So down to Fort Smith, Arkansas we drove. We arrived 12 hours later in a town known as the last stop on the Trail of Tears where the tribes were given a final meal before they were banished to the plains. Fending for ourselves, we scoped Main Street for a place to eat. We heard the unmistakable sound of live music coming from one of the local watering holes.
As we approached the club, we saw this long-haired guy perched behind a drum kit, partially blocking the entrance, and thumping along to Guy Clark's "Desperados Waiting for a Train." This person represented the intimidating doorman and his presence meant a potential cover charge, which is enough to strike fear in the hearts of traveling Irish musicians. And when the guy collecting the potential cover charge is wielding not one but two wooden sticks, intimidation goes to fear and then to panic. From the outside, the joint gave no indication of serving hot meals for hungry, itinerate musicians. So we walked a half a block to a sports bar where we had dinner, then returned to the hotel for a good night's sleep.
The next morning after breakfast, John Pearce, the artistic director for Second Street Live, picked us up and brought us to our first gig, an assembly for music students at the University of Arkansas. Imagine our surprise when we were introduced to our sound technician, Tom Ware, our phantom doorman from the night before. Not only was he not a doorman, but there was no cover charge. He was just drumming along with a band playing covers. Tom turned out to be a gentle soul who also played a tender, thoughtful, moving violin. How do we know this? Because he put Marty in a headlock and forced us to let him sit in on our set that night!
Yes, the technically gifted Tom was also an accomplished musician. Over lunch we learned that a long time ago, he attended beer school in Milwaukee. Along with other notable Texas musicians, the noble Lloyd Maines and the Maines Brothers were among his fellow classmates. Back then, the beer companies took time to instruct musical entities. They would sponsor you, but you had to play by their rules (drinking only their product on stage being an obvious one).
The evening's concert at Second Street Live was on Veterans Day and "Falling Water River" received a standing ovation. The sold-out concert was a great success. After saying farewell and signing DVDs and CDs, we joined John and a small group of friends and headed over to the same watering hole that struck so much terror in our hearts the night before. A singer-songwriter solo act played to a handful of people nursing their drinks. It looked like a pretty laid back night until a trio of lovely young ladies herded in a confusion of revelers from a nearby Irish pub. The young ladies, having seen our concert, spread the word and we found ourselves cloaked in warm hospitality, Fort Smith style. We have already made tentative plans to return to Fort Smith, Arkansas, and we recommend this as a must-do Switchback road trip. ~ Brian FitzGerald
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