Eau Claire- Set List (Sept. 30, 2018)
 

Gord played a thoroughly enjoyable show in front of an older crowd at the Pablo Center at the Confluence in Eau Claire.

Eau Claire is a strange town to drive because the very downtown is in the valley and most of the town is up "one story." Unless you know the few ways into the basement, you can be hopelessly be balled up trying to figure out how to find it. When I was there in 2010, I came in the dark and nearly missed the show. I still had trouble eight years later.

The Pablo Center at the Confluence is brand new with the latest acoustic technology. I can't remember how long it is has been since I heard Gord and the band sound so good. Gord's voice was pretty good most of the show, despite this concert being #14 in about 17 nights.

Gord remarked a couple of times about how well this new hall sounded and that they were the first band to play the facility. He also asked the crowd about the confluence, figuring out that the Chippewa and Eau Claire Rivers met outside and became the Chippewa River.

Gord started promptly at 8:00 wearing a blue vest, black jeans and white boots. Red coat for the second set. Here is the set list:

1) Sweet Guinevere
2) Cotton Jenny
3) Waiting for You
4) Never Too Close
5) Don Quixote
6) Clouds of Loneliness
7) A Painter Passing Through
8) Christian Island
9) Shadows
10) Rainy Day People
11) The Watchman's Gone
12) Wreck of the E.F.
13) Carefree Highway

Intermission

14) Too Many Clues in this Room
15) Ribbon of Darkness
16) Sundown
17) I'd Rather Press On
18) 14 Karat Gold
19) Minstrel of the Dawn
20) Beautiful
21) Let It Ride
22) If You Could Read My Mind
23) Restless
24) Baby Step Back
25) Early Morning Rain
Encore:
26) Song for a Winter's Night

So I saw him two times on this Upper Midwest tour. I heard "Too Many Clues" twice, the version in Eau Claire had a much shorter closing instrumental. Also on "Don Quixote", the original lyric of "ghetto black," appears to been changed to "youth wearing sacks."

i thought we might get "Spanish Moss" but Gord talked to Carter while sipping water and I could hear, "Let's do Christian Island." My wife was hoping to hear Spanish Moss as we will be in Savannah, Georgia at the end of October, but alas, it was not meant to be.

The only mar on the evening was a group of three, immediately to my wife's right, who were drunk from the moment they came in. One of the two women was completely obnoxious, singing lyrics and talking loud during the performance. The row sitting behind them was trying to get them to shut-up. Once I heard someone said they paid $63 for this ticket and to shut the f*ck up, which only seemed to worsen the situation. At intermission, I told the ushers that something needed to be done over there. The second half was better. Hope that woman gets some help.

He did the joke about offering the Biotene to Carter. I think some in the audience thought it was hooch and whooped it up. I thought you weren't supposed to drink Biotene. Maybe he watered it down a little??

My wife Debbie got a treat with her personal favorite, "Song for a Winter's Night" to close the evening. My favorites of "In My Fashion" and "Old Dan's Records" have fallen out of the set list for a while now. Oh well, got to hear "Too Many Clues" twice in 13 days, so I should consider that lucky.

Anyone in the Twin Cities or western Wisconsin should try to catch a show in the new Pablo Center. It is small and intimate, and the acoustics are outstanding!

John Wicklund
Forest Lake, MN