ROGER WATERS - YOU MAKE THE WATERS RIPPLE

Ever seen a concert performer get booed before? What mostly blew me away was that the same men and women who furiously sent their middle fingers into the air, screaming the accommodating salute to a man they'd paid a ndred dollars to see, were back cheering for the always-political Pink Floyd leader, Roger Waters in his next song.
   
Lost in my amazement of the mass reaction to the epic "Leaving Beirut" was that it was, perhaps, the most unique rock theater experience I've had. Performance art kicked in your face - by a man who most in attendance revered. The song began with visual images on the giant movie screen behind Waters and his large band, and they drove the song until its end. We saw George Bush defaced as evil and Nancy Reagan painted in light with Stalin, Mao and Nixon. Waters cursed the Christian right. He cursed our president  Tony Blair got blasted by his countryman, too. Bam! Whack! Splat! It looked like it was a live comic book with dark tales painted behind, much like images in the movie "The Wall". Outrageous.
 
Waters wants his audience to hear his message. We heard it. Most booed. There was no hiding, though, from what had been accomplished. Waters' creation sent a seismic ripple through the cumulus-like cloud of pot-smoke that filled Madison Square Garden.      .
 
The genius in the production of "Leaving Beirut" is independent of politics, though. The greatness is in the dichotomy of Waters using the softness of a comic book to deliver his dagger. He would not have been received so intensely had he not printed the lyrics behind him on the movie screen, changing with each new line. The words were written inside cartoon-like bubbles that collapsed in arrows pointing to Waters as the character on stage.
 
He got the reaction every true artist craves, perhaps the polar opposite of a theater in dead silence. 
 
Regardless of where you stand politically, though, all sides should be able to agree that Waters is an artist - just as Bob Dylan is a poet, not the 'voice of a generation', a label that  Bob always fought. On September 12 at the Garden, Roger Waters paid tribute to the families of 9/11 victims, drawing cheers before playing the classic "Wish You Were Here". He is not an insensitive man. He is a successful, mad artist.

Click here to see Waters perform "Leaving Beirut." *NOT RECORDED AT PNC OR MSG.


TOM PETTY - LOVE THE NEW ALBUM / DISAPPOINTED WITH THE CONCERT

There is not a better American rock-n-roll band today, for my money, than Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. If you have never seen a concert of theirs and you like the songs, make sure not to miss their next tour. I hope that it will be much better than the show I saw at Madison Square Garden this June.
 
Even though I have attended over a dozen Tom Petty concerts, I am not ready to accept that I have seen it all. Petty's library of songs is so rich, it burns me to see him play the same tunes the last couple of tours. His new CD, "Highway Companion" has at least six songs that would have been welcomed by the audience. Instead, we got the two hits, "Saving Grace" and "Square One" - both of which are terrific. However, not one song was played from the rich predecessor to "Highway Companion", "The Last DJ". There was no representation from the "She's the One" soundtrack or from "Echo". While "Wildflowers" is my favorite Tom Petty album, I could do without seeing the band perform the radio hit "You Wreck Me" for the four billionth time. For the love of live rock music, bring back the ttle cut, "Wildflowers" and "Time to Move On".
 
There was a predictability I'd never experienced at a Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers show. Tom didn't look like he was having fun. It may have appeared that he was loving life, but I didn't see it. Looked like he was going through the motions. I hope he'll recapture his love for playing live.
 
I watched some of the concert clips from the Garden show at YouTube.com. I love YouTube, but I'm tired of seeing horrible concert footage. If the audio stinks, please don't post the clip!

Click here to watch Tom Petty peform "Learning to Fly" on June 20, 2006 at Madison Square Garden.


JOHN FOGERTY -  SUMMER OF '06's BEST AMERICAN ROCKER

 

Willie Nelson was the opening part of the show. It was my first time seeing Willie and the Family. Big 'ol Texas-sized Lonestar State flag as a backdrop on the stage at the PNC Bank Arts Center. Willie played, and I bopped around, even thought I didn't know most of the songs. Still, I enjoyed being there, immensely. Willie's an American classic.
 
The Arts Center is  a special place to be because it's connected with summertime and great nights - on the lawn or in the seats. This evening, though was still daytime,  which may have lessened my excitement level to be at the concert. The best sound quality at the Arts Center is heard from from the seats in the amphitheater that are directly facing center-stage. This is where I was for the Willie/Fogerty show. Also sat in the center for Roger Waters at PNC, in the last rows of seats before the lawn - in prime position to catch those "extra" noises from 'Dark Side of the Moon" that blew out from specially added speakers behind us.
 
John Fogerty kicked off the evening session with "Travelin' Band" and then one Credence smash after another. I danced and boogied and sang my tone-deaf voice aloud for more than two hours. The songs rocked hard, thanks to the presence of Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp's longtime drummer) pounding away on the skins. A poignant, acoustic version of "Deja Vu All Over Again" stole the crowd. 
 
Like Roger Waters' "Leaving Beirut", "Deja Vu" is an anti-war, anti-Bush song, but it did not draw anything of a reaction like Waters' did. They are different types of performers, after all.
 
While Waters was more intent on punching his audience with politics woven into songs and film, Fogerty delivered his message with an acoustic guitar and sensitive, yet meaningful black-and-white images of our soldiers and politicians, using the comparison between Iraq and Vietnam to express his patriotism. His unique twang, nearly in a-capella, sounded like a cry. Really beautiful. Hardly anyone booed.
 
John Fogerty is now sixty-one years old. He's 61, but he makes you wonder if there's really a 22-year old kid inside his body. He belted his voice and jammed on his guitar all night. His stage show was simple, yet perfectly choreographed with the other players. They exuded class. It was clear that his performance in Holmdel was the benchmark to where all live music acts should aim. Also, it was also the least expensive concert I saw this summer. And, we got to see Bruce Springsteen, too. The Boss joined Fogerty during his encore. The two played an acoustic version of "Long Tall Sally."

Click here to see Bruce join John Fogerty at the PNC Bank Arts Center.


GLENN TILBROOK & THE FLUFFERS - A LIVE CONCERT DVD FILMED IN NYC

 

You know Glenn Tilbrook. He's the perfectly-pitched voice singing all those Squeeze songs with you in the car. He's the McCartney of the 'best songwriting duo since Lennon and McCartney" - a title given after songs like "Pulling Mussels from the Shell" and "Black Coffee in Bed" had been added to a collection of Squeeze's growing library of  late seventies pop hits --  upbeat, punky numbers - punchy, smiley sing-a-longs like "Take Me, I'm Yours", "Cool for Cats",  "Goodbye Girl" and "Up the Junction".
 
The first time I saw Squeeze in concert was while I was in college. It was a dynamite show at the Beacon Theater. They exuded class. Their "Play" album, which the band was touring on is one of the best in my collection, yet so few know about it.
 
Glenn Tilbrook's night at The Canal Room last month brought me back to that evening at the Beacon when I was a Hofstra freshman. Class. Excellence. Respect to music. Respect to live performance. This show, though, was captured on film - a DVD forthcoming. AND, I WAS THERE!!  Does this mean there's a chance I'm going to be 'that guy' in the crowd? Geez, I hope I don't look like a buffoon.

Glenn and I have become buddies over the last few years. Though I sing along to his songs in concert, I'm embarrassed by the thought of Glenn seeing me do so - especially in the edit room, having a hearty laugh as he watches me make a fool of myself in slow-motion.

Bottom line on Glenn Tilbrook: He's the most entertaining musician I've seen in years. His guitar playing will blow you away; he aims to be Hendrix-like. Glenn is also the most talented and accomplished rock star you'll get the chance to see perform at such close range.


MAXED OUT POST-SCRIPT:  UN-LUCKY LOUIE

Why did HBO not renew "Lucky Louie" for a second season? It was unlike any show on television. With its cheap lighting and pale-colored set, it looked like a bad college show from the late seventies. It wasn't sexy. The humor was painfully sharp at times. It didn't color within the lines.
 
HBO claims that "Lucky Louie' had only one million viewers weekly - half the size of the audience for "Entourage", which was given a contract for its fourth season.
 
Critics panned "Lucky Louie". Even the guys I respect killed it. Are they frustrated because they didn't get it? How would these folks feel at first glance with Arhcie Bunker? Imagine "All in the Family" was pulled after only one season. Maybe HBO figures it will make more money by releasing "Lucky Louie" on DVD.
 
Still, it was only one season. Gone too soon. So many great elements. So real. Pamela Adlon will become a major star. Her role as Kim displayed everything that makes HBO great. Who knows -- maybe they're trying to create a cult buzz, and they'll bring it back.

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It should be noted that the quality of the photographs is due to the fact that Jared Max took them on his cell phone.