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IN THIS ISSUE:
Mardi Gras! Who's That Girl? Fan Profile News & Links Map of Ezra TTPY Hall of Fame Archives
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BTE BRINGS IT ON HOME TO I love seeing Better Than Ezra at the Varsity. Absolutely love it! I’ve been seeing them at the Varsity since 1993, and it just feels like home when they play there. I arrived early that evening to get a good spot, and hanging out with Laura Leigh, Dina and Ashley before the show made the long wait a lot more bearable. Once inside the venue, Laura Leigh and I talked with a girl who’s ex-boyfriend was in the crowd with his new girlfriend. She was livid, and intent on doing something to make him jealous - this will come into play later!
"Hottie" Justin and his Ingram Hill band mates opened the show and they were great! A few Ezralites (who shall remain nameless!) Had built up Ingram Hill’s rep to great heights. So, they had a lot to live up to, and – in my humble opinion – they more than met the challenge. Varsity crowds are either really good or really bad. There have been times when a sold-out Ezra show consisted of about 10 percent people who were there to see the band and 90 percent who came only to drink and talk. Thankfully, tonight was a good night. When the rooster intro started and the lights went out, the crowd went absolutely nuts! The guys took the stage ready to rock – especially Kevin and Travis – who were wearing "The Darkness" and "KISS t-shirts," respectively.
"Recognize" opened the show, and Kevin got very much into his "burning up the sky" interpretive dance that his slide flew off his finger and landed by Tom’s bass pedals. Ever the trooper, Kevin finished the song without his slide, playing those solos with his bare hand. Rock on, KG! "Chin, chin...to your health," Kevin toasted the crowd, as Jim Payne started the keyboard intro to "Misunderstood." This night the song took on a new life thanks to an extended blistering KG guitar solo. "Good" came next, and Kevin officially greeted the audience. "Happy Friday evening, citizens of the Chemical City, where we got our start." "Rolling" then featured some special KG dance moves, which drove the girls in the crowd wild, based upon their screams! After the song, the band thanked "Hottie" Justin and Ingram Hill guys for opening the show (Well, KG didn’t call him "Hottie" Justin, but he should have!).
Up next was everyone’s favorite song about "breaking up with someone and feeling like sh*t," but then finally getting on with your life – "Live Again." During one of the instrumental parts, the girl standing right behind me took the opportunity to yell, "I love you, Kevin!" Kevin then looked right at me and said "I love you, too!" Um, KG...it wasn’t me. How embarrassing! Tom Drummond then stepped up to the mic to inform the crowd that Ezra will have "lots of projects coming out this year." He then mentioned the DVD/live CD in April, the greatest hits, and the new record this fall. The next couple songs were "Get You In," ("for the ladies") and "Hollow," which, in Kevin’s words, will "finally be on our next album." "Extra Ordinary" featured the current "Mrs. Jackson" outro and a very Axl Rose-Rock n Roll "Thank you!" "Have you guys been watching VH-1 ‘Bands Reunited?’" KG asked the crowd. "That’s going to be us in 10 years, Tom. I’ll be driving a tractor in Lafayette... My favorite one is Berlin." Then we were treated to a surprisingly good partial cover of "The Metro," which Kevin followed up with a little "Take My Breath Away." "King of New Orleans" was next, complete with a bit of Beck’s "Debra" and a Led Zep riff-medley. "You’ve had dinner and a few beers - now it’s time to feel good," according to Mr. Griffin. After "Rosealia," Tom shared an amusing story. "My wife found a picture of me from the 80's in my high school band, and I was wearing white parachute pants!" To which Kevin replied, "Those are all OVER the runways in Chalmette!"
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Then the show slowed down a bit with "At The Stars," and its Bonnaroo-style Jim Payne guitar solo. Kevin referred to this as the "chill out portion of the night." Once the song ended, Tom wouldn’t let the subject of embarrassing photos die. "Don’t think I’m the only one with bad photos from the past – Kevin has one of him dressed up like KISS." KG picked up the story: "I was going to enter a KISS lookalike contest, but when I got the pictures back they were so embarrassing that I couldn’t enter. My mom is now holding those pictures hostage." "Be careful if you go out with someone who writes songs," Kevin warned. "I still feel sorry for the poor bastard who dates Alanis Morrissette!" (Editor’s Note: Believe it or not, this guy is reputed to be none other than comic Dave Coulier who starred on the kids’ show Full House with Bob Saget, John Stamos and the Olsen Twins). "In A Little While" followed that intro, and it was progressing nicely until Kevin f*cked up the guitar solo. Once the song ended, Travis arose form his drum kit and said, "We gotta give you another shot at that solo!" KG tried again, and got it right the second time.
After "A Lifetime," Kevin asked "Did any of you guys make it to our Sugar Bowl show? That was crazy!" He then said they thought it was great when the Golden Girl came on stage, and that Jim Payne had his own Golden Girl routine. "There is nothing more disturbing than being asleep in a hotel room and having Jim Payne wake you up doing his Golden Girl routine in his tighty whities! ‘Rise and shine, Pumpkin!’" "This Time Of Year" came next, as did the audience participation part of the show. "Who’s gonna represent for LSU?" Kevin asked. "This ain’t no USC sh*t!" A guy named David was chosen, and did a decent job. He was a bit distracted by the crowd, though, and had trouble focusing on Kevin’s instructions. "David, David - focus," Kevin commanded. "You’re already setting sh*t up for later, aren’t you?! ‘No, I said Louie’s parking lot.’" After David finished and the song was over, Kevin said "David did a pretty good job tonight, but tomorrow I want some purple and gold up here!"
The band started "Desperately Wanting," and after a very "rock" guitar solo, Kevin threw his pick down and said "I’m drawing a line in the motherf*cking sand!" We got a few lines of Nelly’s "Ride Wit Me," after which KG explained, "I’m just being honest!" And, after a few good byes and some "see you tomorrow night"’s, Ezra left the stage. Kevin returned for the encore by himself to do several lines of "Avalanche." When the other guys appeared, Tom was wearing an LSU football jersey. "We all went to LSU, I can do this sh*t!" he exclaimed. "Daylight" was next, and although most of the crowd was unfamiliar with it, everyone really got into it, even singing along with the "find me in daylight" part without prompting. As the song ended, Kevin said "Tom you look good in that jersey! Tommy Hodson, right?" (Hodson was LSU’s star quarterback in the late 1980's). To which Tom replied, "Michael Clayton, motherf*cker! The new school!" The last song of the night was "In the Blood," and this is when the girl behind us decided to make her boyfriend jealous. She climbed on stage, ran over to Tommy D and started shaking her stuff right up against him. As Uncle Mike led her off stage, she gave her boyfriend an "Oh yeah, look what I did" glance. Too funny! After a little "Blue Oyster Cult" and a delicious pick slide (one of my weaknesses!), the first night of the Varsity weekend shows drew to a close. Many thanks, Pamela. Great review. | ||
