Going on a summer holiday - Meetaxl, Episode 6

The holiday is over and I am now back in a cold and miserable Scotland. This is summer 2012, Glasgow style. But my spirits couldnt be higher.

That's because I get to write another update in my continuing mission to meet the man who fronts GnR.

And like the film, Field of Dreams, if I write it, Axl will come [to me in time]. Before I start on yet another beautifully lyrical tour de force of how I nearly met the cymbal player from Uriah Heep, I want to go back to my holiday.

As I lay there on the beach, I pondered my journey so far and how far I had come in such a short time. I also thought about how all those messages of good will and all the leads I had towards meeting the echelons of rock royalty would be waiting for me when I landed back in Scotland. Unfortunately, my inbox was not exactly burgeoning upon my return but that's neither here nor there.

So here I was lying on a sun lounger staring out at the Mediterranean. Who should I go for next? Obviously Thin Lizzy and Brian May would be my next targets but I had time on my hands to meet these guys. And meet them I will, just not yet. So who WOULD be next?

As I pondered all of the possibilities that lay before me, I stared up at the skies and asked for divine guidance. And someone up there talked to me. I WAS given a sign. Unfortunately, that sign was sponsored by the good people at the Magaluf Sol resort who had paid a local pilot to fly a crop duster to drag a banner across the Costa skyline advertising George Benson in late July. Was this really who He wanted me to talk to next? Maybe it was - after all rock is supposedly the devils music and not very cherubic. If God's jukebox had a favourites playlist, I am sure that Mr Rose would not exactly be nestled in amongst George Benson and Garth Brooks.

It became apparent that looking towards the skies wasn't going to give me the sign I needed. Maybe looking down was the way to go....and it so very nearly was. At my feet was a local newspaper announcing the coming gigs. And lo and behold GnR were coming to the area.

Now if this was a film, I would have read this 30 minutes before the concert was about to start, whilst chatting to Sandra Bullock no doubt. Unfortunately, this wasn't a film, the concert wasn't in 30 minutes time and the sun lounger guy was more Sandy Bollocks than Sandra Bullock. The concert was two weeks away which was great news until I realised that my flight home was nine days away.

Obviously God does read my column and this is His idea of a prank (or possibly getting His own back for me not doing a feature called #meetcliff). Either way, Mr Rose was going to escape my clutches one more time. So near, yet so far (who am I kidding - So far, so far at the moment).

So my short cut to the finish line was taken away as quickly as it had been found. Which brought me crashing back to earth - literally (I had fallen asleep on the sun lounger and rolled off in my slumber). Once again my thoughts turned back to who I would target before my next milestones. Should I go old or new? Young or Old? Classic or Indie? Mullet or Mullet?

My last article was the milestone of meeting Fish and for me it was a day up there with the best. A day I will remember for the rest of my - well until the morning after the night I go partying with Axl. In my mind, it had already been decided - before the quantum leap onto my next round of rockers, I wanted to get back in to the swing of things. I wanted to go back to what I knew and carry on directly from where I left off. And that meant talking to the rest of Marillion.

And that is where I leave this week's edition - with the knowledge that I have got an interview lined up with Ian Mosley from Marillion. In the next few weeks, I will be catching up with one of the most under rated drummers in music today. And if any of you #meetaxl fans want me to ask him a question, make sure to either tweet me with it @meetaxl or drop me an email at adamd@v2journal.com

Until next time, wrap up warm - we still have another two months of Scottish summer ahead.

Enjoyed it and the journey itself is pretty interesting. Kepp it up.

Wow, overriding the swear filter there mein Fuehrer! Well I'm glad you did because that line made me chuckle.