Toby Keith - American Ride Tour - Mobile Production Pro

Alicein ChainsFun on the Road.As Black Gives Way To Blue.By Michael A. BeckOne of the most commonsentiments encountered on the road is“this work is too hard to endure if youcan’t enjoy it along way.” Indeed, truerwords were never spoken as, to quotevideo director extraordinaire MarkHaney, “We’re not saving babies outhere.” All of that having been said(over and over and over again), thereare far too many tours that that simplydon’t live up to the rhetoric.Alice in Chains not only preaches the gospel of “don’t worry, behappy,” but they apply it to the tour in liberal measure. Taking pointon that message is Tour Manager Chuck Randall who explained theaffect of the tour, “What defines this tour differently than the othertours that I’ve been on over the 28 years that I’ve been doing, this isthe unique chemistry of the people involved and the positive energyof the tour. That starts with Paul Chavarria and his crew.”Under the banner of “Cynicism Is The New Optimism” one couldhave taken Randall’s words with a grain of salt were it not for thefact that he shared his thoughts on the matter in a phone interviewafter we’d been out to see the show and saw firsthand the flow ofthe production team that was gently jovial and highly professional.However, there was the ubiquitous and discomforting understatedsmell of sulfur and brimstone that nagged the entire experience.When ask for his philosophy on touring, Production Director PaulChavarria was very direct in his response, “If it ain’t fun then don’tdo it.”Chuck RandallTour Manager/Tour AccountantThe Great SatanAt five trucks, not including the opening acts, the show was verysmall compared to the scale of the productions we are used to seeinga guy like Chavarria on. That point was even clearer when welooked at the crew list and saw names like Robert “Hydro” Mullin,Bill Rengstl and Dave Lapham. These are guys who are typicallyseen on giant productions with up to 35 trucks.photos by Michael A. Beck“It’s nice to be on something a little smaller. It’s a nice change ofpace,” said Hydro on the matter of the downsized workload of thistour. “It makes for a easy day. You come in a little later and have itup in four or five hours. It’s a lot easier on you, that’s for sure. AndAlice in Chains are really a nice bunch of guys to work for.”mobile production monthly 13