If you’re going to see Tears for Fears at Maryhill Winery, you may want to stick around and head over to Chateau Ste. Michelle in Woodinville, Washington. It’s a 3 hour drive so that’s pretty close in our opinion. You can also take advantage of the wine tastings and other cool things going on at this location because the next show isn’t until the 20th. This is the show at which to do a fun meetup.
Time: Show starts at 7:00 pm Gates will open approximately 2 hours before scheduled start. General Admission: $51.50 Reserve Seating: $79.50 Buy Tickets.
Accomodations: This one isn’t not cheap. It’s market rate pricing but it’s close to the venue. It’s called Willow’s Lodge Address: 14580 NE 145th St, Woodinville, WA 98072
Phone:(425) 424-3900 – It’s got a great set of holiday packages so you can relax and enjoy yourself. If you’re going to go this far go all out.
Airfare: As mentioned before for this leg of the tour, Delta.com is offering really great rates in the mid to high $300 round trip. Enjoy that!
Meet and Greets: We do not have any travel fan plans for this location though we did at one time. Sadly due to the reschedule of this show, many of our core travel fan team members had to bail. Those tickets were sold to locals from what we understand. This show is also close to sold out on Ticketmaster. Third party tickets are available but make sure you can return them/buy the show insurance as we instructed during the reschedule notice. If anything changes in regards to hanging out and partying we’ll tweet about it using the hashtag #RollCall.
On the 17th of September, another amazing show is scheduled for Tears for Fears. This is a really special date for fans. One of the greatest TFF shows ever happened on this date in Los Angeles at the Wiltern. It’s now Washington state’s turn. According to reviews, this venue is the place for a concert. So, thank you Tears for Fears for agreeing to do the show here. Maryhill Winery is a 5-star facility located in Washington state and is owned and operated by Craig and Vicky Leuthold. Several fans re-purchased tickets for this show and it will be divine. The Zipper Club will open for the band.
Tickets: Tickets can be purchased through the venue. Buy tickets. Market value starts at $45 and goes up to $102. Third party tickets are also available for much higher. if you choose that route, be certain to get the insurance.
Venue: Mary Hill Winery, 9774 Highway 14, Goldendale, Washington, 98620
Time: Doors/Gates open at 5pm, show starts at 7pm. All ages are welcome.
Airfare: Delta is offering some amazing deals right now. Direct flights from the east coast to this area of Washington state start at $390 and go up to $598. Even first class is low price. Saw a round trip ticket for $980+ – so take advantage of that.
Accommodations: The winery has several suggested places that are nearby. Pick the one that suits your fancy from this list. These have shuttles going to and from the winery on concert nights according to the winery’s site. Other hotels on the list are within 6 miles, others further away.
Meet and Greets: Speak to the venue directly to inquire about VIP packages as we do not have any in our possession to give away. Not sure they are available/exist for this show. Oftentimes when one is a member of a winery or theatre, there are various perks worth inquiring about. We do not have any travel fan activities scheduled for this show as of now. We will tweet about it if anything changes and we alert others by using #RollCall on Twitter or Facebook
That’s all the info we’ve got for now. We tried to hold out and see if anyone wanted to do a little party at the winery but with the reschedule some just can’t go at all.
Venue Address: 149 Westchester Ave, Port Chester, NY 10573 Suggested Hotels:Doral Arrowood Hotels closer to the area such as the Hilton were sold out due to other events happening at that time.
Meet & Greets: This is not a third party show where meet & greets are handled by a sponsor. That’s all we’ve got. Most likely we’ll arrive a day in advance, have dinner and hang out like we usually do. Some will be driving in from the Canada show so we’ll be waiting on them to get in and keep this fan train rolling.
As information comes in we’ll update this post so be sure to subscribe and follow us on Twitter (@papasfans) for “fan travel” info and shenanigans.
Carolyn describes the fun she had with the travel fans during the Tears for Fears 2015 Summer tour…
Both Curt and Roland signed this cool Tears for Fears coffee mug for Lady Carolyn…
I cannot begin to describe my wonderous vacation this year, seeing 2 Tears For Fears concerts back to back with my fellow Tears For Fears Fan Travel Team members, Andye, Carri, Bobby, Roland (Bobby’s son, not the Good Sir), and Ryan. First things first, the Kansas City show at the Uptown Theatre was sold out and I’m SO proud of my KC peeps for recognizing that ROCS royalty was blessing our fair city. This show was the BEST I have ever seen! The Uptown is a beautiful venue, the acoustics were amazing, the crowd was very appreciative and on their feet for the entire concert, Roland was very animated…smiling a lot and interacting with the crowd, and most important, the band performed perfectly. It all meshed together and emitted an energy that caused me to burst out into tears more times than I can remember.
My TFF Fan Travel Team peeps, I love you all!!!! Andye, our leader….we would all probably look and act like those screaming, crazed Beatles fans from the 60’s if it wasn’t for your calm, cool leadership skills and voice of reason. Andye is an experienced traveler and is a joy to be on the road with. She enhances the TFF experience in a multitude of ways that I can’t even begin to describe. Much respect, Andye. Thank you!!!! Travel Fans at Breakfast/Brunch Post Show
Carri….nobody needs to worry about not knowing about any potential weather issues that may crop up during these concerts with the Silver Kitty around. I felt safe knowing we would be the first to be able to take cover quickly. Her enthusiasm is infectious and her love and respect for CS is so palpable you feel you can touch it. She is so much fun and simply a joy to be around. Carri, Thank you!!!!
Bobby….some people may not know that he is a LEO (Bobby, I’m sorry if you don’t want that out there). He was able to constantly watch our surroundings for hazards and potential problems on this trip, and did it so discreetly….all while having a fun time. Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t like road trips and that I especially HATE highways. But with Bobby behind the wheel, I felt safe, and due to his excellent driving skills, I was able to relax and enjoy the scenery and company. Bobby, Thank you!!!! TFF Travel Fans Listening to
“Listen” and headed to Tulsa
This isn’t her first rodeo, Carolyn has been a long time fan…here’s her Travel fan Tshirt from 2014
Roland….I had never met Bobby’s son before and I’m so glad he went. He is a very attractive man (what is it about that name?), and lot’s of fun to be around. Plus he’s a funny guy. I must admit that whenever anyone said his name, I always had a split second moment of confusion and would glance around, expecting to see The Good Sir Orzabal, even in the car. Roland, Thank you!!!!
Ryan….he had never been to a TFF concert. But I used to work with him and he was the only person at work who never made fun of my love for this band and their music. Ryan would stop by my desk to look at the various TFF items on display and never laughed. It was a real treat to stand beside him at the Uptown at his first TFF concert and see the wonder in his eyes. He seemed to really like my TFF friends and they liked him. Ryan was very helpful showing everyone some of the highlights of Kansas City. Ryan, Thank you!!!!
All in all, this has been the best vacation of my life!!!!
Travel Fans Hanging out at the Tulsa show venue… (perfect symbols in the back – The Good Man would approve)
This is dedicated to Ryan, our newest Travel Fan Team member. Ryan is based out of KCMO and helped us find all of the things we needed to make memories that will last a lifetime!
UptownTheatre
Writing these show re-caps never gets any easier because each show and each year outshine the previous ones. We go to these concerts more for healing than entertainment. Tears for Fears are a theraputic oasis for the soul. For the past week I’ve been relaying others’ photos and experiences at Tears for Fears extravaganzas. Today I’ll share mine. One of the shows I attended took place in Kansas City, Missouri. Up until I actually landed in KCMO I was referring to it as just Kansas. Weeks and months prior I had conversations via phone with Carolyn, the Travel Fan Team rep in the area, and she corrected me saying “Missouri…Andye, it’s Missouri.” I replied, “Ooops, sorry. I won’t do it again.” Then I said “Kansas…” again. She, again, corrected me and so did every person from the driver that picked me up to Carolyn’s travel pal, Ryan who showed us around the city. Later, Curt called it Kansas with clear intention of meaning “KCMO.” He later made it clear to everyone that he did indeed mean Missouri. So, lesson learned, when referring to Kansas City, you better include the state or risk being corrected (politely mind you – e.g. soft whispers in your ear) by the sweet gentle folks that live here. And gentle is an understatement…the people there are unbelievably kind and caring!
Why Kansas?
Kansas City, Missouri was named as one of the coolest cities in America…and it is! There’s a lot to do there. They have an incredible Plaza downtown that rivals the midtowns of several major cities in North America. The shoppes and prices are more than reasonable. The food is delicious and restaurants stay open pretty late, we even found a few at 4:45am in the morning on a Sunday night/Monday morning…crazy hours and awesome at the same time!
This was the city in which several decided to see a show together. One of our members is a police officer and took it upon himself to escort us to KMO as well as Tulsa, Oklahoma. We spent 4 long days together and bonded like you would never believe. None of us had really spent THAT much time with each other previously unless you count the times we were having cold ones with Captian Julian and a few band members, road crew, etc. post show at Sunset Station in Hendersonville Nevada, Thackerville’s Winstar Casino in Oklahoma, and the list goes on. Despite our limited interactions in person, we actually clicked FAST! Everyone, especially Bobby and his son Roland (yeah, he named him after Mr. Orzabal and was one the highlights of the trip) did whatever was necessary to make the midwest shows ultra fantastic and comfortable for fellow fans around them.
Gotta represent…Drummer Genius Jamie avaiators and Orzabal check plaid…
Travel Fan Fun
10am in the morning (yeah, we got about 6 hours of sleep), Carolyn and I are downstairs ready to roll and chat with whomever walked in the door of the hotel. And we did. We met all sorts of people and had numerous conversations. I should mention that the guy at the front desk saw my TFF tshirt when I checked in and just beamed as if he knew something. My goodness, were we staying in the same hotel? Then we all headed out to the Plaza where we got Bobby ready for the shows at one of the neat shoppes. I also grabbed a pair of Hello Kitty socks which had *anchors on them. The whole day we kept finding little signs of TFF that wouldn’t normally be present except during a tour. There were lots of symbolic things that happened or either we were hypervigilant. All of our adventures were broadcast via Persicope. Some have been archived on YouTube for later viewing. Thanks to all who joined in the live broadcast, we had 65+ viewers on some emissions. If you missed it, you can find them on YouTube…should be about 7 of the 12. Enjoy!
The Show
After visiting the venue earlier and making sure we knew where to park (coincidentally chatting with staff etc. wink wink) we went back to the hotel, changed quickly and rushed back to the venue. The parking lot, which had been completely empty 90 minutes prior was now completely filled with only one space open facing the backstage door. We took it! We sat in the car as it drizzled and watched crew working and doing last minute things while fans lined up the sidewalk, shifting around the local radio station’s live broadcast booth. Just like L.A. there was a guy on the corner beating a plastic bucket with a pair of drumsticks. Others were seeking tickets…and we were one of those people as we had just enough for the Travel Fans and not our newest inductee, Roland. A kind man handed over a ticket to him 20 minutes before showtime for free!! Whomever you are, HUGE THANKS!
Shared by a fan (someone send us her name) w/the Good Sir – the effects in the theatre were beautiful!
The Uptown Theatre is a gorgeous venue that looks a little bit like the Fox Theatre in Atlanta with its intricate architecture. It’s hard to tell if you’re in a cathedral or a music hall. I’d happily go to more shows at this place. All of the seats are pretty good. There’s space so you’re not really bumping up against your neighbour and that’s crucial at TFF shows because just about everybody is dancing. As mentioned I was in my little tiara representing TFF’s Rock Royals title that many of us (and a couple of music industry peeps) have placed upon them and unexpectedly received so many compliments. In ATL where I spend most of my time, tiaras are not uncommon. I was shocked people even paid attention. I used that opportunity to make new friends and get email addresses so we can exchange photos, etc. Then I got seated as I was too excited to stand around. I just wanted to get to the front where we were close enough (6 rows back) to the stage that the band could see us and interact with their returned peace signs and such. It was awesome! We also met a few travel fans who had seats on our row. :waving at Lady M:
Carina Round looked and sounded like a powerful angel…there are no other words to describe it. She outdid herself. It was unreal.. we made sure to show her a ton of love, from the time she walked out to the striking solo parts of Woman in Chains and BadMan’s song. She got a lot of love not only from those of us who follow her, but from the new fans in the audience…they adored her and showed it! She deserved it! Amazing job!
The band just stirred souls left and right. People were crying, people were picking each other up (no matter what their contrasting size) and hugging mid-song. They were having solo moments of their own by adding little supportive lines to the various songs. One guy just lost it and looked around singing at people with great force. Attendees did not mind the aisles, they flooded them where possible and rushed the stage. It was chaotic to a degree but still felt safe. Most notably, people. were. crying. I don’t mean a little tear, but instead that crippling cry where you can’t talk. Wives were holding husbands, husbands were holding wives and friends had their arms around each other. People just “had a moment” at the show. One person was local journalist Holly E. She blogged about her experience as well. She begins with…
“Concert footage in which fans are crying. I never understood it. Sure, the music is great and the band members are (sometimes) good looking, but weeping at a concert?
Last night I wept at the Tears for Fears concert in Kansas City. On and off, from the first strains of “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” through the encore “Woman in Chains” and “Shout.” Read More Here
*Holly is also a really cool person, one of those people you’ll just enjoy on many levels through her writing. Follow her @HollyEdgell.
And she wasn’t alone, again…Carolyn cried, strangers cried, the guy behind me could barely get the words to the songs out due to his emotion. I turned around and smiled at him, he was all verklempt with his daughter snuggled up beside him. It was a very emotional show and the energy in the theatre was different from past concerts. Kansas City, Missouri got more than a performance, they received a big ol’ Tears for Fears Concert Hug.
Pale Shelter – Curt sounds really good, listen and enjoy…
The Set List was similar to last year’s with a few songs switching places. I’ve abbreviated it as we do… Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Lorde intro then the majestic mesh into the original), SW, STSOL, PS, BIDA, ELAHE, Change, MW, MF, CTTH, AFTYAH, Creep – (Radiohead cover) BMS, HOH – Encore WIC and Shout
Drummer Genius Jamie’s drum solo was excellent and the crowd just lost their minds through the power of his talent. During Shout the crowd sang “the long version” intro loud and clear. Roland was sweet again and dropped the mic down so various individuals could sing into it. You know we all love that. I’ll never forget when he did that to me back in 2011. I’m still in complete awe. There were just all sorts of extras at this show, Skittles included. I think Curt threw a few.
Doc Martens Shout Outs
Another great moment that happened before the show was when Ryan talked about his own pair of Doc Martens of which he was wearing. We snapped a photo of them and then sometime later (not neccessarily related to our tweet) Curt sends his Docs tweet.
Then during the show Curt motioned toward his feet to reveal these saying, “Because I’m not in Kansas anymore.” It was clever and got a lot of laughs Very cute! During an earlier Periscope Travel Fan broadcast I talked about how I asked the gentleman that brought me to the hotel if this was Dorothy’s Kansas. I enjoyed hearing Curt referrencing The Wizard of Oz as well. It was also cool to have Manila Kooks like JW in the mix.
Eventhough I managed to write a bit about the show, so many parts of this particular part of the tour left me speechless and I don’t even know where to begin in detailing them. As always it’s just cool to hear from the band throughout the tour/talk to them via social and see Roland so animated and involved with Twitter (something of which for years we thought he’d never do until he surprised us back in March 2014). It was very important to us. At one point I was messaging with the Good Man Curt Smith as Carolyn was so worried as to why he hadn’t said “Kansas City, Missouri we are in you…” and he mentioned they were just getting in. I think I’m responding to Carolyn, but I was accidentally responding to Curt and told him to “…go on and get dressed everything is going to be fine…” or something. It was rather embarassing but funny in hindsight. Glitches will happen…
The above may seem like “little things” to other people but if you’ve been following this band for at least a year at mininum (though for most of us it’s been 90% of our lives) you “get it.” You know why the Docs tweet is important, you understand and even cherish the tears of your fellow fans. We just mesh…that’s one thing about the fans…most of us just “mix and gel” quickly. In the cases where meshing didn’t take place or is struggling to gel, societal ills are present and have nothing to do with the band. If you come to this fan world with a pure heart, you will meet your soulmates. Not necessarily your future spouse (although that isn’t uncommon) you will, however, make friends that will become family. That’s what happened on this tour. Friends became relatives, souls were stirred and combined. I could go on. But I’ll conclude with this; nothing, not Periscope, not YouTube or any streaming media compares to being PRESENT. This is why, even if it is for one show or all of them, fans travel all over the states, to and from various parts of the world to see this band and experience something so overwhelmingly majestic that it brings a crowd to tears…
Shoutout to the loyal people who waited outside the venue post show with hope in their grasp…
Big thanks to the people we met in Kansas City, Missouri! I have never been to a place so friendly…and I thought Toronto had the world beat! All of our loyalty and dedication is to the band and many hugs to the new travel fans that flew in from all over to be there. There’s no way any of this would work if love didn’t show up in the form of attendance!
Cheers!
-AA
*Nautical Anchors are a constant symbol in so much of TFF, CurtSmithOfficial and DelaQ.
More on the Kansas City, Missouri show from Timothy Finn
Dearest Fellow TFF Followers, Tears for Fears Travel Fans and friends!
It’s Andye here with a little love note to you all! I want to first thank all of the readers from around the globe. Over the summer, SK and I sat in L.A. and took a good look at the stats. We were well over 35,000 visits with people checking in from all over the world including parts of the Middle East, several nations in Africa, Italy, you name it. That is very encouraging and very helpful in our goal to provide information to all interested parties.
We get a lot of thank you notes from fans for providing the info and I appreciate each and every one. But be sure to pat yourselves on the back because none of this is possible without the slew of 70+ registered travel fans who come out to shows year after year. We can’t always go to the same show together but where one person can’t go, another will, bringing the Tears for Fears Travel Fan spirit to the forefront. Because our band fan activities have been mainly at shows, I’d personally like to take it up a notch and expand our gatherings (there’s so much more we want to do and host). Still, I’m grateful for the progress we’ve made in getting more people to concerts, sharing extra tickets and now doing larger carpools and spending more time together in person and online.
Thank you from Alisa. Big Hugs to her!
I have a list a mile long of contributors. All of the names mentioned in this blog, from Carri and Becky to Alisa and Rise, SheeShee, Lady J and Lady K, plus CH and Jenny WBDA are to be thanked. Each person has gone out of their way to make this group fun and exciting. The band has been very generous with their time, their families have been very sweet and tolerant plus we’ve experienced great responses and outreach from the venues and hotels like Loews Santa Monica who provided us an incredible 500+ sq ft suite overlooking the ocean in 2012 during Brit Week. Boy did we put on a performance out there on that patio in our Curt Smith tshirts and swimwear. Sometimes you just have to be there to see it. We’re just incredibly grateful. These are memories to last a lifetime.
There’s been a lot going on over the last 3 months, some noticable and some unnoticed. Carolyn is right, we are doing this as volunteers. We are not on anyone’s payroll and have not requested to be. We are human and have challenges like most. For example, a few of you know I’m attempting to organise fan travel and juggle local challenges. So, yeah it’s a bit much. I may not be able to do a whole lot of parties and gatherings at the moment but I trust that fellow fans will step in and help each other get to and from shows this year. Meanwhile, we’ll do what we can to get any info we receive on upcoming shows, airline deals, etc. If you are having a hard time getting to a show or just don’t know the first thing to do, feel free to send us email through our FB Travel Fan page or send us a tweet on twitter. We’ll do whatever can.
Let’s take these gatherings up a notch! #TFFIsFineWine
We are not “exclusive” so there is no initiation or crazy requirement to be a travel fan. If you show up, contribute a story/photo and have genuine love for the band you are in. Come by at shows (or if you see us in the lobby) and say hello, we are open to taking selfies/usies that can be posted to the blog to show everyone’s participation. The goal is to promote the awesome fun that Tears for Fears (Roland, Curt and Team) provide at shows; dancing and swaying in front of the fans. #ItsAllAboutTheBand!
We’re pretty laid back minus being kind of wild and always up for a party. So jump right in with friendliness and hugs! Also, thank you Lady K for the gift of the rice maker! I’ve been on the fence about buying one and now, problem solved #SushiEveryday! For those who sent the gift of macarons francaises from around the world, a separate blog was created to praise thoses delicious french desserts because they are THAT crucial. LOL!! Wishing everyone safe travels this #TFF2015 season and again, thank you tons for the love! Hugging everyone right back! #GroupHugs #TeamWork #TFFTravelFans
We are very happy that the band appreciates the fan teams. We received a tweet from Good Man Curt Smith. Thanks Marcio for capturing that awesome moment 🙂
Curt Smith had mentioned during a chat (can’t remember if it was offline – pardon if this is sharing too much) something about Vegas. Well, as he is known to do, he made good on his word! This is technically not a tour, so…we’re legit on the fact that the band has committed to everything they said they’d do (i.e. that’s it for 2014). This is a bonus and oooohh how lovely it is!
On Saturday, the 13th of December, Tears for Fears will have a concert at Palms Casino Resort. Pre-sale for these tickets is the 11th of November (next Tuesday). Password is BIGCHAIR. Click here to buy tickets.
We suggest you stay at the resort. Buy your plane tickets now not later as some of us have been burned by the high prices to Los Angeles. If you have questions about the airport, how it works, etc. Email us, respond, etc. We’ve done that route many times. The later you wait, the higher the ticket price. So, if you think you can make it, book no later than Tuesday (after you have secured your concert ticket of course). Yes, this is near the holidays…it could touch into gift funds, etc. Think of this as a gift to yourself!
*Bonus News from Silver Kitty* Tears for Fears will appear on the annual KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas. If you are going to the Vegas show you may want to stick around the west coast and head over to L.A. the next day. Tickets for the show will be announced soon. We’ll update here.
*Update* – the KROQ show is now sold out but a few local radio shows associated with KROQ were giving away tickets in various contests and sweepstakes.
– UPDATE – Let’s MeetUp!
So, one of our dear travel fans, Alfredo, has been so kind to scope out some great cool spots in the Palm. The plan is to meetup for drinks on Saturday afternoon well in advance of the show. It looks like more fans will be arriving on Saturday morning/midmorning than Friday so no Friday night dinner this time but instead hanging out from 12pm-3pm at the Casino bar.
To RSVP – send an FB email to the ‘Tears for Fears & Kooks’ fan generated page with an email and or phone number where you can be reached. Your name will be placed on a list (for the purpose of having a headcount). You will be contacted the week of the event by one of your fellow travel fans and again that Friday evening and Saturday morning as a reminder and with any updates or changes.
Location: Palm Casino
Cost: no charge- everyone can buy drinks from the bar at their leisure
Time: 3:30pm-5:30pm
RSVP by FB email
What to expect: Opportunity to make new friends and mingle.
Red Rock Casino Photo -we met them right here at the pool. They yelled, “Andye, is that you?!” -been friends since the day.
We met them online in 2010, in person in 2011 at Red Rock Casino and spent a great deal of time with them on the 2012 tour. They’ve been loyal and a joy, not to mention extremely helpful in keeping up with professionals who promote the band online (Jason Debord, SF) and other helpful information.
We find their travel method quite extraordinary in that Jeannie has often flown in from NYC and Colleen from N.C. These east coast superfans follow the band to 3 or more shows, taking time away from home and family to spend with their fellow band fans. It is quite a huge ordeal. We salute them for their great investment in the band’s music and shows, the world of fellow superfans and for bringing a positive attitude. Somebody get these women a TeamROCS hug! Here are their stories:
Keep these hotel keys, Roland wrote on them! 😉
Colleen’s Fan Fun with Roland: …kind of interesting story on how I got this autograph in Las Vegas, 2012. We were arriving back at the hotel after shopping, where I scored a very bright sparkly pair of yellow shoes. Ha! When we arrived at the hotel, we could hear the band doing sound check. After hearing Roland play a few chords of “Sweet Home Alabama,” — I know — I saw him walking across the lawn towards the pool.
Roland walked over to talk to some fans at the fence, and as he was doing so, a very LOUD woman walked up behind me screaming, “Roland, I love you, I love you, I love you”! He looked over and then she started screaming for his autograph. He walked over but the woman did not have a pen or pencil — so, I chimed in that I had a pen, dug through my enormous bags and pulled one out. After he signed the woman’s autograph, I said, “Well, since you’ve got that pen, will you sign my room card?” And he did. End of story, except when we walked into the hotel the band came right behind us. Jeanie opened the door and Curt gave her a huge smile and a “Thank you.” After being that close to both of them, I suddenly did not feel as short as I normally do compared to the rest of the populous.
We all seemed to have had a fun Curt & Roland encounter during the 2012 tour Jeanie included… Her travel story is fun…read on…
Lady Jeannie P.
Over hill, over dale, we most surely hit the hottest, dustiest trails to make it to 3 of the 4 shows from TFF’s last US tour in 2012. From NY and NC we met up in LV and drove to Costa Mesa, CA for the show at the OC Fairgrounds. Met up with Deb Gromack and Hermest, who was kind to drive us all to the show where we mingled with other exhuberant fans until showtime. Great show as always, but with a new twist – the very unique Carina Round opened the show and Roland closed it sweetly by planting a smooch on a longtime fan who was front and center at the stage. LUCKY gal! Happy to bump into (and quite literally bumped) Andye and Carri aftershow…Andye had quite the dreamy expression on her face…I wonder why :p
Curt and Roland in Orange County
The OC fair was still going strong with ferriswheels, games, food and exhibits, so we all headed over and promptly became separated from one another. It took quite a while to find each other again and by then we were on our way back to the car, and found that it was the only one left in this huge lot..that is the only vehicle besides the TFF tour bus! We all had a good laugh as we trailed behind them out of the huge parking lot. They were on their way to SF for the next night’s show; we were on our way to sleep before flying up there the next day : )
Okay, we’re back to the hotel with Deb in tow…she stayed over until the next day when Hermest came to collect her. Colleen and I were off to the Cosa Mesa airport. We left fairly early with lots of time to spare. No rush to park or race through security…we took our time…..ahhh. Then 10 mins to boarding I realize I can’t find my camera. I left it in the trunk of our rented car!!!…ugh… Off I go to retrieve it and in my mind I see myself leaping turnstiles like hurdles and throwing myself in the path of a shuttle bus to get me to the long term lot…which is outside the airport. A shuttle driver took me, and just me, then drove like Mario Andretti to the lot, where every car and aisle looked identical…I couldn’t get my bearings, and this angel of a driver says, “I’ll drive out and come in the way you probably came in” and voila, there’s the car, there’s the camera, camoflaged against the black of the trunk’s interior. I fly back to the terminal, back through security, and I find Colleen and the attendants looking not very pleased by my near miss arrival..the door the airway beginning to close… but I made it!!
Roland in San Francisco
We land in SF, take a cab into town, and through the generosity of fan we’d yet to meet, (Thank you dear Judi) we had been invited to share a very swanky suite in an old-world style, uber-expensive hotel right next to the venue. In fact, the TFF bus was parked right below our 12th floor window. The Nob Hill show was my favorite..very intimate venue with a very close and shallow stage…so close, you felt you could stand up and within a few steps be standing beside Ro or Curt. The acoustics in this auditorium were unique as well, somewhat bass-y. Roland even commented, “We refer to this as a hostile, low end environment” ..It was a VERY receptive audience; the energy between TFF and the fans was palpable. The applause – thunderous. And there’s Carri again! All silver and sparkly and grinning like the Chesire Cat. (We don’t call her Silver Kitty for nothin’ -Andye)
Yes, we were all quite chuffed (as Roland would say) : )))) Did we go for drinks afterward, I can’t remember…had I slept the last few nights? Probably not..it’s all a bit foggy…just like San Francisco : )
But we did sleep quite well that night, so well in fact we all woke up late! Colleen & I had to be at SF Intl Airport for 8am flight back to Costa Mesa….so off we go again… Sorry SF…it was nice seeing your beautiful city for the wee short hours we were there.
Now landed in Costa Mesa, we grab our rental car from long term (24hrs?) parking and head across the desert to Las Vegas for Show #3 with one day to spare!! O.M G. I’d done this before (LA to LV and vice versa), but this time beat all previous heat records…I think it was 122 degrees that day, and then, about 2 hours into the trip, Colleen looks at the fuel gauge and realizes we forgot to gas up when we left CA! <gulp>. Now there’s maybe a 1/4 tank left AND we’re in the middle of a desert : / Well bless that little GPS gizmo I borrowed from a friend back home…we found a station not too far off the highway and we were back on the road; this time with me at the wheel <gasp> Sorry for the frights Colleen, but that’s how we NY’rs drive : P
A few more hours and scoop up Carri from the airport, she flew in from SF earlier that day. Okay, next stop and final destination -Sunset Station Casino/Hotel for our last show which is taking place the following evening : )
My most unexpected and delightful surprise at the Sunset was meeting Julian Orzabal, Roland’s younger brother. (I guess I am now 1degree of Ro – not that it’s any assurance I’ll ever meet him, but I like how it sounds : ) Kindly Andye rented a cabana by the pool for fans to meetup and hang out and besides the great company and accutraments (overhead fans/misting bars/mini fridge/chaises) it was the ONLY place one could escape the blast furnace heat that is Las Vegas in August. Julian, a cool cucumber in any climate, and many other fans were lazing by the pool, enjoying long cool drinks and a lot of laughs in the blessed shade. In the evenings we’d gather at one of the casino’s saloons or bars, and Julian was usually there, beer in hand, Brit humor at the ready : )
The next day, showday, we had the good fortune to be within earshot of the soundcheck, where I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard and saw Roland belting out “Sweet Home Alabama” : )
Roland, Tears for Fears and Team at Sunset Station
I ran up to my room to grab my camera, but by the time I came back, and only a few minutes later, they had cleared the stage : ( Dejected, I walked back into the hotel and just a moment or so later, who is walking up the path to the door but Ro and Curt! The only thing I could think to do besides standing there with my mouth hanging open, was to open and hold the door for them, as they both had rolling luggage trailing behind them. My big chance to drink in the both of them, closeup! It lasted but a split second. But I do vividly recall the cheery “Thank you!” from Curt as he followed Roland through the door. It warmed my heart. It was only a few hours later that we were all dazed and dazzled again as we stood before the white tented stage on a grassy lawn and enjoyed what was to be our last show before heading home the next day. The heat, so unbearable earlier and still so present, seemed to fade away as our eyes and ears were now locked on the stage and our favorite band. Another amazing performance, another memory to hold us over until next time.
This multiple show experience was made even sweeter by the generosity and comradiere of the fans and friends I spent time with–I’m especially grateful for Colleen’s tolerance of my non-stop fretting about almost everything, Judi and Andye for their generous hospitality, Hermest and Deb for their kindheartedness and…oh yeah, that band that makes the whole (sometimes bumpy) journey worthwhile : )
Tears for Fears Travel Fans 