Hello and welcome to my first ever blog!  I've been wanting to write and share some of the stories that occur throughout my crazy, busy life as a publicist in the music industry.  They might not always be music based but they might occasionally give an insight into what goes on and give you a look at some of the interesting and wonderful characters that I get to meet along the way. It's amazing how many of them you can find in one spot on any given night!

Last night in Adelaide I attended the Clipsal 500 After Race 80's Party concert which featured some of the biggest names from the 80's......the night kicked off with The Chantoozies (right...), then followed Pseudo Echo, Uncanny X-Men, Leo Sayer and Mondo Rock.  Racegoers are able to stay and enjoy the concert with the cost of admission covered by their race ticket purchase.  The likes of Tina Turner and Cher have graced the Clipsal stage after a race, and there are always thousands of willing fans wanting to sing and dance along with songs that they "haven't heard in years".  Most with can of beer in hand.

Last night I was there as a guest of Leo Sayer, whom I have been working with over the past few days.  I only met Leo on Thursday afternoon, and as I expected he was warm, affable, fascinating, full of energy and an absolute pro to work with.  Even after having worked in this industry for over 25 years, you could never ever dismiss the learning experience of working with an entertainment pop icon such as Leo.  I grew up with his songs.  I was in the front row of a concert at which he performed at Adelaide's Festival Theatre in the late 80's.  I watched him on Countdown.  I wasn't nervous about working with Leo because I was already certain about how he would present himself to both me and the media.  I only wanted to do well in terms of exposure out of our publicity day for my client, and to embrace the time that I would be able to spend with him and learn from it.  And indeed I did learn.  Watching him onstage last night was a joy.  Leo is 62 years old and he LOVES what he does.  When you are in the position of being able to sit on the side of the stage or stand out amongst the crowd to see their reaction....you can truly see and feel how much fans enjoy an artist such as Leo.

So I had what we refer to in the industry as AAA - Access All Areas.  Everybody wants it and few people have it.  Why do people want it so badly?  I assume it is because they imagine that there is a whole world of excitement and  fun that goes on backstage.  They naturally want to see what goes on and if they can, to become a part of it.  In a situation such as the Clipsal, you need a pass to get everywhere.  You can't really move from Point A to Point B without needing a different pass.  Last night you needed your AAA/ Artist pass and then you needed a green wristband to be able to access the stage to view the show.  I thought I might have needed a Toilet pass, but it seems I got away with that one....

The Clipsal concert backstage world involves entering a fenced off compound at the rear of the giant stage.  Yellow shirted security men are positioned every few feet and give you a rather big once over to check out who you might (or might not) be.  I arrived before Leo and decided to catch up with my old friend Pseudo Echo's lead singer Brian Canham.  We have been friends for many years and our relationship goes right back to the days when I first started working at EMI Music Adelaide at the age of 18 and Pseudo Echo were the Australian darlings/superstars of the label.  Mr Canham was a huge star.  Years later, when I was living in Melbourne...Brian and I both took our rather naughty labradors to dog training school on Saturday mornings in Albert Park and our two "rock dogs" didn't exactly learn quickly. But they had each other to chase and Brian and I had each other to look sheepishly at when they wouldn't do what they were told.  Cooper Edwards and Rio Canham are both in heaven now and Brian and I spent quite some time last night reminiscing about our much loved dogs.  The dressing room setup at Clipsal is formed by a square of transportable rooms with basic lounge suites, a trestle table, clothes rack and catering in each.  The Pseudos invited me to partake of their vodka supply and I was grateful that I didn't have to battle the beer guzzling crowd outside for a drink.  In the middle of the square is a mini outdoor patio/courtyard area and the catering tables.  I'm always offered a feed but sometimes it doesn't feel quite right as I've just waltzed in for an hour or so and the bottom line is that the food is not there for the likes of me.  Unless I'm absolutely starving, I always politely decline.  I did however, pocket a small chocolate bar on my way out at the insistence of Leo's wonderful tour manager Steve :)  As he offered me a drink, Pseudo Echo's Pierre did point out to me that I had the best of both worlds....pointing between the two dressing rooms and saying "you can have a sip of our vodka but you're lucky, you will probably get offered the top notch stuff over there"....as he nodded his head towards Leo's dressing room catering!

I didn't have my green wristband for stage access yet so I wandered around and chatted with friends such as Tim R who plays keyboards in everyone's band...last saw him at A Day On The Green with Sean Kelly and tonight he was with Uncanny X-Men. Then there was Teresa whom I met when the Adelaide venue Norwood Live first opened in 2008.  We spent three days together on the road with Diesel, me looking after publicity and Teresa the merch sales.  We always catch up with a friendly hug and kiss and enjoy a quick chat before she rushes off to stack crates full of ice and clear plates etc.  There are production runners a many backstage at a show like this. James Reyne's sound engineer Grant was another familiar face, this time twiddling the knobs for Mondo Rock.  Why wouldn't I just wander up onto the stage without my green wristband you might ask?  Because when there is a procedure in place, it is the right thing to adhere by it.  Brian Canham was about to walk up the ramp to start his set with Pseudo Echo but as he didn't have his guitar in his hand at the time, the very diligent security guard asked him to show his wristband before he took another step. I've never thought I "should" be somewhere because I might think that I have a right to be...not my style.  I don't wander into dressing rooms and help myself to riders...I am always lucky enough to be looked after with the hospitality of the artist I am working for and am always grateful to be offered a nice cold glass of wine from their rider.  I don't walk into dressing rooms without knocking and I leave before I know that I will be asked to.  Bands undressing has always been one of the trials and tribulations face by this writer as a female surrounded by men wanting to disrobe....and quite frankly I don't need or want to see it.  Sudden flashback comes to mind of a certain bassplayer from an Australian band (who now plays with some of the biggest and best in the US), opening the dressing room door to greet my then boss Shay, stark naked with his hands on his hips.  I must have known, I very deliberately said to Shay at the time, "um, I think you should go in first".  So back to the access, my good friend Barry was manning the access to the Promoters viewing platform above the stage and he came to give me a big hug and no doubt would have let me go up there until Leo arrived.  I was happy to wait.  It's not hard to know your place and with that comes respect for it. 

Leo arrived with loud laughter and big welcomes for everyone.  Nearly all of these acts he knows very well, having toured with them during the Countdown Spectacular tour several years ago.  "Hullo darlin'" could be heard everywhere he went for the next 30 minutes. The patio area had now been filled with the band members, tour managers and crews of all of the acts. The only other people backstage were wives, girlfriends, boyfriends, babies, drivers and a very minimal handful of old friends.  MIX 102.3's Jason Snowy Carter was the only media person present as he was MC'ing the show, he wandered about cheerily introducing himself to the bands and getting their approval for an onstage welcome.  Who made it backstage who might have been out of place and not a part of the setup?  No-one really......except the 20 giant inflatable beachballs that the Uncanny X-Men brought with them to kick out to the crowd during a song .....and the two very scantily clad bikini models who were used to "enhance" a song....I didn't see it but I'm sure it went over well because whilst their attire was a little out of place backstage, they themselves most certainly weren't.  The most amusing part of that being for me,  that they didn't dress afterwards...they hung out with the boys in the crew at the back of the stage smoking and then just wandered around in their bikinis for a while...as you do!  

I myself was considered a "new face" amongst many of the band members within the compound as I hadn't met many of the players in Leo's band.  As a female, there is often a period of "sussing out" that goes on as they will quietly take a bit of time to determine who and what I might be.  Most often, people tend to keep to themselves and I find that it is usually me who has to introduce myself (if it hasn't been done by my client) and explain where I fit in.  From there, they'll either find me interesting, or they won't.  For my part, I am always happy to strike up a conversation with an interesting person, male or female, as long as it doesn't involve....."so what are you doing now, do you want to come back to the hotel for a drink?"  

Last night the patio was filled with some wonderful names of the Australian music industry.  Ross Wilson and Eric McCusker of Mondo Rock have written some of the THE most amazing songs....Leo's band was full of the hottest Australian session musicians going - James Gillard, Bill Risby, Mark Kennedy & Paul Berton to name a few....and the two Brian's - Canham and Mannix - whilst worlds apart in appearance, have had massive careers with hits that had dominated the Australian charts when I was younger.  All of these bands I had faithfully followed in pubs all over Adelaide and it's wonderful to be able to work with them and amongst them.  

My favourite observations of the night.....firstly stage roadie Falcon during Leo's set.  He played air guitar, air drums, he stomped and stamped his feet, he encouraged the crowd to clap and he held up his lighter AND his mobile phone at the front of the stage to encourage them to do likewise. Occasionally he moved mike stands and handed over guitars after a song.  Falcon was absolute gold and a delight to watch.  The other was the second stage roadie who throughout Leo's entire set, leaned on a roadcase and stared at Chantoozie Tottie Goldsmith as she danced and sang along and canoodled with her fella in front of and between me and said roadie.  He couldn't take his eyes off her...he was about 20 years old...another crew member had to come and yell in his face to get his attention when he was needed.  He was mesmerised by the Tottster.  And no backstage area would be complete without a little rock baby in a sling....Chantoozie Angie's little bubba won my heart and gave me the biggest smile of the day...well the baby and Falcon both made me smile....

Backstage ain't all it's cracked up to be folks.....once you get back there, there isn't an awful lot to see.  Just people going about their work, or waiting to do their work and then leave. In the end we're all music fans aren't we......the real excitement is out the front.

Hope you enjoyed reading my first blog, and I hope you'll come again!

Deb x