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IN THIS ISSUE:
2005 Mardi Gras Review & More! What Lurks Below - News from Oz The 4th Annual The Bootlog Fan Profile - An Ezralite Couple BTE is the Winning Bet at the Seminole Hard Rock Another Ezralite Halloween Meet Stattica / GCB Lights Up With Cigarette
News & Links TTOY Hall of Fame Cowbell Hall of Fame BTE Impressions
Volume 2
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THE BOOTLOG:
How great must it have been to be at this show on a Saturday night in the French Quarter back in the early days of BTE’s career? Deluxe had just been released on the guy’s own Swell Records label. And you can tell from the audience buzz that there’s a real excitement about the band. Lucky for us, someone was there to make a pretty decent recording of the show. I’d rate the sound quality a solid "B," but the quality is far outweighed by the content of the setlist which includes several unrecorded tracks in addition to a sampling of tunes that appeared on Surprise, Deluxe, Friction Baby, and later, Artifakt. The set kicks off with "In the Blood." I have a rule of thumb that says any BTE show that begins with this song will most definitely rock. Seems like this has held true over time, as well. One thing you notice immediately is Cary Bonnecaze’s impassioned pounding of the drums. It’s noticeably different, but no less invigorating, than Travis’ more refined style. "Rosealia" follows. Mid-song KG interjects "here’s the moral of this song." After a traditional ending, the KG tells the audience "thank you Cleveland" only to be reminded by Cary that they, in fact, playing in New Orleans. As you can tell, Kevin’s wise-cracks have been a feature of BTE shows for a long, long time. "Hold Me Down" from Surprise is next. What I wouldn’t give to hear this song live? This is undoubtedly one of the best live BTE songs ever played. It’s simple and it rocks. And it packs so much more punch than the studio version from Surprise. Another Deluxe offering, "Cry in the Sun" is next. To tell the truth,
I’ve never been a big fan of this song, but KG sure packs some emotion
into this version. "Circle of Friends" off Surprise follows.
This is yet another older song that we'd all love to hear performed
again. I'm probably wrong, but the
latest live version of this I could find in the Serenade
archives was from a 1999 Christmas show!
"Teenager" is the next of the night's offerings and is dedicated to all those in attendance who managed to get in using a fake ID. Fans have been really enjoying the short acoustic mini-sets the band has been doing of late (late 2004, early 2005), but this isn't unique in Ezra history, as the next three tracks prove. This night the guys broke it on down and dished up charming acoustic versions of "Chain Smoking," "Wallflower," and "Winter Coats" in short order. Too bad they didn't also do the fabled Toni Basil song "Hey Mickey" as an introduction to "Winter Coats," but it's a fine rendition nevertheless. |
Plugging in again, the guys turn it up for "Southern Gurl," followed by another rare Surprise song, "CDU" (allegedly an acronym for a drug Chemical Dependency Unit). Like "Hold Me Down," this is a fast-paced song that carries the audience along on its merry way. The soon to be mega-hit "Good" comes next, seemingly out of nowhere. It's strange hearing the song without the usual fan noise that typically accompanies the band's biggest hit. Perhaps this is because the audience is comprised largely of old school Louisiana fans and not those drawn to the show by national radio airplay? As was customary during the period, KG offers up a mid-song cover of Peter Frampton's "Do You Feel Like I Do?" that resonates with some great guitar effects. Ever hear "Know You Better?" A live version of this song appeared as the B-Side to the "Rosealia" single. It's a fine older tune with great bass line that should be in every BTE collector's treasure chest. BTE's cover of Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" follows. This particular cover was a staple in the pre-Deluxe years. The band really got into covering the song, but you can get a better sense of how they felt about Zevon and the song if you flash forward to the Los Angeles House of Blues, October 5, 2002.
The band concludes the main set with an early rendition of "Hung the Moon" that would eventually appear on the Friction, Baby disc. The song was performed all too rarely, so this is one of the few shows where you'll get to hear it. Even though it features slightly different lyrics, you still get hear that great guitar solo at the end. The encore begins with an electric version of "State Street State of Mind" which Kevin introduces as a song about a street the band lived on in Baton Rouge. Fans would have to wait until the Artifakt CD, released in 2000, to hear a studio version of the tune. The show concludes with a gem, an energetic spoof of Camper Van Beethoven's "Take the Skinheads Bowling." BTE entitled their version "Take the Deadheads Tripping" and it recounts how the Grateful Dead, Blues Traveler etc. and their fans would annually invade New Orleans (and surrounding metropolitan areas). The funniest parts of the song are the backing vocals where Cary Bonnecaze repeats KG's lines "they've got good acid" and "they've got good mushrooms" etc. Decent quality recordings of this song are quite rare and this is yet another reason why BTE collectors should definitely get their hands on this show. The Setlist In the Blood Encore State Street State of Mind If you have a favorite recording you'd like to write about, please contact the Serenade at ed@streetserenade.com |
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