Hello from Knoxville, TN! I am writing this from an amazing vegetarian restaurant I discovered- “The Tomato Head.” Well, “discovered” may be a bit strong. I don’t want to come across all Christoper Columbus on you. What a jerk. How can you discover something that has been occupied by indigenous people for thousands of years? Sorry. Tangent. Back on track now.. The last few days have been really good. I played Eddie’s Attic on Monday. I had heard a lot about this spot so it was nice to finally play there. It is a great listening room. Tuesday night in Nashville I played at the Exit Inn. This club has seen the likes of Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Ryan Adams and many more. It was a real honor to perform in such a cool room. This was my first of three gigs with The Bridge (www.myspace.com/thebridgebaltimore)- an excellent band from Baltimore in the style of Little Feat and The Band. These guys are monster players and super nice dudes. I got to hang out with my friend Dylan York in Nashville. We had a good time sightseeing in the rain. Him and his wife, Ruthie, put me up for the night. They are wonderful people. Wednesday I headed to Chattanooga. It had been storming in Nashville and it seemed to follow us down the road. The club was dead, but I enjoyed playing nonetheless. I left immediately following my set for Knoxville where I would be staying with singer-songwriter Jill Andrews (www.jillandrews.com) and her husband/manager Clinton. I arrived late and they were still up packaging cds to be sent out in the morning. Ahhh, the life of an independent musician… glitz and glamour galore. We chatted for a while and then I climbed into one of the most comfortable beds in the Southeast. The next morning I met Nico, their six-month old son. He seemed a bit suspicious of me, though I would be too if I had to relinquish my room to a stranger. Jill and i worked on some tunes, as we will be performing together tonight and this weekend at the Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion. She played me some songs from her upcoming ep. They were fantastic! Later in the day I headed off to Ijambs Nature Reserve. It is one of the most beautiful places I have seen in a while- wooded hills, green ponds, light shining through yellow leaves. It definitely conjured a little Thoreau in my heart. And now I am here at the Tomato Head having just eaten one of the best sandwiches of my young life. Not a bad day! Much love to all. Will write more soon…

1998 Dodge Ram Van, ie…. SPARTACUS!

Dylan’s back yard… the Cumberland River.

“Why don’t you make like a tree…”

These boots are made for hiking.

Green.

“Hurry up and take it already..”