 My
American Adventure
by Little Queenie
A dream finally came true in the end of October 2005, I
got to travel to the US of A! It is a long trip from
Norway
, but the flight was fine and October 27 I was warmly
welcomed at Sea-
Tac
Airport
outside
Seattle
by my dear friend, the famous Tongue Lady (TL)! Due to
jetlag, it was nice to take it easy the first two days: carving pumpkins, (with
Stones tongues of course), shopping and watching a game of American high school
football. A busy schedule was ahead of us!
October 29: More guests came to TL´s house, Wembley,
DeeBonner and ynotstones. Including JumpingJackFlash, we were all invited
to dinner at RainbowGirl and StonesSleaze´s home, a most enjoyable evening! TL
and I went to
Tacoma
to see Alice Cooper at the Emerald Queen Casino.
Alice
was in good shape and I particularly enjoyed the Paris
Hilton bashing. We drove back to
Seattle
to meet the others at the Sunset Tavern, where we saw a
great Stones tribute band called Rocks Off. The setlist was awesome (100 years
ago, Shine a light, Under my thumb, No expectations, Loving cup, Sweet Virginia,
Rip This Joint, Hang fire etc)! Their
souvenir t-shirts were quite popular: the Pope saying "All Stones. All
night. Amen".
October 30: Show day! The pre-party started at
2pm
at Mr Lucky´s, just across the road of the Key Arena
entrance. What a great place for a party! TL had "been blessed" with
two backstage passes to the Rattlesnake Inn - unbelievable!! We enjoyed the
lovely buffet and especially the Shepherd´s pie (in honour of Keith of course),
before Bernard Fowler (what a handsome man!), Blondie Chaplin, Chuck Leavell and
Daryl Jones came in. TL introduced me to Daryl and we shook hands. When TL told
him where I was from, he said "Hey, I have been there!" and mentioned
a few Norwegian cities. Jo Wood showed her head in the door, and I really hoped
that Ronnie would come in - but alas. TL met Alan White from Yes, who was very
nice and insisted on taking a photo of us with himself and his Scandinavian
wife...with his camera! The greatest moment was when Charlie came in and stood
just an arm’s length away from me! I had lost the ability to speak and it felt
like my eyes were ready to pop out anytime...."It´s Charlie Watts,
man!" He didn´t stay long but, amazingly, he came back. I had been out
for a walk and when returning to the backstage area, I found myself walking
behind him and followed him to the RI! He was standing at the same spot as
earlier, this time TL got an autograph in the Love you Live book with her story
in it. Definitely a major highlight of my trip, it´s not every day I get to see
THE Charlie Watts up close (now, that is the understatement of the year)!
"On
with the show", we were asked to kindly leave the Rattlesnake Inn just
about when Mötley Crue finished their show. The seat in Upper Level was alright
and the view was good. The audience in the section seemed enthusiastic at first,
but after a few songs they all sat down and I was the only one standing. Having
heard Shattered and She´s so cold live for the first time, I was extremely
pleased already. TL was shown on the big screen from 3rd or 4th
row during Tumbling Dice! JJF was so
lucky to be in 2nd row…! The Emotional Moment was a beautiful Ruby
Tuesday. I am a very devoted Brian-girl and couldn´t help but cry! For me,
that was the definite highlight of the two concerts. Rain fall down was superb
and it fitted very well, as it was pouring down outside -
Seattle
style. After Bitch, I made a quick decision to move from my seat. I hate
to sit during concerts and felt bad for those behind me as I was blocking the
view. I took my belongings and walked down to the area of the where the
security guard and some others were standing. Plenty of space, no more worries.
More people came to join me there later on. Lisa was just excellent on Night
time, what a voice! The "boys" were on fire. I am always impressed by
their tempo and stamina, especially Mick´s. Vocalists and front men half his
age are not even close to his performance. Jumping Jack Flash is a fabulous
encore, it makes me go wild every time. It´s a gas, gas, gas indeed! Back to Mr
Lucky´s for after-party.
October 31: A day of relaxation. Early afternoon was
spent downtown with ynotstones and JJF, buying
the
Seattle
newspapers for reviews and just hanging around. The
"Rock memories" store had lots of Stones goodies for us! A
quiet Halloween, but I was pleased to have experienced a part of this American
tradition.
November 1: Another show day, off to
Portland
! The pre-party was in our room. Nice and crowded with enough
to drink for everyone. Of course we all missed Mötley Crue (again!). We arrived
in style at the Rosegarden, RainbowGirl and StonesSleaze had booked a Black
Limousine! I definitely felt the Luxury. Most suitable for a Royal Highness,
after all I am best known as Little Queenie among my Stones friends! :-)
I liked the Rosegarden a lot, an intimate arena where one
felt quite close to the band both on the main stage as well on the B-stage even
though ynotstones and I had seats in upper level. But with better seats than at
the Key Arena, I was satisfied. Too bad everyone was sitting in our section! The
women in front of us did not move one single time and hardly applauded, one of
them had actually brought a book! Those behind us were soon complaining since we
were standing. We were so kind to sit throughout the rest of the concert, except
for JJF when I could not bear it any longer. In fact, the couple behind us
urged us to stand up for it. Maybe they felt bad for us, having seen us
“dancing” in the seats most of the time? The crowd in the lower level
and on the floor was great and rocking. The Stones changed 5 songs and gave us a
lovely Angie, a 10 minute long hard rocking Midnight Rambler (oh yeah!) and All
down the line, and Keith surprised us with a change in his set with a strong and
clear Slippin´ away! It was my 10th show, a small milestone.
We met the others at the Holiday Inn for the
after-party, where I met my
Vancouver
friend Lynne! She is one of the original "Keith
Hags" and one of the first I met online in 1996, we had a ball meeting
for the first time! Chatting away, time flew by very quickly and soon it was
time to say goodbye.
November 2: Driving back to Seattle with ynotstones and
JJF. We found a "Ruby Tuesday" on the way, and had a photo session and
lunch there. The staff gave us menus for souvenirs when we explained that we
were Stones fans. I had to say goodbye to my new Canadian friends in
Seattle
, as they were driving home and had to work the next day, so
sad! It was a quiet evening, Stones interview on Access Hollywood on TV and
going to bed early.
November 3: Travelling back home. I would have loved to
stay longer. But now that I have broken the barrier of travelling across the
Atlantic
, I know I will go back! Thanks everyone, for making my
first US trip so special!
Little
Queenie
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