Hiya kids. Bill from Milwaukee here.

Once again America's favorite rock-n-roll accordion band is on tour. Here's my report from the road.

I caught up with TDA on the second show of their midwest tour swing at the Blackhorse Bar in beautiful Winona Minnesota. Did you know that Winona is the birthplace of actress Winona Ryder? Bit of trivia for ya there.

Anywho, TDA played a rock'n show last year at the Blackhorse and they returned this year to play a benefit for the Theatre du Mississippi - a local theater and arts group.

Early on, it looked like the show would turn into one of those Spinal Tap moments with just a couple of guys in the back yelling: "play some Skynard man!" But before you knew it, the bar filled up with a large, hard dancing party crowd and TDA didn't disappoint.

Among the show highlights was a smoking cover of Golden Earring's "Radar Love" with Suzy on the lead vocal. Carrie showed off her vocal and dancing chops with a twisted Russian version of Charlie Daniels "The Devil Went Down To Georgia." We also witnessed the rarely seen mass coordinated Chicken Dance, with Carrie and Suzy leading the floor in a nearly flawless exhibition. I was exhausted just watching it.

TDA left the crowd happy, sweaty and completely danced out. No doubt, a few more converts were added to the TDA cult.

The next day show was in Downer's Grove Illinois, just a short 6+ hour drive from Winona. I had forgotten how much I hated driving in Chicago... tolls, tolls, TOLLS!!! Geez! I spent more on tolls than I did on beer, much to my great shame.

When I arrived it was an intense 97 hot and humid degrees on the street for the Downer's Grove Heritage Festival. However, there was plenty of music, good food and lots of scary looking carnival rides.

Thankfully by the time TDA was ready to play it had cooled down quite a bit. A crowd of 250 - 300 gathered to watch, but not many had the strength left to do much dancing after an afternoon of battling the heat and overflow festival crowds. Plenty of happy smiles and applause all around meant another successful show was in the can.

After a bit of a voyage to locate my car ("what do you mean this isn't the bus back to the parking lot??!!?) and a late-night driving tour of Downers Grove to locate the tollway on-ramp... it was back home to Milwaukee to store up the energy for the next leg of the TDA tour.

Up next: TDA's first visit to Madison's High Noon Saloon and the return to Clarks Place in Steven's Point. Stay tuned....


*Bill in Milwaukee

It's a BAVARIAN version of "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" not Russian. Carrie's faux accent sounds Russian to me. Must have been all that Minnesota beer I was drinking that had me confused. :-)

*Bill In Milwaukee