Leg 2 of the Jon Anderson & The Band Geeks Yes Epics, Classics and More tour literally got off to a thunderous start last week. But before I tell you about the thunderous part, let me tell you about the aggravation my crew guys encountered getting our truck out to Phoenix.
FRIDAY, June 19, 2026
We reserved a 16-foot box truck rental from Ryder at a location in Linden, N.J. Rental trucks are hit and miss, so we reserved the same exact truck we had for Leg 1 because it was “a good one.” The plan was for my crew to pick up the truck at 7:00 a.m. (in New Jersey), load the truck with backline and audio gear (Staten Island), trek to Long Island to pick up our merch, then start the drive four days prior to the first show.
7:00 A.M.
One of my crew, John, arrives at Ryder, and guess what? No truck. The one we reserved was supposed to be returned first thing this morning but is now not expected until 1:00 p.m. Clearly, that’s not going to work.
Jerry Seinfeld: “That’s why you have the reservations.”
Rental agent: “I know why we have the reservations.”
Seinfeld: “I don’t think you do. If you did, I’d have a car” (or truck).
Making their best effort to rectify the situation, the folks at Ryder source another truck from a different location and have it sent to Linden. Elapsed time: 2 hours.
9:15 A.M.
The truck heads for Staten Island. Unfortunately, it’s Friday on a double-holiday weekend. By the time my crew drives way out east to collect our merch, it’s around 4:30 p.m. When they get out of town and start to drive the truck at highway speeds (which were not attainable along the brutal stop-and-go route from S.I. to L.I.), they discover that the whole thing shakes—including the steering wheel. Fabulous. There’s a reason that the Elizabeth location willingly sent this truck to us in Linden: They wanted to get rid of it.
Alas, Ryder locations are closed for the weekend, but we’re able to make plans to swap out the truck for another one in Albuquerque, N.M., on Monday, June 22.
SUNDAY, June 21, 2026
We have hotel rooms planned strategically along the drive from New York to Phoenix, one of which is in Tucumcari, N.M., for Sunday night. The folks at this hotel have our reservations but insist that they don’t have a credit card authorization to pay for the rooms (of course, they do). It’s Father’s Day and I must now harass our travel agent, St. Roy. I call him to find out if I should lay down a CC for authorization, but he’s already done so and will handle it. A few phone calls later, the crew rooms are sussed out.
Meanwhile back in New York, the band and part of the crew are getting ready to fly to PHX the following day. I’ve just returned from a hellacious weekend with Blue Öyster Cult; my clothes are going from the dryer into my suitcase.
MONDAY, June 22, 2026
My crew cross-loads our gear from one truck to another and continues the drive to Phoenix.
Remember when I said that Leg 2 was off to a thunderous start? I wasn’t kidding. We’ve got four people flying from JFK to PHX, and four more flying from Newark (EWR) to PHX, all arriving around 8:00 p.m. Bad weather is moving into the NY/NJ area, complete with flood watch and thunderstorm warnings.
At 11:00 a.m. we’re notified that the JFK flight is delayed from 5:15 p.m. to 6:25 p.m. A few minutes later, we learn that the flight from Newark is also delayed by roughly the same amount of time. No biggie. We’ll meet at PHX around 9:00 p.m.
Yeah right.
At 11:47 a.m. the flight from EWR is delayed another half hour, now departing at 6:30 p.m, which stinks but still is not so bad. Regardless, I’m getting nervous because I have seen this movie a hundred times and I know how it ends: As the day wears on, afternoon thunderstorms become more likely, flights stack up and delays increase. That’s one of the reasons we typically fly home early the day after a show, even when we can catch a later flight. Get worse it does: At 5:00 p.m. the Newark flight is delayed again until 9:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, at JFK it’s pouring and I’m on the lookout, fully aware that if there’s lightning, runways will probably be shut down. The JFK flight boards and I hold my breath, knowing that we could be sent back to the gate at any moment. I breathe a sigh of relief as our plane groans off the ground, and I fall asleep for a while.
The fate of the Newarkers is not so fortunate. At 8:41 p.m. they’re delayed until 1:00 a.m. the following day, and then at 10:00 p.m. American cancels their flight and puts them on a late flight the following day—which will arrive well after our show at the Celebrity Theatre will have started. No bueno.
St. Roy works his magic and books the Newarkers on a 6:30 a.m. United flight, which will arrive at PHX at 8:42 a.m. on show day. It stinks, but at least there will be a show.
9:30 P.M.
Those of us on the JFK flight land in PHX and head for Budget rental car. And what do you think we learn when we get there? No car, but they’ll have one “shortly,” which turns into an hour. Where’s Jerry?
I decide to use the time productively and ask the rental agent about the reservations we’ve made for the cars to be picked up by the Newarkers tomorrow, explaining that they are delayed, blah, blah, blah… Rental car agent assures me that Budget holds reservations for a minimum of 24 hours past the original pickup time, and that their cars will indeed be available when they arrive in the morning. I’m still waiting for our car, so I get busy on my phone searching for rental cars from other vendors—but they’re all sold out. Thank you, World Cup.
11:30 P.M.
No rental car. I’m more than a little annoyed but doing my best not to go Brooklyn.
“What’s the problem?” I ask the agent.
“Well, we’re waiting for cars to be returned…”
Hold on a second… It’s 11:30 p.m. on a Monday night and I’m waiting for someone to return a rental car to PHX airport, so that it can be cleaned and rented to me? I won’t spew the filth that went through my mind but fortunately did not pass through my lips and into my recount of this story, lest my beloved editor Tom Kenny would scold me furiously for use of profanity.
11:50 P.M.
I look across the rental car plaza and see a Sixt rental car counter. I politely tell the agent “helping” me that I’ll be right back. I walk over to Sixt. They have vehicles available but will close in ten minutes. I scoot back to the Budget counter and politely tell the agent thanks, but no thanks. In five minutes, the guy at Sixt has us out the door.
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TUESDAY, June 23, 12:40 A.M (first show day)
We arrive at our hotel. I explain to the folks at the front desk that we have four more people delayed, now arriving tomorrow morning, and I’d like to make sure that they can get their keys quickly so they can get a nap before soundcheck. They’re already checked in and can pick up their keys on arrival (which actually does happen).
8:42 A.M.
I get a text that the Newarkers are on the ground. Thank you, God. They go to Budget to pick up their rental cars, and the agent tells them he won’t give them the vehicles because now the rentals would be for only one day instead of two (returning June 24). I won’t repeat the profanity that spewed for fear that my intrepid editor would surely wash my mouth with dish soap. They get taxis to the hotel and get into their rooms.
WEDNESDAY, June 24, 1:15 AM
I’m happy to say that the first show went reasonably well. The Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix is a tough room to mix because it’s in the round with a rotating stage. Yuk. The Audio Gods had mercy on me; the venue only sold three-quarters (no seating behind the stage) and did not do the rotating stage for this show. And I’m happy to say that Celebrity has finally replaced their old mixing desk with a brand-spankin’ new DiGiCo Quantum 338, which is a beast and a pleasure to run.
Soundchecks can be difficult at the Celebrity because there’s a concrete ceiling that’s (obviously) very reflective, resulting in a lot of bounce between ceiling and floor. When the audience fills the room, these HF reflections are tamed quite a bit, but there’s still a lot of energy between 3 kHz and 6 kHz. Stage volume is not your friend here, but if the band can keep the volume levels on stage to a minimum, you’ll be okay.
2:00 P.M.
But wait, there’s more!!! Today we all traveled to Anaheim for the second show tomorrow at the Grove. No airline drama, but guess what happened when Jon’s assistant went to pick up his rental car…
Where’s Jerry Seinfeld when you need him?
