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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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MARDI GRAS 2004:
There we were. Mardi Gras show number 2 at the House of Blues. The
Soul Rebels once
again were the opening band. These guys really know how to warm-up a
crowd, without taking any steam away from BTE. I had come all the way
from San Francisco and it was so great to see an opening group that is
pure New Orleans. I know I just can’t go out in San Francisco and see a
similar jazz, funk, hip-hop brass band.
The BTE boys came out with masks on and opened up with "Recognize." As many times as I’ve seen this song live, I’ve never heard it played so hard and so fast. Then came "Misunderstood" with Kevin channeling Al Joelson at the end. How does that come so easily for him? "Good," "Rolling" and even a little of Eddie Grant's "Electric Avenue" followed. We also got to hear a great version of "Allison Foley." The horn section really added to this song. Next up was a very soulful version of "Get You In," sung just for the ladies. Then Tom started to talk about how Mardi Gras is total drunken madness and that it’s that way every year, but that you soon forget – until it happens the next year all over again the next year! He then took the opportunity to throw some beads into the audience. Some more highlights of the evening included Kevin talking about all the dirty things that happen in the French Quarter and how good it feels to get dirty (because we are in the Quarter!). Appropriately, the next song played was a very bluesy version of Bill Withers’ classic "Use Me." This tune just about brought the house down. "King of New Orleans," "R3wind" followed and then we got some "Push It" (Salt-n-Pepa), "You Really Got Me" (The Kinks), and "Stand Up" (Ludacris). The following song was "A Lifetime" which has turned into a real "singalong" song for BTE fans.
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Some other funny moments were when Kevin mentioned that Travis’s white suit, was very "Clockwork Orange." Then the guys played "Singing In The Rain." In the middle of "At The Stars," Kevin talked about how Mark Mullins should play something nice and sexy and a little melancholy. According to KG, Harry Connick (for whom Mullins’ also plays) "never lets you do it, but Better Than Ezra will!" The Ramones’ "Sedated" and "Beat On The Brat" led straight into BTE’s "Sincerely Me." "Desperately Wanting" came next to end the main set of the show complete with a snippet of Ricky Martin’s "She Bangs." I’m guessing this was as a tribute to rejected American Idol contestant William Hung.
And now for the encore. PARTICLE! PARTICLE! PARTICLE! What more can I say? You couldn’t tell that it had been a full four years since they last played the whole song live. It was simply amazing. I closed my eyes and just listened to this pure perfection. This is one of the several songs that really shows what a creative and incredible band BTE are. The familiar favorite "In Blood" ended what was an incredible night of music. I know I haven’t been to as many shows as some people, but I have seen the band a lot of times, and this was one of the tightest shows that I have seen. It just seemed to me that the band was playing on a higher level than I had ever witnessed before. Kelly, thanks so much for covering the show for the Serenade, we appreciate it! |
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