My last few posts have referenced how lucky we're been in Boston lately to get such a richness of great musical acts. Hope this continues to happen every Fall, maybe one of these days I'll be more ready for it and not feel so rushed! But fuck feeling rushed, these are all can't misses, and I mean me can't miss, not them. Hope you could follow that.
Anyway, goddamn JRAD was making a two-show visit to the House of Blues (12/8-9) and of course we got tickets to both as soon as they went on sale ... and they sold out pretty quickly. As discussed before, though this might nominally and by evidence be a "tribute band," they are much, much more than that characterization indicates, and in fact are one of the best bands around to my ear. And I love the HOB and feel that JRAD is perfect for it.
Left work even earlier than normal and was able to get into Boston before Friday rush hour got really crazy. Down Soldiers Field Road in the December gloaming and up over the newly reconstructed but same old Bowker Interchange. Our parking lot on the corner of Van Ness was still in "day" mode and wasn't ready to let me in (commuters still to leave), but I was able to get a street space on Van Ness and hurry over to the HOB restaurant, where we hadn't been able to make reservations. What do you know? I was afraid they'd be having a private party but they were pretty empty and were more than eager to give just me a table for 4, where I spread out, had a beer or two, and waited for Sarah, Dave, and Leen, who all got there pretty soon it seemed.
Ate what turned out to be a fast dinner, fed the meter again and dumped stuff in the car, then waited in the "entree" line to get in. We four were maybe 20th in line to get in, which was great ... and as expected the entree line soon stretched pretty far and the regular line soon stretched *way* up the street.
And though I'd said that the recent Hartford Civic Center search-to-get-in was extreme, this was even more so! It took about 5 minutes for the guy to wand me, to pat me, to ask what's in that pocket, what's in that pocket, "can you show me sir?," to insist that I discard the two ibuprofens in my pocket, and to apparently give me a psychological evaluation. The guy asked a few questions (luckily I can recite pi to the 14th digit), looked me in the eyes, and seemed to be making a mental assessment that I hope went well. I thought maybe he was going to kiss me just to make the experience more meaningful for both of us, but he finally waved me on and it took me a minute to get my things back in my pockets and my mind back in its compartment ... hope my clothes were on straight! I guess having just smoked a hit of pot (perfectly legal) might have made this less smooth than it might have been, but maybe not! And there was a LONG line behind us ... if they did this to everyone it would take all night for the show to get started.
Oh well, Dave and the girls had gotten through before me and Dave waited for me while the girls grabbed our spot. Took me a while to get my extremities warm again after the wait outside and the search-that-took-forever, but we had a while to hang out (as predicted). Time passed quickly though, and we soon had checked out the merch table, gotten beers, and all that pre-show stuff while the HOB got packed the way it does. Leen seemed excited about our great perch, the amazing sight lines from there, and the fact that the HOB just seems like a really big league rock club.
Eventually the room got to around 87.6% capacity (my guess) and the guys straggled on stage at 8:20 or so, not too bad. They were lined up as they always were, but Joe's kit was not at all in the back, like the classic drummer's position, it was almost at the front of center stage. Not as big a kit as he used to carry around a few years ago, but on the other hand not as compact as some times we're seen him. In particular he had twin toms to his right that were a little luxuriant but were used/needed when he took one of his excursions and whacked everything in sight, repeatedly.
Another observation was that Marco had a grand fucking piano, and he sure used this to great effect. Though we were close, we couldn't see Marco's fingering at all because of the grand pointing right towards us, but we sure could hear him and that excellent instrument. He was captivating last night, as he always is, but there were times when I and everyone in the vicinity was watching him like a hawk, and he was watching us right back, smiling, waving, and laughing.
Two more things: because Joe was so far forward it forced Dave and Scott way over to the right, but the sight lines and the sound at the HOB are so great that we were still able to catch every move they made and every string they strung. What a band! And oh yeah, when Tom came out on stage he had a certain tiger-striped, blond guitar that looked like a 70s version of a very cool spaceship. He was fucking playing Jerry's Wolf guitar all night long and there were certain stretches when I (and everyone in vicinity) were just staring at Wolf, being played like Jerry would if he were alive today. Especially at the close of the second set ... spoiler alert.
Wow! We were ready when they came on stage and they started off with a country rocker that got us all into that certain place. Here's Costello's play by play:
Good evening internet, its Costello, with the #BoxScore from Boston, Night One:
Show #134
House of Blues Boston
Boston, MA
2017-12-08
Night One of Two
SOLD OUT ~ THANK YOU!
Set One (8:20pm - 9:43PM)
Big Railroad Blues ->
Silvio >
Loser ->
Jam ->
Easy Wind @ ->
Jam # ->
Row Jimmy ->
St. Stephen ->
Jam ->
St. Stephen Reprise >
Samson & Delilah
Set Two (10:13pm - 11:50PM)
Jam ->
Dark Hollow >
Mr Charlie $ >
Help On The Way ->
Slipknot! % >
Mississippi Half Step >
Estimated Prophet >
Morning Dew
Enc:
Greatest Story Ever Told ^
TH played "Wolf" for the whole show.
@ - “Flipped” Version - Opened with the last verse sung first.
# - With Let It Grow Teases (TH)
$ - With a “Moby Dick” (Led Zeppelin) Jam
% - With Let It Grow Teases (TH then Band)
^ - With The Wheel Teases (Band)
Pre Show Music: Scott Metzger’s Spotify Xmas Mix
Set Break Music: Costello’s Spotify Motown Mix
Post Show Music: Dirty Water (Boston You’re My Home) - The Standells and Pancho & Lefty - Townes Van Zandt
Poster: Colortest
Thanks to the staff & crew at HOB Boston, to all of you that came out or caught a stream. What's everyone doing tomorrow night? Shall we do it again? Cool, see you there...
Oh jeez, what can I say about this? This was our fifth time seeing JRAD live and we feel we've seen then a lot more because they webcast so many shows. When we'd seen them before at HOB, which they just rocked like their own personal spaceship, Joe had been a little subdued. But he was sure not subdued last night, especially with that extra tom when he wanted to go over the top. With him being up front we had such a great view, except the largest cymbal was in my way, which was fine ... when he really banged it I could see him better.
Marco the wizard with a grand piano and all his tricks, Tom with Wolf, and Scott with his unique funk were all fantastic, but Dave Dreiwitz was the man! His hair was wild and reflecting those HOB waves, and his bass playing was astonishing. Oteil me no Oteils, this was country and funk and rock ... and almost like Phil when it needed to be. We think he switched from a Fender to a wooden old four-string with big head in the second set. But whatever, he was laying down the foundation for everybody and taking a lead when it was called for. He's been doing solos recently, but didn't do one last night, he was just all there.
I remember hearing the first hints of Silvio and thinking, "Silvio?" I remember hearing Easy Wind and then not recognizing it because they sang the verses out of order ... though we were all there when Scott told us that he had to find a woman be good to him. St. Stephen was incredible ... what is it about Boston and St. Stephen? As with a lot of songs they play, they got way, way, way out with St. Stephen and I was hoping they'd go into the Eleven, when they roped it back in like a psychedelic bronco, but then they went into an excellent reprise and then Joe played us Samson. I hope they put some extra reinforcement under that stage because he sure pounded it out for an ecstatic audience.
The surprise of the night for me was a Dark Hollow beyond description ... loping and folky and whimsical on the one hand and dyed in psychedelia on the other. This may have been the longest Dark Hollow ever played. Help was amazing, an exercise in power chords. Joe playing Slipknot! was what we were drooling to hear. Halfstep just picked up where Row Jimmy had laid off in the first set ... this is the sweet spot of GD music to me.
Then a fantastic Estimated, with the audience singing along to every word. I should stop for a minute and say that the audience was 90% Deadicated and was hanging on every note. But it was a Friday night and there were dates going on, and people getting high, and friends running into each other, and at times the audience got a little noisy. At one point during Estimated a guy off to my left turned around and said, "Shut the fuck up!" That's what *I* said to the HOB crowd when we saw DSO there a few years ago, and I was instantly mortified I'd done that (even though people were talking over Stella Blue!). This guy was mortified too and you could tell he wanted to just disappear after shouting that out. But he was correct to do so, and amazingly, people shut up and listened to the end of Estimated.
And then ... Dew with Tommy playing Wolf. Morning Dew can captivate you and take you into the picture of the song like few songs can when they're played at their utmost. Everyone in the room knew that Tommy was playing Wolf and he proceeded to paint us the whole goddamn picture ... the tone was amazing. And the denouement of the scene he painted was perhaps not perfect (Joe and Tommy got a little crossed up), but we were all there man, just reveling in the sound, and it really didn't matter anyway.
OMG, I realized that I was exhausted and though back pain during the show was not as bad as I'd anticipated, it was still pretty extreme. I thought for the umpteenth time that I wished I'd swallowed those Vitamin Is before the guy made me throw them away! And as happens in the HOB, the crowd had filled in at our backs and sides during the show and we were under severe pushed-and-shoved duress in our little corner. Whatever, the atmosphere was beyond electric and soon the guys straggled back on stage.
And the encore was not a throw-away, it might have been one of the best songs of the night! I love GSET and was delighted this Fall when Dead & Company covered it. But these guys know a thing or two about covering Dead music and they've got Scott Fucking Metzger on their team ... as well as Dave Fucking Dreiwitz, who capped off an excellent night. Fans screamed for a second encore, but the guys were done. See you tomorrow night, Joe told us! Aye captain.
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