This week has been the biggest week of my life and it is not even over. I write this as I sit on a plane on the way to BluesFest in Queensland, in this instance traveling as a groupie - my favourite kind of traveler.
Last night, we found ourselves back at Cherry bar, our local dig, playing the classic soul night on the eve of Good Friday - one of the biggest nights of the year - for the venue. I couldn't have felt more nervous.
After playing with EW& F, the humble stage of Cherry seemed somewhat unusual. Though, in contrast, even with a new non sticky carpet, there was something homely about walking across the sticky dance floor to the stage to set up and do our sound check. As the sticky leads and ridged lights were being adjusted i felt the old school nerves I used to feel when I first started singing there with the band started to go into over drive. I don't know is if it was fear of hoping to produce a great night, or excitement of being in a familiar setting. Once again, it felt weird.
I think it was also odd because we were sound checking with less than half of the entire band with some members were stuck in the studio cutting the new tracks of the our first album, we had just recorded the week before, whilst others were away touring with their other band/projects.
When I look back to last night it felt as though we were a bit lost and out of place, when we started walking through the city to our traditional dumpling house for dinner ( which I suspect gave me food poisoning, but that's for another day). There were so many people put and about passing 18 yr old girls and guys fully decked out for the nights events. It was funny to think that when I was there age I would spend hours with my friends preparing and getting incredibly drunk and that, before I started university in the city I had no recollection of how I actually ended up at some of the venues and ever being let in.
Pushing that aside, upon returning to Cherry bar we were all shocked to see that the line in to Cherry was (not for the first time, but still a big deal) to the end of the block and 2-3 people wide. This was going to be BIG. I had forgotten the excitement of a packed out venue and crowd awaiting to here you, with such loyalty.
The place was packed. I had never felt so hot and sweaty on stage. Wearing my favourite pink dress I was drenched through and we were only half way though the set. The crowd was electric and supportive of every suggestion we gave them, from clapping along to the music to bobbing down and jumping as high as the could into the air.
In the end both we and the crowd were spent, each of us counting the steps to the door of Cherry, that would lead to the fresh air of the famous ACDC side streets as another indicator of a successful Cherry night.
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