Cathy & I drove nearly a hundred miles down to San Diego, secure in the knowledge that our mission would, finally, be accomplished. I'd get my Twisted
fix and all our misadventures would have been worth it.Guess again! We arrived once again at the end of the show, and I literally cried at my rotten luck. Obviously I'd done something to piss off the gods,
and being teased and tormented mercilessly was apparently just punishment for my transgressions. Fortunately, our passes allowed us to get backstage, where we met up with AJ. He invited us into the tour bus for
a few cocktails, where I shared my story of being a three-time loser wanting nothing more than to see my favorite band play their show from start to finish. At some point I said that I'd just have to catch them
the next time they were in So Cal. AJ informed me that the next night's gig in Tempe, Arizona was the last show of the tour. Oh, the agony of Dee-feat! Obstacles are meant to be overcome, and I love
nothing better than a challenge... so Cathy agreed to drive, and we embarked on a 6-hour trip that would GUARANTEE we saw Dee & the boys do the show from beginning to end! Cathy's mom was watching Myles, her
4-month old son. Cathy called to tell her we were off on another adventure and wouldn't be back til the following night. Her mom related that while listening to the radio, Cathy's dad had heard an
announcement that I'd won some sort of contest. There was only one I'd recently entered, to "Be a Guest on the Frasier Smith Show," so I said I'd call when we returned from Arizona. One exciting adventure at
a time! Since we were backstage, I never did see Iron Maiden play San Diego... but what I heard sounded good, hehehe. |
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We arrived in Tempe before sunrise and dog tired. After a couple hours' worth of snoozing in the car, we awoke to a blazing Arizona and it was literally
hotter than Hell! Fortunately, gypsy chick that I am, I'd packed extra clothes and the necessary hygiene items so we had no fear of offending anyone :-)We were parked with the buses, and the crew was nice
enough to invite us into the air conditioned bus for some breakfast and coffee. We hung out with them all day, drinking beer and watching the flurry of activity involved in the production of a show as huge
as that of Iron Maiden and Twisted Sister. During that long, hot day I got a chance to hang out some more with AJ and Cathy made a new friend in Paul the road manager. All of the crew people in the employ of
both Twisted Sister and Iron Maiden were more than hospitable, and great fun to party with. They are the unsung heroes of the rock 'n' roll world, that's for sure! Most people never consider the hundreds of
man-hours it takes to put on a show that might last 4 hours, but that day Cathy & I saw just how hard those folks work to make everything perfect. Hats off to the roadies and production crew members everywhere
-- you guys make it happen! Finally, the sun set and the show started. Once again I cried, this time tears of joy because finally, after 4 failed attempts and a trip of almost 400 miles, I was able to see
Twisted Sister performing from start to finish. As usual, Dee whipped the crowd into a frenzy and the band kicked some serious Arizona ass! We had an excellent view and perfect acoustics, sitting as we were
with the sound crew at the board. Fuckin' in-Dee-scribably perfect! After their set, we went backstage and said our goodbyes. I thanked AJ profusely for making it happen for me, and we promised to keep in
touch. It was a long ride back to Southern California, and we were tired but happy, listening to our TS tapes all the way home. I'm sure Iron Maiden's show was as good as every other night! |
