Mon 12 Oct:
No drive today, woohoo! Roswell, New Mexico happened to be a handy stopping point on our route from Arizona to Oklahoma, so we’ve just spent the first of two nights here, and today we have a whole day off — the first day in weeks without a long drive or a gig or (for the most part) both. Sadly, I have to spend most of it putting together a spreadsheet to send my wonderful accountant so that she can submit the new quarterly tax return HMRC have seen fit to require under the UK’s new Making Tax Digital regime. In between bouts of gazing at statements and spreadsheets and cursing and swearing, I decide I’m due a break, so Martin and I head out for a quick look round the sights of Roswell, such as they are — lots of faded signage and graffitied statues featuring aliens, and plenty of silly photo ops. Back at the hotel, I finally finish the spreadsheet and get it emailed to Louise. We celebrate with margaritas and Mexican food.
Tues 13 Oct:
Roswell NM to Sayre OK — 336 miles. Back on the road this morning for a long flat drive across New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma, and this is our last day off before the first of three five-show runs. Five gigs in seven days is what I always aim for when booking tours, but it’s been difficult to achieve that in the big wide open spaces we’ve been travelling through during the past few weeks. But from here on out, as we make our way back to the East Coast, things are going to get very busy indeed.
Weds 14 Oct:
Sayre OK to Tulsa OK — 290 miles. Show 99 of this year is promoted by Scott Aycock, presenter of the long-running “Folk Salad” programme on Public Radio Tulsa. Scott’s hosted two concerts for me previously in his home, but while tonight’s gig is still under the rubric of his “House Concerts Unlimited” series, it’s taking place in Drifter’s Theater — an old Baptist church bought and renovated by Scott’s son Dylan Aycock, a musician himself, who lives in the adjacent parsonage house. The old church pews are still in place, but Dylan has added PA, lighting and red velvet stage curtains. It’s so lovely to see Scott again, and to hear him play a beautiful original song from his forthcoming new album during his opening set for my show. Lovely also when the small but enthusiastic crowd gives me a standing ovation at the end of the gig!
Thurs 15 Oct:
Tulsa OK to Winfield KS — 127 miles. Show 100 of this year is at the Winfield Public Library in Winfield, Kansas, and two members of the Friends of the Library group have kindly donated lodging for myself and Martin in their AirB&B cottage — two nice big bedrooms, ice cream in the freezer for us to enjoy post-show, and best of all, a washing machine & dryer which we lose no time in making use of. Clean clothes! Woohoo! And there’s an unexpected familiar face in the audience: author Glen Sharp, whom we met when I played Valley Center Public Library (54 miles from Winfield) in 2024 & 2025 — his mother Janice Sharp is the library director there, and at the end of tonight’s show Glen hands us an envelope labelled “FROM THE SHARPS”, telling us to treat ourselves to a nice meal out the next time we have a night off. When I open it later, it proves to contain a hundred dollars in cash. People are wonderful!
Fri 16 Oct:
Winfield KS to Omaha NE — 324 miles. Back in 2015, Jerome Brich (no mean guitarist himself) and his wife Mary Montag kindly hosted a house concert for me in Omaha, Nebraska. We kept in touch, and when they travelled to Cornwall a few years ago to visit Mary’s sister Laurie and her husband Richard, who’d just moved to Penzance, the four of them came over to my house for a lovely visit. Show 101 of this year is a return visit to their FolkHouse Concert Series, which since 2000 has taken place in the 1901 carriage house at Joslyn Castle, a 35-room Scottish Baronial mansion that was once the home of newspaper and printing magnate George Joslyn and his wife Sarah. Sadly, this will be the final season of FolkHouse Concerts at the Castle, as Jerome needs to spend more time on his own music. I’m so honoured to be part of it, and so delighted to have such a good turnout — 67 tickets sold! Back at Jerome and Mary’s house afterwards, we have a lovely chat and catch-up.
Sat 17 Oct:
Omaha NE to Springfield IL — 324 miles. Tonight is an unexpected night off, as my scheduled return visit to The Bixler 108 in Unionville, Missouri has sadly been cancelled due to road construction blocking access to the venue. So instead of travelling to Unionville today, we’ve booked a second night in the hotel where we’d already planned to stay tomorrow night. I had a lovely gig at The Bixler 108 in 2024 and had been looking forward to seeing its lovely founder Tom Keedy again — and of course it’s always sad to lose a gig. But I’m hopeful that it can be rescheduled for next year, and to be honest it’s been a long tour and we could both do with an extra break! And the hotel has a fitness centre, so I go for a walk on the treadmill while listening to Dickens’ “Dombey and Son” … and there’s a Mexican restaurant across the car park ….
Sun 18 Oct:
Springfield IL to Jacksonville IL to Springfield IL — 61 miles. Show 102 of this year is a 4pm concert at the Jacksonville Public Library in Jacksonville, Illinois, as part of the their “Music Under The Dome” series. Once again I’m kind of glad about yesterday’s cancellation, because instead of having another early start to get to the library in time to set up for the gig, we’re only half an hour down the road and don’t have to leave the hotel until after 1pm. Needless to say, we spend the extra time catching up on admin rather than lounging about, but it’s great to have the pressure lifted a bit. The library is a lovely old Andrew Carnegie-funded building from 1903, with a central rotunda that gives the series its name. Having been shown which way the “stage” faces and where the audience will be sitting, we set up for the show, only to discover just as I’m about to start that one audience member has determinedly made her way across my instruments, equipments and cables to the blocked-off “backstage” area, where she sits and reads throughout my performance, in full view of the audience and close enough behind me that I can hear the pages of her magazine turning as I sing. See photo … We move on, we move on.
More to follow next week ….
Monday 5th – Sunday 11th October '26
Mon 5 Oct:
Montecito CA to Tucson AZ — 578 miles. Today’s drive is a long one, so we leave our hosts’ house at 9am sharp. On the way out of LA we stop off at a Citibank so that I can make a deposit. Like so many banks, Citibank has been reducing the number of its branches, so for the most part I deposit cheques via my mobile banking app and use cash for travel expenses. But there’s a limit on the amount per month that you can deposit via the app, plus I’ve accumulated more cash than I like to be carrying around, so it’s great to be able to get to an actual branch. Then it’s back on the road. It’s a beautiful drive, but a long one: we eventually make it to Tucson just after 7:30pm, ten and a half hours after setting off, with an even earlier start on tomorrow’s agenda.
Tue 6 Oct:
Tucson AZ to Truth or Consequences NM — 304 miles. We lose an hour today as we cross into Mountain Daylight Time, so we’re on the road just before 8am. Show 96 of this year is at The Lighthouse of Riverbend Hot Springs in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Originally called Hot Springs, the town changed its name in 1950 after the host of a radio quiz show entitled “Truth or Consequences” announced that he would broadcast his 10th-anniversary show live from the first US town that permanently renamed itself after the program — so it did, and he did! Tonight’s concert is sponsored by The Sierra County Arts Council, which also provides lovely pre-show meals for us, and wonderfully spacious digs at the Pelican Spa just around the corner from the venue. Each of us has not only a bedroom but a kitchenette and separate sitting room to ourselves, as well as use of the spa’s geothermally heated mineral baths. It’s a lovely little venue, and house tech Wil Troup has gone the extra mile with the lighting, creating a projection of my logo as well as other nifty effects — see photo! After the show (which is hugely enjoyable — such a wonderfully giving audience, and a fantastic welcome from Wil and all the Arts Council staff), we hightail it back to the spa with just enough time for a quick 20-minute soak in the mineral baths before they close for the night. Such a treat!
Wed 7 Oct:
Truth or Consequences NM to Farmington NM — 333 miles. A long drive to show 97 of this year, a 6pm concert at the Farmington Public Library in New Mexico. Sadly, only five people turn up for the show, but they buy merch, sign up to my newsletter list and say lovely things about my music — and we get a great welcome from the staff, whose help with the load-out gets us all packed up in double-quick time and enables us to enjoy a quick post-show black lager (brewed just up the road in Albuquerque) at a wonderfully atmospheric although sadly underpopulated bar nearby.
Thurs 8 Oct:
Farmington NM to Aztec NM to Holbrook AZ — 233 miles. I’m up early for a 9am radio interview to promote next Wednesday’s show in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and then we make a quick detour to the Aztec Ruins National Monument, which comes highly recommended by my fellow singer/songwriter Sofia Talvik. As promised by Sofia, it’s an amazing place — not actually Aztec, though (the name comes from the nearest town, which happens to be Aztec, New Mexico): the structures here were constructed by the Pueblo Indians in the 12th and 13th centuries. They’re astonishingly well preserved, with the original timber roofs still intact, and it’s mind-blowing to be able to wander through room after room — the inner ones wonderfully cool despite the blazing heat outside. And it’s completely free of charge! Tonight’s destination is Holbrook, Arizona, a stop en route to Friday’s 2pm show in Tubac, Arizona. It’s another stunning drive past one dramatic rock formation after another, and when we eventually get to our hotel we discover that it’s across the road from a rather delightful bar called the Empty Pockets Saloon, with a beautiful old pressed tin ceiling and a bison head on the wall, where we drink Corona with lime and eat tacos.
Fri 9 Oct:
Holbrook AZ to Green Valley AZ — 263 miles. Another ridiculously scenic drive today, with stops at the Becker Butte Lookout and the Salt River Canyon Rest Area, where we spot an intimidatingly large rattlesnake snoozing underneath the old Salt River Canyon Bridge as we walk across it. Built in 1933-34, it became a pedestrian walkway in 1996 after being replaced by the higher-capacity bridge beside it. We also stop off at a Jiffy Lube for a miraculously quick oil change (in and out in less than 15 minutes, I kid you not), as we’ve driven so many miles in our rental car that it’s due one.
Sat 10 Oct:
Green Valley AZ to Tubac AZ to Green Valley AZ — 40 miles. Today happens to be my 23rd wedding anniversary, but sadly the celebration has to be postponed until I get home in November. Show 98 of this year is a 2pm concert in the 1885 Schoolhouse at the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park & Museum, where the president of the Friends of the Presidio group shows me how to make salami flowers. Transferable skills! We also get to have a quick look around the exhibits, which include the site of a Spanish fort founded in 1752, a fascinating “stairway to the past” that takes us below ground level to view actual archaeological layers preserved behind glass, and the 1800s Jackass Mail Ambulance — “Jackass” because passengers had to get out and ride mules for one section of the journey over the mountains, “Mail” because it carried mail as well as passengers from San Antonio to San Diego and back, and “Ambulance” from the Spanish word “ambulancia”, which in those days had nothing to do with transporting the sick or injured but rather meant any open wagon carrying passengers. All very fascinating.
Sun 11 Oct:
Green Valley AZ to Roswell NM — 471 miles. Another day, another dramatic drive, with views of jagged-toothed mountains that look vertical from a distance but smooth out a bit as you draw closer to them — and then we drive over one mountain pass and vertiginously down into what turns out, rather alarmingly, to be the 3,200-square-mile White Sands Missile Range. Just as we’re starting to get over the feeling of mild discomfort brought on by driving through an area where weapons of mass destruction are stored and tested, we’re pulled over for a Border Patrol check (we’re very near the Mexican border) and Martin can’t get his ESTA to download. Fortunately, the agents are very nice about it and wave us on our way, but it’s an anxious moment all the same, and we’re very happy to reach our destination — Roswell, New Mexico, famous as the site of an alleged 1947 UFO crash, but for us a convenient stop along the way to the next gig, with lots of photo ops for selfies with statues of aliens.
More to follow next week ….
Monday 28th September – Sunday 4th October '26
Mon 28 Sept:
Miller SD to Devil’s Tower WY to Gillette WY — 391 miles. Today’s drive would have been 30-odd miles shorter if we hadn’t decided to take a detour to the Devil’s Tower National Monument, which Martin is very keen to visit as it featured in the 1977 film “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” I haven’t seen the film, but the Devil’s Tower is a pretty breathtaking sight regardless, especially when viewed from all sides as we walk the 1.7-mile trail around its perimeter. And on our way back down to the main road we meet some very friendly and insanely cute prairie dogs.
Tue 29 Sept:
Gillette WY to Sinclair WY to Rawlins WY — 258 miles. Show 93 of this year is at the Parco/Sinclair Historical Theatre in Sinclair, Wyoming. It’s a free community event kindly made possible by a lovely gent called Damien Cesko who runs the Rawlins Music Academy, where I had a lovely show way back in 2019; in addition to paying my fee, the academy is also providing hotel rooms and meals, so we feel very well looked after! And it’s so nice to see Damien again — a musician himself, with a well regarded band called Stillhouse Blues. Beautiful theatre to perform in, too!
Wed 30 Sept:
Rawlins WY to Parowan UT — 517 miles. A LONG drive today, but oh my goodness, the landscape we’re travelling through is breathtaking, positively surreal. Just over the Utah border, we stop at a rest area where there’s a little footpath leading up to a scenic overlook with a sculpture of an ox-drawn covered wagon and a rather poetic inscription: “Listen, if you will,” it says, “to the melodic plodding of the oxen as they methodically pull the immigrants and their dreams across the landscape of this canyon. Through rocks of amber and brush of sage, the resilient but gentle giants played their part, weaving a legacy through this land … Upon this ground, where you now stand, exist the traces left here by Indians, trappers, immigrants, Pony Express, stagecoach, outlaws, railroad and telegraph. Without them we would not exist in the world we now know. We will remember.”
Thurs 01 Oct:
Parowan UT to Primm NV — 230 miles. Another day, another dramatic drive, this time through Utah and Nevada. We’ve found a very good price on a hotel a few miles beyond Las Vegas that’s actually a casino which happily turns out to have a wide range of old-school arcade games (plus what purports to be Bonnie & Clyde’s original car on display in the lobby). So despite having zero interest in gambling, we manage to have a great time playing Guitar Hero and Space Invaders.
Fri 02 Oct:
Primm NV to San Dimas CA — 169 miles (or should have been — didn’t take a note of what actual mileage turned out to be). Today’s drive starts out well, taking us through the Mojave Desert and past the World’s Tallest Thermometer in Baker, California — where we stop for fuel and have an entertaining time browsing through an Area 51-themed novelty shop called Alien Fresh Jerky. Sadly, no sooner are we back on the road than an accident on I-15 sends us & all the other LA-bound traffic on a painfully slow (albeit scenic) detour over the crest of the San Bernardino Mountains, with a further delay caused by a massive truck that’s jackknifed on one of the many hairpin switchbacks. Eventually we make it to the Motel 6 where we’ll be staying both tonight and tomorrow night … and pause only long enough to check in and drop off our luggage, because our great friends Bernard and Susan Mohini Kane (do check out Susan’s new single “Ready For The Wonderful” if you get the chance) have invited us to dinner at their home in Altadena, which they were finally able to move back into on the 1st of August, having been displaced for 20 months by the Eaton Fire that caused so much devastation in this part of the world — it’s taken this long to repair the damage to their house and purge it of toxins released by the fire. It’s so lovely to see them again, and so good that they’re back in their home at last, but strange and sad to see the neighbourhood still so depleted of houses, shops and people.
Sat 03 Oct:
San Dimas CA to Pasadena CA to San Dimas CA — 39 miles. Show 94 of this year is a return visit to the Pasadena Folk Music Society, which has moved venue since my previous visit back in 2016 (ten years ago!). It’s now at the Knox Presbyterian Church, a beautiful soaring space with a wonderful house tech called Chay who’s incredibly kind and accommodating, laying a table across two pews to create a mix position for Martin and doing all he can to make our lives easier. It’s also good to see all the PFMS crew again — and the above-mentioned Susan and Bernie are in the audience, as is my amazing friend Karen Strassman, actor/director/producer/dialect coach par excellence, whom I’ve known since we were at secondary school together. So, so good to see her again, even if it’s only a brief chat at the merch table — hopefully next time I pass through SoCal we’ll have more time to catch up.
Sun 04 Oct:
San Dimas CA to Montecito CA to Santa Barbara CA to Montecito CA — 129 miles. Show 95 of this year is presented by the SBAcoustic Series which takes place in the Parish Hall of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara. On our way to our hosts’ house, we pull in to Lookout Park Beach, just off Route 101, for a very quick look at the Pacific Ocean. It’s crazy hot here, 35 degrees, so we don’t linger long, but it’s lovely to get a breath of sea air before we head on up to the Montecito home of fellow musicians Dorie and Sean Hutchinson (Sean was the bass player in late 60s underground/psychedelic Boston-based band The Far Cry) who are kindly putting us up tonight. We put on a load of laundry (clean clothes! yippee!) and enjoy a gorgeous bowl of homemade vichyssoise, just the thing for this weather, then continue on to the church. There’s no air conditioning and the heat is sweltering, but the atmosphere is lovely, super friendly, and the audience gives me a standing ovation at the end of the show — see photo! Back at Dorie and Sean’s afterwards, we have another bowl of that vichyssoise and head to bed — tomorrow’s drive is 578 miles, so the plan is to be on the road by 9am.
More to follow next week ….
Monday 21st – Sunday 27th September '26
Mon 21 Sept:
Mauston WI to Rochester MN — 149 miles. Show 87 of this year is a return visit to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, where I performed previously way back in 2011. As before, it’s a midday concert in the beautiful soaring Barbara Woodward Lips Atrium as part of the Rosemary and Meredith Willson Harmony for Mayo Concert Series. No merch sales allowed here, but Ben Gateno who organises the series buys a copy of my DADGAD guitar book from me, mentioning that he’s a guitarist himself. Luckily for me, I won’t know until tomorrow morning (when I Google his name) what a mightily impressive musical CV he has — I’d have been a bundle of nerves otherwise! Having been on the road at 7am in order to get there in time to set up, we’re very happy to be able to check into our hotel nice and early, with a whole two days off in front of us before the next run of shows.
Tue 22 Sept:
Rochester MN to Janesville WI — 240 miles. The first of two much-needed days off! And today’s drive isn’t a particularly long one (which is to say that it’s less than five hours) — so we can stay at the hotel until check-out time. Happily, this one has a fitness room, so after breakfast I grab the opportunity to do half an hour’s fast uphill walk on the treadmill while continuing to listen to “Dombey And Sun” on headphones. Our hotel in Janesville is a Super 8, a bit more downmarket than the Comfort Inn in Rochester, so no fitness room here — BUT there is a bar across the car park that’s serving Yuengling Lager on tap for $1 a glass while the baseball game is on, as well as excellent food. We take full advantage.
Wed 23 Sept:
Janesville WI — no drive today. Our last no-drive day was the 10th of September, nearly two weeks ago, so this one is much-needed, and it’s so good to have a full day off to catch up with admin. We do actually wind up doing a very short drive — less than 10 minutes — to the intriguingly named “Devil’s Staircase” — a limestone escarpment on an elevated ledge above the Rock River, with a historic footpath running along its base that now forms part of the 1200-mile Ice Age National Scenic Trail. We have a lovely one-hour walk along a small section of it, clambering up and down steep stone steps and occasionally descending to the water’s edge. It’s a wonderful break from the sea of concrete we’ve been existing in for the past couple of weeks.
Thu 24 Sept:
Janesville WI to Peru IL — 113 miles. Show 88 of this year is a concert at the Zion United Church of Christ in Peru, Illinois, kindly funded by the 408 Fine Arts Factory music school, which has also arranged for me to do a presentation at a local grade school (ages 6 to 13) at 9am tomorrow. It’s a smallish audience but a really lovely space to perform in, and organiser Sue Gillio (an accomplished musician herself and leader of a flute ensemble) is a wonderful host.
Fri 25 Sept:
Peru IL to Tonica IL to DeKalb IL to Sycamore IL — 87 miles. Early start this morning, and a hectic day. We leave our hotel at 7:45am to head to show 89 of this year: Tonica Grade School, where I give a 45-minute presentation, kindly sponsored by North Central Illinois ARTworks, for around 100 children ages 5 to 13. I’ve been feeling a little nervous about this one, but it’s a smashing success — the kids join in enthusiastically on all the participatory bits and fire loads of questions at me (“How old are you?” “Do you have any brothers or sisters?” “Do you like heavy metal?”). They also take a massive shine to Martin and roar “MARTIN!!! MARTIN!!!” every time he appears from behind the curtain, where he’s operating my sound from the side of the stage — he clearly has a fan club in Tonica! We head back to the hotel (which mercifully has a 12 noon checkout time) so that I can change clothes and finish packing up, and then it’s onward to the DeKalb Public Library, where I played previously in 2024, for show 90 of this year. So nice to see a huge pop-up banner advertising the concert (see photo), and to reconnect with all the staff we met two years ago, as well as with a few audience members who’d seen me on my last visit — including one gent who arrives wearing the Sarah McQuaid t-shirt he bought last time round. Oh, and it’s Dolly Parton Day, so Martin cues up “9 To 5” for my walking-off music!
Sat 26 Sept:
Sycamore IL to Minneapolis MN — 362 miles. Show 91 of this year is a house concert at Brian Melendez’s 1777 Dupont House Concerts series. It’s a long drive from the Motel 6 in Sycamore, Illinois, where we stayed last night, so we’re on the road just before 9am. I’m tremendously excited about the prospect of being able to do laundry at Brian’s, and have put on a clean shirt and trousers in happy anticipation of the glorious event. Brian, his gorgeous dog Gigi and cats Simon and Mandarin all give us a warm welcome, and I manage to get our laundry washed and dried before the show starts — pausing en route to the machines to gawp at the huge home cinema in the next room, complete with giant screen and fancy cinema style chairs, the cushy kind with built-in drink holders. It’s a beautiful house with a grand sweeping staircase leading upstairs, where Martin and I both have four-poster beds. The toilet in my en-suite is intimidatingly hi tech: the moment I make contact with the (heated) seat, it starts to play tinkling fountain sounds, presumably to inspire me to action. There’s an array of buttons that doubtless would make all kinds of exciting things happen if I pushed them, but I don’t. The performance space is a little cramped but the atmosphere is lovely, and the hosts of three other concert series in the area have all come to see me with a view to possible bookings in future years, so it’s kind of an audition as well as a show. Afterwards, Brian breaks out the bourbon and we have a most enjoyable chat over a glass or three.
Sun 27 Sept:
Minneapolis MN to Miller SD — 318 miles. An even earlier start today: we leave Brian’s at 8am to head towards show 92 of this year, a 6:30pm concert at the Hand County Library in Miller, South Dakota. The library director who booked me is away on holiday (cycling through the Badlands National Park, apparently) but we’re given a very warm welcome by the library trustees who also present us with a jar each of local honey from their own bees, plus dinner before the show, snacks to take back to our hotel, and a box of homemade cookies and cakes for Martin to have in the car. It’s been a full-on week — six shows including the school assembly — but I’m feeling pretty good, and tomorrow is a day off!
More to follow next week ….
Monday 14th – Sunday 20th September '26
Mon 14 Sept: Exmore VA to Parksley VA to Exmore VA — 41 miles. Show 82 of this year — a 3pm concert at the Eastern Shore Public Library. I do love an afternoon library gig! That’s me soundchecking in the photo. A small but very appreciative audience, and I think we’ve done well to get an audience at all, considering it’s the first concert this library has ever hosted. I hope it’s the first of many! Back at our hotel by 5:30pm, with plenty of time to pay another visit to the same fabulous diner where we had dinner last night.
Tue 15 Sept: Exmore VA to Raphine VA — 266 miles. Driving day, starting with a trip back across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. We eventually make it to our hotel and dine at the interestingly named Quaker Steak & Lube, where most of the patrons appear to have strolled over from the adjacent truck stop.
Weds 16 Sept: Raphine VA to Carrollton KY — 433 miles. Big drive today, but first I’ve got a live radio interview with morning show host Rod Thorson on 103.9 WLPO about next week’s show at Zion United Church of Christ (sponsored by the 408 Fine Arts Factory) in Peru, Illinois. Luckily that’s finished in time for us to get on the road before 9am and arrive at our destination — a Super 8 motel where we’ll spend the next two nights. Not the most luxurious of hotels, but cheap and wonderfully located, with a Mexican restaurant, a Waffle House and a McDonald’s all adjacent. We head out to said Mexican restaurant and have huge Margaritas and fantastic food.
Thurs 17 Sept: Carrollton KY to Warsaw KY to Carrollton KY — 39 miles. First Waffle House breakfast of the tour! Woohoo! Always a treat. I am indebted to my son for informing me (after I’ve sent a photo of my steaming coffee mug to our family messaging group) that because Waffle House is always open except in extreme circumstances, the “Waffle House Index” is actually used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other agencies to inform disaster relief. Google it! Today’s 2pm show (number 83 of this year) is sponsored by the Gallatin County Public Library (where I performed previously in 2023) but takes place in a nearby nursing home where I have lovely chats afterwards with some of the residents, at least two of whom were pro musicians in their time. A young lad called Braden — not sure if he’s visiting or volunteering — kindly helps us load out in the sweltering heat and chats to us about his hopes of becoming a singer. Martin tells him it’s hard work making music for a living, and Braden says “yeah, I can see that” as he looks at our minivan full of equipment. I hope he doesn’t get discouraged! It IS hard work, but I love what I do.
Fri 18 Sept: Carrollton KY to Indianapolis IN to Fishers IN — 136 miles. Show 84 of this year is at the Redbud Tree House Concert Series in Indianapolis, where I’m delighted to see a few familiar faces in the audience — the very lovely Kim Stagg, who with her late husband Bill hosted us both at their Free Range Concerts series in Indiana in 2015 and at their home in Colorado in 2018, and Sam & Dee Carman who organised a concert for me at the Unitarian Church in Danville, Indiana, in 2016. A wonderful longtime supporter called Steve Peck (writer of the Hickory Notes music blog) and his wife Carol are away helping Steve’s sister move to Colorado, but are kindly letting us stay in their house while they’re away — and they’ve said we’re welcome to use their washer and dryer, so after the gig we get do our laundry! Woohoo!
Sat 19 Sept: Fishers IN to Mequon WI to Grafton WI — 303 miles. Early start today, even though we gain an hour as we cross from the Eastern Time Zone into the Central Time Zone. Show 85 of this year is a return visit to the Wisconsin Singer/Songwriter Series, where I played previously back in 2018. We check in to the hotel first, with just enough time for me to grab a quick walk on the treadmill (at a slight uphill incline) while listening to Dickens on headphones! Only 15 minutes, but at least it’s something. Gives me a lift just to have done it. A further lift comes when Joe DeLucia (who founded the Wisconsin Singer/Songwriter Series over 35 years ago and still books and hosts it) opens the concert with a beautiful original song — I never knew he had such a gorgeous voice, with a delicate little sandpapery rasp around the edges that gives it a delightfully rich texture. Lovely to see him and all the WSSS crew again.
Sun 20 Sept: Grafton WI to Skokie IL to Mauston WI — 305 miles. Show 86 of this year is an afternoon concert at the Skokie Public Library, which turns out to have a lovely big auditorium with a proper stage and lights — and even a dressing room, where my wonderful uncle Linn and aunt Bev join me for a chat before the show. So good to see them again! We have a long onward drive afterwards in order to get a good chunk of the way towards tomorrow’s 12 noon show at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota — my 2nd time performing for their Harmony for Mayo Concert Series. Arriving exhausted & famished at our hotel, we spot a neon sign across the car park advertising BEER CHEESE & SAUSAGE, so we head over there and buy beer, cheese and sausage, which actually makes for a really nice late supper — all locally produced and very delicious!
More to follow next week ….
Monday 7th – Sunday 13th September '26
Mon 7 Sept: Penzance to London Heathrow – 289 miles. A flurried morning of last minute packing, followed by a long dull drive from Penzance to Heathrow, where we’ve booked a Travelodge near the airport in preparation for tomorrow’s early morning flight.
Tuesday 8 Sept: Travelodge to Heathrow airport – 5.4 miles. Newark airport to Fishkill NY – 78 miles. 4am wake-up call for the short drive to the airport. We drop off the rental car we collected in Penzance yesterday and check in for our 7:45am flight from Heathrow to Newark — extremely lucky timing, as we’ll discover when we wake up tomorrow morning and read the news. Blissfully unaware of what’s going on in the airport we’ve just flown out of, we make it safely to the USA, get through immigration, collect our rental car for the tour (a nice roomy Chrysler Pacifica minivan), drive up to a hotel in Fishkill NY, and have a very sleepy dinner in the diner across the car park before going straight to bed.
Weds 9 Sept: Fishkill NY to Germantown NY to Beacon NY to Fishkill NY – 102 miles. We wake up (way too early — thank you, jet lag) to news of the air traffic control glitch that hit Heathrow & other airports across the UK less than 3 hours after we took off, with nearly 2,000 flights cancelled — it seems our timing was very, very lucky. Today’s big task is to collect the instruments, equipment & merch that my wonderful cousin Adam kindly lets me store in his basement when I’m not on tour in the USA — all I bring over on the plane is my acoustic guitar and pedal board, but in Adam’s basement I’ve got an electric guitar (a Hamer, not quite as nice as my Ibanez Artist, but a decent guitar all the same), a Vox amp and Korg SV-2 keyboard that are exact twins of the ones I have at home, a Rogers rack tom drum, a small PA system, and boxes of CDs, LPs and guitar books — plus a supply of clothes for the tour that I keep over here so that I can use my luggage allowance for the aforementioned pedalboard. We have a brief chat and catch-up with Adam, meet his gorgeous new puppy Duke, pack all our gear into the rental car, then take the Hamer to luthier Joe DiBisceglie at Main Street Music in Beacon NY for a setup. Meanwhile we’ve heard from our great friends Michelle & Steve (both of whom Martin’s known since his college years) — they live in Portland, Oregon, but by some miracle are on holiday in upstate New York this week, so while Joe is working on the guitar we meet up with them and their two lovely daughters for lunch in the diner across the road from the guitar shop. So good to see them again! Then back to our hotel where I restring my beautiful Andy Manson acoustic while Martin tests all the PA gear to make sure it’s in good order.
Thurs 10 Sept: No drive today! We’ve learned in our 17 years of touring in the USA that we need two full days to get used to the new time zone before I’m capable of doing a gig, so today we mostly hang around the hotel, catching up with admin and making one short trip out to a Walmart to buy various bits and pieces that we forgot to bring with us. I’m feeling deeply deprived of fresh air and exercise, so after Walmart we head to a nearby park where Google has told us there’s a wooded trail running along a stream. Sadly the trail is too muddy to traverse, plus within a minute or two of being on it we’re both sweating buckets and getting covered in insect bites. We beat a retreat to the hotel and drink beer.
Fri 11 Sept: Fishkill NY to Gilbertsville PA to Limerick PA – 184 miles. First gig of the tour! Which is also show 80 of this year. HUGE thanks to Doug (introducing me in the photo — captions, anyone?), Matt, Kevin, Evan & Rinny for an absolutely fantastic welcome to The Crossroads Guitars & Art. It’s a dive straight into the deep end, with a quick stop at the Hampton Inn in Limerick PA to drop off our suitcases, then a DADGAD guitar workshop from 5:30 to 6:30, a quick soundcheck & change into my stage clothes, and 7pm doors for a 7:30 show, but I couldn’t have asked for a nicer place to start the tour — it’s a beautiful shop & gallery run by a brilliant team, and I was thrilled to hear that their Tunes For Tots sessions are gearing up to welcome their 10,000th toddler! Such a great initiative.
Sat 12 Sept: Limerick PA to Herndon VA to Fairfax Station VA – 193 miles Show 81 of this year: a lovely house concert at Al Hobson’s gorgeous Artsbarn — see photo! After which we continue on to the nearby home of our wonderful friends Barbara & Bernard of the band Iona (which sadly played its final gig last month, ending an impressive 40-year run) where we enjoy great company, conversation, drinks & snacks after the show, and a great breakfast to send us on our way in the morning. So good to see them again after far too long a time.
Sun 13 Sept: Fairfax Station VA to Exmore VA – 220 miles. Today’s drive takes us across the 17.6-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel! We stop to take pics from the scenic overlook at the far end and spot some ridiculously cute crabs scuttling around the beach — check out the video on my Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as loads of photos from our drive across the bridge.
More to follow next week!
