Surfin' Sandy Tour - Day 6: Cleveland, OH

We had never been to Cleveland to perform. Kevin and I had taken the trip when we were little guys to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We pulled into town quite late following an 8 hour trip. We decided to stop at the Great Lakes Brewery and have a drink. It seems if there is a brewery in town, we will be stopping there.

Thinking about putting together a brewery tour.

We performed at a place called Wilbert's which was down in the Sports district. Much like Cameo's it was tucked away in a back of a building. It was election night and we were in Ohio. There was an odd tension throughout the evening and the crowd was painfully light.

The difference in the night came for us when we learned of the rich history of Wilbert's in it's original incarnation. Artists like Jeff Buckley and Jack White had graced it's stage early in their careers. The owner Mike is one of those guys that has contributed as a stepping stone for many young touring artists. He had a lot of great stories.

Despite the light crowd we did well in merchandise. We decided to sleep in the parking lot and watched "The Hunger Games". It was shortly into this movie when we found out that Obama would be our president for the next four years.

It wasn't a very eventful evening for us but I'll never forget that night.

Stephen Francis