Well, I promised a review when I decloaked and finally registered today, so here goes...

This show had 2 major things going against it from the start:

1) It was a freaking blizzard. When we left home 3 hours before the show, the snow was so bad you could barely see 5 feet in front of your car, and traffic was going about 15 mph on the freeway. And this is in the valley'not up the canyon in Park City where the venue is. What was normally a 35-45 minute drive took us nearly 1 ½ hours, and I was probably going faster than I should have been. I think the weather ended up keeping a lot of people away. The couple in front of us said they had a group of 10 that bought tickets, and they were the only two that braved the weather.

2) The venue was a performing arts center that sells season tickets to all their performances. Now, I could be wrong (this observation is just from a sampling of the people around us), but my guess is that 1/3 to ½ of the people there had never heard of GBS before. We heard many comments like, 'Well, I've heard these guys are supposed to be pretty good.', and 'So, do you know anything about this band?'. Not to mention the fact that people who hold season tickets to an arts center in Park City aren't exactly the kind to let their hair down and enjoy a show. To give you an idea of the crowd; when the lights dimmed to start the show, I let out with a cheer and a whistle'and got 'Shhhhhh'-ed by three people in front of us. Yikes. So, the demographic was probably not exactly what the b'ys were used to, and it showed.

A little info on me before I let you know what I thought of the show. My musical tastes lean toward the extreme, and GBS is way out of the range of what I normally listen to. I have also been to literally hundreds of concerts, and this is one of maybe 5 that a) had seats, and b) didn't have a mosh pit. Honestly, I'm somewhat of a metalhead, so GBS is pretty out of character for me. I'm much more used to throwing elbows than dancing jigs at concerts.

That being said, I would put this show as one of the top 3 concerts I have ever seen. If you would have told me I'd be dancing up and down the isle with complete strangers singing at the top of my lungs, I'd have told you you're nuts'but there I was. Thankfully, the couple next to us were huge fans (Wade & Patricia from Pleasant Grove: If you happen to read this board - you guys rock!!) and made sure we were up and out of our seats and singing along. We got dirty looks from most of the people around us'but who cares?! This show was one of the few times at a concert that I completely just let myself go and just get into the music. A few highlights (Keep in mind that I'm not nearly as avid a fan as most of you probably are, so I don't think I could do a setlist, or even name the band members):

1. The band was very talkative, and absolutely hilarious. I think it helped people warm up a little, because it was dead in there for the first few songs. I think they were surprised by the lukewarm reaction, but it didn't have any effect on their energy level at all. The bit about them singing 'My Humps' had me in stitches, as well as the intro to the Mermaid song.

2. Speaking of energy level, the crowd was pretty dead for most of the show. No surprise, given that half the audience had no idea who GBS was. But when it kicked in, it really kicked in. During the first set, the only song anybody stood for was Lukey's Boat. However, we were up for most of the second set (much to the chagrin of the people around us, who kept telling us to sit down), dancing around and generally acting like idiots. I never though being that goofy could be so fun!

3. 'Paddy Murphy' was by far the best and most energetic song by both the band and the crowd, closely followed by 'Excursion' and 'Ordinary Day'.

4. The musicianship of these guys is just incredible. I can count on one hand the number of bands I've seen that actually sound better live than they do on CD, and this was one of them. The sound was fantastic throughout.

5. Before 'Run Away', they launched into Jessie's Girl, Summer of '69'and Phantom of the Opera ' all with the audience singing at full voice (well, those of us that were inclined to do such things). Phantom was absolutely hilarious, and had us all in stitches.

6. I was a little disappointed that they only did one song for the second encore. The 'Old Brown's Daughter' acapella was absolutely incredible, but I was really hoping to hear 'Old Black Rum'. Oh well.

All in all, it was an incredibly fun show'despite what it was up against. I've seen a couple other concerts that I would say were better, but I can honestly say that I have never been to a show that was more fun than this one. I really, really hope the lackluster crowd won't keep them from coming back to town, as I would love to see them again.

Wow, I just realized that was really long. No more rambling for me, it's past my bedtime! If I get any more random thoughts, I'll do an edit tomorrow.

Thanks for giving us the lowdown...and the jump-ups too. It's tough to go to a show where everyone sits down!!
Just curious--has GBS played there before? It sounds like they may have made some converts if not!!! I'd have liked to hear the Phantom of the Opera bit!

...friends I know from Salt Lake say that it's tough to get a mainstream crowd to let loose...I'm glad you had a good time in any case. Thanks for the post!!
-sue

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The Poster Formerly known as Peaches

quote:

Originally posted by Peaches:

Just curious--has GBS played there before? It sounds like they may have made some converts if not!!!

I'm a fairly new GBS fan, so I'm not sure if they've played here before. It sounded like they weren't even sure if they've been here before! Between a couple of the songs, they said something along the lines of "It's good to be back in Utah. Wait...have we been here before?"

I think they definately made some new fans from those who actually stuck around. I counted at least 10 people from the row in front of us who left before the show ended, and probably 1/3 of the crowd took off before the encores. There was an older lady sitting next to Mrs. Gratch that was very stuffy at first, but eventually warmed up and was dancing and clapping by the end of the show. Hopefully there were more like her, but I think many of the people were turned off by the rock-concert atmosphere and bailed. Their loss.

Tough corwd. I wondered about GBS in Utah, sort of a contradiction in so many ways.

Gratch, it sounds like you had a great time despite the weather and the audience! That's how it should be! The shows where everyone is there for GBS are something to see! The energy level of the crowd is amazing!

I hope they make it over the passes safely last night/today. There's a crowd ready to give them a most HEARTY welcome to Denver!

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Helen




I'm goin' Straight to Hell-On-Wheels!

How excited are you today Helen... Wish I was there.. one day... hopefully next tour...

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~Is a downtown girl cuz I like waking up with my hair messed up!!!

Yeah, tough crowd, no doubt!

Thanks for the review, Gratch! I'm glad that you and Mrs. Gratch had a good time. Glad there were some other GBS fans there for you guys, it makes it sooo much more fun when there are people around you that are into it, as well.

I'm sure they won many people over by the end, how could they not? LOL! In that sort of situation I'm not surprised that some people left. This is also not new to the band, either. I'm sure there are many shows in their early years where they had to win people over. Comes with the territory, I guess. But, look how far they've come! GO B'YS!

Thanks again, Gratch!

Cheers!

Liz

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Life may not be the party we hoped for but while we're here we might as well dance! - unknown

No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again - Stan Rogers

Well, breaking new ground is NEVER easy, but now that it's done, they'll be floored by the reaction of the crowd when they return. Have they EVER had a show in which they didn't win over at least a few folks?! Doubt it!! Their music is way too contagious. Glad you had a good time Gratch, and keep spreading the word about the band in Utah!!!

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Jo

Gratch, you are true to your word.

7 years ago I was one of those who could not understand why people wanted to be jumping up and down and singing loudly in the aisles. It took 3 shows before I was jumping up and down and singing loudly. Give it time. I agree with Jo - it's tough to break new ground but they do it so well.

Anne

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And when the winds of change begin to blow,
I'll whisper, "You're my lighthouse" in case you didn't know.

Sons of Maxwell

visit my website!:
Anne's Philly Phan Site at http://www.gbsfanatic.com

When I first learned that GBS was coming to Park City on this tour, I was ectstatic of course. I checked out the Eccles Center and found out this venue had 1200 seats. Then I became concerned that there would not be enough interest.

GBS played Park City in 2002, on the Uprooted Tour with Young Dubs and Seven Nations, at Harry O's. GBS were the openers. There were maybe about 30-50 people who stood up by the stage during their performance.
Considering that maybe 30% of last night's audience knew anything about GBS or their music, I thought the audience response was good.

The venue is a community performance arts center with many season ticket holders.
The comment I heard over and over, as I made my way through the crowd to the merch table was "I've nere heard of these guys before".
There were a lot of people at the merch table at intermission buying cds. The people manning the table didn't know anything about GBS or their music either, so I, of course, put my .02 in to help with their decisions.

Utah, and Park City in particular, have a history of supporting live entertainment. I was not too surprised that this venue was "nearly sold out".

As for the standing vs. sitting down issue--this has been mentioned several times in comments about other shows in cities that may be perceived as being "more open-minded/less constrained." I was 2nd row center and only stood when I could not express my joy and excitement sufficiently from my seat. I'm short, but standing up still blocks the view of people behind me, who paid $50+ dollars for an evening of entertainment, not a view of my arse.

Someone said, in comments about a previous show, something like, "why go to a GBS show if you are going to sit? Stay home."

I know that a lot of the "sitters" became fans last night. Next time (please please let there a next time soon) GBS comes through here, the "sitters" who bought cds, will know and be moved by their music, will go to see them and will participate in "vertical movement" with those of us who are physically able.

There were 13 of my family and friends there last night, 7 of whom it was a first time show, with little or no experience with their music. All came away raving about what superb entertainers the b'ys are and how much fun they had.

Please don't think that if some one remains seated it means they are not having an amazing time. My best friend and her husband, both have great difficulty getting up and down from seats due to physical problems, sat (squirmed in pain sometimes) for the whole performance, and they had a wonderful night.

Alan and Sean's banter was hilarious. Alan was his usual charismatic self on stage and at the reception after.

Sean, Bob, Murray and Kris were smiley and dancey. All appeared to be having a good time.

Robin and husband, Hallie and hubby and friends, Janeill, wonderful to see you guys.
I love how we meet at these shows and feel like we have known each other a long time.
Robin, thanks for hanging out at Wasatch until we made it there. The drive to Park City was horrible, though typical for a snowy day.

I hope everyone made it home or to their destination safely last night.

I'm suffering post-GBS show withdrawal today.

Hope everyone arrived safe and sound in Denver.

Helen and all: have a great time tonight!

ETA: I don't think there would have been more than about 3-400 people there if they would have played a club or bar.

Thanks Raelyn! Great review!

So, Glenn McCann wasn't manning the Merch table?

Liz

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Life may not be the party we hoped for but while we're here we might as well dance! - unknown

No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again - Stan Rogers

Hey Raelyn and all! We made it safely home last night.


Havent heard from Janeil yet but I suppose we will later tonight or tomorrow.

What a blast!!!


Raelyn, DH was standing next to Alan when your son came in and said " That was amazing, thanks for the show!" James just laughed and said " Did I tell you or what?"
It was funny.


What an amazing night! We met some great people. Riley, if youre reading this, did you get the bus photo?

Gratch, not sure if we met? My dh was wearing a Flames jersey and I was in a Canada coat. We made lots of friends that night.

Thanks Janeil, Chris, Raelyn and family, and Sue!



Ok now to the show.

Janeil got the set list so she can post it. Was SO happy to hear Mari Mac and Patty murphy live, that was amazing! All of the songs were wonderful of course and at one point Kris got out into the crowd trying to get everyone to stand up. He didnt look real happy. He kept pointing to people directly and saying get up get up!

The banter was top notch as others have said. at one point Kris came up and punched Murray jokingly and tapped Alan on the back on his knees. My Humps, one of these days the boys have to actually sing that song LOL.


We were having a blast, not many people were standing at the begining. The people behind us were rude but whatever. We had a lot of fun in spite of them we were never told to shhhh or sit down so that was good.


The after party was amazing. I now know what you all mean by Alan grabbing you in for a picture, that was funny too. Dh stood on one side and I stood on the other. He grabbed both of us and pulled us in and said " Come on come on squeeze in" LOL. Spent a lot of time talking to Murray, what a great guy! Talked a bit with Alan he is also very nice. Had a brief "run in" with Bob ( thanks Andy ) LOL Met Andy, he was awesome as well.


So that was our night. Very sweet, very fun. and a wonderful start to our anniversary weekend.

Thanks guys for the night we will never forget.

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There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when it's convenient. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results.”

Daydream, Glenn was at the table. Talked to him for a bit but he was pretty quiet.


BTW, Murray really played down the accident. Said it wasnt that big of a deal at all.

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There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when it's convenient. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results.”

Ok, so the High School is connected to the Performance Arts Center? How big is this high school!

Shannon in Dallas

It isnt that large of a HS really.


The theatre seats 1200 I think about what ours did in HS There is a blacony though so its nice.

They do a lot of things there, Ballets, shows etc.


Many of the people there looked like they would have more comfortable in the Ballet. I think most enjoyed it though.

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There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when it's convenient. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results.”

I just couldn't pass up reminding everyone of Kris acting as the pleasure police when he made the trip out from behind the drum kit. He came down stage, pointed directly at each seated person and motioned for them to stand, then made his way all the way around the theater singling out the grumpy bums and demanding that they get on their feet. I don't think he gets paid if everyone isn't on their feet. He looked about as intimidating as a person can look with an accordion strapped to them.