Brigitte, John and Mark enjoying a brew at Franco's I kinda like this photo of our Canadian friends. We were all enjoying a beer outside in downtown Phoenixville, which has really become a fun place to hang out between shows. The restaurant owner Franco was pleased as punch to have all the business and constantly mingled and joked around with the progheads.
But I would be very remiss if I did not have a blog entry for the annual party after the Saturday night concerts. It always takes place in the lower level of the Sheraton in large meeting rooms. This year, one room had an electric jam session and another room was acoustic. The highlight for us was being serenaded by one of the Magic Pie guitarists as he sang Louis Armstrong, Pink Floyd (Wish You Were Here) and a few other choice songs while strumming the acoustic guitar. What talent!
The rest of the time we spent mingling with other fans and thanking some of the bands for paying us a visit in the States. It really is a unique experience and everyone is so friendly and happy. The music played during the party really is only a small fraction of why this little party is so fun. It's a great chance to chat with other fans about their impressions of the shows and what other bands they are listening to currently.
Of course, one of my goals was to get a photograph with Nick Barrett who is one of my favorite guitarists and song writers. Meeting musicians can be a dicey thing because a bad interaction can taint your view of that artist forever. For the most part though we have had good experiences meeting the musicians at ROSfest. We had fun talking to the guys in Magenta, Satellite, and of course, everyone's favorite prog bass player, John Jowitt (not here this year). But, we could just tell that Nick Barrett was so approachable and willing to talk to his fans that I wasn't worried about asking him for a photo.
Mark, Nick and I at the After-Party
After the party in the lower level of the hotel, there is another party at a 5th floor suite reserved by Tom, one of the ROSfest organizers. Somehow, last year we got dragged up to this party and ended up talking to various fans and musicians until 6am in the morning. I would say that there are about 25 to 35 people in the room chatting about everything from the mundane to the meaning of life. There is usually some little boom box in the corner of the room playing some great prog CD I've never heard of or playing a classic like "Close to the Edge". Somehow we have become "insiders" and it's quite interesting to be thrust into this rock-and-roll party world that we don't get to see much. Sometimes it gets really loud and I have no idea how hotel management does not get complaints.
It was great talking to Jim R., the keyboardist from Iluvatar. He is another staple at these events but for some reason I have not talked to him before. The great news here is that Iluvatar is working on a new album right now and the songs are coming along nicely. It may be a while before they finish the CD but at least they are still writing music. They would be a great band to have in the 2nd or 3rd slot at this festival. Hmmm. Maybe I need to talk to George.
Jim and Lila at the After-After-Party on the 5th Floor
Long story short, we stayed way too late again this year; 5:30am or so. There would be no tennis Sunday morning. In fact, I had been looking forward to seeing Darwin's Radio, the first band on Sunday at 11am and that was looking nearly impossible. I was beat!
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