The Amarillo Civic Center
The Lubbock Memorial Civic Center
Frace, Bradley and Jake with Buddy's specs
Our new press pictures! (photo credits: Jeremy Daniel)
Paying our respects
Buddy's glasses, recovered from the plane crash
Hello everyone! Sorry for another "late" posting, but the busy schedule continues for the cast and crew out here on the road. We've had some great houses, met some awesome people, and travelled MANY miles in the last couple of weeks. So, here are the events of our week in Texas!
Things certainly started off with a bang on Monday morning, as we woke up for our earliest bus call yet to leave Scranton. Thrown into the mix was the fact that the first of our flights to get us to Texas had been cancelled the night before, so our company managers were working diligently to find us a flight alternative. The snow was falling in sheets as we departed from the Electric City en route to LaGuardia International outside of New York City. It was slow going the whole way, and by the time we made it there, we barely had time to check in to make the flight. And the way it was looking, flights were being cancelled left and right because of the impending storm. Miraculously, we made it through security and to the gate with time to spare. Unfortunately, through ticket problems and the time crunch, Skye and Bradley didn't make it through....so we departed for Dallas knowing that they were being left behind in the storm. A long flight followed, and we landed in Dallas, very much appreciative of being on solid, snow-less ground. It was a couple of hours from Dallas to our final destination in Abilene, so we made a pit stop at a mall in Arlington before continuing on. We arrived in the evening, and after checking in, quite a few of us met across the street at a place called Fuzzy's for margaritas and Mexican food. Gabe and I had early press the next morning, so we called it a night pretty early on.
Quick and painless, Gabe and I did a couple of tv and radio interviews on Tuesday morning before heading back to the hotel to rest for most of the day. I only ventured out for food and a quick trip to Target before getting ready for the show that evening. We were a bit away from the theatre, so me and the boys jumped in our rental car and headed out in the early evening. We were looking forward to our only show in Abilene at the Abilene Civic Center (above), and the audience didn't dissapoint; they were raucous, appreciative and vocal the entire night. After chatting with a few fans following the performance, me and the boys headed home. A quick stop at Fuzzy's and a YouTube viewing rabbit hole in Patrick's room, and I was ready to call it a night.
Amarillo was our next stop on Wednesday, and thankfully it was not only a pretty short drive, but not too early a call for us. After settling in and chilling at the hotel for a bit, in a change from the norm we were bussed as a group to the theatre. We were a bit isolated at the hotel, but there were a few options for food around. So, after another great reception from a Texas crowd and the Amarillo Civic Center (above), I headed to Applebee's (slowly becoming the go to hang for us) with Jimmy, Frace, Gabe, Colte and our bus driver James, who was nice enough to drive us there and back. Earlier in the day, I was excited to receive a boxed set of Johnny Cash's Sun era outtakes, and I planned to devour them after a little nosh at the Bee's.
The weather turned quite cold on Thursday, so rather than explore too much I decided to lay low before our final show in Amarillo that night. Thankfully, Skye and Bradley were finally able to get out of NYC and rejoined us that evening. Another great show followed, and a large group of us were driven again by James to my LEAST favorite restaurant on earth (no, I am NOT being sarcastic), Hooters. We did have a great time though, and James was nice enough to drive us back to the hotel yet again.
A late call and a short drive awaited us on Friday, as we made our way to the final stop of the week, Lubbock. I had never been there, and I was very much looking forward to drinking in the music history of the town, specifically that of Buddy Holly and the Crickets. Shortly after arriving, I arranged to rent a car for myself, allowing me and anyone who wanted to join me to head to the Buddy Holly Center the following day. After picking up my car and a quick bite to eat, we jumped back on the bus to head to the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center (above) for the first of 3 shows. Yet again, we were blown away by the response we were getting in Texas, and despite the unseasonably chilly weather, we were having a blast. Quite a few of us headed to, you guessed it, Applebee's after the show that night.
I woke up early on Saturday in order to have enough time to see all I could at the Buddy Holly Center, and was joined on my adventure by Frace, Bradley and Jake (pictured above). Though the museum was moderately small, they did have a great documentary film about Buddy and the events of his life and death. They also had one of his much sought after Fender Stratocasters, and in a creepy turn, the very glasses he was wearing when his plane crashed (above). We also got to take a quick tour of Jerry Allison's house; the drummer for the Crickets, whose house was used for most of their rehearsals and songwriting in their early days. Following that, we headed out to the City of Lubbock Cemetery to pay our respects at Buddy's grave (above). All in all, it was a great trip, even though it was bitterly cold and rainy. After a quick meal, I drove the boys to the theatre for the first of two shows that day. Another great audience greeted us, and in between shows I laid low and napped for a bit before our final show in Lubbock. They sent us out of town in style with another fantastic audience. That night I was so tired from the events of the day that I opted to stay in and not venture out with the cast, some of whom had an epic night of karaoke at....of all places....Applebee's. It was nice to have a night to myself to prepare for yet another busy week.
Well, there you have it kids. In the next few days I will hopefully be following this blog with the events of the week that started with a flight to Florida, and my Patriots winning the Super Bowl! I hope everyone is staying warm out there, and thanks for reading!
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