Following the Yellow Brick Road
Music icon Sir Elton John has been wowing crowds as he tours Australia and New Zealand for the very last time of his long career. Last night the music icon was in the Central West performing to a sold-out show in Bathurst, but you may not know that there is another local link to the legendary performer?
This week Orange City life caught up with Orange-born Nick Giameos, who has been touring with Sir Elton John as his Front of House System Engineer for over 20 years…
Thanks for talking to us Nick. Can you tell us a little bit about your growing up in Orange?
I’m and Orange boy, born and raised and proud of it! I’m the second son of Greek-born Dimitrios and Chrysoula Giameos. My parents owned the Seven Seas Fish Shop and then went on to start the Canobolas Refreshment Centre. Dad went on to become a Greek Orthodox Priest for Dubbo and surrounding areas. My brothers Angelo and Johnny own and run Kings Takeaway in Greengate and my brother Theo lives in Strathaven Scotland with his family. I am based in Brisbane these days and it’s, pretty, pretty good.
How did you get involved in the music industry?
I started playing guitar when I was a lad and went on to join Orange’s first metal band SAD. There I met some good people. When I joined the band, Glen Stevenson was on drums, Luke Ford was on Bass, Ben Rabey was on Guitars and the Lead Singer was Dan Mihai, sadly no longer with us.
When the group disbanded, we all went our separate ways and I moved to Sydney in 1993. Greek boys traditionally don’t move out of home until they’re married.
Dan was working for a Lighting and Sound Company called Jands Production Services. I had been working for an Industrial Rope Access company in Sydney and had become a licensed Rigger. Dan hold told me that Jands was looking for a Rigger and I was hired shortly thereafter in August of 1996 working in the Rigging Department.
How long have you worked with Sir Elton?
I first toured with Elton back in 1998. I went out on the Billy Joel and Elton John Tour of Australia and New Zealand. I didn’t really know what I was doing and in a funny case of mistaken identity; the touring crew thought I was famous Greek lighting Crew Chief, Nicky Koumos! Sadly for them, I was not that Nicky, but luckily for me I survived my first tour and I’m still in the entertainment business today.
Who are some of the other artists and bands you have worked with over the years? Do you have any favourite memories or highlights?
I’ve worked with most big acts that have come to Australia: Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Guns N Roses, Eagles and Bette Middler to name a few.
My first World Tour was with P!NK on the Truth About Love Tour. P!NK is an incredible talent and it was the first world tour for the Australian company I work for, JPJ Audio (formerly Jands Production Services).
As far as my favourites go… I always enjoyed touring with John Farnham, Billy Joel and Elton John. I currently find myself working for Sir Elton John on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour and I have to say it’s my favourite tour to date. I’m very lucky to be working with some really close friends and great people out on this tour. We started rehearsals in August of 2019 and our show in Bathurst will be our 163rd show of this tour!
You obviously travel a lot with your job, just where has it taken you? Do you enjoy being on the road, or does it come with its own challenges?
My travels have taken me far and wide: Tel Aviv. Israel; Beirut, Lebanon; Barolo, Italy; Alasund, Norway; Paris, France and even to Bathurst NSW — and that’s just scratching the surface.
I’ve had a good run in my career and especially working for Sir Elton John. I was always reluctant to do Elton’s international work as part of the “Universal Crew,” because my colleagues were away from their homes and families in excess of 200 days a year. I was approached in 2015 said I would do the Australian Tour with them in late 2015 and much to my surprise I ended up doing shows in Japan, Wellington (NZ), Hong Kong, Seoul, Bangkok and then onto Australia. That then led to me touring four months a year with Elton in Europe and I was based in the Sydney office of JPJ audio for the rest of the year.
When you’re travelling around the world with great friends, it’s not really work. It’s a laugh, interspersed with some hard work.
Just what is involved in being a system engineer on a tour the scale of Farewell Yellow Brick Road? Can you talk us through a typical day?
It is my job to ascertain how many speakers each venue requires. We tour a system with a fixed amount of speaker enclosures. I use room modelling software to draw the venue and its audience geometry. I can insert my speaker system configuration and optimise the inter-box speaker enclosure angles for each specific venue and ensure a pleasurable listening experience from the front seat to the back. That said, most venues have been designed for sports, not music, and each venue has its own acoustic anomalies. It’s the job of the Front of House System Engineer to deliver a working Sound system for his FOH engineer to mix a show on.
I imagine with any live show there are plenty of stressful moments, can you tell us about any days when things just don’t go right?
Absolutely, there’s a lot than can go wrong with any live show. If the lights or video turn off and you can still hear, you’ve still got a show. No sound, No show.
Some days are harder than other, but if you surround yourself with the best people, you overcome and conquer, and to quote my mate DC, “when it’s Show Time, it’s Go Time.
How does it feel to have your work bring you back to the Central West?
It’s where I grew up, my parents and brothers are there… It’s going to be emotional for sure.
For those interested in reading more of the technical side of the tour check out this article