Wed., Nov. 12, 1997, Denver, CO -- Stopped by a groovy music store outside of Denver...Drum City/Guitarland...with a huge inventory crammed into about 1000 sq. ft. I picked up a used kick drum pedal to replace the brand new one that broke after about eight hours of use--dang Gibralter--does have a 3-year warranty, but I have to send the broken one into the company and wait for them to send a replacement. That don't work on the road... I'll just wait till we blow through Portland to take it back to where I bought it. Got some sticks and a new head for the 10" tom. We continued on into Denver, the smog capital of the West. The air was immediately noticeable as being dirty, and our destination was right downtown in the middle of it, at Brendan's, a basement pub that looks like someone's very large rec room. It's the only blues club in the area, so all the big blues dudes and dudesses converge there on their way West. After we set up and got the hotel, Vic and I took the van to First Bass, the semi-famous bassist store. It was a good opportunity to get to know Vic better, and we had a long discussion about his off and on band membering with Joanna over the last couple of years leading to his permanent (whatever that means in this business) hiring. We got to the gig and the house hemmed and hawed about feeding us, but finally did. Tony ended up with a wicked case of gas, and was in an introspective mood, when we all met up with "King James", a fast-talkin' obnoxious "fan". His game was to flatter us all effusively, expect us to give him a CD, and then get pissed off when we wouldn't. A couple connected with Kenny Wayne Shepherd were there to check out the band, but they left shortly. The crowd seemed to be straining to have a good time, but we shook off the doldrums and kicked butt as usual.