There’s nothing like enjoying a Friday with fresh tour dates, like the new routings for RX Bandits and Young Heart Attack, or the additional dates for Tony Trischka, Pierre Bensusan and Sam Roberts. Like water from a mountain spring, like a gasp of fresh air in Los Angeles, like a Kevlar vest in downtown Detroit, tour dates give one an extra breath, a second wind to continue on this twisted, crooked road that we call life.

Remarkable, isn’t it? That a few notations regarding date, city and venue can bring such joy to one’s existence. The feeling one gets when turning on the computer and seeing new listings for Riverboat Gamblers or Deep Purple often brings back those childhood memories of Christmas mornings, birthday parties and those very special weekends when Dad would drop by for his twice-monthly visitation rights. Yes, tour dates are like that.

But where would we be without tour dates? We shudder to think of such possibilities, for a world without a listing for The Immortal Lee County Killers or Deathray Davies would be like a world devoid of hope and dreams, a topsy-turvy world of ghosts, ghouls and goblins waiting in the darkness to snatch unsuspecting souls and carry them down into an underworld completely devoid of concerts, support acts and reasonably priced bottled water. A world without tour dates? Not a pretty picture, is it?

So, dive in! Immerse yourself in the data on this Web site. Call up the schedules for Chris Whitley and Def Leppard. Bathe yourself in the ecstasy that only a well-rounded schedule for The Sleepy Jackson can evoke. Experience the wondrous healing powers brought about by the itineraries for Paranoid Social Club and Concrete Blonde. And when it’s all over, when you shut off the computer and retire to your little trundle bed for the night, you’ll sleep easy knowing that there will be more dates waiting for you tomorrow, proving once again that happiness is Pollstar.com.

Damn! Sometimes we’re so profound we scare ourselves.