An American Songline

Journeys in Vintage Music with Cecelia Otto

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The Tour is Officially Complete, Plus I Have a Special Announcement!

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I am pleased to announce that as of September 1st, my historic American Songline tour along the Lincoln Highway is officially complete! In almost six months of touring, I performed 30 shows (plus some impromptu ones) in various venues along the Lincoln Highway. My car is full of things collected along the highway, and my mind is overflowing with so many memories of this time on the road. The next steps of writing the book and music for the album are starting to take form, so watch this blog for more posts and announcements this year!

A few people have asked me how I feel about reaching this accomplishment, and I have to admit it’s pretty bittersweet. While I’m relieved that I get to see my husband and cat again (I’ve missed them both so much) as well also being relieved that I don’t have to juggle so many balls in the air anymore, I also will miss being on the road. There’s been so many amazing people and places I’ve seen, I wish I could take it all with me.

I mentioned in Social Media posts over the weekend that I had a special announcement for all of the folks who attended the Livermore, California concert on Saturday. Now I’m sharing this announcement with all of you (see full text below after the picture):

SFO Proclamation

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Dated September 3rd, 2013 (Today, the first business day after the tour) from The City and County of San Francisco

Certificate of Honor Presented To Cecelia Otto

“Whereas, on behalf of the City and County of San Francisco, I am pleased to recognize and honor Cecelia Otto for her recent cross-country journey to commemorate the Lincoln Highway’s Centennial. When the Lincoln Highway was built in 1913, linking the east and west coasts, it served as a lifeline of commerce and culture in the communities through which it passed. Your musical journey along the Lincoln Highway, An American Songline, has brought this tradition back to life and brought joy to many across the country. Congratulations on the success of An American Songline and best of luck in all of your future endeavors!

Therefore, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the City and County of San Francisco to be affixed.

(Signature) Edwin M. Lee, Mayor”

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I have to admit, I was pretty surprised and floored by this document. While my behind-the-scenes PR man Dan reached out to them, we didn’t know if the Mayor’s office would actually issue the proclamation until literally the day before the concert. It honestly didn’t hit me that this tour was going to be over until the moment I had this paper in hand and was reading it out loud to myself. I still stare at it now, and can’t believe this all has happened.

The next stage of this project officially starts now, and I want to thank all of you who have been along for the ride. I’m looking forward to sharing my stories of the road in song and in words, and I hope to see you all again very soon!

Writer’s Block or Writer’s Overload?

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Greetings from my last day in Reno, Nevada, and the final Monday of this tour! Yup, that’s right folks, my singing travelogue will officially (and unofficially-more on that later) be done on Labor Day weekend. I’m pretty much in shock that I’m a stone’s throw away from California right now.

It’s been a wonderful but crazy last few weeks of touring, and I know I’m couple states behind right now. You’re probably wondering what’s happening. Did she get lost or have no internet access? (Both were true.) Did she have computer problems? (Yes.) Did she just give up on writing? (Heck NO!)

Here’s why: I have writer’s block. Knock down drag out writer’s block, but not for the reasons you think. I’m currently working on the state of Wyoming (I had three performances there in early August), and the truth is that I’m not “blocked”, I’m actually on “overload”. I have SO much to say about my time in Wyoming, It’s extremely difficult to decide what’s best for the blog, what’s best for the book, and what’s best to talk to me about over a beer.

As this tour is coming to a close, I’ve felt some of the sensory overload start to melt away so that I can get something out to you all soon. Expect blog posts on all of the remaining states along the route that I haven’t written about yet, they just might come after I’m off the road.

Thanks you again for being along for the ride, it means a lot to me. Know that no matter what happens, I’m excited for the final performance in Livermore, (and maybe even an informal/”unofficial” performance in a surprise place, watch the calendar) as well as I’m also excited for what will happen post-tour for this project. This is all just the beginning!