Taking a break from shows and photos to answer a question or two, or more. I've gotten some interesting comments (thank you for taking the time and showing the interest, in almost all cases), and there have been lots of repeats on some of the questions asked. Since I really don't want to keep giving the same answers over and over (here or in private email, especially the latter since I do have a problem keeping track of my email), I thought I'd answer some of the most-repeated questions here and maybe have done with them once and for all.
1. This seems a bit silly to have to answer, but since it gets asked so often, I suppose I might as well. Maybe it only seems silly because I'm unfamiliar with how others write online journals - maybe many people really do pour out all the details of every aspect of their personal lives in journal entries (perhaps even more so in GBS-fan-community journals since it sure happens often on GBS-fan message boards), but that's not what I've chosen to do. This journal is about what its title says, and that's pretty much it. But just because I've chosen (for the time being, at least) not to use this space to talk about my family and friends, or my work, or my sports teams, or my political or religious beliefs, or my other travels and photographs, or even very much at all about the other music I listen to - let alone my innermost thoughts and feelings or even the inconsequential minutiae of each and every day - that doesn't mean all those other things aren't going on, especially that inconsequential minutiae. What it does mean is that to me all these other things are private, no criticism at all implied of those who choose instead to be far more public about all aspects of their own lives. I might on occasion mention some or all of these other parts of my life, but the main focus here is going to stay the same as it's been.
2. I am not writing (and that verb seems a bit arrogant, given the current painfully slow progress...how about "trying to write" instead?) a book about Great Big Sea. Alan is the one who should write a book about Great Big Sea one of these days when he's got some time to do so. What I'm trying to write is a book about how one person has to a small extent come to know, and to a larger extent come to care about, Newfoundland, with much of that knowledge and caring starting with the music of GBS and continuing on with the experience of travelling to GBS shows and points beyond, as well as from coming into contact with the people met along the way.
3. For the time being, I'm not going to be re-posting links to any of the videos I took during the past tour, with the possible exception of Alan's Lucky Me encore from Burlington. Yes, I know live-show video clips are now routinely posted on the offical GBS message board, as well as on such sites as YouTube. Yes, I know there is no clearly articulated official policy (not even an unclearly articulated official policy) from GBS in regard to live-show videos. Yes, I know people stand right in front of the band openly and inarguably videoing their performance, and not a soul in the band expresses any problem with that at all (at least not verbally), nor do they ask that it not be done. I agree with those who have said that no member of GBS has a leg to stand on in bitching about live-show video (or photos, for that matter) because of all these things.
But I am still not going to put my GBS-performance videos back online at the present time, not out of obedience to any official policy they've chosen to formulate and not out of respect for any personal objections any of them has decided to express - for the very simple reason that there are as yet none of those things to obey or to respect. Instead, I'm going to do it by my own choice for two of my own reasons - the first reason being my not wanting to offer up any more argument fodder at the present time than can realistically be avoided, the second reason being that since they have a live-show DVD coming out in the fall, it seems best for sales of that DVD if the desire to see them playing live is at its highest peak possible. Almost every video I have of them from this past tour is a video of a song that will also be on that live DVD (with the possible exception of the pre-RRA singalongs...time will tell if those wind up on the DVD or if they go with Sean's Danny Boy instead), with the very notable exception of Lucky Me, which is a big reason why I am considering putting that video back up again, that and the simple fact that it is my all-time favourite GBS song.
After the DVD runs its course in sales, and if the putative dislike of some for being videoed has still not found the balls (as well as the consensus) it needs to express itself as an official policy that is fairly and consistently enforced, then, yes, I will re-post the video clips from this past tour. If that policy should ever find consensus and expression, as well as its enforcement ever find fairness and consistency, then kiss all the videos goodbye, because the existing ones will promptly go into the private collection and no new ones will be made. In the absence of such a policy and its enforcement, I'm not sure about future videos at shows, at least from me. I am quite sure others will continue to do it, and I am also quite sure that in all fairness I have every right to do the same. But there's fairness and then there's kindness, and the two seem often to be at cross-purposes with one another. An observant person will notice that I have no videos from either Bluesfest or Molson, even though the temptation was great, especially at Bluesfest. Affection complicates things tremendously, and so far it's making this one a play-it-by-ear matter. If there's one thing I've learned over the past five years, it's not to expect anything to be straightforward or uncomplicated.
4. I don't write about (or take pictures of) the private time of any band members, or answer any questions about what I might happen to know about their private lives. I define "private time" and "private lives" as all the time they are not on stage, with the exception of when they come out to work the crowd in signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, or when they are officially participating in some other kind of public event (as opposed to walking down a public street or beimg present in a public establishment on their own time). If any of them choose to bring up their own private lives - and it's usually only Alan who does this - I'll gladly write in response to that, but that's about the limit of it. For those who are looking for gossip about their personal lives, there are certainly individuals who are more than willing to cooperate, but it's not going to happen here.
5. I've known about GBS since 2001, and no, I don't know how many shows I've seen since I really don't keep a count. Suffice to say that I go to a lot of GBS shows, "a lot" being quite an understatement. I know most people don't understand it, and I certainly know some people have a huge problem accepting it. My own opinion in regard to most of the latter folks is that if they are investing energy into having such a huge problem "accepting" how others choose to live their lives, they might need to be paying more attention to and putting that energy into their own lives instead. There are two people to whom I've given some say over my choices in regard to seeing shows, and if you aren't one of those two people, then it's really not a matter that concerns you. No offence intended, but since the opinions of all but those two people don't really concern me in this matter, the time some spend writing those opinions out might be more wisely invested in doing something more pertinent to their own lives.
6. I'm in no way a professional photographer, strictly an amateur (though I have on occasion done photography on the "barter system," getting costs covered in return for shooting photos). Before I discovered show photography, I mostly took landscape photos on trips and hikes, as well as pictures of the cats. Though I use a (film) SLR for all other "real" photography, for shows I'm using a fixed lens digital these days, an Olympus Camedia C-7000 (7.3 MP, 5X zoom) for photos and video clips. Sometimes I use it on manual settings, but usually on the auto settings, and most often with no flash. It's a good camera, but it has a few serious quirks. If anyone is genuinely interested in photography, that's one topic I'll keep answering specific questions about, at least to the extent of my limited knowledge on the subject, and I would be happy to listen to the knowledge of those who know much more than I do.
7. I'm an American. This question comes up a lot, though I'm not quite sure why. To those who say I don't write like an American, I'm not sure how to respond, especially when that comes from other Americans. My Dad always said, "When in doubt, take it as a compliment," so I guess I'll just say "Thank you," then cross my fingers and hope.
8. You do not need to include an email address to post a comment here, and you can use whatever name you like (or none at all), even if I already know you by your real name or another screen name or don't know you from Adam. The email part is purely volitional, and I like to hear what people have to say no matter what they call themselves while they're saying it. If you want to make a private comment, you have my word that your words will not be posted, though please remember that if you want me to respond to you privately, in that case, I will need an email address of some sort to do so. I do pre-screen comments before posting them, partly to keep outright spam off this blog, and partly to keep outright nuts off this blog. Some people also seem not to be able to resist making nasty personal comments about others, not only about me, but also about band members or other commenters or other GBS fans. I don't find that at all acceptable, especially negative comments about a person's overall character or how people look physically or how others supposedly feel, and those kinds of comments will not be seeing the light of day.
I don't like mean people. Saying you think someone is acting like a twit is one thing, but saying you think someone is insane or that they are ugly or that so-and-so hates them is quite another thing. I don't want that crap showing up here. I also don't post gossip about band members that gets sent here, but I will confess that I do read it - there's having standards and there's being human, after all. Also, I really do like conversation, and it's fine with me if people want to respond directly to another person's comments instead of waiting for me to answer back first. I'm told that isn't usually how it's done on personal blogs, but I don't really give a frig about how it's usually done, so please feel free if you're so inclined.
9. Yes, I hope Alan makes some solo CDs and that he keeps collaborating with others outside of GBS, especially Russell Crowe, since what they've done together so far turned out to be so good. I'd love to see Alan performing on his own or with his own band too. If Sean has any inclination at all toward doing any or all the same, I hope he does it as well (for that matter, Bob too). That doesn't mean I hope GBS splits up. All it means is I hope that Alan is able to do everything he wants artistically and that he gets the chance to use all of his creative talents to their fullest potential - on stage, writing, composing, arranging, producing, all of it. My own opinion is that there are - at the present time, at least - some things that Alan is only going to be able to do with GBS and some things he is only going to be able to do away from GBS, so I hope that he has the chance to do any and all of those things that will make him happy, no more and no less.
10. Yeah, I like Alan. How did so many people ever figure that one out all on their own? And regardless of those occasions when I think he might benefit from an affectionately exasperated slap or two upside the head (or perhaps from having his lovely assets firmly paddled instead), I think he's pretty wonderful, as well as an excellent tangible testimony to his own Something Beautiful, though on both those counts, I tend to wonder how it is everyone else in the whole world hasn't already figured all that out on their own too.
And on that closing note, maybe just one little photo from Bluesfest:
Sorry. As ever, I could not resist. That might make for an eminently appropriate epitaph.