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IN THIS ISSUE:
Xmas Shows NOLA Sights Trivia Etc. A Gift for Our Readers Fan Profile Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Archives
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THE BTE CHRISTMAS EXTRAVAGANZA PART DEUX: SATURDAY
NIGHT'S ALRIGHT Saturday's opening band Kill Hannah, provided a much more exciting run up to the big show than we had the previous night. You can certainly say the band has a style of its own -- wild hair, what looked like striped leg warmers on a guitar players arms, and more guitar effects than you can shake a stick at. I'd say the one drawback of their show was that they played too loud overwhelmed the nuance in the songs (which did exist). Nevertheless, a lot of Ezralites enjoyed their performance and they are definitely worth a look see when they come to your home town (and surrounding metropolitan areas).
The second House of Blues show got off to a brisk start with "Good." As I’ve said many times before, it takes a supremely confident band to play their biggest hit as the first song in their set. The crowd responded just as enthusiastically to the song as they did on the Friday night. Finding the "Tom Side" of the stage crowded, this reporter took a gamble and headed on over to the "Kevin Side" for a change of pace. What a pleasant surprise it was to watch Kevin play guitar up close and to hear the notes emitted from his guitar amp.
For a change of pace, the second song of the night was the now classic "Allison Foley." It has been far too long since fans heard this song. The segue from into this song is always up-tempo and carries tremendous momentum. Tom got to do his characteristic wave and Jim Payne gave up a lively "come up higher" in his faux-New York accent. As if to thank Jim’s efforts, Kevin noted that Jim Payne's Family were at the show. "Misunderstood" soon followed. And as Travis and Jim began the familiar drum and keyboard introduction to "Rolling," KG dedicated the song to the "beautiful people of Chalmette." He also went on to reminisce that the song was written about one of those "72 hour periods when you have no idea what you did, but you just know you had a good time."
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As the show continued – and Jim Payne began "Live Again" – KG said
that the annual Christmas shows are always a wonderful present for the
band and that he sincerely hoped they were for all the fans as well.
After a classic Tom Drummond "Bass!" solo, "Live Again" gave way to "Get
You In," again billed as a "song for the ladies."
Technical issues with Kevin’s guitar provided an opening for Messrs. McNabb and Drummond to strut their stuff. As the interlude grew, BTE’s rhythm section began to play the familiar instrumental composition "At Charles De Gaulle Etc." from Friction, Baby.
Back in action, KG ripped into "King of New Orleans." The song not only include Beck’s "Debra," but much like during "This Time of Year" the night before, the crowd erupted into the first of several spontaneous LSU chants. Kev announced that the guys had mortgaged their homes so they could actually get tickets to the game on February 4th. Of course, as he well knew the game is January 4th, but he left everyone with the mental picture of BTE sitting alone in an empty New Orleans’ Super Dome. As readers now know, BTE is playing a pre-game show at Tipitina’s. The end of KONO, again featured a "Classic Rock Medley," but the medley went on longer than at the previous night’s show. It now included not only Led Zeppelin’s "Over the Hills and Far Away" and Rush's "Limelight," but also Eric Clapton's "Cocaine," and an instrumental rendition of Zeppelin’s "Stairway to Heaven" replete with the lyrics to the "Gilligan's Island" theme." Having largely grown up outside the United States, my knowledge of American pop culture may be a little spotty, but I’m more or less certain the lyrics did not actually refer to "setting sail on a 3 hour m*ther-f*cking tour..." (Story continued on page 5). |
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