First Friday @ Revolver Records 7Jan2011

We got to spend January's First Friday in downtown Phoenix in front of Revolver Records.  The weather was unseasonably cold for Phoenix.  The crowd seemed to enjoy Olivia while they strolled down Roosevelt Avenue.

Olivia Cannon @ Fashion Bug 20NOV2010

Olivia has been playing at Fashion Bug the past two weekends.  What a great time!  It's wonderful to see my neighbors out having a good time and have friends join while I get to do what I love best! Bobbi Kerr from Cave Creek joined me.



Olivia Cannon



Bobbi Kerr





Friends & Family of Bobbi Kerr & Olivia Cannon



Friend of Bobbi Kerr



Olivia Cannon






Olivia Cannon goofing off!







Bobbi Kerr





Bobbi Kerr



Olivia Cannon at the Infuse Open Mic, Phoenix Art Museum

Olivia Cannon's Mommamanager chasing away flies in Nashville, TN

Debbie Champion at The Commodore
Nashville, TN

Olivia finally documented that I was on the Play Across America Tour 2010.  I can't say that I really enjoy watching myself chase away flies, but Olivia thinks it's funny.  We were camped in the Walmart parking lot along side a creek.  It wasn't bad until late morning when things started to heat up.  The flies in Tennessee bite.  OUCH! We had to spend the whole day hanging out because Olivia was scheduled to play at the Comodore that evening.  It sure got hot that day.

We got to meet the host at the Commodore, Debbie Champion, who invited Olivia to come back anytime.  We also ran into some of the same guys who had played at the Douglas Corner Cafe the night before.  

While we were there we also got to meet Dolly McFarland and Jack Remington, great musicians of americana music.  Dolly invited Olivia to come back and play with them in Nashville too. 

Olivia Cannon at The Commodore

Olivia Cannon

The guys from Douglas Corner Cafe at The Commodore

Olivia Cannon in Gillette, WY on the Play Across America Tour 2010

We hadn't had too much mechanical troubles so far besides having to change out the locking gas cap back to the factory gas cap and adding some oil after learning that Jiffy Lube shorted me a quart and a half of oil.  About 40 miles west of Gillette, Wyoming, after lots of mountains the previous few days, the engine light from came on.  All the gauges were reading normal, but I felt insecure so I decided we needed to check it out before Olivia and went forward on the Play Across America Tour.  We spent the night at a wide spot in the road a mile or so out of town next to the Chevrolet dealer.  Carlos at White's Frontier Chevy service department said he couldn't promise they could to get it done that day, but they would do their best.  Not only did they get to us in that same day, but they were done before noon and we were only charged $49.00. One of the sensors was dirty and they cleaned it.  Imagine that, they cleaned it instead of replacing it.  Hallelujah!  It made up for the fact that there was only a meager turn out at Brother's Coffee.  In spite of that, Jessica, the barrista, kept the store open late, was helpful and pleasant. Photos to follow soon.

Olivia Cannon & the Play Across America Tour at Yellowstone

We camped at Rainbow Lake on the west side of Yellowstone in Montana on the July 18th on the Play Across America Tour.  Olivia and I were ready to take a little break and take a tour through one of the most beautiful wonders inside the borders of the United States of America.  Several people asked me why we were going considering that there had been several fires in recent years.  I think in some ways the burnt areas of the park gave the rest more splendor.  It also gave us a view of the park in various stages of recovery.  Yellowstone was not a disappointment.  Of course we saw Old Faithful, dear, moose, elk, rabbits, chipmunks, squirrels, eagles, hawks, and lots of a new species I hadn't ever seen before.  This new species were found in all of the streams and rivers.  Unlike the other wild life they wore clothing of waders, jackets, hats, and used a rod and reel to hunt.  Ha ha, yes, I am talking about fishermen.  There were so many it almost seemed like they were part of the wildlife.  The only thing we didn't see were bear.  After spending the night at Rainbow Lake on Friday, we spent Saturday touring the park, and spent the night on the east side of the park in the Shoshone National Park. 
As Olivia and I were preparing for bed a neighbor camper came over and told us to be really careful, he related that a camper had been mauled to death 3 weeks earlier just a mile or so from the camp site and he was not sure if the bear had been caught or destroyed.  As soon as the neighbor left Olivia and I looked at each and it was like a Keystone movie in fast forward.  We hurried and got everything put away and jumped inside.  I think we both had troubled sleep with nightmares of bears.  The dog must of felt uneasiness, it was one of the few nights she woke and growled during the night.  All in all, however, it was a wonderful time enjoying all of the earth's beauty. 
Photos to follow.

Olivia Cannon & the Play Across America Tour - The Melton, Dillon, MT

What a change in scenery from Eastern Washington through Idaho and into Montana on the Play Across America Tour.  We tried driving at night through Idaho, but the rain was so hard I couldn't see the stripes on the highway and we were in the mountains.  We ended up stopping just outside Kellogg, ID at the Walmart parking lot.  We saw the next morning that there was snow in the passes.  We made it into Dillon, MT early enough to get our laundry  done and eat some dinner.  Olivia played at The Melton, a saloon that was built in the 1800's.  The patrons were mostly cowboys and college students from Western Montana University.