Neil's whereabouts...

The only question I have an answer to is:

they stay in hotels when on tour.

After the Vancouver show, some of us kind of migrated to the back door of the venue which was in a back alley with really stinky dumpsters and a few people who may call it home. The bus wasn't there, so we went around the block and found the bus with a u-haul connected to it. We figured that perhaps they were going to pull it round into the alley in awhile. So, some of us stayed by the bus and some went back into the back alley.

Shortly, those of us at the bus went back and joined the hardy few in the back alley--I got there just in time to hear the tail end of a story a female from Nettwerk was layin on everyone standing there--something along the lines of--the set has not been torn down yet, the band members were having a party and it was not likely that they were going to hop on the bus to go back to the hotel as they were all disbursing in seperate directions and that we were wasting our time if we thought Neil was going to ever come out that back door. She added that in all liklihood he would come out the front door and go right into a car back to his hotel.

The panhandlers were so thick and lousy on Granville at that time of night that I just bid everyone good night after another 20 minutes or so and split.

I don't know if anyone I left behind 'got lucky' but I'm sure if they did, they will let us know once they start posting again on their return.

As for was Neil leaving the next day, it's anyone's guess.

Heck, with the crappy weather in the US, and it being summertime back home, his family getting sick during the tour, his brother's wife about to have a new baby, the impending world situation, and how some of the crowds on this tour treated him, can't say I'd blame him for getting the H-E-double-hockey-sticks outta here right away.

Amen to that Heidi, that's for sure.

I got lucky. Neil eventually came out, in the alley. When he saw us he said; you guys have been waiting a long time, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. He signed my ukulele and other things, and we got some photos. Sharon and Elroy were with him. We talked to him about his next project with Tim. They jumped in a cab. There you go!
Did Neil get mistreated during this tour?

Ahhh Neil,
Got autographs and pictures before and after the show, as well as pictures during.... some that were pretty good considering I was standing at the front but did not use a flash.

So he did come out the back door after all. Hats off to you folks, it was real smelly back there and there being no guarantees and several possible exits, I just didn't want to wait around any more.

The things we do for love!!

Lester...I encourage you to read the review threads from the tour and decide for yourself whether you think the crowds were nice to Neil. In my opinion, I think he had some wonderful crowds (I SO WISH I'd been in Chicago and DC!!!!!) but it sounds like he had some really rude ones, also. And he's always nice enough not to react, but you KNOW it has to irritate the hell out of him.

The one instance, where there were 2 people talking right down front the whole time and Neil asked them "what was so (effing) interesting" and turned it into a joke...I heard a similar story about Tori Amos, but she asked the people to shut the eff up, and they wouldn't, and then she stopped the show and said she wouldn't continue until those people left. And she cussed at them, the people left, amid booing, and then she continued the show...

I guess my point is, regardless of how Neil gets treated, he downplays the annoyance and handles it with much aplomb...the sign of a true entertainer. It's up to the people to be nice in the first place, and I think he had a mixed bag this trip...certainly not as universally "magic" as last summer.

Neil might stay on in the states for a little bit, seeing as Liam's band are playing their first gigs there in a couple of days.

Cheers,
Benji

When and where is Liam's band playing???

Hi Bean!

The Betchadupa dates are posted on the "related bands" section.

No New York dates, though.

Thanks, Heidi. Maybe thats why the Vancouver show seemed abit cold, compared to July. I thought it might be a last show thing. (Vancouver is often the last stop.) Like the Crowded House concert where Paul Hester took off just before Vancouver. It felt like the boys were just going through the motions.