COMMENTS/FURTHER
INFORMATION
Submitted by Teresa Dunlap, and Tony Gagarin who adds:
Bruce and the band were in a great mood and knew the crowd was there to enjoy the pulse of the night. Ben and Steve were perfect as the tight back up. Julie Wolf was excellent on keyboards. There were a few times where Bruce gave her extended solos and the crowd loved what she did. She smiled and grooved all night long and was right in sync with the other members. Bruce laughed with the crowd and switched guitars all night. It felt like a family gathering and for a moment all was right with the world.
Amendment and photos from Bobbi Wisby
John Karcher contributes the following:
The show was sold out and the room filled up early. Let the Bad Air Out was a nice funky version with Julie Wolf making Fender Rhodes and clavinet sounds on her keyboards. Bruce encouraged the crowd to sing along on the chorus of Burn. “It’s easy to remember because it doesn't have very many words and it repeats and repeats and repeats.” On Bone In My Ear, Bruce was on charango, Julie was on accordion, and Steve played a stand-up electric bass with a bow. There was a nice extended play on Trickle Down, featuring the whole band.
Before You've
Never Seen Everything, Bruce commented, “This one's a little
dark,” and
at the end, “thanks for sitting through it.” To
Raise The Morning Star was my favorite of the show. It had
an almost hip-hop sound to it due to a drum sequencer and Steve
playing really low
notes from
his bass. Ben added a jerky rhythm on a little drum (piccolo snare?),
Bruce
tortured his guitar, and Julie played something that looked like a
mutant melodica
with a hose that she held in her mouth. I was in the balcony and
couldn’t
tell. The
crowd really sang on the chorus of Wondering
Where The Lions Are.
Bruce
grinned throughout.
Bruce
is an artist that is worth seeing every time he tours. He changes
the
arrangements on his songs, so for even hard-core fans there are always
surprises,
and he always finds great musicians for his bands. Julie Wolf is
a great
addition who pulls a great variety of sounds and styles out of her
keyboards, and Ben
and Steve have become a tight and inventive rhythm section. Another
reason I love seeing him is that he talks to the audience with
honesty, originality, and a razor wit. His description of his outrage
at seeing Jerry
Falwell on TV after 9-11 brought a cheer from the crowd.
I’ll indulge myself in a little puffery in the opinion that we Cockburn fans are a little more aware than the general population. Bruce will get into exchanges with people that brings out his self-effacing sense of humour. At one point somebody shouted “Bruce for President!” and another shouted “Bruce for Governor!” (If you're aware of the kangaroo-court recall election out here in CA, you’ll understand the laughter.) Bruce smiled and said “A lot of good ideas floating around here tonight.” The thought of Bruce on TV debating Prince Bush II or Ah-nuld is a smirk-inducing fantasy for a disgusted leftie like me.
For more about this show and photos, see the reviews From The Road: Part II and at Bruce at the Mystic pt1 & OnMyBeat.net- Bruce at the Mystic pt2