Touring Holland with BETH HART - Chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6

Hey folks ~ I decided to combine the last 4 chapters into one great big wonderful chapter, 'cause baby, I am be-hiiiiiiiiiiiiiind! I still have a whole other tour to the midwest to tell you about!
Let's see, where did I leave off? Oh ya, the first show with Beth, in Rotterdam (when you say that word, really roll your "R"...it's how they do it and it's fun). After the show at Watt, we actually go to really sleep for the first time in days. It was wonderful. I followed it up with a big brunch and then an even bigger workout at this really cool gym. Then, it was show time again.

That night, we played a show to pub full of people in the heart of Rotterdam. AJ and Judith, the promoters of the night AND our new best friends, took us out for sushi (see above) after we had our sound check. You can see a tiny collage of shots from that night. You can also see video from that
show at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AXl87V0nCk That show was so much fun - we played for 3 hours! Thanks to AJ and Judith for all of their time, energy, and love!!

The next day, we boarded a train to Nijmegen. It was thursday, the night of my second show with Beth and her band. This time, we would be playing a soft seat theatre that held about 1,000 people. I was pretty stoked. :)

When we arrived, we saw that there was a billboard out front with our names on it. I am a self-admitted dork and I still get a kick out of seeing my name up there! Once inside, we were shown to our dressing room and I tuned up in the hall while Beth's boys were sound-checking. This was going to be a cool night because they had the whole stage set up like a living room. Both our set and the beginning of Beth's were acoustic. It made for a really warm, homey feel.

This show was cool too because the Govert de Roos' assistant, Marlinde, was there the whole night following me around, taking shots. At first, I was really self-conscious (and I have a new-found respect..well sort of...for reality tv stars....it's harder than you'd think to have a camera perpetually in your face!)
The show was REALLY cool and after I played I rushed out to the merch table where people were standing for autographs and photos. It was busy but super fun!! I posted a clip below you can check out if you want - Holly was taping our very last song backstage right before we ended. Be sure to listen to the applause at the end...lol, it sounds like a REAL audience!! After a short meet and greet with fans out front, we headed back in to watch Beth. It was really sweet, right when she took the stage and started her first tune she said, "How about that Julie Neumark? She is the shit!!" :)

Backstage with Otto (L) and Dave (R) before the show...

On stage in Nijemegen...





Live VIDEO - (shot from backstage) "Lady"

FRIDAY: Off on a train to Utrecht for an instore performance at Plato. We hung out in Utrecht for the day and I had the most delicious chicken sandwich. Utrecht is a really sweet little town with cobblestone streets and little shops and restaurants all around. Over to the left you can see me standing by the "Dimestore Halo" display in the store.

Friday was also Holly's birthday and our night off! It was time to celebrate! We hopped on a train back to Amsterdam, quickly checked into our hotel and headed out to meet up with Scott, Tom, Jon, and Todd (plus some of our other new Dutch friends, Theo and Carolla). First though, Dave and I took Holly out to dinner and got her a, well, a make-shift cake with a sparkler in it. See below.

Then we headed over for some darts and pool with the rest of the crazy Americans (except for Beth who was smartly resting her voice and seeing a movie). It was a whole lot of fun...a little too much fun, haha....and a very late night.

Holly "pool shark" Lucille showed off her skills on Mr. Jon Nichols. Um, keep practicing, Holly....guitar playing isn't Jon's only skill... ;)

The next morning came quickly, as Dave and I struggled to get our butts out of bed and head over to the radio station where the 2 Meter Sessions is taped. Here is a picture of us in the studio where we recorded 6 songs for the show. It tooks us a few to warm up but then we were on fire and really geared up for our final show of the tour in Zaandam that night.We arrived to a friendly stage manager who showed me to my dressing room where they had scrawled my name and a welcome in chalk on the door (this place was very rock and roll). Inside, the walls were covered with names of bands who had played there before us, their logos, artwork, quotes, you name it - all written in black sharpies. I, of course, added my own with my logo ;) (see below)

Next to my dressing room was Beth's with a similar welcome sign (see below).
It was really cool that night, about 1/2 before my set, I hear Beth making her way down the hall and then knock on my door. She had come in early to give me a little "mentoring" advice on performance, the business, etc. This woman has a huge heart and I so so appreciate her thinking of me and passing along her words of wisdom - Beth man, YOU f***ing ROCK!! The show was great - probably our strongest of the tour...we were SO loose and just really having a good time.

This is a photo taken by a fan during the set. I felt so present during this performance...like I wanted to soak up every last second of it. It wasn't long before it was over and then it was off to the fans to meet and greet and then watch Beth play one last time on this tour. It was nothing short of fantastic as was the entire experience of my first tour in Europe. :)

After the show, we all ended up hanging out in Beth's dressing room for a couple of hours before calling it a night. It was fun not only to hang out with Beth and boys again but also to meet and talk to some of the great people who were part of this tour - Theo, Carolla, Bianca and as well, new Dutch friends Jette, Jannita, and more!!

Sadly, the next day we packed up our things and headed back to the airport to fly 9 hours back to LA...

WE WILL BE BACK!!!!

xoxo ~

Julie

http://www.julieneumark.com/

www.myspace.com/julieneumark

http://julieneumark.hyves.nl/