Well, we did it! The Hard Left broke the ice, got our foot in the door, tested the water, took the plunge, and all-in-all had a great and amazing time in France. From our first show in Biarritz through to the end, the audiences were super supportive and the response at all the shows...and I mean every single show... was more than we ever could have expected. We made lots of new friends, played with some cool and interesting bands, and the kindness and unbelievable hospitality they showed us is something we will never forget. Touring in Europe is practically the polar opposite of touring here. The clubs go way out of their way to make you feel comfortable and important. At every venue, after sound-check, they would either cook or cater full, sit-down meals for the bands and everyone involved with that night's performance...complete with good wine and even dessert. Booze and beer was always free and plentiful...and yes, I admit we usually took full advantage of that perk. The French like to drink. Clubs here could learn a lot from these folks, and my tolerance for rude bullshit from anyone in this scene or anywhere else for that matter will be very low from this point on. Although we usually had hotels included in our contracts, there were nights when people opened their homes for us to stay, and Mike Turner (yes, he's French), the owner of El Bongo in Bourges deserves special thanks for making us part of his family for 3 days. His awesome and lovely wife, Valou, also has our greatest love and respect for basically giving up her house to a smelly band...and never once losing her beautiful smile. We enjoyed a beautiful night out for dinner at a real French restaurant and kind of dancehall on the river, where we listend to accordian based traditional music and watched the couples dance their romantic spins. I was the most homesick that night, and wished I had a sweetheart there to dance with me. The next day Mike was our travel host and showed us the city. And what a beautiful, old postcard fantasy is Bourges. I loved it there. We also went to a vineyard that he had opened just for us for a wine tasting, and we went to a factory where the owner opened the doors and showed us the almost-lost art and method of barrel making. This guy does it by hand, and it was one of the most interesting things I've ever seen. He makes 2 a day and showed us his warehouse full of finished barrels to be shipped to...where else?...Napa Valley California. We played a small but extremely cool little club, La Majorette, in a tiny village about 15 miles outside Bourges on the following  Sunday afternoon outside for a bar-b-que organized by Christophe, the owner, who told me several times "I fucking love The Ramones". The whole population attended...old and young...and, once again were excited, demonstrative, curious, and I think a little amused by this crazy American rock band. It was really one of the highlights. We played in the sunshine, had dinner, and after finding some lighting played again after dark. They didn't want to let us go. Fredovich and Marina in Paris were also beyond kind with their hospitality after our show at Le Mecanique (although I slept in the van that night because the neighborhood was iffy after dark and someone had to keep an eye on the gear. I also watched an Asian gang-fight out the window killroy-style that night...but that's another story). Fredovich plays organ in a killer band called King Khan and The Shrines who are touring the US for like 29 dates beginning in June. The closest they'll be to us is Chicago for The Pitchfork Festival. We're on the guest-list, and I'm going to make every effort to do a road trip to see that show. Check them out on MySpace...they are fantastic. Heavily influenced 60's Farfisa rock is really alive and kicking over there...along with a very studied but cool sense of style and fashion. We all totally dug the music we were turned on to by our new friends.

There's so much to say about this tour, and so many stories, but for now I'll try and just capsulize some of the highlights. I know I'll forget stuff and will be adding stuff later and correcting spelling, etc. I'm really lagged, but here goes...Basque country ( Biarritz and Bayonne) and the beach/surfing competition/fashion bikini photo shoot :) And meeting and hanging with Phil Totem, the famous totem and Tiki sculptor (philtotem.com). And the clubs of course, L'attabal and Yan the manager and the after-hours jamming, drinking, and eating until dawn, and Kixkill Club in Bayonne with The Hells Hens. Driving through the beautiful French countryside. Castles. Food. Wine. Hashish..(the close proximity to Morrocco makes it plentiful and cheap). Bourges and all the great cats at El Bongo, Mike, Joe (Little Bastard) and Pascal. Playing with the legendary Les Playboys at Le Volume in Nice, AND speaking of Nice...how can I forget the total rockstar villa we stayed at there. Our tour manager Francois' family owns this pad complete with pool, gardens, a  hill-top view looking over Nice and up and down the coasts to Cannes (where the Cannes Film Festival was going on) and Monaco. Christ! It wouldn't at all been out of place to see Keith Richards come strolling out for breakfast by the pool at around 4 p.m. We were also invited to play a private party for some zillionaire at a beachfront villa in St. Tropez, with 1000 guests expected. Unfortunately, that didn't work with our schedule. I can now only imagine the fun and fantasy that could have entailed. I think the band will agree that the biggest thrill of all was playing with The Fleshtones. We were originally supposed to do 2 shows together but the festival in Nice was shut down by the city...evidently a nasty right-wing administration making sure that the millionaire tourists wouldn't be bothered by any seedy rock musicians (the same kind of thing happened with a waterfront show we were to play in Royan). Nice is a lot like Miami...old, rich people...however beautiful it may be. Anyway, the show in Beauvais with these guys was so cool. We had dinner together, hung out and partied backstage in fully-stocked dressing rooms, played to a big crowd in a big room, and partied later at the hotel bar with Peter Zaremba and Ken Fox. The fellas are super friendly, down to earth, and put on one of the best shows I've seen anywhere. They've been doing it since the 70's, and like Leonard said, basically put us to shame. Don't get me wrong, The Hard Left rocked mighty and strong to great applause, but these guys may very well be the best entertainers in the game. Wow! Paris is obviously incredible...Montpellier as well. The Secret Place where we played is a great rock club run by a fellow named Fifi and a great organization...I could go on and on, and maybe will later. I also very humbly need to say that every venue has asked us back. Next time I want to concentrate more on Spain and The Netherlands, but will certainly be back at our favorite joints in France.

Mostly, I want to say that I was, and am, really proud of the guys I played with. Mike Leonard, who stepped in pretty much at the last minute, handled bass and backing vocals like he'd been with us from day one. He connected with the crowds, and rocked every show like the heavyweight he is. Although Mike is back to his band The Red Flags (and getting their fucking great new record finished and out the door) which is, of course, his main focus, we really had a blast being on the road with him and making these memories. Tommy cemented his status as a real, true guitar hero once and for all. I wish you all could have witnessed the almost worship-like attention he received everywhere we played. He came alive onstage like I've never seen, and made me feel like there is nothing we can't do.  Pat McKenna is the solid, relentless backbone of all we do. He's such a gentle, quiet and unassuming character off-stage...but always got the biggest cheers when I would introduce the band each night toward the end of the set. At The Fleshtones show, Zaremba and Fox hauled Pat onstage after making him do push-ups, and with one on each side of him holding his arms in the air like a boxing champ, said "Let's hear some noise for The Hard Left!" It was a great moment, and the crowd went nuts. So, I'll say it again...I'm really lucky to have such a great and talented band behind me in support of my songs. Thank you.

There were disappointments. French Customs seized our CD's and we played the entire tour with no merchandise. Some crazy "clearance delay" bullshit while they determined how much to tax the promoter...anyway, it was a financial nightmare we had not expected. I shipped everything ahead of time and the job was done right on this end..they got to Paris in 2 days, and then sat there. We surely would have sold everything we had, but instead are in the hole to the tune of 1500 EU. That's a lot of money considering the sorry and pathetic state of the Almighty Dollar! If we would have been told this could happen, and if we would have been aware of the very lax and easy entrance through Customs in Amsterdam, we could have simply carried the stuff. But we weren't told or warned or advised, and now have some uneasy and mixed feelings regarding responsibility. Enough said about that. There were also some cancellations...The Deep Inside club in Dijon was closed by the city for noise complaints after the smoking ban went into effect. People now of course file onto the sidewalks and streets to smoke, and the residents around these areas are up in arms. It's a big problem for the clubs there, and because so many of them have no possible space for a terrace or patio they are in danger of losing their licenses if their patrons aren't quiet when they step out for a smoke. Try and keep a rock crowd quiet between sets...you get the picture. I mentioned the Royan show previously. Berlin wouldn't give us the agreed to guarantee, and it didn't make sense to drive the distance, incur hotel costs, etc. to play a Monday. Petrol is $8 a gallon approximately. But compared to the all the positive stuff...it's all cool.

I'll be posting tons of pictures as soon as we get them all organized...and updating this blog as the cobwebs clear and the stories come to the surface.

We will be playing 7th Street Entry Sat. 5/31 with The Magnolias and The Service Industry from Austin, TX. Scott Glaser is back on the bass for this show and back in the fold for upcoming shows and recording. Mike will be in Rhode Island for a wedding. It's a drag that Mike couldn't do our "homecoming" show, but we are of course extremely pleased that Scott is able to get on board once again. It's gonna be a great night, and we hope to see you all there to raise a glass.

Brian