Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road have been touring out on the west coast, and have sent us regular reports with photos from the west coast. Here is their final installment, from Lorraine and bassist/vocalist Randy Graham.
The final stop of our True Grass tour took us to Bluegrass On The Beach, a premiere festival in Lake Havasu City, AZ. I must confess it was a bittersweet experience. Over the years we have worked closely with Larry and Sondra Baker who have produced several of the “must play” festivals out west. We learned that this would be their last Bluegrass On The Beach. Our obvious disappointment soon turned to joy, when told that the festival would continue under the watchful eye and leadership of Danny Stewart, with whom we have worked for many years. Thanks to Larry and Sondra for their years for service to the bluegrass community, and we look forward to working with Danny and Christa again for years to come.
We were treated to some beautiful views of mostly barren desert from Las Vegas to Arizona. Stark, but nonetheless breathtaking. The Chamber of Commerce in Lake Havasu City most have ordered the weather, because it was as close to perfect as one could expect for an outdoor event. The large, responsive crowd were treated to some great music by national touring acts and excellent regional bands, and no one was disappointed because every band gave their all.
My Carolina Road Boys, Ben, Matt, and Randy, stepped up in a big way by not only playing our two sets, but backing up Junior and Danny on their shows too. This allowed me and my dad time to see the sights and enjoy some one-on-one time to ourselves, which we thoroughly enjoyed. I never knew I had so many fans in the southwest. I spent every moment I could visiting with them, reconnecting, telling stories, and laughing. One even presented me with roses during our final set. Pretty amazing!
They say all good things must come to an end, and so it is too with the Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road, Junior Sisk, and Danny Paisley True Grass tour to the southwest. To say we had a good time would be the understatement of a lifetime. We like to thank everyone who worked so hard to make this trip an enjoyable success. These include those who produced and hosted our tour stops, my Jordan Entertainment staff, and the fans who came to support live, traditional, bluegrass music.
We’ll be just a few days off, then to Canada for another extended, multi-stop tour put together by Tony DeBoer and the Northern Bluegrass Committee. Lookin’ forward to that. Like my song says, I’m “livin’ like I’m dyin’.”
