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The First Gig

A crash course in expecting the unexpected

“Workin’ on a mystery, goin’ wherever it leads
Runnin’ down a dream” — Tom Petty

When I flew back to Tacoma, I had two weeks to get my shit together. Two weeks to pack, quit my job, drop out of college — one class away from graduating — and say goodbye to friends and family.

Then I had to fly back to the east coast and meet the band in Florida. It was non-stop, but I loved it. The ever-changing scenery was therapeutic and the doctor was in.

My first official gig was the Wanee Festival in Live Oak, FL; a two-day circus of southern rock, roots, and blues music that featured the Allman Brothers Band as headliners. The festival also included Dr. John, the Black Keys, Stephen Stills, George Clinton, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Gov’t Mule, Widespread Panic, and Johnny Winter.

Before the show we stopped for a bite. And, when you’re in the south, there’s one ubiquitous eatery you should visit: Waffle House.

Johnny waited in the SUV while the rest of us ate. We strolled in, found a booth, and quickly perused the plastic two-sided menu. I loved the aesthetics right away, especially the waffle makers waiting behind the counter— a shiny metallic chorus line.

As we were eating, Vito glanced outside and noticed that Johnny’s door was ajar. Our tour manager, Marion, jumped out of her seat to investigate. “Oh. My. God,” she said as she ran towards the exit. That, of course, made us all look up from our syrupy feast.

Johnny had gotten out of the car, pulled his pants down, and was pissing in the middle of the Waffle House parking lot. As Marion flew out to the car to help Johnny secure his trousers, all we could was laugh.

“What the hell were you doing?” Paul asked.

“What?” said Johnny. “I had to pee, so I peed.”

The Wanee Festival grounds were decorated with tie-dye t-shirt stands, VWs, and wild-looking concert-goers. Security waved us through and we parked next to our trailer. To my right was a red and silver touring bus that I had seen in Victoria, BC the summer before. It belonged to the Derek Trucks Band. I looked around and spotted Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi walking up to Paul.

I unloaded the cars and took the gear into our trailer. When I finished, I grabbed my camera bag and casually strolled around. It was surreal to see Derek and Susan just hanging out backstage. I had seen them numerous times over the last few years, but always as a fan in the crowd or from the photographer’s pit. Now I was on the other side.

There was just one small issue. Susan didn’t know the song.

Luckily for her — and me — I was tasked with hunting down the lyrics. Even though I had heard Miss Ann at every show in Europe the month before, I hadn’t memorized all the words.

I went back to the trailer to log onto the festival’s Wi-Fi. I walked inside and Susan had returned. She was at the table again, talking with Johnny and Marion. I took a pen and some paper and wrote out all of the lyrics. Half-way through, Susan looked at the paper and I asked if it was legible enough. “It’s perfect,” she said. “Just bring it to our bus when you’re done.” Paul arrived as Susan was leaving and he had more news.

I had seen Warren in concert the year before at The Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA. It was a three-act gig featuring the Doobie Brothers, the Allman Brothers Band, and the Grateful Dead. Warren had pulled double-duty that night and played with both the Allmans and the Dead.

I strode across the sandy dirt ground to the immense red and silver touring bus. There was a sign posted that said: “This is a family bus. If you want to party, go to the trailer.” I knocked and one of the crew answered. He told me that Susan wasn’t on the bus. Then I turned around and saw her walking right towards me. I told her I was done and she was excited to learn the song. “What’s your name?” she asked. In all the excitement, I had forgotten to introduce myself. “I’m Lancelot,” I said.

Derek and his drummer JJ arrived just as I was leaving. Susan gave Derek a kiss and asked if he had met me yet. “Yeah, we met earlier,” he said. Before I missed my opportunity, I asked JJ if he could snap a photo of me with Derek and Susan.

Before I could get any farther, Susan asked if I had a copy of the song for her to listen to. I told her I would see if I could borrow Johnny’s iPod. “Just bring it to the bus when you get it,” she said.

When I got back to the bus, there were just 30 minutes before show time. Miss Ann was the third song in the set, which didn’t give her much time to prepare. I knocked on the door again and this time Derek answered. I gave him the iPod and said that I’d be back in 15 minutes to check in on Susan.

To kill some time, I walked over to the dining area and got some grub. As I was walking back to the bus, I saw someone in camouflage shorts and a white shirt standing along the fence line. I froze when I realized it was Greg Allman. When the guy with whom he was speaking left, I went up to him. I wasn’t sure what the hell I was going to say, but I had to say something. I played it as cool as I could, introduced myself, and said I was looking forward to seeing his set.

Susan was getting ready at the back of the bus and I was directed to go there. This was the first time I had been on a real touring bus. I quickly drank in the surroundings and headed down the corridor. Susan was sitting on a couch, warming up on her teal-green Telecaster.

I sat down across from her and she continued to warm up. She played a few blues licks for me. “I’m only messing around,” said Susan. “Actually, I’m not.” I must’ve been smiling like an idiot. I couldn’t believe where I was.

“How’d it go?” I asked.

“I think I got it,” said Susan. “It’s a pretty straight-forward blues song.”

Susan started putting on her makeup as I put away the iPod and portable speaker. She said she forgot to bring her own makeup and had to borrow some from her mother-in-law.

“Derek wants me to look my best for the fans,” she said. “I like to do it for him, too, though. Secretly all women like to take care of their man.”

“When I find a good woman, I’ll have to remember that,” I said. She laughed and I figured that was a good time to head out. “See you on stage, Susan,” I said.

I took a moment to let that sequence of events set in. I never imagined having the chance to help Susan Tedeschi learn a song right before sitting in with Johnny Winter. Un-fucking-believable.

Back in our trailer, the band was in the middle of their pre-show frenzy. Johnny likes to have everything timed exactly to the second, so Paul reminded him about Susan. “Why is she singing Miss Ann?” Johnny asked. “That’s a song about a girl. Why is a girl going to sing about another girl?”

The crowd came to life as the band took the stage. Marion and I were with Johnny in the trailer, waiting for the cue. He calmly smoked his last cigarette while I frantically got my camera gear together.

As Johnny shuffled onto stage, a deafening wave of applause and whistles filled the air.

At the end of the second song, I looked up and saw Susan waiting patiently for her introduction. Johnny welcomed her to the stage and a guy shouted, “Johnny, you get all the hot chicks.” Susan sat next to Johnny and she appeared ready to conquer the song she had learned just a short time before.

The original plan was for Johnny and Susan to trade vocals after each verse. Johnny either forgot or was still confused that “a girl was singing about a girl.” Every time Susan was about to sing, Johnny jumped in first. It didn’t faze her though. She just sat and smiled and waited her turn. Before she got to show off her incredible voice, she played a mean little solo over the changes. She thanked Johnny and the band segued into the next number; the one before Warren was to sit in.

I looked up from the photographer’s pit and noticed Marion waving at me. I crept over to her and she gave me a note to pass to Scott. It said that Warren had been held up and he wouldn’t be able to make it. I gave the note to Scott. He nodded and casually walked over to Paul.

About a minute later, Marion called Paul off to the side. I had no idea what they were talking about until I looked over to stage right. There was Warren Haynes, waiting in the wings. He had a big smile on his face and his Les Paul was holstered to his side, like a trusty six-shooter.

Johnny introduced Warren and they tore into Tore Down. Warren’s vocals and guitar playing fit perfectly with Johnny. They hadn’t even rehearsed. It just goes to show how professional Warren and the band are.

It went so well that Warren stayed on for Good Morning Little School Girl. For this number, Warren unveiled his slide and traded riffs with Johnny and Paul. The crowd got a second helping of Warren Haynes and they completely ate it up.

After Johnny’s set, the 10,000+ crowd journeyed across the festival grounds to catch the Allmans at the Peach Stage. Paul told me that Johnny was going to sit in with the Allmans. He and Johnny got into a van and were whisked away.

I stayed behind and made sure that all the gear was locked in our trailer. When I heard Greg introduce Johnny, I hurried as quickly as I could to catch them jamming together. It took longer than I expected to get everything tucked away. When the gear was finally secured, I flagged down a security guy driving a golf cart.

As we took off, Vito stopped us. He said the song was almost over and it wouldn’t be worth it to fight the crowd all the way back to the trailer. I was disappointed, but I knew Vito was right. Besides, I’d be seeing Johnny with the Allmans at the Crossroads Festival in June.

With that silver lining in mind, I loaded the gear into the back of our rented SUVs. As we drove through the bustling festival grounds, I could see the moon winking at me through the mossy trees and I listened to the Allman Brothers play us out. “Not bad for a first night’s work,” I thought.

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