2019 Summer Tours
Is there such a thing as too much fun? As an artist manager and consultant sometimes it can be.
The summer of 2019 was one for the books. From May to September, we spent the summer flying back-and-forth between two major tours. The Rolling Stones and Hootie and The Blowfish. And then capped it all off with Rod Stewart in Vegas.
The Rolling Stones
The Stones tour kicked off in Chicago. There was lots of excitement, anticipation and a bit of anxiety due to Mick's health scare. The original tour dates were postponed for him to have surgery and recover.
The band came out swinging and Mick crushed it. Both shows were amazing and really set the tone for the rest of the tour.
It was great to catch up with my Stones family again. Not just the band and staff, but also the amazing fans that follow the band all over the world.
And I got a few opportunities to have some Chicago pizza, as our hotel was across the street from Giordano's. I also had a very unique opportunity to get a private tour of the Vienna Beef factory with some of the band's entourage.
On The Beach
With the Stones it usually involves water. Hanging at the pool or at the ocean with the “World’s Greatest Rock n’ Roll Band” is always a blast.
Jacksonville and Miami were the coastal stops this tour. Loads of fun in Jacksonville hanging out on the beach. Miami, however, turned into one big Hurricane Dorian watch. The show was moved up a day early so the band could get out before the storm.
Houston and New York were fun Stones cities too. I was in New York for 10 days with the Stones. I got to sneak in a sold-out Barbara Streisand show at Madison Square Garden, between Stones shows.
Hootie
Three days after the Stones left New York, the Hootie guys arrived in the city. They had two sold out shows at Madison Square as well. Great seeing the band play this legendary venue. Also went to Nashville and caught up with some of my old industry friends, and saw Raleigh and Charlotte in my neck of the woods.
Look Who's Here!
And with both bands, you never know who you will run into backstage. Here are a few shots (in order) with Bruce Willis, Steve Jordan, Chris Martin (Coldplay), Dakota Johnson, Cindy Crawford, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kevin Rahm (Madam Secretary, Mad Men), Matt Houston (The Advice/producer), Jim Sonefeld (Hootie).
Grand Finale...Rod
To cap off things off our Red39 2019 Summer Tour, I spent a couple days in Las Vegas to catch up with Rod Stewart. I first met Rod back in 1986. That meeting eventually led to his manager giving me a shot at working in management. Great to catch up with Rod!
What a crazy summer 2019 was. And yes, you can have too much fun. But I loved every minute of it.