“On a tour of one-night stands, my suitcase & guitar in hand.”
Paul Simon – Homeward Bound

I’d swear this gas station figured in an early episode of Twin Peaks. It’s isolated, eerie and surrounded by misty, tree-covered hills. One last top up of the tank before finding yet another roadside motel; the last one before the circle is complete and I’ll find myself back in Newark, New Jersey, a round trip of 3000km over 10 days. I’d been looking forward to this part of the tour thinking I’d get to see fields and farmlands and some of those fabled wide open spaces of America. Turns out that once again I should’ve consulted a map rather than trusting to some pre-conceived idea. This Pennsylvania is densely forested and the trees hide most of what may or may not lie beyond the Interstate 80. It’s a long green tunnel…
For once I’ve got ample time to get where I’m supposed to be tomorrow. No stress. Unlike previous days which were all run on a tight schedule: Breakfast. Drive. Lunch. Drive. Find motel. Arrive at venue for soundcheck. Have a beer. Play gig. Eat food. Back to motel. Repeat. The margin for error was slight and yet nothing major went wrong. No gigs were missed. The car didn’t break down. I didn’t get lost and people all along my tour route were good to me which leads me to think that either I have a guardian angel or I’m lucky. Maybe they equate to the same thing…
And now I’m back. All the way back home in Paris. Twelve thousand km from the hectic early days of the tour in New York. A huge thanks to all whose path crossed mine in the last two weeks. From those who I shared a drink and a chat with to those who so kindly looked after me whilst I was in their city. I hope to see some of you again in October…
Barton H, signing off for the summer.

French version published daily on the ROCK MADE IN FRANCE website

USA Day 15 – Homeward Bound : « Douze mille km depuis New York »