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Southeast
Regional Report
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Edited by Gil McLemore
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Review:
Widespread Panic 4/29/00 - Raleigh, NC
Review:
Widespread Panic by Aaron Stein 1: Fishwater > Pleas > Fishwater, Bear's Gone Fishin' > Tie Your Shoes > Imitation Leather Shoes, Hatfield > The Waker 2: Space Wrangler > Surprise Valley > Little Lilly, Flat Foot Flewzy > Airplane > Drums* > Pilgrims, Ain't Life Grand > Love Tractor E: Action Man, Can't Find My Way Home * with Peter Jackson on drums ['Riders On The Storm' rap during 'Hatfield'; 'Train Kept A Rollin'' rap during 'Flat Foot Flewzy'] Another one of those surreal "what am I doing in Raleigh" moments was awakened to reality in the parking lot when the rain finally started dropping from the dark clouds that had been hovering over Walnut Creek. The trip was made well worth it last year, and even though we would be catching the shows in between THE shows, we knew that the grueling travel would be well worth our while. We were certainly correct. Got into the venue and floated around the reserved area seeing many familiar faces. Much kindness going around, so good to be back in the south. Settled down in the 'zone, thanks to the Gades and got ready for the evening. "Thank you for coming out on such WET notice" was JB's imparted wit and the cold, wet crowd roared in anticipation, gearing up for the water-themed set. You wouldn't think that they could play a Fishwater/Pleas sandwich with absolutely NO jam in there, but never say never. But, you really can't complain with that opener at all, can you?? Things finally got rolling with a killer BGF > TYS >ILS. The segue jam out of Bear's was opened up and very sweet and when the bass line of Tie Your Shoes was warming up, I knew that the trip was WELL worth it!! TYS was one of those songs that I was sure I wouldn't hear (didn't they play that in Raleigh last year??). The crowd was really rolling by that point and Imitation out dueled the thunder and lightning in intensity. Hatfield was certainly the "given" tune for the night, and, true to form, the boys did not let us down. This song has reached new heights the last few times I've heard it. This version wasn't as tight as the Philly and DC versions from last fall and this spring, but still smoking nonetheless. During the rap, JB sang "Riders on the storm, riders on the storm" true to the Morrison vocal and teased the hell out of the audience. More of a taunt than a tease as they quickly dropped that, although I must admit I had a serious shiver in my spine that wasn't caused by the weather. Waker hopped up out of the ends of Hatfield nicely, but was disappointing in the fact that it was the end of the set. I would say it was a shade under an hour as the band probably was rushing to get warm. I certainly was warmed up by this point. But I can't say I was really sweating until Wrangler kicked off the 2nd set. What more can be said about this one, an ass-kicking good time that settled into a nice, slinky jam - Little Lily flavored, for sure, but I wouldn't call that a sandwich as others seem willing to do. More likely one or two of the band member misread the setlist. Another appetizer for things to come. Valley > Lily was one of the highlights of the 2nd set, for sure, but still, as much of the show, a little rushed and not as tight as you'd like it to be. I just love those songs! Flewzy was NRBQ-esque with some wild, high-energy jamming and screamingly fun vocals. Airplane was a surprise, as I was sure Flat Foot would jam its way into drums. I didn't realize Airplane was a "rainy day" song, but I didn't know it could rain so long (or hard). Very hot jam out of this one that peaked in the stratosphere and then took off into the realms of space. Jojo slid over to the synth and we got a whirling, psychedelic entrance to drums. Peter Jackson helped liven this drums up a bit beyond the norm. Post drums was nice, standard Panic: Pilgrims>ALG>Tractor. I have no complaints with that. Tractor seemed another bonus and left the crowd in a frenzy. How the hell is Action Man so sweet so fast? This thing is a monster in every way!! Every show this tour seemed to have at least one parting gift for the audience, and Saturday's was Can't Find My Way. JB's vocals were dead on NAILED and were a fitting end to this show. Overall, the show was like a rainy day... very messy and very fun! The only weak part of the setlist, in my eyes, was the fact that Waker ended a short 1st set. Otherwise the jamming was decent and the show was an enjoyable 7 (out of 10) on the Ned-scale.
Review:
Widespread Panic by Aaron Stein 1: Holden Oversoul > All Time Low, Ain't No Use, This Part Of Town, Rebirtha > Stop-Go > Dyin' Man, Old Joe, Pigeons 2: Porch Song > Greta > Jam > Driving Song > Climb To Safety > Driving Song > Diner > Jam > Drums > North, Cream Puff War E: Conrad Everyone had warned of the evils of the Charlotte Cityfest. Drunken redneck crowd that had no intention of letting you enjoy the show in the manner which you saw fit. I was pleasantly surprised with a wonderful afternoon experience. Sunday was a beautifully sunny, stark contrast to the chilly, wet, gloom of Saturday night. Shorts and sandals and sunglasses were the order of the day, with roasted corn and funnel cake and lemonade and sweet tea and... this was going to be one helluva afternoon (just don't think about the 10 hour post-show drive!). The band got rolling a little late, around 5pm and would have to rush us a hot one to get in under the curfew gun. Well, not messing around Sunday, get things rolling with a big fat HOLDEN. Probably in my top 3 ways to open a show. You could instantly detect a mood from the stage which was smiles and giggles and movement and brightness that competed with the sun. This was hot fun in the sunshine to end out one of the rainiest Aprils I can remember. I'll say, right from the start, that the 1st set was a funky good time that had its genesis in BASS and DRUMS. Holden was grooving HARD and finally segued beautifully into All Time Low... I can't say I remember ever hearing a segue INTO ATL, and this was very smooth. All Time Low got the festival crowd on the same page. Ain't No Use seemed so DUE and I was not surprised when the pulled this out quickly. This punctuated the FUNKY theme of the 1st set and was a real treat. This Part of Town segued a tad awkwardly out of ANU. Being a festival show, with an unfamiliar PA and no soundcheck, the sound was a bit muddy for much of the 1st set (at least where I was stationed (guess where that was ;) )). TPOT was probably a bad choice for the day. Not that it's not a good tune, but its merits are based in subtleties that the sloppy sound and festival crowd couldn't appreciate. On the other hand, getting back to the bass/drum/funky clav theme, Rebirtha was the WAY to go. This one seems oddly absent from the rotation and is nice to consider a rare treat. This was a standard ass-shaking good time Rebirtha with your run-of-the-mill sweat inducing end jam. The standard fell into an open-ended funk-o-rama that built and built and then died down peacefully into a wonderfully placed Stop Go. They were not going to let the supposed bad vibes of downtown Charlotte let them ruin the good time they were having. Stop Go was fucking brilliant. By this point the band was firing on all cylinders, as a cohesive unit and letting us have the best of it. Dave's bass solo is especially noteworthy here (surprise surprise) and I absolutely love it when they do the reggae-ish breakdown for the final verse. Sunday's version was very Sharon-esque, I thought. (they really should play that sometimes!). The jam stopped on a dime and redirected to a nice high-energy Dying Man. Jojo sang nada on Saturday, so you knew he wasn't getting away that easily Sunday afternoon. After Saturday's quick set 1, I thought the jam on this one would end in the cacophony of set end-dom, but JB switched guitars and we were treated to a nice version of Old Joe. Without giving JB a chance to switch back, Todd had the band diving headfirst into Pigeons. One of my favorites and this did not disappoint. Can't really think of a better way to end a set. Drums and bass, drums and bass, set break, whew! Needless to say, I was surprised that we were getting this kind of treat. The band returned from set break and was determined to rock our socks off. Where the 1st set was deep in the funky swamp of the Panic planet, set II was nothing short of a Houserian ROCK-fest!! Fast porch with monster jam got things rolling and we were certainly having a splendidly good time. This set was one long, tight-knit jam that set down in "songs" to let us catch our bearings every once in a while. Greta was HUGE as it has been for so long. Dave got his carpet-bombing missions flying early in the set and the rest of the band filled in with relentless attacks of Widespread warfare. Driving Song rang true in more ways than one and the Climb To Safety meat was one of the best versions of this song that I have ever heard. Not a big fan, but the jam afterwards was gargantuan. Drums seemed appropriate after Driving but we were surprised when the band set their phasers to "BLISTER" and set Houser loose on Diner. So nice to see a show with the sun setting behind the smiling sextet on a Sunday afternoon. Drums was very very short... the band members didn't really leave the stage area at all. 8pm was approaching, which was the reported festival closing time, so I knew the rest of the show would be quick and dirty. North was another of our journey-appropriate tunes as that's where we would be pointing the steering wheel in a matter of minutes. Two Jerry Joseph songs might usually be one or two Jerry Joseph songs too many for this man's taste, but it didn't faze me one bit on Sunday. It was all part of the same JAM and Cream Puff was the quick treat I expected to end the show. I was afraid there wouldn't be enough time for an encore, but the crowd was enthusiastic and ready for one more. Conrad was a wonderful choice as I let my neck muscles have one more go at flailing my head back and forth. "Now make sure you get in before sunset" was JB's departing wisdom and then we were leaving... made it from Charlotte to NYC in less than 10 hours because we ROCK!!! Sometimes you want dessert and sometimes you don't. And sometimes the waiter just brings you dessert on the house because he's nice... this trip was one of those expense-paid, what-the-hell journey's into the Southern night and in the end, I guess that I had wanted dessert after all. Raleigh was the ice cream that did the job and Charlotte was the fudge, whipped cream and cherry that registered another 7 on the Ned-scale. See you all this summer!
Review:
Music Midtown Festival Whew! What a tiring weekend. Saturday I saw SCI, Bela Fleck (missed part due to my getting lost trying to find food other than hotdogs or roasted corn), an hour of Joe Satriani, and a good 35 minutes or so of moe. At SCI, I must say I've never seen so much pot going around. That's always a nice way to start off the festival! Needless to say, it was a good show. What I saw of Bela Fleck was impressive (my first time). I've been a big fan of Joe Satriani for years now, so I was pumped to see him. Of course I was impressed (being a guitar player and all), but his show left me a bit limp. His prowess is damn near unreachable, but his show sounded EXACTLY like the studio albums. I always have a problem seeing shows that sound like I'm in my car listening to the album. It's amazing that he can reproduce the sound, and so easily (seemingly), but it also bores the hell out of me at a concert. I want something new and exciting! I want a Jimmy Herring or Derek Trucks who let the energy flow into them and out through their instruments at will, going wherever it takes them. I wish Joe wouldn't stick to the sheet music so much, and just JAM THE F**K OUT!!! 'Nuff said! I had the same problem seeing Skynyrd twice. Except for the 2nd time, they had an acoustic intro with Charlie Daniels, Travis Tritt, and Peter Frampton that was kinda cool. Plus the 'Call me the Breeze' with Charlie on fiddle was fairly smokin'. But 95% of both of these shows sounded WAY too much like the album for my taste. NOW on Sunday, I arrived just in time to see Derek walk out on stage with Susan Tedeschi. What an omen - there was some sweet interplay between the 2, which is understandable given their present relationship. I thought it was pretty special. He played 2 songs, which I can't recall, then left to join the Bros. I guess I enjoyed the rest of her set, though I feel she hasn't tapped into her full potential yet. Kinda like when I saw Derek WAY back in '90 or '91 and he had a different band than the present. I kept thinking, "Man, if he just had some cats that could keep up with him..." Of course, I had no idea just how powerful a band Derek would put together... Boy, am I a happy camper now. Next, we went to secure a spot for the Bros., so we withstood a nice SRV imitation in Kenny Wayne Sheppard. I bought his first 2 albums, and sold the 2nd one back. While his playing is excellent, SRV and Jimi have already done it all, and twice as good. I heard SO many riffs stolen from SRV and Jimi it made me laugh. Still, I never got to see SRV, so it was a decent diversion. Again, another person who could take some soul lessons from Derek or Jimmy Herring. Well, we moved on up for ABB, and found an OK spot about 50' from the stage. It was another blissful set riddled with old favorites, plus that new one, JJ's Alley, my first time hearing it. Sounds like Derek had something to do with that composition. Sorry that I'm so setlist-challenged, but I have other things on my mind at shows besides memorizing stuff (where was that beer stand at again?) Anyway, breathing got a little tough in the crowd, so me 'n the wife split downwind to grab a seat and some personal space. As much as I enjoy the dude behind me drunkenly dancing and rubbing against me constantly, I think I prefer sitting down, thanks. So anyway, we found our way to an ok spot, and watched the rest of the show from afar. Derek was on FIRE all night, and Dickey did a damn good job keeping up with him. The drum solo was pretty sweet too. It was my wife's first time and she loved it all, though we were both thoroughly tired. One last rant - instead of outlawing alcohol sales on Sunday, they should outlaw pricks who can't handle their alcohol;)
Review:
Widespread Panic by Robert Irwin I. Lets Get Down To Business, Weak Brain Narrow Mind, Rebirtha> That Thang(still have a hard time calling it party at yo momma's house)> The Waker, Downtown*, Holden Oversoul> Me and The Devil, Fishwater II. Ain't Life Grand, Love Tractor> Sleepy Monkey> Proving Ground> Drumz> Low Spark of High Heel Boys> Proving Ground> Conrad Encore: Red Beans Cookin', End of The Show As we traveled up I-81 expectations of the night's show billowed through my jumbled mind. I always find those pre-show jitters tough to deal with. The sky was slightly overcast but in my opinion that only adds to the theme of the evening. Drummer Todd Nance had to sit out Friday night's Delaware show(JB's 38th b-day) with a stomach virus, but rejoined the boys on Saturday in our nation's capital. As the lights went off and The Panic took the stage, the opening bass line to Let's Get Down To Business rang through the room. This Vic Chesnutt tune has become a staple in Panic's setlist and a crowd rocker. And this particular version did not disappoint. Weak Brain Narrow Mind followed and set a spacey but all too smooth groove as JB shredded through the lyrics and had my pal and I beaming ear too ear. Rebirtha followed and Dave had all of us feeling those sick bass lines in our stomachs. The standard extended jam out of Rebirtha led way to some huge licks being laid down by Mike Houser and then to my astonishment JB was turned up! At times I thought he was drowning out Houser's lingering lead. Everyone dug it! The good Reverend Bell pulled out the slide for a silky smooth "That Thang" which floated nicely into Houser's "The Waker". I've always enjoyed this tune about Mike's infant son. But the real treat came as JB belted out the backup vocals that had the hair on my neck standing like redwoods. I noticed Todd's mic had been set up in singing distance and had heard that he had a few new tunes. What followed was absolutely beautiful. Nance sang us a brand new, never been performed "Downtown". JB provided stellar backup. I can't wait to see how this one develops! Mike dropped into the country diddy, "Holden Oversoul" which to me, defines the sound of Panic. Being Sunday night, we got us a creepy "Me and the Devil Blues" which led way to a humongous Fishwater. Now this Fishh2o was old school style with a lengthy drum solo in the middle. As the lights came up all I could do was look at my buddy Chris in Astonishment and wonder how they could top the power of that set. JB strapped on the mandolin for "Ain't Life Grand" as the 2nd set opener. "Love Tractor" followed as Schools had clearly stepped up with huge bombs being dropped left and right. JoJo had been holding back a little till the end of "Tractor" when he played what sounded like smooth chicago blues that led us into a righteous "Sleepy Monkey". Now this was where this rock concert truly took off. The intro was long and spacey as Mike finally came in with those sweet opening licks. I had not seen this one since Red Rocks and felt very privileged. JB took us to the banks of the river with a monstrous "Proving Ground". I noticed again how JB was turned up loud as he single handedly led them right through the first half of Proving. A nasty drums followed and you could see the energy floating up from Sunny and Todd's kits. Dave walked out on stage before the rest of the boy as usually and really just crushed it. There was some strange jamming going on between the the three musicians. I heard Dave touch on the jam that floats between "China>Rider" at the Merriweather show this summer. And Schools must have been thinking of me when he fiddled with it here and there before finally teasing "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida". The rest of the guys joined him for what was the most impressive "Low Spark of High Heel Boys" I've ever witnessed. The Traffic classic always provides a special moment when you here JB tear through those lyrics. They finally came back around to finish the incredible "Proving" sandwich. Houser's guitar tech looked as though he wanted to take his guitar but JB cranked the opening licks to Conrad and I knew that we were in for a crazy and wild ride. As Houser led the band through the finale of the set I thought the roof had blown off the top of the Civic Center. When our boys came back for the encore JB thanked us all and JoJo finally stepped up to the plate. The Professor Longhair classic, "Red Beans Cookin" had us all shakin our bones in pure joy. I wondered if they were finished until I saw Wayne getting the mandolin ready again. I knew that this could only mean one thing, the Bloodkin classic "End Of The Show". Too me this ballad redefines music. JB just shined and many of us new that this one was for the boys in Bloodkin after the death of their manager. This was John Bell's weekend and Sunday was a special one for those of us who made it. Lots of lickin' and stickin' by Mike and JB as they made this Barn Burner one to remember.
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