The most successful musicians have been traveling in the comforts of Class-A motorhomes for decades as they make their way to gigs, scattered across America.
A few days ago, I spoke with guitar player Jamie Johnson of the award-winning bluegrass band the Grascals as they were traveling to another venue in San Francisco aboard a new Prevost tour bus. Here's how it went:
RV magazine: Is this your first tour bus?
Jamie: We’ve leased buses in the past, especially when we toured with Dolly Parton. This is a Prevost, our home on wheels and we really depend on it to get everywhere we go. Thanks to Mobil Delvac for helping make this happen.
RV: What’s life been like this year?
Jamie: We will do about 120 to 130 shows this year and maybe 30 appearances on the Grand Ole Opry. You’ve got to like each other to be on a bus for that amount of time. We all get along great.
RV: You recorded a very inspirational song with Vince Gill called The Sad Wind Sighs. Was it about life on the road?
Jamie: That song was written by Aubrey Holt…a genius of this business and he doesn’t get much of the credit. We had Vince Gill sing with us on it. It’s a song about life on the road, a fun, energetic song to sing. We get a lot of inspiration when we travel. But when you write a song about the people you meet or places you’ve been to, you really have to feel it in your heart.
RV: What kinds of things to you do on the Prevost to keep entertained?
Jamie: What’s nice about the tour bus is we keep ourselves entertained, it’s got everything, plus some more, like satellite TV’s everywhere, a VIP lounge area in the back, a special kitchen area and custom bunks for the band and crew. We watch a little TV, mostly reruns of the Andy Griffith show and westerns.
RV: What’s next for the Grascals?
Jamie: We have a new album coming out in March, and then we go on tour with Hank Williams Jr. We’ve recorded two songs with Hank Jr. and we’re going to play his hits bluegrass style. We’re also doing a Christmas CD with Charlie Daniels and we are working with Tanya Tucker later this year.