Lets see if I can do the second day in a vaguely accurate chronological order.
Wake up, eat. Lay on beach. Swim.
The merch table. Fortunately I happened to walk by as it had just opened, and a new friend (you make lots here) was more than happy to take my $ and buy a poster and shirt for me, as he was at the front of the line. So with that over and out of the way with, more beach time was in order.
The first big “event” of the day was the Matt Abts drum clinic. It had changed location and time, but no one was quite sure where the new location was, or at what time. That seems to be a running theme here. And it’s no reflection on the event itself, it’s just that “Jamaica time” differs from North American time. You just adapt – and it’s not hard. Well, except that it took the good folks here at Breezes 24 hours to “find” a roll-away bed for our room. But that’s another story…
So back to Matt’s drum clinic. I actually didn’t really stay too long, or pay very close attention. But there was a nice turnout, and he was answering questions from the crowd, demonstrating techniques and seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself.
Next up was the poster signing. Talk about a huge line. It was relatively efficient, but with the sheer volume of people getting stuff signed, it took a good two hours for everyone to make it through the line. We were told by staff that the band would only be signing “posters, shirts and CDs” – but like the gentlemen they are, they’d sign anything you put in front of them. I had individual prints of each band member that I had purchased from Allison and Dino, so each of them signed their own print. Grace Potter, Matt (drummer for GPN), Ron Holloway and DJ Logic were also at the poster signing, so I had them sign my poster. All the musicians were super-friendly and had a nice word for everyone that got something signed.
I *think* Grace and Matt had to cut their autograph session short to make it over to sound check. During their soundcheck they went through a bunch of the Top Gun tunes that they played at their New Years Eve “Top Gun themed” show.
Fast forward a couple of hours and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals took the stage for their opening set. They played a few new tunes, a few old, and my personal favorite “If I Was From Paris”. The audience was very into it, though some folks opted to skip it so they would watch one of the NFL playoff games. To each his or her own.
Once GPN had finished, the Mule-crew kicked it into overdrive and setup the stage faster than I’ve ever seen them do it before. Even in Jamaica, these guys are professional.
Mule came out sometime after 10:00PM, and kicked it off with an extended “I’m A Ram” jam, as Jorgens bass (or his speakers) weren’t working… Once that was fixed, the jam turned into a full on version of I’m A Ram > 54/46 > Ram. I’ll see if I can find someone that has a clear memory of the exact setlist, but right now all I can recall is that they played (and not in this order): I’m a Ram > 54/46 > Ram, Gameface, Child of the Earth, Frozen Fear, Beautifully Broken, Brighter Days, Like Flies, Railroad Boy, Fallen Down, Blind Man, 32/20, Stop That Train. Ron sat in on a bunch, Willie Green played drums for 32/20 & Stop That Train, Grace and Scott sat in on Stop That Train. I have both the printed setlists for both sets, and they are so drastically different from what was actually played (and in which order) that they can’t really help me piece together the night.
Same deal as yesterday, uploading pictures is a nightmare. Of all the wonderful things this resort has, actual high-speed Internet is not one. With that said, I think I’m the only one dumb enough to have brought a laptop anyway. So here are a couple pics – many, many more once I return home.
