Hi everyone! Saw Gord last night in concert and it was WONDERFUL! And I'm not just saying that. It was truly great. Steve, it will be interesting to compare notes and see if you had the same experience I did.
I left Kansas City at 5:00 and fought road construction much of the way to Salina. Compensated by driving 85 inbetween the points of road construction. So I got to Salina about ten minutes to concert time. BUT THEN---a stopped train on the tracks!
AAghh! I was beating my head against the steering wheel as I sat and waited for the train to move. So it turns out I was late. Got to my seat near the end of the first tune, "Sea of Tranquility," which I'd really wanted to hear.
Once I had time to collect myself, I noticed that Gord sounded really good. He sounded all warmed up to me, and it was only the 2nd tune. So he seemed really "on" to me, and after several songs the audience really seemed to be getting into it. By my perception, the atmosphere went from good to better. The audience became more and more enthusiastic, cheering and whistling loudly after each tune, laughing at his jokes, and it seemed to me that Gord was enjoying the warm reception and enjoying himself. So it really made for a great concert. I saw him in Purchase, NY in March, and maybe I just don't remember, but I don't think the audience was nearly as responsive then.
At one point he said he was going to go "way back" and might have said something about not going too far back, and someone yelled, "Go back!" He said that reminded him of the time he was doing a concert in Fresno. After they'd done several medium-paced ballads in a row, a lady in the audience called out, "Can you pick it up a bit?" He laughed about that.
Before doing "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" he joked and said something like, "Now they're going to ask me to write one about the Russian submarine."
During the intermission I slipped a note under his microphone stand, basically a thank you note. When he came out for the 2nd set he saw it, grabbed it and started reading it, and I think he got a big smile on his face. (I hope I'm not making this up in my favor) Then he read the first half of my note out loud! He read,"Gordon, thanks for coming to Salina! I drove like a maniac from Kansas City (after work) to see you." (The rest of my note thanked him for hanging around for those of us who didn't catch him in his early days, and asked him to keep singing for us.)
I think he then made a joke about how the last set had ended on a cheery note about slaughter on the high seas (The Wreck) and he was getting ready to do Ode to Big Blue, but I think it was then that he realized he hadn't plugged his guitar in, and laughed and said something like, "that would help."
One of the funniest moments was after he had introduced the band and he had them all bow their heads in a comical, jerky way, and then he said something about he and the band members having to be polite to each other in order to get along after all the years they'd been together. Then he said, "talk about Survivor! They (on the Survivor show) only had 39 days!"
He ended with CRT, (yay!) and encored with "Old Dan's Records." When they came out for the encore, he said, "We are going to be super-charitable" (pause) "by only doing one."
After the show I saw some people waiting to get back stage so I joined the group and asked them if they were going to get in to see Gord. A woman holding some roses told me that they were a special party, they were on the list. I asked her, "How do you get on the list? and she said, "Well, my father was on the Edmund Fitzgerald." Ulp. Gulp. I told the woman I was sorry and slunk away. I didn't want to intrude on that.
But as luck would have it I did get to meet Gord! A small group of people, 8 or 10 were waiting outside behind the building for him. First Mike and Barry came out, then Gord. I don't think Rick or Terry came anywhere near us, but I could be wrong about that. I felt kind of uncertain about the whole thing. I'm so paranoid about being a bother, and I know Gord had already been meeting those family members, and they were on their way out, so I felt uneasy about approaching him. But Gord was very nice, signed stuff for each person and talked briefly with everyone a little bit. It was nice to be able see his smile up close, and he was smiling a lot. But understandably, he and the other band members were ready to get out of there, so someone, I think it was Rick, drove up, and Gord got in.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable evening. Now I have to see what I can do about getting to Columbia, MO in November.
I'm sorry if this whole account is too long. A partial set list follows. Partial because a few times I forgot to write down the song, and I confess I don't know all the song titles (just got his boxed set the other day)
Set 1
Sea of Tranquility
In my fashion
A passing ship (not sure of title)
Prove my love to you
Beautiful
Heaven don't deserve me
Sundown
Carefree Highway
Jealous lovers
song about a restless feeling (don't know title)
Baby step back
Minstrel of the dawn? (unsure of title)
Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald
Set 2
Ode to Big Blue
"song about making babies in the north country" (don't know title)
Shadows
If you could read my mind
Painter passin through
Make way for the lady
Early mornin rain
Blackberry wine
Song for a winter's night
CRT
Encore: Old Dan's Records
