The Day of Our Concert in Dio

Yesterday was the day of our concert in Dio. Earlier in the day, though, we drove down to Valrais to visit the Mediterranean. We strolled along the rows of shops and bistros down to the shore and took a walk out on the pier. The area reminded us of Gulf Shores, AL or Santa Monica, CA. touristy of course, but the beautiful blue of the sea and the French ambiance made it wonderful. It’s still early in the season, so it wasn’t too crowded. We ate the local specialty for lunch, moules. It’s local clams steamed with garlic and onions served with a side of fries. Oh yeah!

Our concert was outdoors in the center of Dio. They set up chairs in the recreation area across the street from the community building, and put up a refreshment bar. Helen, a delightful local musician, allowed us to use her small PA system. She only had one mic stand, so Antoine, a vintner who lives in the village, found a substitute. The weather was gorgeous.

We played a mixture of Ruth’s original songs and some popular chestnuts that we thought the French audience would like including in no particular order: All For Love’s Sake, One Day Ain’t Enough, Crazy, I Know Love, Mama Said, Country Roads, I Don’t Remember A Waltz, By The River, Daddy Dance, High As A Mountain, and more.

Ruth had learned a bit of French, so we did The City Of New Orleans with the addition of the French chorus that doesn’t seem to have anything to do with trains or New Orleans or the American landscape. The complete version in French by Canadian artist Roch Voisin was quite a big hit in France. She also had learned that the popular hit by the Everly Brothers, Let It Be Me, was originally a French song translated into English, so we did an arrangement that includes both sets of lyrics.

Our son, Noah, treated us and the audience with a solo guitar piece. He said he was nervous beforehand, but he played great, the crowd loved it, and we were very proud. Who wouldn’t be?

After the first set we made a brief presentation to the mayor: some small gifts and friendly greetings from the mayor of our home town, and our own heartfelt thanks for his invitation to return for this repeat performance.

When it began to get dark they turned on some bright lights. Our friend Paulette helped sell CDs during the break and after the show. After it was all done and cleaned up we adjourned to Bob’s house for a nightcap, conversation with our Dio friends, and eventually some much needed sleep.