Billy Morrison

THE DAY OFF

Fri, 27 Aug 2010 07:54:03 -0800

The term ‘Day Off’ is grossly misused on most tours. Usually it means travel. What they really mean is…”you get a day off from actually performing today, but we’re going to a) drive 600 miles, b) fly 2000 miles or c) both! The logistics of touring are such that it’s almost impossible to route a tour without these kinds of ‘days off’ – by the time the traveling is done, the budget determines that the following day needs to be a show day. It’s all about the numbers. So I usually look at the itinerary with some skepticism….but today turns out to be a true Day Off. Now granted it happens in Biloxi, Mississippi, but nevertheless, there really is nothing to do today. I woke up on the bus, in the middle of a parking lot, somewhere ‘close’ to the hotel, and once I had literally dragged my cases through a gravel/sand area the size of a football field, I managed to check in, take a shower, drink coffee and feel somewhat human. So I guess the question is….what do you do with yourself on a Day Off?

The novelty wears off after about an hour and a half for me. No human contact, lots of coffee, and an inspection of the room and I’m pretty much ready to move on. But with another 36 hours to kill before we have to do anything, I usually get constructive and work on the sites. Update this one, tweak the Idol site, maybe throw a Tweet or two up. I also tend to get random ideas during this time, like …. “wouldn’t it be nice to get all the original Ants/Bow Wow Wow/Chiefs together and play all those songs again”….somehow that one turned into reality!! The Scala, London, Nov 21st – be there!! I use the time to go through the ridiculous amount of pics from the current tour – trying to keep up with Charles (the photographer who shoots every show) and looking for good ones to use. But again, a couple of hours geeking out in cyberspace and its time for a change. Today was laundry day – oh yes, the glamour of it all! – a taxi from the hotel into town to find a local place that will do all my shit and have it ready for tomorrow – that was the change I got today.

On returning, for instance, today is in a Casino…… so it strikes me that a couple of hours of innocent gambling might kill some time. More than a few dollars later, and I am starting to feel broke and hungry. Ah yes. When bored….EAT! OK – time to find somewhere half decent. I call a couple of the band and we go for some food. The ‘Day Off’ is starting to feel a lot like work, figuring out ways to keep my over-enthusiastic mind occupied. Download some TV from I-Tunes and that’ll help later tonight. I guess what I’m realizing about myself is that the concept of a day off gets lost on me. I feel I’m forgetting something – not making the most of my time. Relaxing doesn’t come easy for me, and I wonder why. Some people can simply read a book, lay around taking a nap or three, and be perfectly happy. What is it about my head that keeps moving at 100mph? This has to be part of the reason I threw so many narcotics into my body back in the day – that shit slows you right down! Day Off…..what a waste of fucking time. That’s what my head tells me. The only time I really, truly relax is on a beach, miles from anywhere, with scuba diving firmly on the menu. I guess I know what I’ll be doing this Christmas.

The concept of a day off is different for everyone. Some people live their whole lives in one huge day off. Others work like a dog from the age of 18 to retirement, like my Dad. Somewhere in the middle lies a nice, healthy balance I believe. But at the time of writing, I don’t think I’ve found that balance. I have had periods of my life where I literally sit on the couch playing video games for weeks at a time. But I’m not relaxed. The head is still spinning, real life is piling up, and I’d call that depression! Most of the time I am balls-to-the-wall juggling six projects and making all around me stare at me, shaking their heads and waiting for the inevitable crash to happen. Balance has never been my strong point. ‘More’ has always seemed better to me. If the laundry detergent says ‘one cap full of liquid’, then SURELY two caps would make it cleaner? If it says ‘take two’ with meals, then I KNOW that taking 15 throughout the day will be way more effective. Welcome to my head! My day off has drawn to a close now, and writing this piece has certainly killed about 30 minutes of it. Tomorrow, its back to work in Biloxi. Clean clothes, guitars to tweak, moving on across the US, emails, phone calls……ah, the familiarity of busy. So comforting.

Peace
Billy

A CELEBRATION OF MATTHEW ASHMAN

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:32:58 -0800

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 08:26:58 -0800

As we roll through America, I can feel myself start to romanticize and through half-closed eyes, I begin to channel Ginsberg/Burroughs/Bukowski/Kerouac and wonder how cool it would have been to travel the rails and the roads at that time, discovering the vast country at my own pace. Eugene, OR has some serious dichotomy going on…..the crystal meth addicts wander through the beautiful Saturday farmers market, with the small town traders selling tie dye tee shirts, curios made of rose-quartz, and home made cookies. I watched three young teenagers on BMX bikes circling a street corner for hours, plying a trade I know so well, while families pushed strollers up the tree lined streets towards the Starbucks. The pace is slow (unless you’ve managed to get yourself a speed habit!) and the huge surrounding forests are just amazing to drive through….. on our way to the next gig and the next extra-large slice of Americana. I find myself thinking about my journey, from the gutters of Kings Cross and Brixton in London, to the long, winding roads that criss-cross the United States. It’s been written about many times, and I guess I don’t have too much to say that hasn’t already been said. But I don’t really care. I find the written word a fun tool, especially as my English teachers in school used to tell me I was worthless and would never amount to anything. So I seize the opportunity to write – lyrics, tour diaries, blogs – it’s all fun to me. Read it if you like, or not. It’s cool either way. I get my rocks off typing the thing, so anything else is bonus.

Back to that slice of Americana I spoke about. My observations about the people out here are interesting. So much more reality than in the huge, urban sprawls. Or is it just a different kind of reality? I mean, out here, people really are happy to see you when you buy something from a store. Not fake-happy because they went through a training seminar that weekend, explaining that the customer is always right and that you need to smile at all times in the presence of one. These people are happy. Genuinely glad to be serving you in their own, family operated business. But does that make the reality in Los Angeles, or New York, or Chicago any less real? Not really – just different, fast-paced, hectic….and I feel also a little thespian in nature….acting as if, trying to appear something we aren’t, or it isn’t….I don’t know yet. Let me see what else this tour uncovers for me. I may get bored with the wordsmithery (is that a real word? If not, it should be!) and the insight and just go back to playing video games and rockin’ out at the gigs. But for now, I am interested in looking, opening my eyes, observing.

County fairs. Smells, sights, smells, more smells. Rabbits mixed with corn dogs, next to the chickens, by the Ferris Wheel, behind the pigs, over by the donuts, opposite the rock n roll show. Nothing compares. All the big words apply – dichotomy, juxtaposition – and so many of those smiles I just refered to, walking with family and simply enjoying. No agents, no managers, no suits, no high-powered business lunches at Katsuya (God, the baked crab rolls are simply divine at that place!) – would I trade one for the other? Is it possible to combine both worlds? Which one has more substance? Is one better than the other? I don’t have the answers but I do have fun playing guitar and making rock music. So that’s what I continue to roll with - create, perform, try and be as honest as I can. Truth is, I happen to love living in Hollywood and the suits and business people make life extremely fun sometimes. It’s all part of the rich tapestry of life, as they say. There is a place for everyone – for me, I live better, cleaner, happier when I don’t judge…..when I minimize the amount of opinion I have on certain things…..when I simply try to see what I can BRING to the table, rather than what I can TAKE from it. Not easy to live by, but worth striving to attain.

Peace

Billy

ON THE ROAD (AGAIN)

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 08:46:36 -0800

Its been a month exactly since I updated this site, and I guess I needed to take a break from all the updates. I kept the blog going over at BillyIdol.Net (which I intend to continue with on this current US tour) and used Twitter and Facebook daily, so at some point I just HAVE to stop updating something....and this site was it. So my new resolution is to keep this updated weekly, just like the Idol site, throughout the next two months. We will be on the road across the US (with some Canada thrown in for good measure) and that means I will have plenty of hotel rooms and opportunities to keep my cyber activities current and up to date. And if those hotels are anything like the one I am in now (crazy, multicolored swirly pattern decor, brightly colored walls, carpets and ceilings and NOTHING matches!!) I will need to be staring at a computer screen to stay sane!

The last three weeks have been all about decompressing from the European tour and gearing up again to do it all over in the States. Europe was a complete success, and we all had a blast, but it's nice to have some time to be with your family (I miss my wife when I am on the road), go eat at your favorite restaurant, see your friends, sleep in the same bed every night, and generally relax and unwind. Me? Not so much! I have to remain constantly busy, motivated and creative. So luckily we had a Camp Freddy show during the break for me to sink my teeth into - for the X-Games/ESPN party. It was our 6th year doing this event and we brought the house down with our last couple of guests - Sully (Godsmack) just killed his tracks, and then Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins) floored everyone by singing Poisons 'Every Rose Has Its Thorn' and his own smash, 'Bullet With Butterfly Wings'. There was something magical about watching Billy do the whole 'audience singalong' thing with the Poison song and to me, that rates up there in the Camp Freddy top ten experiences (alongside doing Venus In Furs in New York with Lou Reed, and playing Paradise City with Ronnie Wood).

I can also tell you that I have undertaken to organize a show in London on November 21st. I will announce the details soon, but it will be a charity show and will be commemorating one of my most powerful influences on guitar - a man who is largely unknown and died young, leaving us some great music and a legacy that needs to be celebrated. I plan on having a few friends participate in this one as well, so keep your eye on all the sites listed below as I will announce the details shortly. I also THINK (but believe it or not, still don't know for sure!!) that October 20th is the release date for my Gibson Les Paul model to be released. I met with the people at Gibson during the break and discussed a few fun things to do for the launch and also talked about doing a few magazines to coincide with that date. So unless things have changed (which they frequently do!) it will be an October launch for my all-antique white-Les Paul-Billy Morrison model. Wow.

OK - well the other great thing about being in all these hotels is catching up on the TV that I dont usually have time to watch. And right now, a new season of Warehouse 13 is calling my name!! So consider this the first in a series of updates for BillyMorrison.Net. A renewed enthusiasm for my own site. If you want to keep up on a daily basis, CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER or if you are on Facebook, CLICK HERE TO BE A FACEBOOK FRIEND. I'm still figuring out what to do with the solo tracks I recorded last year and the latest thought in my head is to give them away. I'm sure you guys would be ok with that so let me look into it. For now, I am going back to my hideously decorated hotel room and an episode or two of Warehouse 13. Be back soon - I promise!

Billy

HAPPY FOURTH

Mon, 05 Jul 2010 01:54:35 -0800

I thought today would be a good day to get on my own site and wish everyone a Happy 4th July. In the States, that is Independence Day. No, not the Hollywood blockbuster with Will Smith kickin’ alien booty all over the place, but a federal holiday commemorating the Declaration Of Independence (in 1776) from Great Britain. In a nutshell it means that all of my American friends, work partners, business associates and brethren think its funny to say…..”we kicked yer ass, buddy!!!” But I smile, and wish them well, cos it’s a small price to pay – I get to live, work and play in the United States Of America, and I fucking love it. And I miss it right now – miss my American wife, the constant 72degree sunshine and blue skies of Los Angeles, the In+Out burger I shouldn’t eat but do (when I’m riding my motorcycle), the ability to buy anything, any time, anywhere (near enough). I’ve been on tour for just over a month now, and it’s been an amazing time. The band and crew are all really great – the archetypal ‘touring family’ and have made the whole experience easy and enjoyable. We have hit country after country (Russia, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Hungary, Greece…..the list goes on) and even though we are missing Italy, France, Spain etc on this trip, it feels like we have covered some serious ground.

My first tour with Billy Idol as rhythm guitarist has definitely been a huge success. Sold out shows, arenas, festivals – noisy, animated European audiences that sing every single word of every song….even the new ones that Billy, Steve Stevens and myself only wrote a month or two ago! Now that’s clever (and a testament to the power of YouTube). The Idol fans have accepted me whole-heartedly and that makes me feel good. The Billy Idol website has been fun to build and maintain, and has kept me in touch with the legions of people that follow Billy and Steve. And as a guitarist, my playing has just kept getting better – and that is the best feeling. Sharing the stage with these guys is an honor and now that the European leg of the tour is coming to a close (I think we have just 6 more shows to do over the next 10 days) my thoughts are turning to the couple of months we will be doing in the US. If you have tickets to any of the shows, you are in for a treat! New stage set, new songs, new Idol line up….and we are headed your way.

You know, I think sometimes that the life I lead is all a dream. Maybe I actually did OD when I was using and now I am in the ether, floating around dead, but getting to do all the things I always wanted to do. When I was curled up behind a trash can, shooting smack into my leg, the notion that someday I may stand on the biggest stages, playing guitar, traveling through Europe and living an amazing life….just wasn’t part of the thought process. But on this 4th of July, I can celebrate my own independence. From that life to this one. It ain’t easy, but it’s fucking worth doing. And if I can do it, anyone can. I hope you all have a great Holiday in the US and thank you to everyone who supports me and my endeavors. IF YOU WANT TO READ THE WEEKLY TOUR DIARY FROM THE BILLY IDOL TOUR, CLICK HERE and then click on the "Tour Diary" tab in the menu at the top. I love you all.

Billy Morrison

(PS - Even though I wrote this on the bus on the 4th July, the joys of touring meant that I had no internet connection until we arrived in Montreux today, so here it is.... a day late. But who cares really!)