Oh, if only we had a penny for every time we’ve heard that expression, we’d have more cents than most people give us credit for. After all, spending every single day collecting tour dates for bands like Ratdog and artists such as India.Arie and Keller Williams must seem like the vocation from which one would never want a vacation, and ranks right up there with disc jockey and record company intern as the best employment opportunity on the planet.

But there’s a downside to all the fame and glory that has dogged our steps since we first opened this Website back in 1931. In fact, Sheryl Crow mentions it whenever she’s in town, and both Creed and Yes have jokingly threatened to write songs about it. We’ve hashed it out in late night bull sessions with Elton John, and we’ve spent many a day fretting its consequences with the (International Noise Conspiracy, Elvis Costello and Neil Diamond.

“It must drive you crazy,” said Lisa Loeb when she stopped by to tell us about the string of dates she’s doing with the Goo Goo Dolls. “It must seem more like a blessing than a curse,” teases Kelly Clarkson whenever she emails us from the road. And Bob Dylan? Well, Bob just cocks an eyebrow whenever his boot heels bring him to our door and says, “Ehhhh…”

We just grin and bear it. “It comes with the territory,” is what we told Jewel when she stopped by for lunch earlier this past week. “Just part of our jobs,” we mumbled to Bruce Springsteen when he took us out for a brewski the other night. But no matter how many times we joke about it to Tom Petty or try to downplay its significance whenever we play golf with Steven Curtis Chapman or Bon Jovi, it’s hard to hide our true feelings. Especially when we’re chatting with Point Of Grace, Dave Matthews Band or the David Grisman Quintet.

It’s not the danger. At least that’s what we told Aerosmith when Steven called to ask us how many backstage passes we needed for next month’s L.A. show. And it’s not the violence. At least, that’s what we told Justin when we were swapping booking agent stories with The Moody Blues over an afternoon cup of tea. But when the day is done, and there are no more dates to process for The Blasters, Three Mo Tenors and Will Hoge, we hang up our pants one leg and a time and try to ignore that one factor, that one oblique feature that otherwise keeps this job from being the laugh-a-minute, the icing-on-the-cake and the Everclear in our morning O.J all rolled into one.

For if the truth be told, regardless of how much money we make and how many Jaguars we buy, there’s one aspect of collecting dates for artists such as Morrissey or Paul McCartney, that we can no longer ignore.

There’s just too much damn name-dropping in this business.