The Doc's Chicago Blues Fest Story

Posted by BlueGill on June 01, 2002 at 10:15:35:

When I lived in St Louis spending all my time sitting in boring class, we decided to go to the Chicago Bluesfest. And more than that, we decided to take the train through the corn fields to Chicago, relax as the scenery rolled by. I packed my Dobro and a change of clothes, some new strings, etc ( I grew up in the folk musc/fiddle/bluegrass festival tradition where parking lot picking was THE thing. Little did I know the chicago blues fest was not from that tradition.)

So we went to West County, St Louis and caught the rails. Nice big car, lots of winders, comfy seats, we got a whole section to ourselfes. The Mrs. Had packed a picnic basket and we were sitting back with all the room in the world. Looking forward to a nice Amtrack Experience.

When we got to downtown St. Luois quite a few people got on and we ended up sharing our seat with a lady and her two boys going to Chicago to visit Dad who was working there for a few months. Nice folks.

Then we got to east St Louis/Belleville Illinois. And as many people who were on the train, twice that many boarded. Turns out the Cards were in Chicago for a three day stand.

Smoke. Loud white folks who are drunk. One guy who was standing (there was standing room only and it was PACKED with standers, this guy kept waving a lit cig just inches from my Wifes face. I asked him to move it politely and he just sneered. A moment later it was back. So I took it out of his hand and put it out in an empty coke can one of the nielady's boys had. The man didn't notice he was so drunk, he went to take a puff and it was gone.

Then the conductor came around to punch tickets and it really got exciting. A lot of people tried to dodge him. The the train stopped in a corn field in the middle of absolutely no where. And the AC went off. And the announcement came on.

Now mind you this was supposed to be a 4 hour trip and we were in the 2nd hour.

And the announcement was that the conductor had got his ticket punch stolen. And the punch had nbeen his Dad's who was a conductor before him. and the train wasn't going to move until he got it back.

And we sat.

and it got louder.

And smokier.

And drunker.

And more and more miserable for those of us not smoking and drinking and being loud.

And they claimed they would pick up another car at the next stop. If we ever got there.

Finally about 8 (we had left St Louis at noon)

we started to roll.

And when we got to the next stop, we sat and sat some more. No new car. More folks.

We arrived in Chicago after midnight. The nice lady's kids were starved and thirsty and scared and she was mad and the drunks were now mad and trying to roll the car over (while it's going 60 MPH.

Smart drunks.

We finally got to Chicago and of course got to be toward the end of the taxi line. Nice lady's husband was agitated and worried.

We got the last cab and as we got in this strange but friendly lady got in with me, sandwiching me between the mrs and her. Huh? She said she wasn't about to be left standing at the cabstand at the railroad station alone at 2AM and would we share a cab with her. She was going near where we were an she offered to pay for the entire fare, please don't leave her alone at night . So we did.

We got to the hotel and checked in ok.

Fest was good. No other parking lot pickers but I didn't want to leave the dobro in the hotel room so I got preferential treatment cause I had a guitar case. Almost got backstage.

Trip Home? About the same. Stood next to a Polish scientist on his way to a meeting of physicists in St Louis. He was working on a new formula for the Shuttle D-Ring that had caused the big wreck the sky. He had a PHD from a university in Moscow, was working at the Uni of Chicago on a scientific exchange. His family was in the US on a special leave from the Polish Govt and he was trying to decide whether to defect. I felt like he would.

another 4 hour trip turned to 8 hours, only this time I offered to stand and let a lady sit.

the music was good.

John

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