So much time has gone by, or so it seems. We’ve had a series of gigs back to back, so there’s really not much time to do more an eat, sleep, eat more, exercise, rehearse, soundcheck, perform, eat, sleep, pack and then travel. We had three great gigs in Arizona. The Fox Theater in Tucson was really nice, though they had a keyboard instead of a grand piano and I thought that was a little dinky given the spacious stage. After that gig, during the meet-and-greet where people take pictures with us and buy CDs or get autographs, a giant woman handed me a card. “I can help you. I’m an image consultant. I see you on stage as a redhead.” Bozo the clown flashed in my mind. “Wow, thanks. But I live in Oakland.” “Oh honey, I can fly anywhere,” she said.
Then we moved on to Del Mar/Solana Beach, north of San Diego.
Our gig at the gorgeous all-wood Belly Up tavern in Solana Beach was our first club gig on the tour. We all felt like we were back in our element, performing for dancers. The club is quite large (600 capacity) and they even brought in a Yamaha grand for us. It felt different from the first note, as rapturous dancers swirled around the stage. The crowd loved it, but my absolute favorite moment was when I sang the bolero and, shading my eyes against the spotlight, could see the club filled with couples slow dancing to the song. What a feeling! Dancing to boleros is a bit of a lost art form, but it’s not hard.
After the show, a man came up to me and asked about my in-ear setup. “I watched your video about it in YouTube! I’ve seen all your videos. I called the Belly Up and asked when Alexa Weber Morales was playing, and they said who? But I’m glad I came anyway!” He kissed me on the cheek and left. I wondered if he was a wetsuit freak.
The next day we had a whole day off, and took advantage of it to go to the glorious beach in Del Mar. There are dog-lovers everywhere. I ran to Torrey Pines beach and back, maybe 5 or 6 miles total. I saw an osprey catch a giant fish that was too heavy to lift out of the surf. He tried for 10 minutes, submerging himself in the waves at times, hooking it with one talon and struggling, then unhooking and flying up and shrugging his wings in the air to dry himself off, then circling and swooping and diving back, seagulls chasing him. He finally left it to the chattering seagulls.
That night, the club had comped us all tickets to see Macy Gray. I really enjoyed her show band, stage presence and songwriting. The next morning I ran to the beach from the hotel. I am glad I decided to go a little longer on the beach, because suddenly I looked to the water and saw about 12 dolphins surfing along the shore, going north. I ran along with them for about 15 minutes. Incredible!
From Solana Beach we drove up to Lancaster/Palmdale, in the desert. The Staybridge Suites had the coziest beds ever and free laundry, which we all took advantage of. Once again our gig went off without a hitch, and with a tremendous sense of comraderie onstage that audiences continually say they love to see. We just are so happy to be playing together, and that feeling has only grown on tour. Feels like a soccer team.
The next morning I ran in the direction of some scrubby hills and was pleased to find that access to them wasn’t blocked by the housing developments. It was a short run, but it is so important for me to be in nature everyday. I just need it.
Now we are staying in a massive Chinese casino in the City of Commerce in LA. Last night we went dancing at Stevens Steakhouse and some of the guys sat in with the band, Son Mayor. Had a great time. Now I am going to run toward the outlet store mall and see if nature survives anywhere here in freeway land. Tonight we play Downey Civic Theater!
