What a weekend! Let's recap.
Boat gig. Day cruise. Went well!
Then it was time to pack a suitcase, hire a pet sitter, hop in the car,
and head north, to begin a non-stop 2.5 days of non-stop, on-the-go action.
First stop: House on the Rock in Wisconsin
I am no stranger to this oddball attraction. I've visited it at least 5 times.
But in October they have an After Dark event.
I had to check it out.
The main attraction is spookied up, with some
haunted housing elements thrown in for some extra thrills.
Down you go...
Plenty of scares to go around.
A few of the jump scare actors got me, even though I knew it was coming.
The decorations were on point, and fit in perfectly with the House aesthetic.
These four are always here. I just love them and they fit the after dark theme so well,.
Meeting of the minds.
Overnight at the Don Q Inn.
It has an airplane parked in the front yard.
Gearin up for the main event.
Wanna play? The Don Q has game tables on the second floor for guests to play.
When in Wisconsin, you can eat cheese whenever you want!
Next stop: The Field of Dreams Movie Site.
Dyersville, Iowa
House tour. Most of the interior shots were in the kitchen and dining room,
so that's really all that was shown.
On the TV is the movie Harvey, which is also featured in the Field of Dreams movie.
We're watching the movie in the house that the movie was filmed!
Cornfield walk on.
We played some ball with the kids that were on the field.
Another detour to the Buddy Holly crash site.
It is in a cornfield outside of Clear Lake, where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and
the Big Bopper (and the pilot) were killed when their plane went down.
The glasses mark the spot, but the actual place is about a quarter mile
into the cornfield. There is a path. At the end of the path is a small,
well-kept memorial.
People leave flowers or small tokens.
It's heart-warming that these musicians haven't been forgotten.
They were lost too soon, and had so much music left to offer.
But before their untimely end, they managed to make a mark on rock and roll history.
We paid our respects, then walked back to the car through a gentle rain.
Next stop: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Last year I bought tickets to the Rolling Stones show in Minneapolis.
Then COVID forced everything to shut down and the tour was postponed.
But we were told to keep our tickets and we could use them when the show
was rescheduled.
Which was this weekend!
Speaking of tickets, as we were roaming around looking for our section,
we stopped to ask directions from someone who looked like they knew
what they were doing, and she gave us new tickets!
The new seats were much better than I had originally gotten!
And the upgrade didn't cost us anything!
We went from balcony seats to the lower level, stage left!
The opener was the Black Pumas and they were really great!
Sort of a hardcore blues crossed with Lenny Kravitz.
Check them out!
(yes, this is a blurry picture, I couldn't seem to get a better one)
Ready for the Stones!
They began with a short tribute to Charlie Watts, who for the first
time would not be with them on tour. Watts died this year at the end of August,
just before the No Filter tour was scheduled to start.
Not wanting to cancel the tour, the band brought in Steve Jordan,
a drummer who they'd known for years and who is highly credentialed.
Finally the boys hit the stage!
Mick & Keith & Ronnie & Darryl Jones
(Jones is the Stones' bass player since 1994 after replacing Bill Wyman)
It was a great set list. Never a down moment, and the band had great energy.
It's an amazing experience to watch people doing what they were born to do.
And an absolute thrill to be a part of a world-class music experience.
Keith took a couple songs.
Sympathy for the Devil.
Loved Mick's sparkly long coat.
He switched out jackets and shirts several times throughout the show.
After about 2 hours, the show ended, and we made our way back to the hotel.
The next day, on the way back home, we made a stop at the Surf Ballroom
in Clear Lake, Iowa.
The walls show hundreds of photos of the bands and artists who've played the ballroom.
Brian Setzer's guitar
Trying out the booths.
They green room has thousands of names on the walls.
All people who've performed on the stage.
This piano was played by Duke Ellington!
It was drawn on by the Duke himself!
Amazing!
It was now time to head for home, after a weekend of spookiness and
rock and roll. But we had one more stop to make.
Iowa's largest frying pan!
You'd stop too, admit it.
The weekend's booty:
A baseball, tour t-shirt, both tickets (the old and the upgrade)...
...the "I toured the house" magnet they gave us at the
movie house...
...ephemera...
...a concert poster...
...and some Wisconsin beer!
It was an amazing weekend! So much fun!
Next weekend has more fun planned, it's Halloween y'all!
Getchyer spooky on!
🎃🎃🎃
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