Category Archives: diary

Ball Of Fire Tour 1997, diary, france, germany, switzerland

November 10 to 25 1997, Ball Of Fire tour

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The Ball Of Fire tour continued

After Berne, I had no contact with The Skatalites and the Ball Of Fire 1997 tour until tuesday 26th of November, when the tour was in Paris, where I meet them for the last show of the tour.

Stuttgart (LKH), Erlangen (E-Werk), Leipzig (Connie Island), Hamburg (Fabrik), Dortmund (Live Station), Den Haag (Paard), Cean (La Fonderie)

And then The Skatalites went for the very first time into Africa. La Reunion is a french island close to MadagaSKAr. That was a great moment specially for Rolando Alphonso, as he told me later.

Island of La Reunion (20th to 23rd of November)

A few days in paradise and then back to the final shows in Paris at New Morning.

diary

October 25, 1997, France-Spain-Italy

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Ball Of Fire 1997 Euro tour without me

From the tour rider (I’m not sure, if this was the final plan):

Marseille – Sete – Barcelona – Madrid – Bilbao – Toulouse – Grenoble – Torino – Milano – Piacenza

And then from Piacenza to Geneva and finally Berne, where I met the band again and joined The Skatalites with my flute. To see some pictures and listen to this show, come back not before 9th of November 2017, exactly 20 years after the real event.

audio, Ball Of Fire Tour 1997, diary, france, tour date

October 23, 1997, France, Nancy, Jazz Pulsations

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Second last day for me on the Ball Of Fire 1997 tour

I have a single room (I don’t remember why). We’re in the Hotel Ibis in Nancy. Because Shay was with the both Lloyds in Paris, I have seen the rooming list and I wasn’t on the list, but a name of an old friend of mine. It was a bit strange for me to see this, without knowing about it. I mean, I knew, I have to leave the tour in Strasbourg the next day, but I didn’t know why. Now, I realized, that I was out and another was inside. But I wasn’t angry, it’s the way it is. Life goes on…

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Ball Of Fire Tour 1997, diary, france, tour date

October 21, 1997, France, Tourcoing, Le Grand Mix

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Sixth day of the Ball Of Fire 1997 tour

At the breakfast I was talking with Lester Sterling about Peter Tosh. Lester told me, that Peter Tosh used to call him “Mr. Sterling”. Later, when Tosh was famous, Lesters brother Keith Sterling was in the Tosh band, so they met again. Tosh didn’t recognized Lester, so Keith introduced him to Tosh. And Tosh said: “Hello Lester”. That’s how things are chaning.

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Ball Of Fire Tour 1997, diary, france, tour date

October 19, 1997, France, Plouneour Trez, Les Hesperides

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Fourth day of the Ball Of Fire 1997 tour

The breakfast in Rennes was as small as all the other ones so far on this tour. Brevett is a lot talking in monologues. The feeling in the crew is not that easy as it should be. It’s too much moaning about this and that. I don’t know who is talking shit, but nobody is on the same line. The way to this wonderful place was all through the nice Bretagne.

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diary

October 18, 1997, France, Rennes – day-off

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Third day of the Ball Of Fire 1997 tour

Already a day-off.

The drive today wasn’t too far:

So there was plenty of time to walk through the city. But it was weird. I almost get lost, because I had no address with me. I had no idea, in which hotel we were settled. But with good luck I refound the hotel. In the evening there was a very strange thing happening. I saw as many birds as I never have seen before and ever since. Thousands of thousands of birds, all over the place. On the roof tops it was black and the trees, they were almost breaking under the weight of all those birds. I felt like in Alfred Hitchcocks Birds movie. And it was terribly loud. Do you remember these sounds in the movie? Scary!