My personal concert update

[Divemistress of the Dark]

So...turns out to be just another one of those Nashville nights. Where the band you paid $20 to see? And got in the fourth row without much trouble? Turns out to have John Paul Jones, of Led Zeppelin, on mandolin.

Swear to God I am not making this up. He and Pete Buck, REM's guitar player, sort of hung out all low-key-like and played the whole show. (Buck's in a couple of other good bands too, most significantly the Minus Five, which has put out some great records in recent years.)

!!!!!! And the best part is, JPJ is one hell of a mando player. He rocked the hizzouse. As did Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, who were also there, and Robyn Hitchcock himself, who was as great as I remember him, a dozen years ago...

[DirtyMartini]

Oh my gods, Divemistress. I think I'd have passed out right there.

Shooting evil jealous vibes at ya.

[DirtyMartini]

Still jealous.

Just wanted to add how cool it is to here some praise for JPJ. He is so underrated as a musician and so often seen as "that other guy" in Led Zep. But IMHO his bass really grounded so many of the songs and kept the other three from flying away all willy-nilly. Like in one of my faves, "Dazed and Confused": Page gets all the cred, but Jones's playing is what really sets the mood, especially live.

Thank you. I'll go back to being jealous now.

[Divemistress of the Dark]

He was really good. Apparently he decided a few years ago to focus on bluegrass mando, although he plays about a dozen instruments. You really might want to try to catch this Hitchcock tour. Apparently the story is JPJ and Robyn are neighbors in west London.

(Speaking of, Where's Hannaha? She's quiet today...)

Oh, and don't be jealous. Just get yourself a plane ticket and come hang out.

(I do have a trove of these stories, I gotta admit...went to see Willie Nelson a couple years back and got Keith Richards on guitar...Elvis Costello plays this tiny auditorium here all the time, you meet him on the street...etc.)

[DirtyMartini]

[quote="Divemistress of the Dark"]You really might want to try to catch this Hitchcock tour. [/quote]

I just might try to. I've never really listened to Hitchcock, but if Buck and Jones dig him . . . .

[quote="Divemistress of the Dark"]
(Speaking of, Where's Hannaha? She's quiet today...)
[/quote]

Lute commitment.

[quote="Divemistress of the Dark"]
Oh, and don't be jealous. Just get yourself a plane ticket and come hang out.
[/quote]

Don't I wish! Never really realized what a variety you get down there in Nashville.

[quote="Divemistress of the Dark"]
went to see Willie Nelson a couple years back and got Keith Richards on guitar...Elvis Costello plays this tiny auditorium here all the time, you meet him on the street...etc.)[/quote]

Now you're just being mean.

[GinaSuperCat]

Sounded like an absolutely smashing evening...and LOL about JPJ and Dazed and Confused...that was the first bassline I ever learned...my brother, rest his soul, taught it to me...I used to adore Robyn Hitchcock as well (Egyptians era) but haven't heard him for a long long time...sometimes I sure miss living in Chapel Hill and the SF Bay area, but sometimes I really appreciate where I am, too

[Divemistress of the Dark]

I think Nashvegas, as everywhere, has its ups and downs. I do miss seeing all the "trend" electronica shows I took in when I lived in Washington, D.C.

But on the other hand, it's cheap as dirt to live here. Also, it's fairly centrally located and we have Southwest Airlines, which means I can easily travel to concerts I really want to see. Another real benefit to it is that shows that would be packed and cost big bucks in coastal cities are usually inexpensive and sparsely attended here...

On the downside, we don't have an ocean (although Florida is only a five hour drive), but I do admit I kind of chuckle to myself when I read all these endless articles about nothing worthwhile happening anywhere in the world besides New York and Los Angeles. Not that I blame the people living in those two cities, just the idiots writing the articles.

[conroy]

[quote="GinaSuperCat"]Sounded like an absolutely smashing evening...and LOL about JPJ and Dazed and Confused...that was the first bassline I ever learned...my brother, rest his soul, taught it to me...I used to adore Robyn Hitchcock as well (Egyptians era) but haven't heard him for a long long time...sometimes I sure miss living in Chapel Hill and the SF Bay area, but sometimes I really appreciate where I am, too :)[/quote]

Chapel Hill is the home of Southern Culture on the Skids, one of my favorite bands who have just released a fantastic CD that is comprised of covers of country tunes called "Countrypolitan Favorites", some of my personal favorites include "Oh Lonesome Me", "Funnel of Love", "Rose Garden" , "Te Ni Nee Ni Nu", "Engine Engine #9" , "Fight Fire" and "Tobacco Road" . Normally, I poo-poo it when a band does an all covers CD,but they will do a bang up job with these. Also, I believe Chapel Hill is where the band GWAR got arrested because they considered one of their props called the cuttle fish of Chthulu to be obscene (it was basically an ejaculating phallus). My cousin was dating one of the band members at the time.

[GinaSuperCat]

I actually *really* dig SCotS, too...Squirrel Nut Zippers are from there and Violent Femmes used to play at the Cat's Cradle, a place of local legend, really...but damn, the area has grown so much since I lived there...things are kinda similar enough for me to notice what's different, if that makes sense I lived there in the 80s but that was right when it started becoming the big place (the research triangle) for professionals to flock to...On my last visit the surrounding areas are totally developed beyond belief but CH still has that same vibe it always had, but with more fusion and 'upscale' places to eat, LOL...

Thanks for cracking me up, I had almost forgotten about GWAR and their live shows...LOL how could I? My friend from high school would kill me I had even forgotten for a sec...<grin>

Columbia is great in many ways, but I really do miss CH and SFO ..although living here I can visit more of those places I like, but I do miss picking up and going out on a Fri. night and seeing something totally unexpected...although the Slits did show up here in Columbia one night last November and CH is only a 4 hour trip...not too bad <grin>

[Divemistress of the Dark]

True story conroy will enjoy: I danced on stage with SCotS at the New Years Eve show, 1998, at the 9:30 Club in D.C. I still have a poster from that gig around here somewhere, it was also Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Boss Hog, both of whom were great.

Ah, the joys of being a true fan...

[conroy]

Was this during 8 piece box???!!

SCOTs play a song called 8 piece box, an ode extolling the wonders of fried chicken and all the side items that come with it, and when they play this song live, they invite all the girls to come on the stage and eat the chicken which usually winds up getting thrown out into the audience. A few years ago at a show at the 9:30 club, someone brought a big pan of banana pudding with a wooden spoon that came out during the song "Banana Puddin'" was passed around the audience. I took a pass on sampling that one.

[GinaSuperCat]

Hahah, that's a great story, Dive--what a fun show that must have been The only time I've been to the 9:30 was to see the SNZ's...and after missing Chapel Hill a bit last night I saw that actually Robin Hitchcock and the Venus 3 are playing at the Cat's Cradle on Friday, the day I have to fly out and visit my fam in SFO (last minute surprise fam get together news from dad this morning)...furthermore *just* found out that there's a job opening or two in the RTP area that I might apply for in the Fall...OK, I think I understand a bit more about Synchronicity now, LOL...since last night's post, it's been just too much

[Divemistress of the Dark]

Why yes it was, in fact. Still a song that comes up pretty often on the shuffle. (I passed on the sampling myself. )

Since when does GWAR use a Chtulhu puppet in their act? I must've missed that, lo many years ago when I used to go see 'em at a joint called the Outhouse, near Kansas City.

Good luck with the job, GSC!

[hollo]

Divemistress, on the interview segment of the whisky go go rehearsal video which of the people interviewed at the end are you?

[conroy]

Dive said "Since when does GWAR use a Chtulhu puppet in their act? I must've missed that, lo many years ago when I used to go see 'em at a joint called the Outhouse, near Kansas City. "

This was back in the early 90's, probably 92-93. There was a video released that had the Chthulu puppet in it, it might have been called Phallus in Wonderland, but I'm not for sure as some friends of mine borrowed my copy and never gave it back. I never saw GWAR per se, but I did see and get to hang out with them when the core group of singer and guitar, bass, and drummer toured as RAWG, the GWAR cover band (notice that RAWG is GWAR spelled backwards) without all the make-up and props to make some extra dough. They played at my alma mater Mary Washington College (now University of Mary Washington) and at the old 9:30 club in DC and we got to hang out with them backstage which was pretty wild.