Opening for Dr. Hook tonight

[Commander]

Wish me luck, tonight we open for Dr. Hook. Not entirely my cup of tea, but it should be fun all the same. Too bad it is -30 outside and a weekday to top it off; I hope we aren't playing to just the chairs. :?

[Commander]

Just got back, it was a fun night. The place was sold out solid, and still people kept lining up trying to get in. Turns out, as usual (not to sound like a jerk, but it IS true) people by the dozens kept saying how much they enjoyed US more than the headliner. Quotes like "F* Dr. Hook, I could listen to you guys all night" and "I came here to see YOU, not Dr. Hook" were common. The press didn't know what to make of it all. It was a fun show. Dr. Hook did well too, but Ray Sawyer was a bit of an old turd, he had 0 personality. The rest of the band was great, they were fun loving, kind, soulful men, but Ray Sawyer, the "star", if you care to call him that, didn't even have the testicualr fortitude to stick around and sign autographs, listen to the fans, meet people, chat... NOTHING! He went right to the RV the second the show was over, and locked his butt in there like a hermit. He even had Otter, our friend and merchandiser for Helix, tote out to the RV the twin 40's of Jim Beam that were in the Dr. Hook rider (the old sod couldn't even get off his duff for half a sec to come backstage and grab the booze himself!). I made sure to steal all the Cokes from their rider bin, heheheh. Anyway, as I suspected, this was not a typical 'friendly' show where we mingle like old frineds with the headliner. Rumors circulated that before we arrived, Ray Sawyer was griping non-stop about "the opening band", probably thinking we were just a bunch of bozos looking to steal his bourbon, never realizing that we are a veteran ensemble with good friends in higher places and involved with bands far greater than his... But the crowd sure made it clear who was the better band! By the end of the night, people were forgetting Dr. hook, and were ecstatic about the next Optimal Impact show. In fact, the promoter suggested than roughly half the attendance was there with OI tickets, the other half for Dr. Hook. This makes the whole night worth it!! With the next album just around the corner, our tour is soon to set sail, and if tonight is any indication of how folks will receive us in the future, I think the upcoming tour will be a dang hearty one! Maybe we will get Dr. Hook to open for us on one of the dates, and I'll ask Otter to get Ray Sawyer to cater me a flat of Molson Canadian onto the tour bus. :rolleyes:

[KyzrSoze]

I had to dig deep to remember Dr. Hook from the late 70s early 80s, and the only songs I remembered were the disco ballads from radio :ack:.

There is nothing sadder than an old "has been" celebrity (a two hit wonder at best) who holds on to their 15 minutes of fame for too long.

[Frank N. O.]

Hi Commander, sorry to hear about the bad sides of the show, but glad to hear about the good sides :) (I mean well but I just woke up so maybe it sounds strange but I wanted to post before the thread disappears). I however try to just ignore people who behave badly, even if they clearly have no good excuse for their behaviour since it makes life seem better and bad things aren't worth dwelling in. It sounds like you're doing well and that's good to hear, may it continue forever :look: :HB: :wave:

Greetings
Frank

[Commander]

I had to dig deep to remember Dr. Hook from the late 70s early 80s, and the only songs I remembered were the disco ballads from radio :ack:.


I don't know of any disco ballads done by Dr. hook, they are a 60's 70's band from the Ozarks, and play more southern hillbilly type stuff. "Cover Of The Rolling Stone" and "Sylvia's Mother" are a couple of hits, not disco at all, and they had a lot of other hits too, none of which really turn my crank. Perhaps you are thinking of another band?

[KyzrSoze]

I took another look a list of their songs, and it is the same band. I was remembering some songs from the late 70s/ early 80s like When your in love with beautiful woman and Sexy Eyes. Whatever their past, that was not their best stuff.:D

[Cheyenne]

Optimal Impact show's 'em how it's done! Way to go, Commander! :beer:

[bogs]

Good to hear it turned out well for ya TJ -^

[Blitz]

Hey, that's cool that your show turned out great for you. :) Dr. Hook, though.. I never heard of him. But judging by your description, the group is little before my time ;) ^_^

[FeZ]

I remember Dr. Hook especially for the Video "Baby makes her Bluejeans talk".

Not sure what surprises me more, them being such gits or them being still alive ;)

[bogs]

Fez, I'm simply shocked. You must, after all, know that the Rolling Stones are still alive (barely), and compared to them, Dr. Hook was a clean choir boy group as far as personal habits go. ^_^

As a side note, I enjoyed "On the cover of the rolling stone" as a youth, and more or less all the songs they had during that period, its sad ( as was pointed out earlier ) that groups will keep on going long after the glory days over.

Even sadder when they are bitter to people willing to spend time and money to go see them in their seriously declining years.

[Commander]

The only one who was unsociable was Ray Sawyer, the other guys were all really fantastic people. I think Ray has some serious health issues, he is 69, and after a lifetime of substance abuse, I am sure his body is saying 'no' to every move he makes. I guess I can't really blame him for going straight to the RV, he probably felt like a hundred pounds of boiled dog crap after the show. He looks like Santa Claus with an eye patch, heheh.

[FeZ]

Fez, I'm simply shocked. You must, after all, know that the Rolling Stones are still alive (barely), and compared to them, Dr. Hook was a clean choir boy group as far as personal habits go. ^_^


LOL yeah, but I was deeply shocked when some years ago the news reported that Keith Richards fell from a ladder in his library. :D


He looks like Santa Claus with an eye patch, heheh.

Is that eye patch for real or just fake ?

[Commander]

I went over to Otter as he stood in the doorway of the RV after the gig, and he was talking to Ray Sawyer. Ray didn't have the patch on anymore, and his eye looked as normal as my own, so I am sure it is only a prop.

[VQ]

Heh, that sounds pretty good, my mother used to listen to Dr. Hook when i was youngerin the car, never really liked it, but better then most of the other stuff she listened to.

Sounds like it was mostly successful, I've been to some gigs where the headline show wasn't really for the people there.