Live Review: The Sound City Players, Hammerstein Ballroom, February 13th, 2013, (Feat. Dave Grohl, Stevie Nicks, John Fogerty, Rick Springfield, Rick Nielson, etc, etc)

Dave Grohl set the tone early Wednesday night at Hammerstein Ballroom, “this night is ALL about the Sound City Players.” The guy in the Everlong t-shirt frowned, and abruptly left town. The rest of us rejoiced when Grohl followed, “You know this is going to be a long night, but you knew that, right?”

Damn straight Dr. G.

We wouldn’t have it any other way. The show, with a run time right around three hours, was naturally segmented, much like the body of an ant, into sections of super bands featuring: Stevie Nicks, John Fogerty, Rick Springfield, Rick Nielson, etc, etc.  Thus allowing, each band their own unique backing band and a set of 5-7 songs, each partitioned by a “Sound City” projector that worked as a curtain as well as a crowd educator, giving each member a proper introduction, delving into their unique anecdote about Sound City, framing their involvement with the project.

It was remarkable how seamless the show carried on. After each subset, the projector would drop with a black and white Sound City for approximately one minute, before launching into each individual artist tale for a couple minutes, before rising to an explosive musical onset.

At a steep $107.60 (with TM fees…) there were high expectations for those lucky enough to be in attendance. For me, the thought of classic rock artists I wouldn’t normally fork over the big bucks to see, playing with my favorite backing band, was enough to move my money. Furthermore, I really enjoy the uniqueness of collaborative concerts, you know, the kinds of things you can’t buy albums for. I truly try to seek out these shows that feature musicians such as Grohl and Hawkins who are able to play LITERAL musical chairs, giving the audience something for the cinematic scrapbook.

Much like the show, I think it’s easiest to sort this show by their nature given subsets…

Alain Johannes

His connection to Grohl was with Queens of the Stone Age. Grohl famously played drums on QOTSA’s album Songs for the Deaf to which Johannes co-wrote a song “Hanging Tree,” a number featured in their opening set. The band was a Johannes, joined by Grohl, Chris Shiflett, Taylor Hawkins and Foo Fighters benchwarmer keyboardist Rami Jaffee.

It was very guitar driven, riff heavy set. Johnannes has a very melodic rock voice and led the band with confidence and an outright professional demeanor. Dressed complimentary to Grohl in black on black with a black sport coat, they opened with a cut off the album, Reel to Reel the concert is promoting, “A Trick With No Sleeve” and followed with three songs from a L.A. 90’s hard rock outfit AJ founded called Eleven, and the aforementioned QOTSA song.

Setlist

A Trick With No Sleeve

Why

All My Friends

Hanging Tree

Reach Out

Chris Goss & Brad Wilk

Chris Goss is the founding member of late 80’s, early 90’s hard rock band Masters of Reality, mostly known as part of a scene labeled “The Palm Desert,” linking them to QOTSA and Josh Homme’s other band Kyuss. Brad Wilk was the drummer of Rage Against the Machine, who recorded their first self titled album at Sound City. The band rounded out with, of course, Grohl on guitar, Al Johannes returned to play bass and Rami Jaffee on keys.

This would be the only time during the night a non-Foo Fighter would play drums. This separated this set from the pack. Wilk played admirably, but for someone like myself, obsessed with Grohl and Hawkins’ work, it made me, well, even more appreciate what they bring to the table. Goss came out firing, with a sort of cocky, flamboyant, “I’m prettier than you” stage presence, telling the audience to, “shake your ass, bitches!” It was an entertaining set, considering I didn’t know any of the music, never really discovering  Masters of Reality (four of the five songs played), I would definitely check the band out from what I saw. The Reel to Reel original was a song called, “Time Slowing Down.” 

Setlist

She Got Me

It’s Shit

Domino

Time Slowing Down

The Blue Garden

Lee Ving

1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4…LEE VING! BLAH! SPLAT! Done.

I would love to write this blurb in the language displayed for this set, but it would be too inaudible. Ving was the leader of an 80’s Ramones style punk band called Fear. Their song structures are lightning quick and punchy, usually ending before you know they started. It’s quite a joyous ride. Ving was joined by Hawkins, Grohl, Pat Smear and Johannes.

Ving dressed in a denim jacket straight out of his time, seemed to be the happiest to a part of the Sound City Players, and that’s saying a lot since the night was full of smiles and giddy nostalgia. Fear recorded their first record, appropriately named, The Record (1982) at Sound City. The rest of their album titles I’m pretty sure have the word “beer” in them, so that’s what we’re dealing with. Unadulterated fun.

They opened with the Reel to Reel collaboration, “Your Wife is Calling” and continued to rollick through five Fear classics, before one could count to five. The true test of how fast you have to play this music is, Pat Smear, actually looked like he was playing guitar. If you’ve ever seen Pat play, he never really looks like he’s doing anything, but in this case he seemed to have to focus a tad.

Setlist

Your Wife is Calling

I Love Living in the City

Gimmie Some Action

Beef Bologna

I Don’t Care About You

Foreign Policy

Rick Nielson & Krist Noveselic

Rick Nielson is the chief songwriter, lead guitarist and backing vocalist of Cheap Trick. He is known for flashy guitars and a quirky persona. Krist Noveselic, of course, is Grohl’s bassist buddy from Nirvana and most recently a cameo bassist on, “I Should Have Known” from Wasting Light and occasional bass and/or accordion appearance during the tour.

Not to long ago, there was a benefit concert for Sandy victims at MSG. I believe the exact date was 12.12.12, and this particular show made a HUGE deal about a Nirvana reunion, which turned into the start of this actual tour promoting The Sound City Players. They played one song, with Sir Paul McCartney, it rocked, but ultimately all the hype made the whole “this is a Nirvana reunion” drip with a depressing edge of sorrow for many. For those fans that paid so much money to attend that benefit for the Nirvana reunion, and come on, there were many this happened to, they missed out BIG TIME if they weren’t at this show, because THIS is where it was at.

Nirvana reunion. Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick. Jaffee on keys. Taylor Hawkins on vocals, hammering out Cheap Trick songs! When the curtain came up Taylor was belting, “GOOD EVENING LADIES AND GENTLEMAN...ARE YOU READ TO ROCK!?” I think my head exploded a tad.

There was so much to feast your eyes upon during this set. For one, Taylor Hawkins was going bat-shit crazy!? I’ve never seen him so amped up! He must have been slugging Red Bull’s or was just intrinsically jacked to be in such a “dream band” position to sing Cheap Trick songs with Rick Nielson (he said as much, but still). If you’ve ever seen Taylor Hawkins & the Coattail Riders, he is so shy at times you almost feel for him a little bit having to play the role of bandleader. Most of the time, he references how happy he is to just live behind his drum set and do his thing. He was waving towels, jumping around, there may have even been a kick and some rock spins, as he was just circling the stage like a released wildebeest. I was loving it, yet it was so out of character I was honestly slightly worried about him…  

Rick Neilson just has the personality of a zany rock star. I really don’t think he’s the kind of guy that could just blend in anywhere. The man knows how to explore the stage space. Between himself and Taylor Hawkins, it’s amazing to think that Dave Grohl playing drums would ever be the third most exciting thing happening on a stage. That’s how I felt about it, but perhaps I’ve been spoiled to see Dave play a number of times, whereas, I didn’t know a great deal about Rick Neilson. I’ve always thought Cheap Trick was an endearing kind of kitschy. Obviously, the point of the Sound City Players, besides collaboration with a heart of integrity, was to bring some of these names an audience like myself, a better appreciation of such rock splendor.

Setlist

Hello There

Stiff Competition

If You Want Me

Ain’t That a Shame (Fats Domino cover)

Surrender

Rick Springfield

Rick Springfield as an Australian singer-songwriter and actor, best known for his #1 single “Jesse’s Girl” in 1981. He had another handful or two of moderately successful hits. Basically, everyone knows him, everyone loves him. Springfield is the quintessential example of someone that would really benefit from a show like this. I would NEVER go see Rick Springfield on his own, but with my favorite band as the backing band, why not?! And, seriously, he shined very bright under the Hammerstein lights. For a man of his age, he is in ridiculous shape, chiseled from General Hospital diamonds.

They employed the “Free Bird” approach, having the Foo Fighters return, with Grohl, Shiftlett and Smear joining Springfield on guitar. I can’t remember the bassists name, but it’s not truly the Foo Fighters with Nate Mendel, and there was Jaffee on keys. A real full, yet tight, punch you in the face rock sound.

The funniest moment of the whole show for me, was when he wanted to take off his leather jacket. Somehow, it became kind of a spectacle that he was taking off his jacket and Dave Grohl was the guy to go find a place off stage for it. They had a good timing about it, that made it seem almost rehearsed, but I chock it up to two nice guys with a knack for working a crowd. Grohl acted slightly miffed that HE was the one taking his, “sweaty jacket” and Springfield carried on like that’s exactly what it’s supposed to be like. It reminded me of seeing Grohl on the There’s Nothing Left to Lose tour bring a stagehand out to literally cut a sleeve on his right hand, because it was affecting his guitar playing. He worked the crowd similarly, mimicking the role of rock star diva. I just couldn’t help but flash back at the full circle candor.

Springfield really made a believer out of me. He commanded the audience like he was the biggest star on the bill. Grohl and Springfield continued to work the crowd like the Smothers Brothers, when it was time to play “Jesse’s Girl” these teased it out, having Springfield play a few seconds of the intro, to which the crowd went bananas. Grohl then commented, “EVERYBODY in the world knows your song after three fucking chords…teach me! Teach me your wisdom, Rick.” Somewhere in the middle of the set, similarly, without hesitation, Grohl would giddily gush, “I Love Rick Springfield!”

I guess I do too. I just didn’t full realize how much until now.

Setlist

The Man That Never Was (Reel to Reel original)

I’ve Done Everything For You (Sammy Hagar cover)  

Love is Alright Tonite

Jesse’s Girl

John Fogerty

In my family when it comes to music, there are only a handful of artists we can ALL agree upon. With some of us on the rock side and others on the country side, Creedence Clearwater Revival is the undisputed go-to if everyone is going to be happy. You can throw on any album and just let it run, everyone is cool.

The guy couldn’t have seemed more down to Earth. CCR sold 26 million albums and Fogerty is parading around on stage in flannel and smiles as if he’s leading a wedding cover band. I honestly for a moment thought it was my Uncle John up there. Especially, when he came to play recent baseball Hall of Fame ballad, “Centerfield” on a baseball bat guitar. In some right, it would seem they went through the trouble to make a special guitar for a song, but it didn’t seem hokey. It seemed like a prized possession of my Uncle John. That’s what Uncle John does, he plays hit songs on baseball bats with strings, and hastily asks Dave about the Mets.

On the Echoes, Patience, Silence and Grace tour, one of the chosen covers was “Born on the Bayou,” so it was great to hear Grohl and Fogerty trade versus on all these classic songs, together. When on stage with Uncle John, Grohl sang the songs in a karaoke style, basically mimicking that classic southern growl. That’s right, I’m suggesting Dave Grohl has to play a character to growl, which is slightly different to how they do Foo Fighters versions of covers on tour.

This set had the most songs, but for some reason seemed the shortest. Between the inaudible banter Fogerty would utter between songs (could not understand a word of his plain speaking), the never ending string of hits and everyone coming together as a family for some BBQ supper music—the night had that Christmas dinner feeling to it. You’re kind of exhausted and bloated (in this case, from rock goodness), but you know the gift opening session has yet to commence.

Setlist

Travelin’ Band

Born on the Bayou

Centerfield

Keep on Chooglin’

Bad Moon Rising

Proud Mary

Fortunate Son

Stevie Nicks

It didn’t take long for Stevie Nicks to put this show in perspective, “we were the first ones to record in Sound City,” she clamored, early in her set, referring to the rare Buckingham Nicks album from 1973. This also marked a very notable shift in the dynamic of the show. Early on, the artists seemed to be enthralled to be playing with Grohl; toward the middle of the show there was a sense of joint partnership; but when Nicks took the stage, there was no question who was in charge. The lights were a little darker, but Nicks was shining with radiance, glowing like a Californian gypsy sorceress, donning sun glasses (she took them off mid set), displaying eloquent open-armed tribal dancing and gyrating alongside the microphone as if she were an aged hologram from 1976.

The audience was putty in her hands.

It was near impossible not to be moved when she told the tale of coming together with Grohl to write “You Can’t Fix This,” for her 18-year old godson who died at a fraternity party. Between that, and one of my all-time favorite songs, “Dreams” everyone was fighting back waterworks or at least a bit of mist. The air was heavy, but the music was mystifying.  The tenderness of the crowd during the delicate “Landslide” with just Grohl on guitar and total audience cooperation keeping a harsh silence for the soft parts and harmonizing respectfully with the chorus, reminding ourselves, that we are in fact getting older.

The closing number was what seemed like a 20-piece version of a near metal number by Fleetwood Mac, “Gold Dust Woman.” I kind of forgot how hard the song rocks, and it gained obvious kinetic energy having the backing music come this group of hard-hitters. Nicks would howl with all the passion and grit of Roger Daultry’s scream in “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” It was an absolute avalanche from rock’s greatest female Goddess.

As someone who’s never felt the presence, I’m elated to put that on my concert resume. Isn’t that what collaboration is all about: taking each other’s talents to new heights, simply with presence and hard work?  

Setlist

Stop Dragging My Heart Around (Tom Petty cover)

You Can’t Fix This

Dreams

Landslide

Gold Dust Woman

Closing Thoughts

I have a hard time not referencing Denny Green, “They are who we thought they were!?!?” You felt the star power at this show. You also felt the passion of collaboration, and what personalities mean in the art of making music. If there were to be a mathematical equation or a scientific experiment to prove this with moving variables—this show was it. Seeing most of the same people trade places around and bringing in a new face or two over the course of a handful of different sets, really let artist personality shine the brightest.

For instance, seeing the Foo Fighters, even though they didn’t play any Foo Fighters songs, play without Nate Mendel just seemed different. More than I thought it would. Hearing how different the world sounds with Wilk, Hawkins and Grohl trading drum stools. How thick you can make something sound by adding more guitars. How a rock band can make California Gypsy music, but with a thicker rock edge.

If you’re obsessed with these elements of integrity, passion, theatrics, personality and unique music experiences, this was as superlative as it gets. THE BEST. THE BEST. THE BEST!!

But, you knew that already, right? 



Author's Note: Let's hope this era of me not having a fucking photo pass ends soon. Please don't take these pictures as a representation of my pictorial abilities. I was standing behind a couple of trees about 20 rows back, and my resistance to being a technology dick, doesn't allow me to hold a steady, high position for a long period of time, because I HATE to inconvenience, similarly, the person behind ME. I took quick pictures, hoping for the best, that ended up kind of giving me an idea what was going on, but don't really shine the majesty of these beautiful artists the way I wanted them to. I apologize. In the future, I will get to the concert earlier, or move my way up to photo pass territory. 

Working Through the Foo Fighters Hiatus

This is the closest I've ever been to Dave Grohl. Will I be able to get closer
if he tours solo during the hiatus? A movie release? Something? Please? 

People keep asking me about the Foo Fighters hiatus, treating the issue with kid gloves, as if it were a breakup, “Ryan…are you ok!?”

When Dave Grohl paraded through a nine-song set at Central Park as part of the Global Citizen Festival and said, “We don't have any shows after this. This is where we play as many songs as we can in a short period of time, because, honestly, I don't know when we're gonna do it again" I had a feeling of celebration in mind. It’s been a hell of a ride. They came through with arguably their best album in Wasting Light (I mean, their best is TCATS, but one can contend WL and it’s not ridiculous) and slaughtered the world with a rip-roaring tour. One town down and ON TO THE NEXT!? The most notable thing about the tour, is their setlists were 3.5 hours!? That’s insane considering the energy level they play at. I think it was clear between the two times that I saw the Foo, this rigorous schedule took a toll on the band. It’s part of the business and I’m so happy to see the Foo play such a marathon set, but, seriously, these guys deserve a break. 

That’s no joke, man.

When you look at the Foo Fighters history, as well as other bands, a hiatus at this stage of their career is common. It’s not like they need the money. After the first or second album, they probably would keep going just to keep themselves in the black. Most bands do. Keep grinding. Get yourselves out there. In their 18^th year, these guys are doing it for pride, legacy, love of the game, and sure, everyone loves to add more to the total. Family men and all.

I’m happy for the hiatus, because I believe it’s going to lead to better material in the future. I don’t think you’ll hear another Foo Fighters cut until Fall 2015. Anything before that would seem rushed to me. I’m sure they have B-Sides and all kinds of shit sitting around, but if history serves the band correctly, they will have made some kind of mindset adjustment and their tone and sonic fortitude will have shifted to reflect the new times of the band. This is one of my favorite qualities of the band.

Given their age, I don’t think they are going to rock any HARDER. I think Wasting Light and the subsequent 3.5 hour tours of screaming “White Limo” will take a little of that hard rocking edge off the band. I think you’ll see an album that borders more along the lines of E.P.S.& G. Perhaps dwindle themselves back into the acoustic beauty of the second half of IYH. The Foo Fighters pretty much have four eras as far as age.

Aging of the Foo Fighters by Era:

1) Young – Dave screams all the fucking time and lets his hair fly. Songs are written to bounce the fuck out of the audience.  

2) Learning to Jam – The band ages, matures, and starts learning how to rock their songs out. Sometimes, Dave has short hair and hipster facial hair. This is actually my favorite era of the band. They were finding themselves.

3) Statesmen (Statues) – Elder statesmen of rock. Pretty much the biggest band out there, as far as rock music is concerned. They are the standard. Their shows are huge. They headline festivals. They write songs about having children. Dave starts to save his voice a bit on screamers (well, he kind of makes all songs screamable live) and wear only black at shows. Less banter, burping, cussing and more music, bigger jams.

4) Classic Rock – This last era of the Foo Fighters is the first time that I realized Dave Grohl is going to get old. I think it’s going to be even more of a problem moving forward. They’ve reached that upper echelon of being old, but still able to rock like kids. I don’t know how much longer that will hold. Gray hair on the way? Perhaps, he has to use Just For Men to keep that shag so black. The beard is fuller and there is just the slight development of jowls on the face. Tours go in 3-week increments to give time for the family. Album recorded at home for the same purpose (there were other good reasons, it was actually genius, but the song remains the same, they’z be settling down). 3.5 hour setlist, much like seeing a Rush show. Sit back, “we’re going to play a lot of songs!”

So, what now? Is there any REASON. TO. LIVE. Yesssssssss…..

Fun with Side Projects:

Dave – In a letter to the fans, he referred to his Sound City documentary as POSSIBLY the “biggest, most important project he’s ever worked on.” I love that man and his superlatives. That fact about him, is probably why he is what he is to me. The greatest. The BEST, THE BEST, THE BEST….anyway, I digress. The project is billed as, “a film (by Dave Grohl) about the truth, the craft and the integrity of Rock ‘n Roll.”

Is there anyone better to do that than Dave Grohl? That’s an exciting project! Then of course, he’ll drum for some big names, it’ll seem random and awesome and we’ll all get really pumped. I would imagine for kicks he’ll do something with Josh Homme. A Them Crooked Vultures second wave would be fucking amazing! Perhaps more work with Trent Reznor? I still don’t rule out that he’ll drum for Led Zeppelin! I don’t care how many people say Bonham’s son will play drums…it’s going to happen.

Taylor – I want a Taylor Hawkins & the Coattail Riders tour. It’s always a treat to see Taylor Hawkins drum up-close-and-personal in a small NYC venue. I would love a third album, but, the second one was almost TOO GOOD. I’m kind of fearful of another album, but I think you get that guys’ jazzy self on the kit, with his sensibility and drive, and you’re going to have something. If he continues to keep things on the rise, polish his product and develop his ability to write a song…HOLY SHIT! The Coattail Riders are a force to be reckoned with.

Nate – Sunny Day Real Estate. I missed the last tour. Guys…if you tour again…or even just in NYC…I will be there. I want this, bad!

Chris “Shifty” Shiflett – Jackson United is Chris Shiftlett’s primo side project. Cali pop-punk with some grit. He was in No Use for a Name and Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies. He’s a seasoned vet and everything he does has a certain melodic quality to it. He also plays solo gigs (with the & Dead Peasants moniker). This is something to look into.

Pat Smear – Who the hell knows what Pat Smear will do? Something tells me he doesn’t need music in his life and will pursue something like egalitarian studies. Perhaps, he will research finding ways to make guitars sound thrashier with less effort. 

A New Album?

If I were a betting man (and I am…) I would put the over/under for a new album October 2016. They love the fall release and that would be about 4 years after Wasting Light, which is about on their pattern. Time between albums for the Foo looks like this: 2, 2, 3, 2, 3, 4. It’s safe to say this will be their biggest break, albeit, not their first hiatus. I think they will take a real break from being a band, before coming together and taking forever to record and decide what to do with a new album.

Well, would you know it? I have some sage advice.

Things I want in a new Foo album…

• Oh God, how many times can I call for MORE BLENDED VOCALS!? The best example of what I’m talking about was the psychedelic fusion vocally on “Rope” when Taylor’s classic rock howl and Dave’s wounded growl were soldered together so beautifully. Yes, more of that please!

• I love Grohl, but, I like the diversity of letting Taylor and Chris sing. Chris sang on a Foo Fighters cover of “Danny Says” by the Ramones and Taylor has taken lead vocals a couple of times. Most notably, I’d love to have a song like “Cold Day in the Sun” make a run as a Foo Fighters song. I think it’s a good shift in pace. A little bit country, A little bit rock ‘n roll!

• Another tempo changing album. One of my favorite dynamics is how the Foo’s like to take the pace up and down in their songs. Wasting Light was pretty straight forward, but the two Gil Norton produced albums really swayed back and forth with a diverse variety of tunes. Take TCATS for instance in which you have a bunch of screamers, a couple ballads, an intro, a epic closer, a square dance number, a couple of hits, a cult classic/hit/staple song for the band forever and ever, etc, etc. Songs like “Hey Johnny Park!” blend scream vocals with clean poppy vocals in the same song. I have yet to hear them use that theory in a song since, therefore, I have to get my fix from Polar Bear Club who do it all the time.

• How about an epic closer. Sure, “Walk” is about as good as it gets as far as taking the rising action to a screaming crescendo of fist pumping glory. I’m looking for something that is at LEAST 10-15 minutes long. Not necessarily all about the “time” per se, but they had this theory with “Comeback” and “Long Way Home” and “Exhausted.” With “Walk” it was there, but it was also kind of like a single. I want a closing number that take the hinges off the barn doors.

•  Speaking of Rush…how about a song or two that’s really just flexing drum muscles. The drum fill on “Everlong” remains one of my favorite drum licks all-time. I think One By One has some stand out drum lines, and everything is always top-notch, but, if you put my two favorite drummers in ONE band…I want it to be THE BEST! Show me something just fucking insane. Seriously, just get silly out there. For the fuck of it. Put drum fills for the sake of having drum fills. WHY. SO. SERIOUS. In an interview I once heard Dave say that Taylor has motioned for louder drums and he shot the idea down saying the Foo Fighters have always been about loud guitars and big hooks.

•  Yup. I want piano too. I wouldn’t mind a 17 track album all over the map. That’s the stuff Zerfas dreams are made of.

•  If you’re going to play piano…why not bring Norah Jones back. That’s the stuff Zerfas WET dreams are made of.

•  But seriously, “Home” and “Statues” turned out pretty good. The Red Hot Chili Peppers recently cut an album with some intriguing piano numbers. It’d be a fun change of pace.

•  I think Dave’s voice has went through the gauntlet. I know when I listen to the first album, I think to myself, I miss the soothing rock voice, like best displayed on “Floaty.” Can he still sing like that? I think it was a voice that was just a little shy. It’s kind of endearing. I guess this could be like asking Billy Joel to sing “River of Dreams” with the high falsetto bridge, perfectly, live, at his age.

•  Folk elements? John Paul Jones played “Mandolin” on IYH. I think there was a B-Side where he played mellotron, but was nixed, because Grohl didn’t like how it turned out. Also, you take a song like “Ballad for the Beaconsfield Miners” and think they could do some neat, folky stuff.   

I know this has asked for a lot of things. High expectations are the best form of praise. We can celebrate the hiatus with hope for the future. I think the Foo Fighters are far from done, but it’s certainly the “end of an era” in a way. I look forward to the next era and view this Wasting Light time period as a resurgence.

I would like to close this celebration of hard-work and exceeding of expectations in the exact way that Dave Grohl ended his letter to the fans and every show I’ve ever attended, watched, downloaded, bootlegged, etc, etc.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Roger Waters' The Wall Live, Yankee Stadium, July 7th, 2012

Photo Credit: 2012 Roger Waters Music Overseas Limited (NY TIMES) 

A hot summery day in July, a few days over 12 years ago, a concert moment would change my life forever. Something that most certainly leads me to the concert going fiend and desired inker of such moments I am today. Legacy cemented…

Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI was hosting the Red Hot Chili Peppers. There was an opening act and the sub headliner was a growing band by the name Foo Fighters, rising to newfound heights on their new single, “Learn to Fly.” I wasn’t even going to attend this concert as I wasn’t a Foo fan yet and I did love the Chili Peppers, but for some reason I hadn’t acquired tickets until I ran into my buddy Ben downtown on a bridge (like that?) on the 4^th of July. He had tickets for the next night and despite what seemed like a steep price, I had nothing else to do, so I joined. I didn’t live and die by concerts at this time in my life, and I attribute that transition to when the Foo Fighters took stage that faithful night. 

I knew a few of the Foo Fighters songs like “Everlong” and “Big Me,” but they continued playing song after song that I knew and loved, which made me continuously scream out that famous line when you’re surprised by a band you know, but don’t really know, “they sing this song too!?” There was a real up-and-down song, “For All the Cows” in which Dave Grohl would walk to opposite ends of the stage and take shots with Chad Smith, drummer of the RHCP, before laying out big screamer parts of the song. It seemed a tad unorthodox, and to this day I’ve never seen anyone so freely meander through stage time as an opening act.

It came time to dust off a cover. Not just ANY cover, but the Foo were about to play “Have a Cigar” (link: not the G-Rap performance) by Pink Floyd. A song at the time, for me, which meant more in spectacle of the name than anything else: Is there anything more badass than the notion of “having a cigar?” Has anyone in your life commanded you to have a cigar? I’d think if it happened, you’d have to oblige, or fear turning in any potential you ever had of being a badass. And really, that’s any boys/mans/human beings dream, right?

Cigar tangent aside, Dave Grohl, lead singer of the Foo Fighters took over as drummer and Taylor Hawkins, Foo Fighters drummer, took center stage and the microphone. I state this very simplistically, because this concept blew my mind. 1) I only really knew DG at the time as drummer of Nirvana that started his own band 2) It seemed weird to give this unknown drummer the center stage. 3) Not anybody can get up there and sing 70’s rock and get away with it! To this day, all the concerts I’ve been to, I don’t know if I’ve seen anything like it on that level. It makes sense logically, but it was just not something I expected.

Grohl was KILLING it on the drums as that seemed like the spectacle to watch, but really, it was Hawkins voice that really made it totally badass. These fuckers knew what they were doing. In hindsight, it’s easy to look at Hawkins future solo albums and use in future Foo albums, but at the time, I don’t think anybody had any idea what they were in for. It’s not like the Eagles where everyone sings. This was a fucking rock show and the main act could step behind the kit, and somehow that UPS the ante.

Over the years, I’ve heard Taylor Hawkins sing Floyd a number of times. It’s honestly one of my favorite concert delights. Pink Floyd was more “my dads’” music at that time, and was recognizable, but I couldn’t really fathom the scope. More so, I didn’t realize how classic that voice was until I heard Hawkins doing it. Perhaps it just took someone of my era to give me the frame to classify it, but when I hear that voice, there’s no way for me not to transport into the 70’s and drench myself in fake nostalgia. I love the notion of hearing something through someone else’s realm and how it brings the true meaning of something to your own table.

Bringing it back to today, The Foo Fighters on their latest tour for Wasting Light rolled “This is a Call” and transitioned into “In the Flesh?,” and it was fucking amazing! Pretty much the perfect selection of a cover I’d love to hear them do. On Jimmy Fallon, in almost a salute to this decision, Roger Waters joined the Foo Fighters in a performance of the same song. Wow.

Which leads us full circle, Roger Waters’ The Wall at Yankee Stadium.

Roger Waters, Pink Floyd bassist, 68, took over the main songwriting and concept duties for Pink Floyd in the early 70’s. The result: A four album run that rivals if not tramples any other band in the history of music. Think about it!? Dark Side of the Moon (1973), Wish You Were Here (1975), Animals (1977), and The Wall (1979). What are you going to put against that? The Beatles? Perhaps. I’d argue the Kinks or Zeppelin, but really, all things considered this sets the standard for stringing together albums. I always had, without proper research, given credit to guitarist David Gilmour for the legacy of Floyd, but thanks to a push from a friend, I forked over the ridiculous amount of dollars it took to get to this concert—and don’t recall why I didn’t make this a priority, sooner.

This was a show of epic proportions to say the least.

Roger Waters is a pimp! Cool and cleansing like his namesake, yet proven, wise, and larger than life like his legacy. Because I’m an idiot, I arrived to the show a little late, and when I heard the opening notes to “In the Flesh,” I found myself sprinting up the Yankee Stadium escalator to my ‘tweener level seats all the way stage right. The first image I saw from the show was fireworks and Roger Waters’ grill adorned with sunglasses that must have been about 150 feet per shade in aviator circumference projected on what seemed like a 2 kagillion foot wall. Whoa.

Let’s take a separate paragraph to discuss the wall. Not, The Wall, but the wall itself, not metaphorically or sonically. Literally. There was a projection-laden wall that covered approximately 70% of the Yankee Stadium outfield about 40 feet high that transitioned piece by piece throughout the set. The wall started with a broken brick “V” opening to which you’d see the 13-piece backing band, which featured G.E. Smith on guitar (you might remember from SNL), building itself to full force by mid-show (perhaps the Tenacious D “Roadie” song was about the never-ending job these guys do) creating the metaphoric barrier between artist and fan. Ha-ha! And finally, well, you know the story, it gets torn down. That process itself is spectacular, but if that’s not enough, the white wall also serves as a dynamic video screen of war propaganda, idealistic imagery and references to anything against the system. Big Brothers’ (referenced) worst nightmare!

Ok, back to The Wall. Born out of Waters’ frustration with audience perception, he imagined building an actual wall between the performers and the audience. This happens during the show and it’s kind of surreal. If the screen wasn’t so entertaining just in its grandiose stature this ideology may have reigned supreme, but honestly, the wall is so awesome, you could almost lose yourself looking at just the wall. Perhaps, I’m just easily amused. That ideology of imposed isolation is documented throughout the rock opera’s plot. Loss of a father in World War II, an over protective mother, loss of marriage, loss of confidence through ridicule of teachers and the loss of self through rock star excesses. It’s quite a journey, one that weaves in and out through some of rocks most famous songs, “Another Brick in the Wall”, “Hey You”, “Comfortably Numb”, “Young Lust,” and of course “In the Flesh.”

In music, artists’ losses are typically a win for the fan. It’s unfortunate, but most of the music I seem to really enjoy comes from a great deal of pain. Waters was the first to point out, when he sang a duet of “Mother” with a video of himself from the early 80’s, that he was indeed a 36 year-old “poor, miserable, fucked up little Roger.”  It was then impossible for any thinking man not to ponder about how this show has evolved over time. To think of how early on, they must have moved many of the wall pieces by hand (I guess they still do at parts), or how imagery projected onto the wall has changed itself, with political culture. References to Mac lingo (i____..., i____...) were countered with bios of soldier’s that lost their lives without blinking. I’ve always been a fan of the overall font and brand The Wall has created. I’ve had The Wall poster in my room before I knew shit about shit and/or anything remotely interesting about this album, other than it looked cool and it’s legacy is prominently heralded in high regard. It mostly is an insanely colorful red dominated charge-up-the-mountain with sweat on the brow and a setting sun fist-pumping imagery.

In fact, during the show, when Waters was giving props to the kids and ranting about terrorists, the New York natives (as a Michigan boy, they are still fodder, even after seven years) took it upon themselves to scream obscenities, interjecting the word terrorist every few seconds, just so they, themselves would feel like they were helping the show. It was a classic NY moment in which I could say to myself, “only in New York…do fans get inappropriately belligerent and boisterous…even when high.”


I mean, this was the same audience that found a way to catch and destroy my favorite prop (well, besides the wall) from the show--the inflatable pig with fake slogans. Man, they really ripped that thing apart. It really got out of control, fast!

The sound was another monumental achievement. I was incredibly worried, because my seats were as far to the right as you could get, outside the main speaker stacks, which is usually the first sign of trouble. But, true to the professionalism of the set up, the sound was loud, clear and impeccable. When he brought a “choir” of kids for “Another Brick in the Wall,” their voices were so loud in my ears it was almost piercing. I can only imagine what that was like to be close and dead center. Also, the show was in surround sound, so when there was laughing, gunshots and other high jinks you come to associate with Pink Floyd depth of sound, the noise would move right to left and/or directly behind you. The effect was unreal. Even if you weren’t high.

I’ll never forget the little moment late in the show when the full wall had been created, a piece about half way up unfolded like a hide-a-bed. Sure enough, it was Roger Waters, the pimp in command, coming from behind the wall 20 feet in the air on an easy chair and makeshift living room set. I can’t remember if he had a glass of wine or not, but the scene was set. He was chill, with one arm on the arm of the relaxing piece of furniture he was sitting on, casually serenading the audience. In direct contrast to when he walks along the entire wall, with the backing band covered, with the spotlight on him, projected his live image on bookends of the wall, with half a baseball outfield on either side to work with—putting on a show, with space cadet glow.

The thick and richness of Floyd’s arraignments are hard to match. After re-watching the Foo Fighters version of “In the Flesh,” (only three live guitars?) and listening to the 13-piece version (twice) during Roger Waters’ The Wall it’s just majestic in sonic triumph. I won’t go on record and say “it’s the best concert I’ve ever been to,” but I have no problem saying it’s the most expensive show I’ve ever been to, therefore I expected it to be, and it did live up to my lofty expectations. I just don’t have the history with the music to justify the “best ever” superlative.

My internal wall, however, has been knocked down, allowing me to pursue this not quite uncharted, but under-pursued, delight, with the reckless abandon personified in “Young Lust.” When you think about it, is there a better trajectory to unbridled fun then the freshness of a new addiction…with a map?




Setlist:
The album, The Wall By Pink Floyd

Writers note: The picture at the top was taken from the NY Times piece. Yeah, I know that’s kind of lame, but it seemed like the best possible picture for my obsession with the majestic wall. It seemed like I could credit it pretty easily. Also, Yankee Stadium doesn’t let you in with a Kindle, so taking in my big camera was an easy no-no. I need to work on getting a small digi-cam. In due time. Either way, I saw the perfect image and I wanted it. 


Also, I have no idea why my first chunk of paragraphs are double spaced and I can't fix it. I'm not going to spend all day on it.