The concert was wonderful and it was the first venue where “CCD” was sold, but I really missed seeing Roger walk out on stage with his feathered fedora slightly cocked on his head. We had to get a hat!

Early the next morning, we were standing at the door of the Hats Plus store on Irving Park Road. The inventory in the store is amazing. I wanted to try on all the hats, but Roger knew exactly what he wanted and the salesman knew exactly where to find it. Within minutes we were walking out with a black fedora, a summer hat I insisted on and a really sturdy hat box. We were ready for the 175 mile drive to Green Lake, WI for a concert in the evening at the Thrasher opera House.

I do enjoy hearing the stories folks tell me at my “lemonade stand” aka the merchandise table. There were two particular stories in Green Lake that I fondly remember.

A very happy lady told me how reading this BLOG inspired her and her husband to take the weekend off and travel like Roger and Camilla. They were loving their adventure and were thrilled to have it topped off with a Roger McGuinn concert.

After the concert another lady approached me with a touch of desperation in her voice. Her husband told her that he had to have a hat like Roger’s. I was so excited to be able to tell her where to go in Chicago for that exact hat! Forgetting to pack the hat was no longer a major “oops.” Having an easy answer to her question made the hatless concert all worthwhile.

We were smiling during the drive home on the back roads of the pristine Wisconsin countryside.

When we got home, we didn’t take the hat from the van because we had just a few days before a drive to the Folly Theater in Kansas City, Missouri.

The route we chose to Kansas City was through Alabama instead of Interstate 75 through Nashville. Once we reached Missouri, the devastation of tornados made us feel like we were driving through a war zone. The pictures in the press just didn’t capture the extent of the horror that a tornado leaves behind. I will never hear the word tornado again without a shudder going through my bones.

We stayed in a very picturesque part of Kansas City. Sometimes, Courtyards are situated just in the right places. Our hotel choice is always predicated on the parking situation since our van needs an 8 foot vertical clearance. Everything we needed was in walking distance including a wonderful day of show meal at Fogo de Chao . It is a Brazilian steakhouse and since our concert year was going to end in South America, it seemed very fitting.

Tomorrow, I'll write about the drive west in July 2011.

Roadie Report 57- A Whirlwind - by Camilla McGuinn

Photo by Camilla

To all 13 of my dear and faithful readers...I apologize for being absent for such a long time. The year 2011 was exciting and hectic! We worked from Tahiti, England, the Netherlands, Argentina, the Caribbean and of course on the roads of the USA. I barely had time to do the laundry. Right now we are in Richmond, Virginia and when we get home I will be writing about those adventures. In the meantime, here is a letter we received about a St Patrick's Day celebration. It touched our hearts and gave Roger encouragement that his love of folk music is also appreciated by others.

Roger,

I thought you might like this story. Saturday on Saint Patty's Day, Linda and I went to a nice pub here in Doylestown, Pa. We arrived around 7pm and things were going pretty good, still not quite at the peak it would hit after 9pm. Anyway, I know the folks who run the bar well, and the bartender (Kevin) was putting cds of Irish music on in the background. I brought a cd with me that I had made up, it features some of your best Celtic and Whaling songs. I got Kevin to pop it in. The 1st track is Molly Malone and it drew some attention from the patrons. The next track is Let The Bullgine Run, well this really got the crowd clapping and stomping. To make a long story short, we went through Welcome Paddy Home, Paddy West, Polly Von, John, John and many more, people were asking who were the musicians, and I was spreading the word about the former founder of The Byrds who records a free song a month for the Folk Den on his website. I'm sure you'll be getting some new visitors this week. The best was when The Great Silkie of Sule Skerry was playing, there's an older gentleman who was born in Inverness sitting at the bar. I've known him for years, a lovely man indeed, who happens to be the top car mechanic at a local Porsche-Audi dealership. Everyone calls him Scotty, well Scotty had tears in his eyes as he listened to The Great Silkie. He and I talked a bit about it afterwards, he explained how he had grown up listening to the song, and that your version was one of the finest he had ever heard. This week I made Scotty a copy of the song along with others and I'll be giving it to him tomorrow night.

So, just an example of how your music affects people and can make a great Saint Patrick's Day even better!

Thanks!

Jack


Ah..just give me a moment to rest.

Ask Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone Updates Roger's projects!

Roadie Report 56 - The New "CCD" and Early In The Spring 2011 - by Camilla McGuinn

From the window of my office, I felt my face light up with anticipation as I studied the UPS delivery man unloading the boxes of CDs. The “CCD,” Roger’s moniker for the 23 songs of the sea CD, is ready to go to mcguinn.com, CDBaby.com and maybe Amazon.com. Roger has autographed the first copies which will be sold at the Beverly Arts Center in Chicago on June 3, 2011.

Creating the packaging for a CD project is as much fun as the recording. The sea songs recorded for this package reflect the golden age of sail, when wooden ships commanded the waves. History is often missed while singing lyrics to a beat, so we added a bit of historical research to the 8-panel package. All the photos are memories of our travels except the cover. It is the Argonaut, the painting hanging over Roger’s studio desk. The other five photos: 1) Roger looking out a window in Denmark during lunch on a cloudy day, 2) a sailing ship at the museum on the wharf in San Francisco, 3) the ocean swells taken from the Crystal Symphony balcony, 4) a sunset taken on the Crystal Serenity, and 5) a sailing ship’s mast photographed during the spring adventures I’m now writing about.

Getting on the road for a tour is always the most stressful part of touring. We have learned to leave the house under the watchful eyes of some very special people in the late afternoon, prior to the first day we need to drive at least 400 miles. If we leave the house by 1pm, we are usually somewhere wonderful by dinner.
Beautiful Jekyll Island, Georgia has become a favorite first stop. The sandy white beaches, the pristine park environment graced with the unusual modern Hampton Inn which will drive its guest to the local restaurants, beckons us to stay almost every trip when the route begins on Interstate 95.

It isn’t wise for us to drive the van north of Interstate 40 during the months of cold snowy storms. We celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary with the first 2011 concert on April 1st in Vienna Virginia. The weather was warm when we left Florida. I forgot to pack a coat. The cold Virginia air didn’t let me forget about my absent mindedness. Roger assured me there would be a coat for me in a nearby store. What we didn’t count on was the stores were ready for a new season. Summer clothes were hanging on the racks where coats had once spent the winter. It was in the boy’s department of a sporting goods store where I found a hoodie warm enough to keep the chill away.

Monmouth University’s invitation to perform a concert followed by a lecture on a separate day always delights us, it‘s a favorite stop! After the lecture, the students join Roger playing “Mr. Tambourine Man” along with a few other BYRDS hits. Their intense excitement is a real treat to watch.






With four days before the next concert in Natick, Massachusetts, we meandered our way up Interstate 95 until we came to Mystic, Connecticut. After an early dinner, I captured the last photo I needed for “CCD.” Sailing ships docked a short distance from the restaurant were the perfect images to grace the back cover.





Temperature was rising under the bright blue sky during the drive to Williamstown, Massachusetts for a concert at the lovely Sterling Francine Clark Art Institute.
The beautiful college town, surrounded by Berkshire County, can only be reached by scenic country roads. An owner of our lodging, a Swedish Sea Captain’s wife, voiced her great pleasure when she heard “Mr. Tambourine Man” was staying at their Inn. We even got a room with a view.




We quickly navigated home to Florida from Williamstown. The recording, along with the packaging design of “CCD,” required a few more tweaks. After several very productive days, our wheels hit the road again up Interstate 95 to Old Saybrook, Connecticut but our timing was a bit off. The Easter holiday traffic snarls tortured me into gripping the steering wheel all the way from New York City’s George Washington Bridge to Saybrook. All the tension immediately left me the moment we walked into the lovely Saybrook Point Inn & Spa.



The Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center is wondrous, much like the actress herself. Miss Hepburn made Old Saybrook her home. The theater is a fitting tribute to one of our favorite thespians. Before the evening finished, I was emailing Andrea, Roger’s agent, requesting her to please book Roger here again with time for us to explore the picturesque town of Old Saybrook.

A few years ago a gentleman emailed asking if he could produce a DVD about Roger. Audience members often want to buy a recording of Roger’s concert stories. The opportunity for filming an evening of song and stories was just what we needed. The filming of a concert is now in the can or if you’re being technical, on several hard drives. We just need to finish the editing. Beverly, Massachusetts, the home of Paul Erickson the DVD producer, is on the way to Rockport, Massachusettes the town of our next concert. Paul, with Al Mercuro, has been very diligent arranging interviews with some fascinating people. It was a touching, yet humbling experience watching those interviews for the first time. Hopefully the DVD will be ready by the end of this year.




May Day at the newly restored Oneonta Theater in New York, sharing the marquis and stage with John Sebastian was a great way to begin the month. Roger and John have been friends since the early 60s in Greenwich Village. Back in the 60s everyone was in awe of John because he grew up in the Village. Just added to his cool!




In 2006, Jim Dickson, the original BYRDS manager, sent me a note asking me if I would write about some of his history for the McGuinn BLOG. My knees wobbled just thinking about writing Jim’s memoirs, the Byrds’ godfather. I barely knew Jim but as the writing progressed with email notes from him, I met a new friend. On May 3, Roger’s son Patrick, who is also the stepson of Jim’s former business partner, the late Eddie Tickner, told us Jim had passed away quietly in his apartment in California. In his lifetime, Jim’s ear for music influenced many, including the five young musicians he guided into musical history. His legacy will live on and on. Jim’s story is written in Roadie Reports 14, 15 and 39.

Traveling to Woodbridge, New Jersey; Bethel, New York and Ramapo College were stops on the tour before we headed to Hopkins, Minnesota followed by Iowa City, Iowa. Historical theaters are Roger’s favorite venues to sing his songs and tell the stories about his ‘back pages.’

After the Memorial Day Holiday, we will pack the van with copies of “CCD,” four instruments and maybe even a coat. Our journey’s first stop will be south side of Chicago, the part of town where Roger purchased his first 12-string acoustic guitar. The name Rickenbacker was unknown to him back then.

Roadie Report 55 - The End of 2010, Grand Ole Opry 1968 & 2010-by Camilla McGuinn

Today is the first Saturday in the third month of the year 2011. The past month was filled with filing the tax return, reading so many contracts that I felt like I should have gone to law school and unpacking suitcases. I woke up remembering that we always called the last day of the week “creative Saturday.” Our travels have kept us away from my desk for so long, that notes were coming in from the fifteen readers of the BLOG urging me to get back to work. My excuses are now over...it is time to write.

I loaded all the pictures in my camera onto my computer. The pictures remind me of our adventures but while perusing the snapshots, I couldn’t remember how far back to go. There was only one choice. I had to do something I seldom do – I had to read the BLOG. Then I found myself reliving all the stories, so I gave up the idea of writing today and decided just to load the pictures.

Well, it was a short lived decision. Time had come for me to reflect on the last months of 2010 or they would be lost forever in the cobwebs of my mind.




2010 began with Roger sharing stories, aka lectures, on the cruise ship, The Queen Victoria while traversing through the Panama Canal. The work year ended in November with another cruise through the same canal on the Crystal Symphony. The sister ship of the Symphony, the Crystal Serenity, was the first ship that invited Roger to give his lecture, “How Folk Music Took Me to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.” Guests of the Crystal Cruise Line are treated so wonderfully, they will take a voyage whenever their schedules allow. On board, we re-acquainted ourselves with several couples who had sailed with us to Lisbon. It felt like a joyous family reunion. They appreciated the new stories Roger had added to the lectures. He realizes fans love to hear the same songs and stories but really enjoy the slight changes he always tries to add to each concert and lecture.

A highlight of this trip for me was zip-lining through the trees in Caldera, Costa Rica. Less the 30 folks joined the adventure, but I was totally impressed with a couple in their 80s. The wife was the only one of us who had previously experienced the tree zip.

After we were suited in our harnesses, the guide gave us our safety lecture. It was then I began having second thoughts. Especially when he said we had to stop ourselves on some of the lines and we should remember not to hold on to the wire, lest we lose our arm. Yikes…what if I forgot to let go? No one was anxious to be the first Tarzan or Jane. After the 80 year old lady bravely stepped on the box, I gulped and followed. By the end of the eighth zip-line. I was fearless and vowed to fly through the trees any chance I could get.


After the ship docked in San Pedro, California, a car drove us to downtown Los Angeles. Roger had been invited to an evening of conversation as a fund raiser for Live Talks Los Angeles . We were pleasantly surprised by the downtown development of Los Angeles. When we lived there, we never ventured to the city neighborhood. Now it has some wonderful restaurants and is beginning to feel like a place meant for walking. Los Angeles has always been a city for wheels, not for feet.


On the second day of adjusting to solid ground, we boarded AMTRAK's Coast Starlight for San Francisco so we would be close to Pleasanton, the location of the next concert. Our enthusiasm for our January experience in the early 20th century condo we rented was infectious enough to cause two friends to join us in the building to celebrate the Thanksgiving feast. It felt like a college dorm with cooks running between two condo kitchens. The aroma of roasting turkey wafted up the few steps that separated our condos to the scent of the baking pumpkin and apple pies.


The concert at the Pleasanton Theater on the Sunday after Thanksgiving was delightful. The only sad part was watching the people who had hoped to get tickets for the sold out show, leave without hearing the music.


Early in the morning of Nov 29th, we found our compartment on the California Zephyr train to Chicago. Once again, we were re-tracing our January trip, but this time we were spending four days in the windy city. Roger was returning to his alma mater, the OLD TOWN SCHOOL of FOLK MUSIC, for a concert and a fund raiser.

Living in the San Francisco condo for a short time gave us a feeling of being city residents. Even though Chicago is Roger's hometown, we both wanted that city resident feeling again so we decided to rent a condo in Chicago from the same website. The condo was perfectly situated on the 57 floor of a building and even had a Whole Foods Market on the ground floor. The weather was cold and snowing. It gets real cold in Chicago when the wind blows, but we never had to leave the building except to go to work. Our city resident experience became very vertical.

One of the Old Town School guitar instructors invited Roger to come to his class on our day off. The guitars were almost bigger than some of the students. We walked into the classroom while three of the older girls were getting settled in their seats. I began telling them that Roger had so diligently studied and practiced the guitar that when he was 17 years old, he began his professional career. That was 50 years ago. I noticed a blank stare and thought they weren’t comprehending the 50 years part of the story. I explained that 50 is one half of 100. They shook their heads and slightly rolled their eyes.

During the class, Roger played his guitar solo to Eight Miles High. A teacher overheard one of the girls whisper to to her friend, “He’s awesome!” The other replied, “Well he’s been playing for 55 million years!”

The train ride home from Chicago had a change in Washington DC with a 6 hour layover. As we were getting off the train, we met an interesting lady who called herself, Miss Lucas. Someday I might write about that encounter.

The Washington train station is one of my favorite transit places to spend a forced amount of time. The historic train station houses numerous tourist shops and an upscale shopping mall. We spent a delightful afternoon in a lovely restaurant tucked away in a corner of the station.





When people ask Roger to name the guitar players he most admires, Marty Stuart is at the top of the list. Marty plays guitar in the same intricate style of Clarence White and even owns one of Clarence’s guitars that he played in the BYRDS. Marty is a regular on the Grand Ole Opry and has always felt Roger should make a return appearance to bring a peaceful closure to the ill fated BYRDS’ performance in 1968.



1968
CBS records had enough clout to get the rock group the “BYRDS” on the mother radio of country music WSM’s, Grand Ole Opry. The group had broken with the rock tradition and recorded a whole album of country music. It wasn’t the BYRDS first foray into the country sound. They had previously recorded songs in the country vein on “Turn,Turn,Turn, “5D” and “Younger Than Yesterday,” but never devoted an entire album to the genre. Even Roger’s “Mr. Spaceman” embraced the country beat. The “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” album marked the first time a rock group dared to venture wholeheartedly into the country realm.

The live radio format of the “Grand Ole Opry” makes timing a critical element. At rehearsals, stop watches are marking every second. During the afternoon rehearsal of the show, the BYRDS sang two songs from “The Sweetheart of the Rodeo” album. The chosen single, “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and another tune on the album, a song penned by Country music legend Meryl Haggard, “Sing me Back Home.”

The band was serious about the authenticity of the album and even cut their hair to appease the country audience. The first song the group sang on the live show, “You Ain’t Going Nowhere,” came off without a hitch but it was the second song that got the group blackballed from the Opry. Just before they began the count for the song, Gram Parsons walked up to the microphone and made a very bold statement. “We were suppose to sing a Meryl Haggard song, but my grandma has been listening to the Grand Ole Opry all of her life and I want to sing a song I wrote for her.” With that departure from the script, Gram began singing his song “Hickory Wind.” Roger looked to the side of the stage and the director looked like he had just swallowed something very disagreeable. Skeeter Davis was the only smiling face when they left the stage and walked out of the Ryman auditorium to the trailing echos of, "They'll never be invited back."


December 10, 2010:
The Grand Ole Opry show moved from the Ryman Auditorium to the Grand Ole Opry House in Opryland on March 16, 1974. During this Christmas season, it moved the radio show back to the Ryman because the Rockettes were performing on the Opry House stage. It was a poetic moment on the old Ryman stage when Marty Stuart announced his special guest, Roger McGuinn. They sang “You Ain’t Going Nowhere,”“Turn, Turn, Turn,” and “Mr. Tambourine Man.” Roger still hasn’t had a chance to sing that sweet Meryl Haggard song, “Sing Me Back Home” at the Opry, but he now sometimes delights audiences with this story and sings the song in his concerts.



Just before Christmas, a film crew from the BBC came to Orlando to interview Roger about the influence of the British invasion on America … the musical invasion. The show should be released in the United Kingdom before Roger’s concert tour there in October 2011.


In January, we were counting our blessings. The Crystal Serenity invited Roger to lecture on the first leg of its world cruise. There was one problem, we had to fly from Orlando to Los Angeles to board the ship, then fly home from Tahiti. We’re not fearful of flying for ourselves, but we have had guitars that didn’t fare to well. Have you seen the video “United Breaks Guitars?” It is not only United Airlines who breaks guitars. One airline promised to treat our luggage with “kid gloves.” Roger has laughingly mentioned that the only kid gloves that were used with his guitar were the ones the baggage crews were wearing when they drove a fork lift through the guitar case.

Our guitar dilemma was solved when author Greg Iles showed up at a Rock Bottom Remainders gig rolling a large guitar case. It immediately caught our attention and within weeks, we had four cases made for Roger’s working axes. We could now fly with a guitar.


We arrived in Los Angeles the day before the ships departure to be available for another BBC interview. The theme for this interview was "guitars" and thanks to our new rolling case, Roger was very happy to have the Roger McGuinn Martin HD7 guitar sitting on his lap. I understand this show will also air before the October 2011 United Kingdom tour.


The Crystal Serenity’s voyage to Tahiti had one stop in Hawaii where we enjoyed lunch with a dear friend. The rest of the time we were on the open ocean until the mountains of Moorea appeared on the early morning horizon.

Roger spent 13 days without checking email or getting telephone calls. Wow … he didn’t even miss it! Maybe I shouldn’t have written that comment - his reputation as a “techie” could be in jeopardy. Oh well, anyone 55 million years old doesn’t really have to worry about his reputation.

Roadie Report 54 - 100 YEARS!

Dorothy McGuinn

Even with the heat, this summer in Florida has been wonderful because we were here for a lot of it. The garden received care, the closets were purged and best of all, the sound of music was coming from Roger’s studio. The Jolly Roger decided to compile a CD of his favorite songs of the sea. But before summertime living kicked in, there was a westward drive for a few concerts and most importantly, Dorothy’s 100th birthday party. Dorothy is Roger’s amazing, emailing mother!



The first stop was at the Summit Road Studios in Parker, CO to visit Linda and Don Debey, before we went on to Denver for a concert at the L2 Arts and Cultural Center on July 24th. Wild Bill Cody arrived early to help man “the lemonade stand” and friends from Ohio, Linda and Bill, joined us for a quick reunion.

Driving south to Tucson was fun because there is a favorite Mexican restaurant that has real tacos with shredded beef in Albuquerque.


Our arrival in Tucson was the day before the big party. Folks were coming from England and from all over the United States for the celebration. Even though Dorothy didn’t want to be involved in the details, she insisted on an expedition to a Mexican restaurant to taste the food that would be served to her guests. She wanted the Out-of-towners to experience a good Southwestern meal.

Cousin Carolyn arranged for the venue. Brother Brian and son Patrick procured the soft drinks, beer and ice. Celia and Jim supplied the sound system and we were in charge of appetizers, flowers, decorations, champagne and music.

On the day of the party, I felt like we were contestants in a reality TV show. Roger and I needed to buy all of the decorations and food in the morning before the venue was available for us to prepare food and decorate at 1pm. On the way to get helium tanks for the balloons, I took a wrong turn, which put me in an unfamiliar parking lot. I was about to turn around, when my eye caught the silver reflection of something in a store window. It looked like a good decoration for the tables, so I parked the van and ran into the store. Roger went into a neighboring store to find a Hawaiian shirt because Brian thought it would be a good idea for both of them to wear one at the party. It turned out that there were a few other similar shirts worn at the party.



The silver sparkling pieces were perfect, but I couldn’t find the price. At an appropriate moment I raised my voice to ask the clerk if he could tell me the cost. Suddenly everyone in the store stopped what they were doing and stared at me with a very strange look. Even the clerk looked puzzled as he hesitantly replied with almost a question in his voice, “A dollar?” Then I got it…I was in a DOLLAR STORE! I had never been in one before. Everything was a dollar! I felt like I was the winner of a big prize.



When Roger walked in victoriously with his new shirt, my cart was filled to overflowing with wonderful decorations for the party. We filled our van with the finds of the century for the centenarian, but there was one more a strategic stop for food and all the yellow flowers we could find. We arrived at the venue right on schedule.

Dorothy’s favorite colors are blue and yellow, so Roger began filling 100 balloons in those shades with helium. I began to panic. He would be busy for a long time. There was just me and Karen, Cousin Carolyn’s roommate, fixing the appetizers for 70 people. Thankfully, Phil, a Florida neighbor who knows I always need help when preparing for a party, showed up and began helping Roger fill the balloons. I found myself getting envious of the laughter that was coming out of their corner.

With Phil’s arrival my anxiety level lessened about 1% but I began thinking that my plans were bigger than my abilities. I left a note at our hotel for another couple of Florida friends to come to the venue for sound check as soon as they checked in. Bruce Kula, a close friend and gifted musician, was going to join Roger in serenading Dorothy at the party. The note was the first time he heard that his talents had been conscripted. Cynthia and Bruce arrived before Jim finished installing the sound system, so there were two more chefs in the kitchen. Over the years, the Kulas have grown accustomed to my propensity for drafting all available hands for any job that needs to be done.

At 3pm Brian and Patrick arrived with the beverages and the ice. Patrick volunteered his mother’s services to pick up all the forgotten items on her way to the party. At 4:30 the sound check was complete and by 5pm, Roger and I were smiling! The room was ready for the Special Lady’s arrival at 5:30!


Dorothy always loves to have parties last into the early hours of the next morning. Around 10pm, the room was closed, but the party was to continue at Dorothy’s house. Friends who had flown great distances were invited back for what they thought would be one last glass of champagne. What they didn’t expect was that Dorothy insisted everyone stay until midnight! She wanted her 100th year and her 101st year to end and begin with a party.

The next night, John and MaryAnn along with Janice and Barry, a BYRDS’ fan who had kept in touch with Dorothy ever since she was the head of the BYRDS fan club, came over for one last visit. Roger and I were departing early the next day, so we left at 9pm. Dorothy insisted everyone else stay until midnight. That special woman has been known to wear out even the energizer bunny!



From Tucson, we drove to San Francisco for some meetings, then on to Napa for a few days of quiet catching up with the business that is always waiting. We stayed at the home of Andrienne Graves (Roadie Report 51). She joined us two days later when she took us to the boutique vineyard, ELAN.



The Elan Vineyard is about 10 miles up the very narrow Atlas Peak Road in Napa. Our first glimpse of the house mentally transported us to Tuscany. The beautiful house was surrounded by the vineyards. Patrick and Linda, the proprietors, prepared a wonderful Italian dinner to share with us under the stars in their courtyard. We ate, we laughed and Roger sang all their favorite songs while playing his 7-string guitar. I kept looking around for evidence of movie cameras – it was a perfect scene and it was hard to grasp that it was real.




Monterey is a wonderful stop when driving from Napa to Southern California. This was the first trip that we ever took the time to walk for miles enjoying the coastline, the unique trees and the sea lions.





















On October 13, Roger was invited to open the show for Joan Baez at the Queen Mary Park in Long Beach, CA. The park is next to the original Queen Mary which has been converted into a hotel. We spent two lovely nights on the ship, often reminiscing about our recent trip on board the Queen Victoria.



The Queen Mary is a lovely Art Deco walk through history and it also has a wonderful restaurant that I had visited in 1971 to celebrate loved ones birthdays. After the concert I took friends on a tour of the decks. I think Mackenna and Hayden, 13 & 14 years old, we more smitten with Blake, a Florida neighbor, and his friends than they were with my dissertations of history. They did find it amusing when their beautiful, six foot tall mother and I played hopscotch on the shuffle board.