On the road with an unofficial Rock & Roll Goodwill Ambassador.
Travelling band member and often solo troubadour Bobbo Byrnes describes his memoirs as a “rags-to-rags” story of roaming the world in search of songs. It is also one of the most uplifting volumes by a musician you could read. Although things are tough, gear is stolen, he misses his wife Tracy, often gets lost and tragically loses a best friend, Byrnes’s great affection for the songs, his fans, and people in general comes through on every page. This is not a memoir of excess, drunken, drug-fuelled nights or petulant musicians; it is full of love, respect, tea with honey and a thick slice of toast. From his first gig at a backyard party in Westford, Massachusetts, in 1991, he has played well over 5,000 shows.
Too Many Miles doesn’t always follow a chronological order; Byrnes moves backwards and forwards through time, visiting old friends and giving us a peek into his early life. He has produced a set of songs to accompany the words. They aren’t essential to the written works, but they add context and are an excellent listen. The book also includes the lyrics, with notes on how they came about. Often, Byrnes comes up with an idea, and his wife, Tracy, improves on it, finding ways to say things Byrnes hadn’t thought of. The stories behind the songs are covered, but hearing them come to life adds to the experience. The beauty of Millsboro was inspired by a chance meeting on a flight, where Byrnes met a guy from the actual town in Delaware. Byrnes calls this one his “Springsteen moment“. It is a homage to all former mill workers and the mill ghosts across America. Byrnes had firsthand experience working in a cotton mill, unfortunately suffering an accident and luckily falling into a “Bobbo”-shaped hole, allowing the machinery to glide over him. Causing only minor physical harm, his clothing came off worse. He felt the mill ghosts saved him that day, and that it could have ended much worse. He also gives a shout-out to Sarah Bagley, a 19th-century American labour leader and reformer who campaigned for mill workers’ rights near Byrnes’ home in Massachusetts.
Byrnes bought his first guitar in 1988 after being cut from the school hockey team. One week later, he and his friends Jeff Turner and Dennis Hart started a band. Heavily influenced by bands such as The Wallflowers, they played long, hard, and loud in the basement. Byrnes remembers his dad standing at the top of the stairs, shouting down, “Play the guitars with the holes in them“, which would be a great title for an album.
Byrnes delights us with tales of tours to Europe, especially Germany, and each trip brings a new perspective and experience. Byrnes originally began writing songs and attempted to be deep and poetic. His philosophy changed; his words aren’t any less deep, but he wanted to sing the truth, taking on board the words of one of his favourite writers, Jack Kerouac, who wrote, “The only truth is music“. He also felt that striving for perfection when playing live doesn’t always work. He explains that humanity, not perfection, is the way to go in live sound and the key to making a connection. Throughout his tours, whether playing live to an audience of six or a packed room, Byrnes strives to do that, and you can feel it in his words.
Having never visited anywhere outside the United States other than Canada, his love of touring Germany came out of the blue, sparked by a chance comment. His father’s brother, Marty, lives in Southern Germany with his wife, Petra, and Byrnes, along with his wife, Tracy, arranged a trip to visit them as tourists. The next thing, Uncle Marty tells his friend that his nephew is a musician, and the friend knows folks in the Würzburg area and offers them some shows. Known collectively as The Fallen Stars, Bobbo, Tracey, and drummer Gary O’Yeah perform their first gig on German soil, opening for Kim Wilde at the local radio station festival, Radio Gong. With Radio Gong airplay, their song One, Two, Three(thousand miles back to you) ends up in the top 50.
On this tour, they meet Australian musician Ben Riddle, and that chance meeting sparks a lifelong friendship and collaboration. The band’s name morphs into Riddle & The Stars. Byrnes’s philosophy of life can be summed up in one line, and this one relates to working with Riddle: “Good things happen when you say yes“.
Chance meetings and connections flow through the book; however, you cannot disregard the hard work and sacrifice Byrnes and his wife, Tracy, put into their work. Remember, this is a touring musician who isn’t staying in five-star hotels with room service; he doesn’t have a top-of-the-range tour bus or tour manager to orchestrate everything. When Ben Riddle breaks a mandolin string, Byrnes has to re-string it during the show because he needs it for the final song. There is no backup mandolin, no guitar tech. Byrnes has no road crew. He is the road crew, setting up equipment, taking it down and carrying it to the car, often too tired to unload it afterwards, leading to issues. His car was broken into twice on the same street, in separate years, which is bizarre.
He has had to deal with PR companies holding him to ransom over booking shows and contract length. Byrnes declares, “The business of making music ruins music“. He has to play to crowds who would rather talk than listen, and we’ve all been to that sort of gig, but Byrnes’s relentless spirit often wins them over in the end. Even the potentially incendiary Bachelorette party, or the woman asking him to play “Valerie” who can’t understand why he can’t.
The book includes moments of sadness and reflection, as this is real life. Byrne’s diary style and anecdotes delight you and often stop you in your tracks, giving you moments to stop and look inwards. Playing to Syrian refugees in Germany, finding more money in the hat, and seeing improved CD sales compared to gigs in more affluent areas is mind-blowing. Receiving death threats after anti-Trump comments at his shows.
He records at the Hansa By The Wall studio in Germany, where David Bowie recorded his iconic albums Heroes and Low. Byrnes stands looking out of the same window Bowie would have looked through whilst recording Heroes, so naturally Byrne records his own version. The landscape outside may be different, but inside the Hansa studio things haven’t changed. The same microphones and mixing equipment. Only two weeks later, he records at Windmill Lane in Dublin, previously used by U2, The Rolling Stones, and Van Morrison. Byrnes declares that these two studios are like his Disneyworld or his Mecca.
Byrnes takes us on a fabulous journey of personal discovery and meets so many wonderful people along the way. He likes to share toast with his fans after a performance, and when unloading his guitars, pedalboard, and amps, he often has a toaster under his arm. For the uninitiated, you might wonder what you are going to hear. We could share so many stories from the book, but the easier way is to treat yourself and buy it. If you are not a Bobbo Byrnes fan by chapter three, go and see Byrnes live and share tea, toast, wonderful storytelling and music, and maybe then you will understand a little more about life on the road.
