"A Night To Be Memorialized" - My Autograph Success Story

[atlps190]

Long time lurker, first time poster…thanks in advance for your patience and indulgence.

 

I thought I would share my story with you guys….as you’re probably the only bunch of folks who can really appreciate what I experienced… and the final result.

 

First, a little background…I’ve been a devoted fan since I was in grade school, around 1980 (was introduced to Rush by my high-school age baby sitter), and have seen them on several tours throughout the years since then…maybe 15+ shows. I became a drummer / percussionist when I was young, and Neil has been my primary inspiration.

 

I currently live in Atlanta, and for this tour a friend of mine decided he was going to try for the Live Nation VIP “see what you get” tickets. I’m kind of a classically-trained pessimist, so I was reserving judgment.

 

The night of the show, I waited for him to arrive so we could pick up “the envelope,” and when we opened it, I couldn’t believe what I saw. Row BBB…holy $#@! But where? I felt like a little kid as we found the actual seats….and we’re in the second row in front of Geddy. I can’t believe I’m actually going to experience the show from this close. For all the previous shows I'd been to before, I had always been “way back.”

 

While it was kinda chilly (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater outdoor venue…early Fall cold snap), it was, without a doubt, the best [concert] experience I’ve ever had. It was a fabulous show, they sounded great, and I honestly feel like being so close made it incredibly intimate… feeling like they were doing their thing just for me. While I consciously know they had no idea who I was, I know I made eye contact with Geddy and Alex a few times (and they saw me with huge smiles), which was unbelievable.

 

During the first set, Neil broke / lost a stick and Alex picked it up and tossed it toward where I was, but it fell out of reach. Alex also threw a few picks, and again, while close, they unfortunately fell farther than I could reach.

 

The show flew by much too quickly. Standing for the whole show along with everybody else, I tried to “rock-out” as hard as I could to every song. However, Neil must have spotted a lady in the first row a few seats from me and, right after the show ended, I was right there when I saw her being presented with the evening’s “used lumber.” SO CLOSE….

 

After coming down from my euphoria, and a few minutes of watching the stage tear-down procedures get underway, I started to head for the exit. I crossed from Geddy’s side toward Alex’s side and saw that Alex’s guitar tech (at least I think it was Scott Appleton), was busy doing his thing. A guy walking next to me got his attention and asked if he had any “spare” picks. To my amazement, Scott actually handed a few to a small group of us. YEE HAW! Right place, right time…CRAZY!!!

 

I was still flying high for a few days after the show, and I went out to rushshowphotos.com to see what had been snapped. What do you know...I find myself in a photo!

 

http://www.rushshowp...96437&k=9p9Z8SP

 

I’m just above and to the right of Geddy’s confidence monitor…my head is peeking out from behind a guy in the first row looking directly at the camera…my arms are in the air with the grey sweatshirt.

 

I knew something had to be done to commemorate that evening. So I got to thinking about this forum and the thread(s) on getting stuff autographed.

 

I ordered a few of the photos, and received them a couple weeks later. Then, based on some of this group’s recommendations, I sent them to the AT&T Center in San Antonio.

 

I followed the suggested directions about addressing, packaging, envelopes, etc…and I even included three SILVER sharpies, as I was hoping they would use them to make the signatures “pop” on the photo paper. And I wrapped them in a handwritten note thanking them for a fantastic show.

 

Again, as a “glass half empty” kind of guy, I kept my expectations in check, but a few days after the San Antonio show, my self-addressed envelope showed up in my mailbox…with individually signed photos!

 

While unbelievably awesome, they used BLACK sharpies (most likely each of them used one pen for all the stuff they were signing that night)…but I’m NOT complaining at all. It looks like both Geddy and Neil “personalized,” but Alex did not.

 

http://tinypic.com/r/29mwsjk/6

 

http://tinypic.com/r/sql1k9/6

 

http://tinypic.com/r/2i1laps/6

 

 

And apologies for the bits of “reflection” in these camera phone pics…it’s the glass covering the shadowbox.

 

Many weeks later (like this past February), I finally received the Live Nation swag, and I thought about working with a professional framing person to make a truly awesome piece. Here is the result. I hope you guys think it’s as cool as I do.

 

http://tinypic.com/r/2uzf58o/6

 

http://tinypic.com/r/scfax5/6

 

Thanks for reading, and thanks to all of you “regulars” who provided advice and direction on how to make the autograph portion of my little project happen.

 

Most of all, thanks to the best damn band in the land!

Edited April 17, 2013 by atlps190

[atlps190]

Having trouble getting images to show...seems like I can only post links...sorry. Edited April 17, 2013 by atlps190

[mstmompj]

Lovely presentation—I'm sure they'll bring a smile to your face for years to come.

[Ancient Ways]

Congrats. It's nice to have a personalized memory like this

[Motorshooter]

Nice read and great for you!