News Archive March 2009

From: KISSonline.com
by Tommy Thayer
Posted: April 2, 2009

Let's get this show on the road!!!

Rehearsals end and it's showtime.

Like everything else in the world of Rock & Roll, everything planned can change in a minute.

Okay...this was the plan. The four of us, Doc, Danny (our security chief, for those of you just joining us) and new tour manager Mike would fly commercial to Miami and where we would hop aboard our jet for the 9 hour flight down to Santiago. Paul and I meet up at LAX, the international airport here in sunny Los Angeles. With every medicine known to man for any and all calamities in his bag, a rolling suitcase, huge sunglasses and a passport stuffed with visas and permits from all the other world tours in his hand, Paul looks like some sort of incognito rock star crossed with a pack mule.

But where is Gene? Well, it turns out he had written his car pick-up time down wrong and wasn't going to make the flight, so the tour already is "business as usual"! I was surprised though, because that kind of stuff never happens with Gene. Eric showed up late, but in time to make the flight. He LOVES watches. Maybe he should look at it. Gene will fly commercial on a later flight with our assistant road manager "Dependable" Dean and meet us in Santiago.

About four hours later, we land in Miami and make our way to the private aviation terminal where our flight crew and flight attendant watch as the KISS jet is being stuffed and stocked with dinner, drinks and amenities for our next journey. A great dinner and a short stop for fuel in Panama City, we all hunkered down for six hours of solid sleep on our way to Chile.

Just at daybreak we touched down into the Santiago sunshine. The ride to the hotel seems as long as the flight. Maybe because we're all hungry and talking about breakfast at the hotel. We'll rest today and Eric will walk the city. He IS the Energizer Bunny! Tomorrow (Friday) we start the South American leg of the KISS Alive/35 World tour at the sold-out Estadio Municipal de la Florida Stadium in Santiago, Chile. I'll get back to ya!

Tommy