Dublin, Ireland

Welcome back.

I arrived in London yesterday morning after a very busy week home that included reorganising all the things that were brought up from our flooded basement into a spare bedroom. We also moved my youngest son back home for summer break from Knoxville where he finished his junior year at university. We did manage some family time, a couple of great dinners as well as a grill out on Sunday. Nashville has lived up to it's name, the Volunteer State, with neighbours helping neighbours and complete strangers pitching in to lend a hand to those in need. The flood will have a massive impact on the people and the city for many years to come, but Nashville is pulling through and will be stronger than ever.

We all met up at Northolt Air Field early this afternoon and compared haircuts. The Legacy jet that was scheduled to be our magic carpet for the remainder of the tour had starter problems and another had to arrive from Luton Airport thus delaying our departure by 90 minutes. The time was filled with egg and bacon baguettes and stories of everyone's week off. You'd think we'd not seen each other for years. The new plane arrived and off we went to Dublin. Jet lag overcame me and I slept for most of the hour flight.

We arrived at the O2 arena which was formerly known as The Point, a gig we've played many times. Several years ago The Point was closed, remodeled, greatly enlarged and re-named. This is our first time in the new facility. We met up with Mike McGoldrick and John McCusker who had flown in yesterday and were waiting there for us. They were a sight for sore eyes as was our trusty catering crew, Eat You Heart Out, specifically Chris Desmond, Angus McKinnon and Mike Hurley. It's grand to see them again and great to savour their remarkably delicious food once more. Another small luxury while in the UK and Europe is arriving at the venue and having a proper cup of tea. It somehow never translates in America.

We did a long soundcheck today for John and Mike to sort out a couple of things as well as a brush up for us all. When we hit the stage tonight it was as if we'd never had a break, just right back up on the horse and into full stride. The audience was great and the venue much larger than the theatres we were playing in the States, so it felt very exciting. Not that the shows in America weren't, but this is a completely different experience. We all had a great time playing tonight. Mark's pinched nerve is much better but it was still a sit down as he didn't want to push it. Sitting or standing makes no difference to the shows. This tour is a special one and if you've attended one I think you will agree.

So long,

Richard​