Pebble Beach 2007

[Brooke]

Anxiously awating Day 2 review!

[sodascouts]

Dreamer, PLS, and soda’s Excellent Pebble Beach Adventure 2007: Day 2

Rainy day women

While Thursday had better weather than we’d feared, Friday was the opposite. The rain wasn’t torrential as we made our way towards the Poppy Hills course, but it was ever-present. We even encountered an accident on the highway which slowed our progress (hopefully no one was hurt). Sometimes the rain would lighten up enough so that you thought you could take off your hood or close your umbrella... and then it would start up again. The only virtue of this was that I didn’t have to worry if I looked good in my outfit. I was a big walking navy blue raincoat with a hood for almost the entire day, only differentiated by the other rain-coat clad spectators by the icky reddish-brown curls sticking out from the hood in all directions. Dreamer, who seemingly never gets cold, was able to display her nice tight black top and carry around her coat, using only an umbrella. I was envious! PLS was also stuck in a raincoat and hood much of the day, although hers fit her a little better than mine did.

But who cares what we were wearing? Let’s get to Glenn! He looked more stylish than we did in his black rain gear and yellow baseball cap, occasionally worn backwards. He was wearing a black sweatshirt under his coat that we didn’t get to see much, and slick black “rain pants” that weren’t the best fit in the world. He had to keep hiking them up, as they were always trying to slide down. As the day progressed, however, they began to snug up nicely.

Due to the weather, the accident, and our own inability to “rise and shine” quickly in the morning, we once again got to the course late. We caught up to Glenn at the 12th hole (he’d started on the 10th that day – and yes, this year, PLS and I remembered, with Dreamer’s help!) As we arrived, Glenn looked over, waved, and smiled. Not long after, Glenn joked that his fans were “braving the elements” to see him.

After we walked up, we saw a girl who had been there yesterday with friends and last year as well to see Glenn, but on that day was by herself. Since we were all there for the same reason, we hooked up with her. I’m not sure she’s cool with her name being on the internet, so I’ll call her VPB for “Veteran Pebble Beacher” – she’d been there four years in a row! She had on a cool necklace made from a pick Glenn had given her on a prior trip, and had managed to get a couple of photos with Glenn in prior years as well. I asked her if she thought Glenn would be amenable to photos this year, and she said probably because of the rain we might be able to persuade him to strike a pose. She also showed us that Glenn had made the Monterey paper’s sports insert. He was on the front page of it!

It didn’t take long for us to sense that the group was not doing as well as they would like. Ironically, it was pros who seemed to be struggling the most. The game got more and more backed up time-wise, causing Glenn to look at his watch several times. It didn’t help that Overton was taking excruciating amounts of time to set up his shots – much longer than usual. Perhaps his bad game was caused by over-thinking! The four men were not happy campers that day. With such a vibe, it wasn’t surprising that Glenn wasn’t in the same spirits as the day before. He avoided the crowd and even his own teammates at times, standing off by himself looking glum. In fact we worried that he actually might be feeling sick. Still, there were some memorable moments.

When You’ve Gotta Go, You’ve Gotta Go: The Sequel

At the 14th hole, two twenty-something girls near the rope had started softly singing ‘Take It Easy’ when Glenn was standing around waiting for the team ahead of them to finish. They were in front of PLS, and she hurriedly made herself scarce, concerned that Glenn would think she was one of the group attempting to serenade him. Additionally, after last year’s off-key experience with Hotel California, she didn’t want her ears to start bleeding. Dreamer, VPB, and I didn’t even realize PLS had run off, as VPB needed to go to the little port-a-potty by the hole and we were holding her stuff for her.

Meanwhile, the team ahead of Glenn’s was moving so slowly that Glenn decided to take the opportunity to go to the bathroom as well. He ran down the hill from the tee to the port-a-potty. “Sh*t!” he exclaimed when he saw it was occupied. Dreamer and I started to giggle. He looked over at us. “Is that your girlfriend in there?” Dreamer kept her mouth shut, but I said “Yes” and laughed again. Of course, VPB was oblivious to all of this. When she opened the door to come out, Glenn ran back up to the port-a-potty and cried in mock exasperation, “FINALLY!” VPB was initially embarrassed but we were cracking up. As this was occurring, the two “singers” came down to the port-a-potty as well to wait for Glenn to come out! When he opened the door, there they were, once again bursting into a chorus of ‘Take It Easy’ for his benefit. He just rolled his eyes, stepped in between them, and made his way back up to the hill up the tee.

The Dorkitude Strikes Back

Later on, we were walking down a fairway on a sidewalk that was across from the rope dividing us from the green. I had my raincoat on and my hood up. As I walked down the path, I looked over my shoulder to see where Glenn was on the green, but my hood kept me from having any peripheral vision. I lifted it a bit so I could see over my shoulder and there was Glenn, right at my elbow on the sidewalk! In fact, when I turned, I was looking right into his eyes. Taken off-guard, I gasped, jumped to the left and tried to cover my embarrassment by putting my head down and walking without looking to the right or left. You know I couldn’t escape having at least one dork moment per day, of course!

At one point, after observing us, a guy who had earlier asked which one was Glenn Frey (!) commented to PLS, “You must be Eagles fans.” PLS replied, “Gee, what was your first clue?” lol

The day wore on with its dark skies and dark moods, both occasionally lightening only to return again. After Glenn’s team finished the 4th hole, where they had also performed poorly, Glenn turned to us as the “royal processional” made its way down the hill to the next hole. “We suck,” he half-joked, smiling ruefully. We all expressed sympathy. I said, “Yeah, sorry about the way you’re kind of sucking, that’s too bad,” then thought that perhaps I should have worded it more tactfully. Oh well, I don’t think he heard me and my big mouth anyway!

Star on a Hill

At the 7th hole, the team was once again backed up (big surprise there). We descended the hill from the 6th to the 7th somewhat parallel to the team. With all the rain, the slope was a little slippery, and as Dreamer navigated it, she got her umbrella caught on the rope. Glenn was right at her elbow. As PLS reached over to unhook Dreamer’s umbrella, Glenn steadied Dreamer’s arm and told them, “Watch your step, girls.”

I had gone on ahead with VPB. As Dreamer and PLS continued to descend, Glenn paused and waited where he was by himself. Dreamer came down to where we stood and breathlessly told me what had happened. I turned to look up the path to see where Glenn was, and who should I see talking to Glenn but PLS! While Dreamer had been relating her exciting moment, PLS had decided to take the opportunity to go up the hill again and talk to Glenn.

PLS struck up the conversation with, “You know... we went to a few of the solo shows last summer...” Glenn perked up. “Which shows?” he asked. She answered, “We were at the Michigan show and both Rama shows.” “Ah, Canada,” he replied and she nodded. Holding her hand over her heart, she sighed, “I just LOVED the new song you did, ‘I Love to Watch a Woman Dance.’” He told her, “I didn’t write that, it was written by Larry J. McNally. We’ve had that for about eight years.” PLS eagerly continued, “It’s such a beautiful song and the understated instrumentation just allows your voice to shine. And the delivery was just...” she paused, groping a word... “...fantastic.” He seemed pleased. “Yeah, it’s a great song. The accordion...” he trailed off. Then he said, “We’re laying down tracks this week, I think they’re working on it while I’m gone, in fact. We’re having Don and Tim put down harmony tracks for that. We had to change it a little bit... add some harmonies... ‘Eagle-ize’ it,” he finished with a grin. “Cool!” Lissa exclaimed. At that point, they started heading down the hill towards the rest of us, continuing the conversation about Rama.

That was when Dreamer, VPB, and I got in on the action. As they approached, I could hear Glenn say, “Yeah, Rama’s a great venue.” I chimed in that I was there, too, and that I’d also liked it. Dreamer asked, “Are you planning on doing any solo shows this year?” He answered, “No, just a few corporate shows.” When we all looked dismayed, he explained, “I need to spend some time with my kids.” I immediately felt guilty for even asking! However, I felt compelled to add in a rush, “Well, if you can’t do solo shows, then why not do solo songs with the Eagles? You could bring back ‘You Belong to the City...’” I broke off abruptly as I realized from his expression that he was not too receptive to this idea.

At this point, VPB pulled out the insert from the newspaper that she’d shown us earlier. The photo of Glenn on the cover had been taken after he’d just made a shot. She held it out so he could see it. “Did you know you were on this?” she asked. He squinted at it. “Wha... is that me?” We all nodded. He looked at it and said half-jokingly, half-disgustedly, “No follow through!” Shaking his head, he turned away and continued walking down the hill without us.

Say cheese!

At the last hole, Glenn had walked ahead of us from the 8th - but when he saw that they were backed up again, he paused at the end of the path as the rest of the team moved forward. He looked back over his shoulder as we came down the path. I thought, ‘This is my chance to get a photo!’ I had been too nervous to approach him earlier because he seemed like he wanted to be left alone and I figured if he wanted to talk to us, he would come over and do so. However, this was pretty much the end, and I really wanted a photo, so I screwed up my courage and told myself that if he'd really wanted to escape us, he would have kept moving forward.

As we walked up, he looked at us and smiled; I smiled back and was about to pull out my camera when Dreamer took the opportunity to ask him for a sig. As he signed, I said, “I know you’re busy, but when you get a chance, do you think it might be possible at some point for you to pose for a photo with me?” He replied, “Actually, this would be the best time, because we’re ridiculously backed up.” He was not happy to be waiting, that’s for sure. I said “Great” and gave my camera to VPB, giving her quick instructions on how to take a photo with it.

As soon as Glenn was done with Dreamer, I went over to Glenn, put my arm around him, and smiled a big dorky smile. Glenn actually smiled at this point too, which is something he hadn’t done too often that day. VPB took the photo, then I asked her to take another one just in case that one didn’t turn out (sadly, this one turned out even worse because she half-dropped the camera). Glenn joked, “Always gotta have the safety shot.”

Afterwards, I let go of him and gave him a huge thumbs-up, once again grinning from ear-to-ear. He returned the thumbs up with a grin of his own, but as soon as I’d stepped away to take the camera from VPB, he turned on his heel and disappeared into the woods. This was much to the disappointment of VPB and anyone else who wanted a photo with him. Oh well, maybe next year (for me too, since I discovered later that my photo didn’t come out at all).

He Went Lickety-Splitly

That was the last time we talked to him that day. He seemed to be in a big hurry and as soon as his group was finished playing, he hustled out as fast as he could. As we said earlier, what with the amount of time it was taking, the weather, and all the other factors, we weren’t surprised.

While we weren’t as jazzed as we were the day before, Dreamer had gotten a touch on the arm, I had gotten a photo with Glenn, and PLS had gotten some new information on the album. The day was hardly a wash, despite the rain.

[timfan]

Sounds like another great day at Pebble!

Glenn was giving you lots of attention and even tho he wasn't in the greatest moods he still knew you were there for him and made the effort to interact!

The stuff about the port a potty is just too funny and soda I certainly don't think you were 'dorky' when you jumped at Glenn being beside you . You were suprised and any of us would react the same way if we were suprised by someone whether they are Glenn Frey or not!

[Brooke]

Oh, man! More wonderful Glenn 'tact!

Even though he wasn't in the best of moods, he was nice to you all! Is there nothing you can do to your picture to save it?

[sodascouts]

I thought making it smaller might sharpen it up a bit, but it's so bad that even the tiny one is blurred horribly. Here's the small version:

[DonFan]

That's not such a bad photo, Soda--you can see both of you, even if it isn't clear.

I continue to be amazed at how sweet Glenn is to his fans. He is such a great guy!

[Freypower]

You can see that perfectly fine, Soda. That's great.

No solo shows - I didn't think there would be. Kudos to you for asking about solo songs but I think the setlist is going to reflect the new album.

His comments about ILTW were great. It should sound wonderful.

Glad you all had such a great time and so much contact with him.

[timfan]

It looks like a pretty good picture to me! You can clearly identify both you and Glenn so its not THAT bad!

and I agree DF. Glenn sure is great to his fans; so kind, chatty and humour-filled

[freyfanatic]

I like the pic Soda and the read too, can't wait till day 3!!!

[EasyFeeling]

That was a great read, Soda. And I like that photo it's not that bad. Cool that he talked a little bit about the new album.