re: Well, Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee?"

I'm not meaning to rub it in and believe me I know how blessed my touring "career" was. The Foolish was also amazing as well as the hey pocky way...the run before drums was sick. I saw every show that tour and could talk hours about it... but I do have a funny story about Branford.

I was so moved by his appearance at Nassau that I wrote him a letter which I never managed to mail. Not a big guest guy but he happened to fit in perfectly on that night. I was in my usual scammed spot, Phil side, 15 rows up. Perfect view of Jerry. They brought him out for birdsong and it was awesome...Jerry was loving it. I never imagined I would get bumped that late but at intermission someone showed up for the seats and it was "enjoy, these are great seats" and I moved to straight back, 20 or so off the floor. Still good and the sound was awesome. I was surprised to see Branford when they came out...you know the rest.

Fast forward to about 5 years ago. Branford is playing at Ft Scott Community College and there can't be 300 people there. After the gig there is a meet and greet and my wife and I sneak in and mingle with the crowd. Branford shows up and nobody will go over and talk to him. So I say let's go say hi. I get over there and tell him thank you for playing tonight and I say I saw him many years ago at UMass on my birthday and then say I saw him with the Dead in Nassau and how wonderfully he fit in with the band yada yada. He says " Oh man, everyone says they were at that show..."

He didn't believe me and then went into this talk about each band member like he read it in a book and as I walked away yelled to me I could buy the show on disk if I wanted it. I smiled and said thanks...laughing in my head as I had the vids a week later.

Edit to add I sent a picture of me with the Umass stub and the Nassau stub...never heard back. :)