It’s nearing 8 o’clock and the anticipation for the show is growing steadily as concert goers flood the Belly Up. I am fidgeting like usual wondering about backstage with a cold Corona in my hand. If you thought I was an anxious person to begin with, double that and slap a shit-eating grin on my face. My excitement and my eagerness are borderline obnoxious but warranted given the enormity of the show.
Meanwhile, Beau is in the headliners green-room with his cute little comb-over haircut schmoozing nicely with their front man. Beau always has a way with politicking during our big events. He is subtle, but determined, eyeballing our next big break. Vince of course is busy testing the various alcohol varieties ensuring that they are of top quality. He concentrates his energy on making sure everyone is drinking and that they are properly medicated. Vince is often the life of the party; smart, witty and best of all…brutally honest! He doesn’t know it, but sometimes he actually makes me cry.
Then there is Sir Captain Jones. We give this guy lots of crap, maybe too much, but honestly you can’t write the material he provides us. At this particular show, Casey could be seen pillaging through the Belly Up’s tool-kit, without permission, looking for parts to repair his bass guitar which wasn’t actually broken. He is a total scare off-stage. You never know what you’re going to get, but come showtime Casey is a joy to watch. If you watch him closely during a performance, you will see his shirt change colors. I have honestly never met anyone who could sweat as much as that man! Finally we have our Golden Goose, Cami Smith and the Second Fiddles. Many don’t know this, but she actually poops and sneezes gold…weird huh?? Before most shows, the band has no clue where the hell she actually is! I think she has a special cocoon underground filled with feather pillows that she rests her tiny little head on. Seriously…nowhere to be found pre-performance! Finding her is like finding Jesus and when she does appear it’s like the second coming of Christ! She always disappears when you need her the most, but once she takes the stage, the fans direct all of their attention to her. I could honestly take a dump on my amplifier during a song and nobody would notice. Cami is truly fun to watch when you can find her. So that’s the pre-performance breakdown; while you are waiting eagerly for the show to start, I am stressing, Beau is working, Vince is drinking, Casey is doing something unnecessary and Cami is missing. We hope you enjoyed the show!
– Bryan