Close friend of the family and recent inhabitant of Boston, Brie Bidart, thoughtfully invited me to see a tribute to the late John Birks (Dizzie Gillespie) featuring a slideshow narrated with music from the Pops, followed by a performance by the Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars comprised of James Moody, Slide Hampton, Claudio Roditi, John Lee, Lewis Nash, and Cyrus Chestnut, each with his own flare and bebop style. (Worthy of note: our balcony seats hovered just north of the stage so we could witness each band member's detailed expression, every pic of the strings, every glint of brass and each awe-inspired face below!) Of particular interest to me was Claudio on trumpet. So honored and humbled was he to be, not only a member of the band, but in collaboration with the Boston Pops. Even as his trumpet gadget (distorter I believe) hit the ground during the peak of an exhilarating solo, Claudio remained composed and lighthearted, later incorporating the mishap into a few jokes, eliciting chuckles from his on-lookers.
Dave performed on a Tuesday night with impeccable timing; just as the last of the heavy rain that had saturated the tailgaters (whose canopies were seized in some cases due to the new Comcast regulations) ceased. Hoards of teenagers roamed the lots. Most were sucking face (like the romantic spin on that one?), relieving themselves on cars, having their 30-packs confiscated and being taken away on security golf carts (I wouldn't be too broken up about that if I were still in HS I'll admit). Although these events received top scores on the pre-show entertainment scale, they also made me feel aged by no less than 10 years. When we made it to our seats, it all came together. This is why I jumped on those last minute tickets! Dave and his band played a tremendous show. The lighting and stage set were complex and spectacular with clear close-ups of the performers. The majority of the set list included songs from their album that is due to be released this July. However, following the same groove and jam mentality of some of DMB's other songs, it seemed as if the audience hardly took note that they themselves didn't know the actual lyrics. One peculiar moment that stuck with me after the concert concluded was the bit where Dave speaks to the crowd (apart from thanking everyone). He told a rather off-colored story about a monkey he saw while visiting his homeland of South Africa, describing the monkey's blue "Frank" and red "Beans" before launching into "Proudest Monkey." It was difficult to decipher where the story was going for the first 15 seconds but I suppose we can't discredit him for creativity!
The following Friday I revisited Symphony Hall to see Josh Ritter take stage. I had been forewarned that Ritter sometimes dawns a much talked about white suit whilst setting the precedence for his show, however, in this case, he took the stage solo dressed in nearly all black. What does this tell us guys? Well, I'm still not sure because it didn't foretell his mood that night. Although Ritter played a number of subdued songs, he maintained his usual ear to ear grin throughout the evening. With some elaborate foot work and spin moves, Ritter summoned the audience to bring on the noise, whether it was a synchronous clapping or a chiming in for the chorus. At one point, a violinist from the supporting orchestra teamed up with Ritter on acoustic guitar to play "Thin Blue Flame", which deservingly received the first of several standing ovations of the night (while the violinist received a great big bear hug from Ritter). Midway through the hour and half performance, Ritter passed the mic off to Robert Pinksy who proceeded to read 2 "Poems of Desire". His artistic recital did not evoke the same response from the crowd as most viewers were thrown off by this interlude, but it was a heartfelt moment for both Pinksy and Ritter. Two encores and a grand finale of a sing-along later, Ritter rattled off a laundry list of sincere thank yous fearful of forgetting anyone who made his appearance at Symphony Hall possible, and the audience exited the building with "Empty Heart" ringing in their heads.Josh's return appearance on Letterman this past winter.
Pearl Jam was a band I hadn't seen since 2002. They have since been the subject of much hype and buzz, protesting Ticketmaster's escalated prices to the public, (canceling tour dates even) and joining forces with Verizon, to which Scottie makes mention here, in order to make their music more accessible to today's youth. Mansfield, being the last stop on PJ's 2008 tour, was crawling with long time fanatics and brimming with more energy than I can (or care to) remember. Luckily Jessie Capp scored tickets and was kind enough to bring me along to what I can confidently declare as my all-time favorite concert to date (U2 falling just shy to PJ and then maybe Arcade Fire - I know, Arcade Fire does not carry the same magnitude or weight as the aforementioned classics but they are phenomenal and soul stirring nonetheless)... Vedder balanced the set list between intimate and pensive and raging and electric. In fact he had quite the theatrical performance; from running leaps off of the sound system display, to air guitar splits, to lengthy jam sessions (he was not alone on this one) to ripping butts between songs and throwing plastic bottles at the stage props; Vedder completely owned the stage and the audience for that matter. Breaking briefly to dig on the Marine recruitment stations within the venue and making cutting remarks towards the war itself, Vedder could say or do no wrong in the eyes of his fellow worshipers. A true rock concert indeed, Pearl Jam had everyone on their feet from 8:30 to close (11:00) singing along, and on numerous occasions, singing nearly half of a song in unison before the accompaniment of Vedder on the mic (Better Man in particular stands out in my mind). As PJ wrapped up the evening with "Why Go Home", the thousands chanting along were questioning just that.
Not of the greatest quality but here's a clip of Better Man from the other night to give you a sense of the crowd's involvement.
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