Counting sheep...

2/24, 3:33am: Yes, it’s me again; your sleep-challenged bassist! It’s early morning in Cardiff, which is a city in Wales. There are also cities and towns here with names like Merthyr Tydfil, Pwllheli, Nr Aberstwyth, Nghymru, and Betwsycddconwy. In other words, someone around here needs to buy a vowel.

After a rather lengthy bus ride from London, we have a day off today. I’m anxious to get out and explore the city as it looked like a great place while we were driving through town to our hotel. It’s been bitterly cold - the first time it’s really affected me - but I’ll be prepared with several layers and my trusty scarf & gloves (which I got in Burbank at Sav-On and which I’ve been very grateful to have packed). Interestingly, there’s also a pool & jacuzzi here at our hotel; a couple of amenities I didn’t think I’d see here. I think I’ll take advantage of it later tonight and see if it helps me sleep.

I’m hoping to start including some brief interviews with members of the band & crew as they are not only all very good at what they do, but interesting and nice people as well.

On that note, I got to learn a little more about some of the guys on the bus ride yesterday. As most musicians need and want to do, many of the band members have projects (demos, albums, etc.) going on back home. I had the pleasure of listening to two excellent recordings; one with Leo Quintero, our guitarist, and the other with Phil Magallanes, our keyboardist. Leo’s was a self-produced album of mostly acoustic guitar and ensemble doing some original music and several modern adaptations from the classical guitar repertoire. The music & the playing was quite beautiful and I look forward to hearing the final product, as it’s still being completed. Phil’s contribution to the playlist was a soon-to-be-released live recording of Arturo Sandoval - the great Cuban trumpet player. Phil toured with Arturo up until taking the gig with Engelbert and I was anxious to hear him play in that setting. I was not disappointed. The music of Arturo Sandoval is not one for the timid as amazing technique and an endless flow of ideas abound from all involved. On his solos, Phil took one fantastic chorus after another, drawing from a seemingly bottomless well of ideas both rhythmic & melodic. Listening to both albums gave me a deeper appreciation for the talent of my colleagues. What a privilege to share the stage with them night after night!

You know what I’ve been missing lately? The omni-present hotel buffet! Maybe that’s why my clothes are hanging on me so loosely these days. However, there’s a breakfast buffet here and I plan to hit it with a vengeance. I have not been eating much as the food here is not particularly appetizing and when the caterers put out the food at the concert, I don’t seem to have an appetite. So, with my beard and my hair getting longer, and my body getting skinnier, I should present quite a sight when I return home. Beth will finally get the emaciated rock star look she seems to find so appealing.

To my friends & colleagues back in L.A. I just want to say I miss you and hope everyone is staying busy and making great music!

Stay tuned,
--Adam