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Best of 2008 . . . Who will be the Best of 2009?
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This is an article from the archives. It is the 'Best Of 2008'. Enjoy.
December 29, 2008
As the name Johnny Concert suggests, I see a lot of concerts. No, Dude, seriously, A LOT OF CONCERTS, like 100+ per year. I think that qualifies me to present to you:
Johnny Concert’s Best Of 2008
Rush at Red Rocks
Legendary band, legendary venue. Rush has always been one of my favorite bands. I used to make posters of them in shop class in 7th grade. (I know what you’re thinking). Their musicianship is second to none and they are as tight as Neil Peart’s snare drum. I was in the fourth row and had a great view of the band and how perfect their timing was and the intracacies of the melodies and the energy they trade. I heard that the people at the top of the Rocks had a great view of bruised and sullen stormclouds and a lightning storm to add to the electricity. There are no bad seats at Red Rocks. Every group loves to play this amphitheatre, but Neil Peart went so far as to put the venue on the cover of his 2006 book ‘Roadshow’.
The best songs of the night were: ‘Natural Science’ – Pulsating rhythms with complex time changes. The song somehow feels like it is swirling around you. The deep lyrics transcend time. ‘Witch Hunt’ – Those who know what’s best for us would agree this number is dramatic, intense and downright spooky. More poignant lyrics. And yes, they played ‘Tom Sawyer’ – It started with a clip from Southpark with Cartman singing (or mis-singing) the first verse, then the band kicked in with those first few notes that just go through you. Awesome! Rush also played ‘Ghost of a Chance’ – one of my guilty pleasures – about finding your soulmate. Call me a romantic. The sound, as you might imagine, was superb, and the stage show with spinning drum set, Rock ‘N’ Roll lighting and video clips featuring the band’s quirky sense of humor all combined to make Rush one of the best shows of the year.
STONE TEMPLE PILOTS AT RED ROCKS
Scott Weiland is the epitome of a rock star. He is charismatic, enigmatic and magnetic. He always wears sunglasses, dates models and has a nasty drug habit. He writes dark lyrics and has a haunting vocal style. In other words, he’s perfect. Weiland rejoined STP after stint playing with Slash and the boys in Velvet Revolver. You could tell they were happy to be playing together again. The band sounded great and they were on their game. I’ve seen STP a handful of times and my only complaint is that they don’t play long enough. Not so this go around. The audience got a full 2 hours with extended versions of many of their songs. (When did STP become a Jam Band?). And STP played every song you could want. You name the hit, they played it. The stage show was one of the best I’ve seen and different. On a giant screen that covered the entire area behind the group was a real life depiction of the great blue sea. The crowd was virtually swimming. But the vantage point was like that of a whale looking up through the water at the sky. Trippy.
Plus not knowing if Weiland is going to show up or not (KBPI DJ Uncle Nasty was taking bets) adds to the excitement and suspense levels. He did, and Stone Temple played one of the best concerts of the year.
ROGER WATERS AT THE PEPSI CENTER
Roger Waters is one of the most powerful musicians of all time. Waters, for any rookies out there, is the founder, bass player and composer for the best band ever – Pink Floyd.
The first set featured material from Pink Floyd and from Waters’ solo career. He loves to open with ‘In The Flesh’ – “you’ll just have to claw your way through this disguise”. Then came ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’, ‘Wish You Were Here’ and ‘Have A Cigar’ – which features one of the best lines ever, “the band is just fantastic, that is really what I think, oh, by the way, which one’s Pink”. The set ended with ‘Sheep’ – one of the Floyd’s rockinest tunes from the ‘Animals’ album. “That’s what you get for pretending the danger’s not real”.
The second set was a performance of ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’. 2008 was the 25th anniversary of the epic album. Produced by Alan Parsons, Dark Side has sold over 60 million copies and is one of the best and most influential albums ever recorded. To celebrate, Waters played the album in its entirety. From ‘Breathe’ with its childlike, exploratory feel, to ‘Time’ with its lugubrious lament on growing old, to the cash register sounds of ‘Money’ with the bionic guitar, covering all the basic themes of life. One of the highlights was ‘Great Gig In The Sky’ showcasing the three amazing female background singers. Their voices not only full of emotion , holding the audience spellbound, but causing a rush of emotion in each person present. “If you hear me say whisper, you’re dying”.
The encore boasted ‘Another Brick In The Wall (Part II)’ with the crowd chanting along, “We don’t need no education”. And the Grand Finale ‘Comfortably Numb’ with the incredible Snowy White (formerly with Thin Lizzy) bringing to life the guitar solos with all the feel and majesty they deserve.
If you’ve ever seen Pink Floyd or Roger Waters, you know the stage shows are beyond compare. This show featured giant puppets, laser lights, large round video screen, flying pigs and quadraphonic sound. As good as it gets. All the musicians were spot on. Professional.
All of Pink Floyd’s songs are timeless and contain a depth of age old wisdom and knowing. For this, the quality of the musicianship, the grandiosity of the stage show, the legend factor, and the overall experience:
Roger Waters was the Best Concert of 2008.
Johnny Concert
Leave me a comment and tell me what you thought the best show in 2008 was. Then tell me what you think will be the best in 2009.
I'm already putting Jane's Addiction on the list of 'Best of 2009'. My two other predictions are Judas Priest and Black Sabbath (Heaven and Hell).
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