WWW.PETERFRAMPTOM.COM

2007 Grammy Award Winner        

My Peter Frampton Experience....then & now...

FRAMPTON COMES ALIVE!

     As you can see from my WEB site I  have a passion for meteorology. It is only eclipsed by my passion for music. As a rhythm guitar player for nearly 40 years & as I enter the autumn of my life, I  can still remember the first time I heard on the radio back in the 70's, "Do You Feel Like We Do" & "Baby I Love Your Way". It was a defining moment for me. I became an admirer & instant fan. Until that moment, you were an unknown to me. Don't get me wrong, I had heard songs  from Humble Pie but did not realize you were the driving force behind that lead guitar. Unfortunately, I didn't explore it any further.

     Being in & out of bands, writing songs with my long time friend Tom Neely, cutting an album of our own & learning to play other musicians' music for gigs to earn cash was where it was at. It financed our musical adventure.

     Needless to say, when the "Frampton Comes Alive" album was going to be released, it was decidedly an album that was going to make it to my collection of vinyl. In addition, some of your music was going to be included into the list of songs performed by our band.

     Before the "Frampton Comes Alive" album was released to the music stores, the hype built on the albums release. There was talk of long lines & limited quantities. I hated standing in long lines for anything just to get to where you think you're going to be one of the lucky ones & then have to suffer the immeasurable letdown of those depressing words: "Sorry, we're all sold out".

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"Frampton Comes Alive" is still the biggest selling live album in the history of the recording industry.

Sunrise Theatre in Fort Pierce, Florida Oct. 23, 2006

PETER FRAMPTON

King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne, Florida May 31, 2007

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     Since I wasn't going to stand in a long line to have "Frampton Comes Alive" nor was I not going to have my own copy, the solution to my dilemma was to be first in line on the day "Frampton Comes Alive" hit the record stores.

     I was at the store 2 hours before the doors opened. I was first in line! When the doors were finally unlocked at Peaches Records & Tapes in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the line of people waiting to grab their copy of your album was nearly a block long & stretched around the corner to the back of the store. "Frampton Comes Alive" sold out within an hour of the stores opening. I remember feeling sorry for the people that heard those depressing words: "Sorry, we're all sold out" as I tightly gripped my prize & headed for my car. Some guy offered me double what I paid for your album. The gist of what I said was essentially "I don't think so".

     Within 2 hours of arriving back at my apartment, I learned the chords to "Baby I Love Your Way" & was writing the words (music book was not yet available) down on line paper so the song could be rehearsed by the members of the band I was in. This song became one of the "standards" that we played. So much so, that I put aside enough money from our gigs to by a Yamaha 12 string acoustic guitar just to do the song justice. "Show Me The Way" was another one of the songs that we added to our repertoire. It is what I call a "fun song" to play. It just goes! I concocted a little intro to "Show Me The Way" just to keep the song a secret until we started performing it. Your music book finally hit the music stores making it a bit easier to figure out what chords you were  actually playing. Some of the pictures on this WEB page, that has been dedicated to you, came from that music book which I still have all these years later. Anyway, the lead guitarist & I each went as far as buying the "what is that thingy" Talk Box & attempted to master "Do You Feel Like We Do".  We never could play that song to my inner level of perfection. Since we could not do this song the justice it deserved, we dropped it from our list. Somewhere in my reel to reel tape collection there are recordings of your songs as performed by the band I was in so many years ago. The good ole days!

     Unfortunately, I missed any concert appearances you may have made in South Florida during my younger years. I was too busy living life, working a full time job, playing in a band on the weekends & probably not paying attention. I always felt a bit saddened that I would probably never have the opportunity to see you in concert. Life went on, time went by & we fast forward to the present.....

     Married 24 years, 5 children later, 4 of which are now young adults & 30 years after "Frampton Comes Alive" was released, my wife & I found ourselves entering what I dubbed our "second childhood". Personally, I never left my first childhood. The priest that reaffirmed our 10 year marriage vows in 1993 told my wife that the only difference between men & boys is the length of their trousers. I begged to differ in that the only difference between men & boys is the price of their toys (guitars, amplifiers, recording equipment).

     As my wife was driving past the King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne, Florida in late 2005, she saw the Moody Blues being advertised on the billboard. Like me with reference to seeing you, she had thought she would never have the opportunity to see the Moody Blues in concert in her lifetime. Opportunity knocked and she bought two tickets. The last concert we attended was in 1990 to see Paul McCartney at Joe Robbie stadium in Miami, Florida.

     Opportunity knocked again only this time it was for me in September 2006 as I exited a Hess Gas station in Sebastian, Florida. I noticed "The Local Buzz" Treasure Coast Entertainment Magazine, September 2006 edition, with your picture & a caption that read "Coming to the Treasure Coast..."  Could it be? Was I dreaming? I grabbed a copy of the magazine & started reading. It was true. You would be performing in Fort Pierce, Florida, a stone's throw from where I live. I HAD TO BE THERE!

     Now the nightmare of long lines & "Sorry, we're all sold out" started to take hold. Not this time! On the day the tickets went on sale, I was hammering the WEB site to order tickets. There were problems with the new online system & my order would not go through. On the verge of frustration, I found the telephone number for the Sunrise Theater in Fort Pierce & placed a call. A very nice lady on the other end on the phone advised me that they were experiencing problems with the WEB site & reassured me that I would get good seating & the 5 tickets that I wanted. She took my order over the phone. It was a done deal & I would be there.

     On concert night my wife, my oldest son, my two youngest daughters & I headed south to the Sunrise Theater in Fort Pierce for your show. We parked in the back of the theater not 50 feet from your tour buses. Once inside the theater we sifted through the memorabilia & came away with tee shirts, coffee mugs, key chains, the Detroit Concert DVD & an autographed "Fingerprints" lithograph which is proudly displayed to the left. We took our seats & waited for the show to begin.

     From the moment you took the stage, you made it a night to remember. Your personable appeal, wit, charm, casual interaction with the audience (" I've already lost control of the crowd") and the autographs you gave out was only exceeded by your incredible display of how someone truly masters the guitar. You were awesome! If you missed a lick, I didn't catch it & I have a very discerning ear for music.  Like fine wine, with time you have perfected the gift given to you from Heaven above. Your eagerness to share your talent & ability with those of us that love your music goes beyond words. It simply has to be experienced. YOU HAD TO BE THERE! I have looked at your tour schedules & they are nothing less than grueling. I'm sure it's nice to put some cash back for the day you plan to retire. However, I know from my own experience of being in bands that it's not all about the money.  Trying to explain that to someone that has never been gifted musically or performed in a band in front of an audience is not possible.

     Continuing with our Frampton Experience; throughout the evening as you performed each song I observed my young adult children to see their reaction to your performance. At first, their reaction seemed luke warm. I began to sense a genuine "generation gap" & I suppose rightfully so. They stood and applauded but that enthusiasm of seeing you perform live before us was lacking. That abruptly changed when you performed "Baby I Love Your Way". My oldest son, who was seated to my left, leaned over & asked me: "Does he do this song"? I thought to myself what a "silly" question. Well, "silly" wasn't the first word that came to my mind but I'm trying to be nice here. So I answered him: "Yes he does this song  He's playing it right now". So my son leans over again and says: "No, I mean does he do this song"? So I answered him with a question. I said: "Do you mean did he write this song?" & my son said: "Yes, that's what I mean". I told him: "Yes, Peter Frampton wrote this song". He immediately took out his cell phone & telephoned his girl friend so she could hear the song as well. It was my son's defining moment and from that point on he couldn't keep his arse in his seat. My daughters' reactions were similar. From then on, you were "The PAN" & "Frampton Came Alive" for a new generation. When I left the theater after your performance that night, I felt really good & fulfilled in knowing that I was given the opportunity to see you in concert. You've reinvigorated my desire to seriously play music again. The guitar (my "Eleanor") is out of its case and back in my hands where it belongs. Thank you for reminding me of what I have been missing!

     I would be remiss if I didn't mention the incredibly talented musical entourage that you have surrounded yourself with. John Regan has been with you virtually a lifetime. Good bass players are hard to find. Incredible bass players...well, you have him.

      On a sadder note, I want to express my deepest condolences on the passing of your long time, close personal friend Bob Mayo in 2004. With Bob's passing, we have all lost a talented, professional and outstanding musician. He is missed.

Bob Mayo Memorial at www.peterframpton.com    

In Memory of Bob Mayo - Professional Touring & Session Musician

     As I wind down and try to bring this to a close, being afforded the opportunity to see you once in my lifetime was a dream come true. I never would have imagined that you would be back in Florida so soon, if at all, and performing at a location that is about the same distance north of where I live as your concert last October 23, 2006. This time it will be just my wife & me that will be coming to see you. It's not that I don't want to bring the "kiddies". I just don't think I could bear having someone ask me again during your performance of "Baby I Love Your Way", "Does he do this song?"  ;-)

     FOR NOW, I hope you find some time to have a DAY IN THE SUN when you come to perform in Melbourne, Florida. MOST OF ALL, I wanted to thank you for continuing to perform. I had to HANG ON TO A DREAM in hopes of ever seeing YOU in concert. It was an incredible experience and they CAN'T TAKE THAT AWAY from me. I would be LYING if I didn't add that you have influenced me musically in MORE WAYS THAN ONE. It just took seeing you in concert to SHOW ME THE WAY back to my own musical talents and ambitions. Even though the LINES ON MY FACE are beginning to reflect the years catching up, on the inside where it all counts, when I reflect on DO YOU FEEL LIKE WE DO my answer is you bet I do!

May God Bless and Keep on Rockin'

Sincerely,

Richard

Looking forward to seeing you in concert again on May 31st in Melbourne. Welcome back to Florida!