Right: The cuff links madame Marcos gave me for my birthday.
It’s All About the Shoes
In June 2009, we were in Manila on a night off. We were playing the Araneta Coliseum the following night. We were not strangers to the Philippines, as we had played there at least 20 times during our career. They are loyal and romantic people. Our promoter Danee had arranged a dinner with none other than Madame Imelda Marcos. It was also my birthday, so as per usual on the road, we’d all get together for a nice dinner.
This was even more special, as we were going to meet Madame Marcos. We met before dinner, and Madame Marcos was extremely charming. It became obvious very quickly that we were going to have a great evening. As it was my birthday, I sat across from Madame M. She gave me a pair of cuff links and her book, both for which I am extremely grateful.
At dinner, it was a typical night out with a dozen or so people --- lots of laughter and great company. It was when Madame Marcos began talking casually about people who have had a great impact on the world, such as President Nixon, President Clinton, Chairman Mao and even her late husband Ferdinand Marcos, that I realized something quite interesting (to me at least).
It occurred to me that music brought everyone there that night --- musicians, engineers, politicians --- and that’s very powerful. It suddenly felt good to be a part of that ecosystem. Near the end of the evening, the final question had to be asked. I just heard one of my guys say, “So tell us about the shoes.” After a pregnant pause, everyone burst into laughter. Then Madame Marcos told us the real story behind all the shoes. It was a lovely birthday.!
中文译文：
2009年6月，我们在马尼拉度过一个晚上。第二天晚上，我们在Araneta 体育馆演出。对于菲律宾来说，我们完全不陌生。因为在整个职业生涯，至少在这里做过20场演出。歌迷们都非常忠诚，非常浪漫。我们的演出经纪Danee ，为我们安排了和Imelda Marcos 夫人（不是别人，就是第一夫人）的晚餐。而且那晚还是我的生日，所以按惯例，我们大家聚在一起，共进晚餐。
这个机会尤为特别，因为我们就要见到Marcos夫人。晚餐前，Marcos夫人接见了我们，她真的特别迷人。很快我就意识到，这将是多么棒的夜晚。由于这是我的生日，我还坐在夫人的对面，她还送了我一对袖扣和她的书作为生日礼物，我非常感激。
这是个典型的晚餐交际时间。我们十几个人共进晚餐，欢声笑语济济一堂。我们听Marcos夫人谈论那些伟人，诸如尼克松总统，克林顿总统，毛主席甚至她的亡夫Ferdinand Marcos，这让我觉得非常有意思。（至少我是这样觉得的。）
我突然意识到，是音乐让我们在那晚融为一体。不论是音乐家，工程师，还是政客，音乐的力量异常强大。能够成为这里的一员让我感觉非常好。在晚餐接近尾声，我觉得得提那最后一个问题了。我刚刚正好听到我们的人问：“告诉我们一些关于那些鞋的事儿吧。”接着，出现了短暂的意味深长的停顿，每个人都大笑起来。接着Marcos夫人才告诉我们鞋子背后真正的故事。那真是个棒极了的生日夜。
注释：菲律宾第一夫人Imelda Marcos曾经说过一句话：“I did not have three thousand pairs of shoes, I had one thousand and sixty.” 我没有三千双鞋子，事实上只有1060双而已。 她还建有有一个鞋子博物馆。所以这是个为鞋痴狂的传奇女人。
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