Looking for a soul to steal

I hadn't seen Blues Traveler since the 10 shows we saw in the mid-90s culminating at Hill Auditorium in the fall of '96 when they played w/in the same 4 day period as Bela Fleck at EMU & the two Michigan Phish shows that fall, but when my dad claimed he had scored a bunch of free tix I figured it would probably be worth the drive to Meadow Brook. I was absolutely correct. (Scroll down for the full list of BT shows I've seen.) It turned out that they weren't free, per se, they were coupons to get in for 5 bucks. Stacey came over, cut off my Mohawk, & then we drove out to Rochester Hills. We were getting off the express way 40 minutes later... the best time I ever made going out that way. At that point, we had to hook up w/ my parents in the lot to score our tickets & after a couple beers, we went in & I had some less than fantastic Phantom Menace nachos. We also split a $13.00 double Captains & Pepsi which was good, but a bit pricey. As it turned out, BT's set was fantastic though & well worth the 5 bucks, at least once we moved close enough to be able to hear. We could hear the opening band from the lot, but couldn't hear well on the top of the hill at all. Maybe there's some sound ordinance in Rochester Hills that demands they turn it down a bit after a certain time. We were sitting w/ my parents & a group of folks w/ whom they went, but had to ditch them after about 20 minutes. We found a great spot next to the board & right behind some young white punks on dope who were much better than the old white trash on blankets that were sitting next to my parants. It's quite possible that the mix/volume wasn't the problem, but rather the incessant conversations of these douche bags who couldn't shut their fucking pie holes. Some were even sitting w/ their backs to the stage as they carried on about the most pointless drivel. Until, of course, "Run Around," when one woman then complained that the people in front of her were blocking her view of the song she knew. Ditching them was a great idea. We could see a lot better, the sound was great, & their playing was really impressive. They didn't play any of the songs I was hoping to hear, "Whoops," "Sweet Talkin' Hippie," "Gina," "100 Years," Whoops," "Alone" "Mother Funker," "Jaberwock," "Go Outside and Drive," or "Out of My Hands," or anything off of Travelers and Thieves which is ironic because that's the one album of theirs that I can't find right now & it's always been my favorite. Even though I didn't get any of the songs I was hoping for, I had a really good time & was really impressed by Chan's little brother on bass. His solos reminded me more of Otiel or Victor Wooten than of Bobby Sheehan. The keyboardist, the guy from Big Dave & the Ultrasonics, was great too. I didn't know if I'd like their sound w/ keys or not, but it really adds some nice textures. The other things to note were the rearrangements of "Hook" & "The Mountains Win Again." They were both slowed way down & given a sort of Spanish Flamenco feel w/ some sort of military-like percussion... almost like in "Five to One," which is what I thought they were going to play. I also thought they were going into "Stand" a couple times, as two different jams had the "The answers come to those who pray" sound. As for "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," it was always my least favorite cover in a repertoire that includes "Miss You," "Should I Stay or Should I Go," "Blister in the Sun," "Imagine, "Five to One," & "Come Together." It too was fun though & seemed to make sense in the set list. Until they came back to it in the encore, I'd forgotten that they left it unfinished earlier. All in all, they played for 2 1/2 hours & only stopped 4 times. The jams & segues were great. I would highly recommend checking them out some time. I guess, after 20 years, they've gotten it figured out pretty well. not that they were better than they used to be, but maybe a bit tighter & more organized. They're playing a free show in Lima, OH on the 4th, & if I wasn't going to be at Dunegrass, I'd definitely consider making the drive. I think I'll have to check them out again, next time they come around.

Popper prepares to eat his mic... before the gastric Bypass Surgery

Set 1
Sadly A Fiction>
Carolina Blues>
Back In The Day>
The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly>
The Devil Went Down To Georgia>
Run-Around
Just For Me
Money Back Guarantee>
You Reach Me>
All Hands>
Hook
Amber Awaits>
Thinnest Of Air>
Love & Greed
NY Prophesie>
You Lost Me There>
Can't Win True Love>
Mulling It Over>
But Anyway

Encore
The Mountains Win Again>
The Devil Went Down To Georgia

Blues Traveler Shows I've seen:
1994-07-21 H.O.R.D.E. Festival, Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, MI (w/ Jason, Clifford, the Josher & my ex)
1994-10-13 State Theatre, Detroit, MI (w/ the Josher)
1995-04-02 Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (w/ my ex, the Josher, & 2 of his friends... Mike & Chris)
1995-04-07 Indiana University Auditorium, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN (w/ Jason, Clifford, the Josher, & my ex)
1995-08-20 H.O.R.D.E. Festival, Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, MI (w/ Jason, Clifford, my ex, the Josher, Mike, Chris, & my ex)
1995-10-26 Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (w/ my ex & a couple of Whole Foodsers: Amy & Jerome)
1995-10-27 Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (w/ my ex) (my favorite BT show ever)
1996-07-14 H.O.R.D.E. Festival, Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, MI (w/ my ex, Elizabeth, & a bunch of her friends)
1996-07-15 H.O.R.D.E. Festival, Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, MI (w/ all of the people listed above except the Whole Foodsers)
1996-11-13 Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (w/ Dawn & my ex)
2007-07-24 Meadow Brook Music Festival, Rochester Hills, MI (w/ Stacey & my parents)
For setlist info, click here.