European Promo Tour 2010

Wednesday, May 5th

So, I'm relaxing and having a pint at the Goat's Tavern, a traditional English pub in Kensington, having just arrived in London a few hours ago, and I thought maybe I would share a few thoughts about this European promo tour the band is currently on. You see, outside of recording much of our most recent CD right here in Kensington exactly one year ago, we haven't been to Europe since the My Private Nation tour in 2004. The UK and most of Europe knows the band Train for only two songs really - Drops of Jupiter and Hey, Soul Sister. Meet Virginia received very little radio airplay here, and Calling All Angels wasn't the big hit song over here that it was in the States. Cab did nothing at all in Europe. On past tours when we've played those songs in concert here, you can see the faces light up with faint recognition, much like the young kids in America who are just discovering the band through the success of Hey Soul Sister..."Hey, I've heard this song before! That's these guys?!" We see it every night on tour in America, so performing in Europe won't be that much different. What will be different is that this first visit to the UK and Europe is more of a re-acquaintance trip. "Hey everybody, remember us...the Drops of Jupiter guys who are back with another smash hit after all these years?" Unlike America (and Australia really) where we have a fan base that has welcomed us back with open arms, we never really developed a fan base in Europe. And that's why we're here. We need to take advantage of the worldwide success we are once again experiencing thanks to Hey Soul Sister, and do the hard work that it will take to tie the 16-year history of Train together for the rest of the world, so we can keep coming back to these places for many years to come. But that won't be easy for us, given the success we've been experiencing on our most recent tours in the U.S. and Canada. We've gotten kind of used to the sold-out theater shows and festivals we've been playing for the past six months. I mean, we're opening for Bon Jovi at the New Meadowlands Stadium in front of 100,000 people only a few days after we return from Europe! Well, that's then and this is now. And the reality of what's now is that for the next few weeks we will be visiting radio stations and doing lots and lots of interviews all day every day, while playing small 500 seat clubs at night. Then we will travel, by tour bus mostly, to the next city/country, wake up and do it all over again. It'll be fun, if not a little humbling. Then we'll come back in the fall and hopefully move into the larger theaters and do a little less promotion and a lot more dates in many more cities and countries. So, I'm going to finish my pint, and maybe have one more with the guys who just walked in. Then I'm going to get a good nights rest, because tomorrow morning it's time to roll up the sleeves and go to work. The Train is here, Europe, and we're here to stay!
Peace,
Jimmy

Train update

Friday, April 10th


Hey everybody! It's been quite awhile since I've written, and for those of you who have followed my blogging through the years, I'm sure you've already noticed that I am now capitalizing letters that are supposed to be capitalized. Yep. Get used to it. And it only took me fifteen years to learn that the "shift" button wasn't for my ass! Anyhow, I thought I'd check in and give you an update on what's going on in Trainland...and there is plenty going on.

First of all, there is a new manager in town, so some things are gonna change around here (insert vision of Clint Eastwood blowing on his smoking barrel. Ok, stop - I know what you're thinking, and just stop it right now. Clint is the MAN!) It's a company called Crush - based in New York - who also manage Fall Out Boy, Panic at the Disco, and some other cooler-than-us bands (NOOOO...Jimmaayyy! They are NOT cooler! We LOVE Train!) And no, i can't get you Fall Out Boy tickets. I have to save those favors for my eight-year-old-going-on-fifteen-year-old daughter.

SO...one of the first things our new managers will be working on is giving our poor, neglected website a major facelift. They will also be overhauling our myspace and facebook pages, so start checking those sites more regularly, as new stuff will be popping up soon (including tour dates!). I will also start blogging much more now that things are picking up and getting exciting once again. The other thing they've been working very hard on (oh no he didn't!) is getting our new CD together and ready to record. The songs have all been written, and the demos sound really, really great - dare I say "amazing?" Yes, I dare. I know we say this about every record, but this CD is going to be pretty frickin' awesome! We might be getting a little bit older (so are you, by the way), but we're getting much more handsome, the music is better than ever, and we really couldn't be any more excited about things. We're BACK!! Actually, it kinda feels like old times (the good old times - not the old times that sucked). Anyway, we begin recording this amazing new CD next week in London with producer Martin Terefe (Jason Mraz, James Morrison, KT Tunstall). Check out martinterefe.com to listen to some of his work and to read about the studio we'll be living in for most of the next month. Once we've rocked as much as we can possibly rock in London, we'll be heading to San Francisco to finish the record, which should be mixed and ready for release in September. Of course there will be a big fat world tour to follow (most of which will probably take place next year, but there might be some dates later this year, too), so keep checking our soon-to-be newly refurbished website, myspace, and facebook pages for the info. I do know that we have a few summer shows booked already, including June 5th in Memphis, June 6th in Chattanooga, and September 6th in Naperville, Illinois.

That's it for now. There's actually much, much more, but I don't want to overload you with too much information on my first day back in the office. Besides, I'll need something to talk about the next time I decide to write. Until then...

Peace, love, and understanding.
Jimmy

VOTE!

hello friends. just a quick note to let you know that Train has finally begun recording our fifth studio CD with producer Howard Benson (Daughtry, the All-American Rejects, My Chemical Romance, Gavin Degraw, Hoobastank) in Los Angeles. we've been in LA for about a week working on the first batch of songs, and all is going very well so far. the songs sound great and it feels really good to be back in the studio with the guys. we plan to record this CD in three phases, this being the first, to allow ourselves plenty of time for quality songwriting. the CD probably won't be finished and in stores until next spring, but will be worth the wait. a tour will follow. anyway, that's band news. oh...congratulations to Brendan O'Brien, producer of our last three CD's, for his work with AC/DC on their latest CD and for selling over 800,000 copies in their first week and debuting at 1 on the charts in 29 countries! impressive. why can't we do that?! oh yeah...they're AC/DC.

on another note: there is only one more week left for everyone to head to the polls and vote for the change that this country so badly needs. it's time for the republicans to take some time off, argue amongst themselves, and let the democrats take the helm and clean up the mess that George Bush has left for us. do not take this election for granted! just because the republican party is in shambles right now, fighting amongst themselves and not even supporting their own candidates who aren't even supporting each other, while Barack Obama continues to pull further and further ahead in the polls, doesn't mean that you don't have to vote! remember, we wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for the election that the Bush family and the republican party flat-out stole in 2000. we CAN not and WILL not let that happen again!! so, don't wait until tuesday - vote today. let's make this a landslide election and show the world that we are serious about bringing change to this country and restoring our good standing in the world. let's make history and take to the streets in celebration on tuesday night!

talk to you soon. go Bears!
jimmy

WAKE UP PEOPLE!

John McCain is a chickenshit. he is using the current situation with our economy to try and delay the debate friday night, because the economy is something he has admitted he knows very little about and he knows that Barack Obama will mop the floor with him. today he is in washington trying to appear like a leader while the financial security committee is meeting behind closed doors to discuss the current situation. John McCain and his staff aren't even allowed in the meeting because they are not members of the committee! he is in washington, because he feels comfortable there. he is using this dire situation to put himself in the spotlight while hiding from Obama - a republican deer caught in the headlights of a democratic bio-diesel vehicle that doesn't run on oil, because Obama and his staff don't cater to the big oil company lobbyists, unlike John McCain and his entire staff, most of whom are current or former lobbyists.

and what's going on with Sarah Palin?! John McCain is not allowing reporters to speak to her because she has absolutely no experience and they're afraid she'll say something stupid! it's actually a smart move on their part, but do we actually want this woman as our president once John McCain kicks the bucket? i certainly don't. she is no different than him (except she has none of his experience). she is a hypocrit, who has already misspoken (lied) about a number of things and is currently under investigation by her own state. she is a puppet who says and does whatever she is told. she is nothing but a trophy VP candidate who looks good and praises Hillary up and down to try and round up those misguided voters, but she knows very little about what she speaks about (which is why the puppetmaster doesn't allow her to speak much). whatever it takes to win the white house, right? we're not stupid! the woman hasn't even been out of the country! well, Mexico, for a vacation once. i've been there. elect me! choosing Sarah Palin as his running mate was a clear and obvious attempt at trying to wrangle up the Hillary voters who are still pissed off and whining because their candidate wasn't elected as the democratic nominee. even though i wasn't a fan of the negative campaign Hillary ran, i still think she has great ideas and would have made a great president. don't be fooled - Sarah Palin is no Hillary Clinton! McCain is grasping at straws and avoiding the truths. sound familiar? ugh. it is still beyond me how George Bush got re-elected to a second term. granted, John Kerry was not the best candidate for a democratic nominee, but still...are we idiots in this country? am i the only one who notices that when the republicans are in office (except for a few good Reagan years) everything gets fucked up?! it's true! John McCain is a republican. he votes along with George Bush and the rest of the republican party. republicans are responsible for the economic disaster we are currently experiencing. republicans are responsible for the war in iraq and the billions and billions of dollars spent there. republicans are responsible for this country being in the deepest debt in our history (which could get even deeper if this 700 billion dollar bailout plan passes). John McCain is pretending to be a new kind of republican, blatantly and unashamedly stealing Obama's message of change. i guarantee you that if McCain gets elected, there will be no change. he will carry on exactly as the republicans have always carried on, catering to the big oil and insurance companies, and the wealthy - completely ignoring the middle class, the environment, and the needs of the common american. can we really afford more of this? i don't know about you, but i can't! i own a house, just like you. my house is no longer worth what it was when i bought it. neither is yours, i'm assuming. i have a 401k retirement plan, just like many of you. my plan has depreciated almost a third this year. i'm sick of this shit!

i'm sorry for ranting, but i just can't take it anymore! i needed to vent. and i realize that there are Train fans out there who are republicans, but hey, we all have our opinions and the right to speak, right? you can rant on your own page if you'd like. and if you decide not to buy my records or come to my concerts because of my opinions then so be it. this election is too important. much more important than my selling selling records or concert tickets. hell, if the republicans stay in office we're all going to be broke anyway! none of you will be able to afford to buy my records or come to my concerts! so, wake up people! it's time to take this country back and fix this mess. Barack Obama is the man for the job. he has great ideas and morals and a democratic congress to help him get things done. he is the only wise choice we have, and in my opinion, a damn good one. did you see the conventions a few weeks ago? did you notice the people in the crowds? the democratic convention was a mix of all races, genders, and ages - america - a celebration almost. very inspiring. the republican convention, on the other hand, was a bunch of stuffy, wealthy, white men in suits. it looked like a friggin' NRA rally! and does it matter that every other country in the world wants Obama to be our president? it does to me! i travel the world, and i must tell you, americans are not looked at in good standing these days, and it's mostly because of the current republican administration and their mishandling of the country and their ignoring of the issues that matter most to the rest of the world. John McCain doesn't want to talk to our enemies. he would rather fight them (remember his rendition of "Bomb, bomb, bomb - bomb bomb iran?"). he has stated that he won't even talk to the president of Spain! the man is nuts! electing him president will only continue to alienate america from the rest of the world. i love this country. we are NOT the evil empire that some countries think we are. electing Barack Obama will show the world that america cares, not only about ourselves, but about the world community. it will show that we are a country of compassionate, level-headed human beings who have the courage to admit when we've made a mistake. George Bush was a mistake, people. we need to participate in the world again and become leaders by example, not alienate and continue to be the bullies that we are perceived to be. continuing down that road will only create more enemies and alienate us even more, which can only lead to bad things. it is time to come together, as a country and as a world. and just because you're a republican doesn't mean that you have to vote republican. vote for what is right! not everyone will agree with my opinion of what is right, but in my mind, there is a very clear wrong and right choice here. i urge you all to make the right choice. i know most of my republican friends have a very difficult time thinking beyond party lines, but c'mon, can you seriously want more years of the same bullshit we have dealt with for the past eight years, because that's exactly what you will get! republican voters elected a president who caused this mess and caused the world to have the lowest opinion of this country in the history of the United States. let's get it right this time. let's fix this mess. let's elect Barack Obama president!

thanks for listening. i feel better now.
your friend,
jimmy

The Doors of Perception

hello everyone. sorry i haven't written in awhile. i've been busy getting back in band mode with Train. it took a few months to get my head out of book writing mode and back into the music, but rest assured, i am back - full strength! my first novel is all but finished, however i have no plans of publishing it until next year after the Train CD is released. right now i need to give the band my full attention, so we can focus on writing and recording a great CD. and that is really all i have been up to lately - writing music. i've been writing at home on my own, sending demos to Pat, i've been writing with Brandon, i wrote with Scott and Charlie a few weeks ago in Malibu. it was great to see Charlie and to play music with him again. it's been years! we plan to write together again in a few weeks, but don't get any crazy ideas - the one and only Johnny Colt will still be holding down the bass for Train. i wouldn't be surprised to see Charlie's name turn up in the writing credits on the next album, though. we'll see. Scott, Pat, and I will also spend some time writing together over the next few weeks.

speaking of Train songs, have you all heard David Nail's version of "I'm About to Come Alive?" he is a hot, new, up-and-coming country star who chose to record our song (from the "My Private Nation" CD) as his first single. it will also be the name of his debut CD, which comes out sometime this month. anyway, he did an incredible job with the song, and the video looks great, too! he's already tearing up the charts with it, and we wish him the best of luck with hopes that he becomes a big huge country western star and has to play our song every night on tour for the rest of his life! yeehaw!

so, Johnny Colt has been filming a reality TV show with Tommy Lee and Ludacris, which i think will air sometime this summer. the final episode is going to feature a concert with several bands that is being filmed at the Greek Theater in LA Wednesday, the 28th. some of the performers include Tommy Lee, Ludacris, ZZ Top, Switchfoot, Velvet Revolver (I thought they broke up?) and Train! each band will only get to perform three or four songs. one of the songs we will be performing is a cover of the Doors "Love Her Madly," which is one of my personal favorites of theirs. performing the song with us will be none other than original Doors guitarist, Robbie Krieger! he will also sit in with us on "Calling All Angels." i am a big Doors fan, and was fortunate to meet Robbie once before when we recorded "Light My Fire," a song that he wrote, for a Doors tribute album a few years back. playing onstage with him will be incredibly special for me, rivaling the time i got to jam on a VH1 program with another idol of mine, Alice Cooper (Meat Loaf and Ginger Spice were also a part of that jam). i can't wait! this will be the first time Train has performed together as a band in almost a year. it feels really great to be back with the guys and gearing up for another CD and a tour, which probably won't happen until early 09.

what else...oh, how about those Cubbies?!!! talk to you soon. i promise.

jimmy

Happy New Year!

Hi everybody. i haven't written in awhile, so i thought i'd drop you a line and let you know what i've been up to. writing. that's pretty much it! of course, there was the distraction of the holidays, but for the most part, i have been working on books. i say book(s), plural, as i have finished my first novel, which is currently in the editing stages, and have begun my second. my goal is to have The Guitar on the Wall published sometime this year. the new book i am writing is also a novel titled, Killing Doctor Robbins. i would call it a dark dramatic comedy with a scary twist. i'm very excited about the story and am enjoying writing every chance i get. my favorite music to listen to while writing these days is the new Radiohead, and Tony Bennett. i know, quite the contrast, but it's working for me. in my six cd changer in my living room where i write mostly, i have the one Radiohead cd (which is incredible, by the way) and five TB cds.

anyway, i spent the holidays in las vegas with my daughter, who is seven now. we had a very nice christmas and all, but are even more excited to be going to the Hannah Montana concert in a few weeks! Aly & AJ are opening. we like them, too. my daughter isn't really into the Radiohead and Tony Bennett like i am...yet. she is becoming quite the little piano player, though. she's been taking lessons and really enjoys it.

so, i am meeting with the four other members of Train next week in las vegas, which should be interesting. the five of us haven't been together in quite a long time. we're planning to hang out for a few hours and talk about what everybody has been up to and discuss plans for the future. of course, we'll let you know if anything exciting develops from the meeting. who knows, we'll probably just end up hanging out naked in my hot tub and drinking fruit punch until the wee hours. it'll be good to see everyone again.

that's about all for now. i need to get back to writing. i put in somewhere between six and ten hours a day, depending on whether or not my daughter is with me, as she is today. we might take the day off and go for a hike up at Red Rock Canyon, depending on the weather. if you're planning to visit las vegas anytime soon, it's pretty friggin' chilly here! being from the midwest, i'm actually enjoying the cold weather. it's not like i have to shovel snow or anything, but it is cold!

i'll try and keep in touch more often this year. maybe. i've been somewhat of a recluse lately, so we'll see. Happy new year to you all, and thanks for all the comments and well wishes you've posted on my page! i do read all your letters and comments. i'm just not so good with the responses. i'll work on that, too. maybe. take care...

your friend,
jimmy

HERA

hey everyone. this is just a note to inform you that i have recently become involved in the fashion world and have launched a women's clothing line called HERA. the designer has done an amazing job (the line is mostly dresses and tops for now) and we're off to an incredible start. you can already find HERA garments in Neiman Marcus, Barney's, Saks online, and other high-end clothing stores and boutiques in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. check it out the next time you're out shopping. ask for HERA and if they don't have anything in stock yet, tell them they need to get on it! this really is a beautiful line of clothing, if i do say so myself. i'd love to hear your feedback when you see it and try something on for yourself. and please, if your local Neiman Marcus is out of stock (that's the number one store we're pushing right now, and we're selling like hotcakes!), let me know and i'll pass the info on to our sales people. thanks! have a great week...

jimmy