After our last show in Europe was complete we drove overnight from Cologne, Germany to London for an 11AM flight to Las Vegas, NV. After our nearly two month adventure across the pond I was ready to be home…well, not quite home but much closer. Las Vegas was waiting for us to arrive for a four night residency at The Cosmopolitan and do our version of a 'Lounge' set. Two per night to be exact. Not really a lounge set but that's what I pictured in that type of setup. I so wanted to give my best Tony Clifton to this event but abstained for the sake of our contractual obligation. We arrived to warm greetings by our soldier on the ground, Haystack. "YEAHHHH!!!", "Not makin' dollars, not makin' sense…YEAHHH!!", "Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching' for the stars…YEAAHHHHHH!!!!"…Yeah that's right, Haystack.
We were greeted by valet, checked in to our spots and each fell back in our rooms for the next 26 hours. Jet lag took ahold for the next couple days to where all we really saw of Vegas was the domicile we were hibernating in. Honestly felt like a vacation with all the amenities and a little bit of work at the end of each day. Nice!
I was continually amazed that the women that frequent luxury hotel/casinos, all had on the obligatory tube dress, fashioned to cover one centimeter below view of the vagina and one centimeter above the nipple.
Don't get me wrong…I appreciate the effort but when the constant gaggle of boob droids roll by looking like the apocalyptic Attack of the Slutty Clones, you start to feel like someone is staging an event or conducting a mass experiment to rouse the attention of ogling D-bags that snort Viagra.
I DO have to say that The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas has to be the best spot on the strip. They were very hospitable and looked after us the whole time with friendly smiles. Great music in the elevators and lobbies, incredibly comfortable rooms with great views of the Vegas life on the strip below. I can't remember the last time I could actually fit in a bathtub.
On a whim, I was asked to sing The National Anthem for ESPN's Friday Night Fights Boxing Match held at The Cosmopolitan. I was reluctant for a moment and decided FUCK IT…why not? I thought I would give it a shot. I had about 27 people tell me, "Don't pull a Christina Aguilera and screw up the words!" I had committed the words to memory from the sub-par sports career of my youth, (I call those the "team building" years) so I wasn't too terribly concerned with that. I was, however concerned with my voice cracking like Peter Brady on puberty at the moment of truth. Got through it alright…"A bit pitchy, dog" as Randy Jackson might say but hey, what the hell.
YES, I was nervous as shit.
I will say that after our long journey across Europe seeing so many beautiful countries and the variety of culture AND in light of the progression of our current political conflicts, the song meant something different to me. I was humbled. When the crowd began to cheer towards the end, I had never felt such pride and for the honor of being able to perform the song, I am incredibly grateful. Plus it was at a boxing match and not a figure skating competition, so that's cool.
The rest of the time at the Cosmopolitan was a great experience. Many, many friends made it their excuse to travel out to Sin City to get loose and it was great to see them.
We played the rest of our double set nights like it was the first night of tour and ended with full hearts as we closed the chapter on the most intense journey to date.
*Sitting in Golden Hill watching the sunset, more grateful than ever.
Until the next one begins...
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