Gimme Shelter

Pictured: Chauncey the Bywater goat, enjoying sun.
also: the northbound entrance to the Lake Ponchartrain Causeway. 24 miles; the longest bridge in the world. and:
Nick filtering vegetable oil for fuel in his diesel truck. and:
The first set of new tiles for Chartres Street.


I've been in New Orleans for a little over a week and played one show so far. I've been able to check out some music and see the town, but much of my first week has been spent shaping up the shotgun style house that I'll be living in. The house is on Montegut street in the Bywater, very close to the river and not far from Frenchmen Street and the French Quarter.
Our landlord hasn't exactly been holding up his end of the bargain and thus I've been living without a few basic creature comforts. Appliances, for instance. On the bright side, I haven't had to spend any time scouring craigslist in search of shelter in a new city.
New Orleans is an American city unlike any other. The streets are alive with sounds and smells hundreds of years in the making and first timers don't have to walk too far to see something they've never seen before. Unlike the very green, clean and presentable city I've been living in, much of New Orleans is pretty rough looking. In many buildings there is plywood where windows should be and much of the city has been reeling for 3.5 years from blows dealt by Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing strife. The roads and highways are a mess (and have been since well before the hurricanes). The streets of the Bywater and the Quarter don't feel much different to a driver than the gravel roads in rural Louisiana. I-10 became noticably more rough as Alex and I crossed the border from Texas to Lousiana.
"Looks like somebody ain't payin' they road taxes", I remarked. More likely, the taxes got paid and the state got billed, but repairs never quite took place.
I'm living here with my friend Nick, a New Orleans native and artist who works in a variety of mediums. Currently he works out of a studio on Burgundy Street where he is hand-making the iconic blue and white New Orleans street tiles that mark streets and intersections throughout the city. Nick has been commissioned to make the first batch of these tiles since the originals were shipped over from Spain in the 1920's. His tiles will soon find their way into New Orleans sidewalks wherever originals are broken or missing and will stay there for years and years to come.
In addition to learning how to get around, I'm learning to adjust to the tempo of the city. It is, in a word, relaxed. This suits me fairly well - most folks who know me understand that I'm not usually in a big hurry. I do, however, maintain a hypocritical expectation that others get things done in a timely fashion. As with music and women, however, things in New Orleans happen just when and as they are supposed to and there is little point in trying to change that.

In a few weeks, I'll be flying back to the Northwest for a series of shows with Wellbottom in Idaho, including an opening set at the Knitting Factory in Boise for JJ Grey and Mofro. We'll also be playing in McCall and Pendleton, OR, two of our favorite towns to play.
I'm hoping to have a stove by the time I get back down here.

NOLA Baby

Pictured: The first sign we saw in Louisiana!
Also, the rose that Mariah gave to me as we played Dante's the night before we left Portland. It traveled with us all 3000 miles to New Orleans.

Alex and I rolled into New Orleans on Sunday evening at around 8.30pm local time. It's about 530 miles from Austin, TX where we spent Friday and Saturday nights. The weather was a bit chilly (still is) and the humidity down here puts an extra nip in the air. We met my friend Nick Hasslock at his ceramic studio on the edge of the French Quarter and took a walk. We stopped into Rays Boom Boom Room to check out an (almost) all-female brass band called the "Big Ass Brass Band". We spent a few hours on Frenchmen Street checking out some local joints and caught some low-down dirty blues; the "Royal Bohemians", late-night at the Apple Barrel.

On Tuesday, JAN 13, Big Al and I got to play a very special show in the town of Alpine, TX. Alpine is located about 220 miles east of El Paso amidst the beauty and desolation of West Texas. It was dry and cold when we rolled into town a little before dusk. Nestled between the train tracks and Holland Ave, you'll find Railroad Blues; an authentic Texas roadhouse. We were greeted with open arms and a very appreciative audience. Thanks once again to Richard, RC and the gang for having us.
We left Alpine the next morning, headed for the town of Bourne (pronounced Bournie). As we moved east, the terrain transformed itself from rough, inhospitable desert to rolling hills, covered in green tree canopies. The hill country is thought of by many as the most beautiful part of Texas. It's beauty was matched only by the generous hospitality of our friend, miss Dawn Marie Cobb, who revived us and provided much needed r&r after 10 shows and 2000 miles in 11 days.

This tour was an ambitious one and thankfully we encountered little difficulty along the way. January in the Rocky Mountains can often be challenging for travelers, especially ones who have a fairly strict schedule to keep. Touring is tiring - Alex and I joked along the way that the name should be changed from 'touring' to 'loading/unloading', as often that seems to be how we spend the majority of our time. I rarely feel armed with a sense of purpose, though, as I do when I get to perform every night, especially in front of new audiences. I've had a week without a gig and I've been anxious to play for a few days now. I'm working away to make sure that me schedule fills up quickly for the coming months.

Texas Bound

Pictured: The sunset in Northern Utah as we headed south toward Ogden, UT.

Resting comfortably at the Motel 6 in Las Cruces, NM at the moment.
Alex and I played a very special show at the Millwood Junction in Mancos, CO last night. The house was packed and it was truly one of the best audiences I've ever played to. Big thanks to Kim Pappin, KSJD fm, and the Millwood for having us.
We are through the mountainous stage of our tour and headed to Alpine, TX tomorrow.

NOPO to NOLA: On the road from Portland to New Orleans

Welcome to www.colinlake.blogspot.com - I've set this blog up to keep people posted and occasionally interested as I travel from Portland, OR to New Orleans, LA and beyond...

I'm writing tonight (this morning) from McCall, ID. I'm touring with my friend Alex Weed, whom I met about six months ago when we played a series of shows in Oregon and Washington.

The tour began on Friday when Alex flew into Portland just in time to open our show at Dante's in downtown Portland. Local blues band Kolvane played after Alex, and I closed the night out with my band Wellbottom - it was my last show in Portland for five months.

The next morning Alex and I loaded everything up and hit the road headed east. Most of my possessions are being stored at my mom's house in Leavenworth, WA and I'm traveling with the things that I need for my tour and my stay in New Orleans - that includes five guitars, an amp and a variety of other gear.

Last night we played Crusty's Pizza here in McCall, ID - it was my second time performing there and we were happy to be as well received as the last time. Due to a cancellation in Boise (thanks to a problem with the Bouquet's liquor license), we stayed in McCall. We were invited to play an impromptu show at Foresters, a large venue here in town. The night went remarkably well and we made a ton of new and wonderful friends. We plan on skiing Brundage Mountain for a few hours in the morning.

Headed to Caldwell, ID to play Music of the Vine tomorrow evening.