Workplay, 08/07/06

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Part One
August 7, 2006 -
Left Knoxville about noon (thank God Alabama is in Central Time). Got to Birmingham and checked into the Tutwiler by 3pm. The parking lot/street/lobby/hallways are practically bursting with Soul Patrollers. I think there were about five separate “factions” represented. Went to my room, met a bunch of people, blah blah blah.

I’m hesitant to list names because I just know I will leave someone off, but here goes: Jazzleaveshernumber, Robin4T, SoulKaren, completelylostmymind, Possum, Marie, Lee, Jan, Lynn, etc. Far, far too many.

“What’s your screen name?” “Oh! Great to meet you.” “You’re the one who said…” and, the one I heard most over the course of two days – “Are you Amy?” So. I really do look like that picture. Hmm.

We piled into a couple of cars to drive to the Workplay. Yeah it’s early – what’s your point?? Robin gave us a lovely tour of Birmingham while we listened to Taylor win American Idol. Got dinner at a McDonald’s whose drive-thru was designed by Escher. WTF!? I think it was a little before five when we got to WP, but as soon as the bar was open we moved right in and got liquored up! Just kidding!! I only had ONE chocolate martini – quite possibly the best one I have ever had.

There is one thing they don’t tell you about the Workplay. Apparently, the front door is a freakin’ Black Hole – all time slo-o-o-ows unbelievably!! Although we were having fun, joking and laughing and talking, the time cre-e-e-eped by. I swear! A freakin’ hour would go by – and it was 5 damn minutes!! Ack!

A line started forming by the theater door (about 6?) so, naturally, we rushed it! WOO-fucking-HOO! Time moves even slower by this particular door. Thankfully Lee keeps me laughing. Wait! Doors are open! RUN!! Somehow I find myself front and effing center. Hell yeah! I think it was about 6:45, so we’ve got a bit of standing to do. Eh. Whatever. Folks come rushing in and start trying to steal our spots already. Well screw you!

Part Two
I’m standing there with Lee and Robin4T is back and forth. SoulKaren is a few people to my left with some more of the group. I have lost some people. There are other people who I have met and can’t remember names. There is a girl I have dubbed Prom Queen (tight red dress, stupid red heels – venue inappropriate) with whom I have chosen to call Pimp Mom. Pimp Mom is propositioning a security guard. Speaking of mom’s, where the heck is my Mom? She’s waving from about 6 rows of people back. She will be at a table in the back of the room. Okay, I’m stayin’ right here.
Word reaches the front that Gray is in the building. I still don’t want to move. That’s okay – Lee has a convenient sign to hold up that features Gray’s name. Go figure. Eventually, he comes over. I get to shake the man’s hand. Whoo-hoo! Sorry we did not get to talk at all, but I think he was swept back through the crowd by his admirers. (snicker) The rest of us pass the time talking music – Taylor music in particular. I bring up “Texas Flood” and see a few rolling eyes and hear a few groans. Do I talk about that song too much? Suck it up, folks. There is a girl right behind me who has never heard the Open Door Café Set. I think I’m going to pass out! I make her give me her e-mail address. No one should be without ODC.

Let me see…lots of standing, talking to various people. People keep shoving me – I am a freakin’ rock! I. Ain’t. Movin’. I thought Lee was going to kick a girl’s ass at one point. This trampy grandma comes up and says she just wants to leave her purse on the stage (between the amps). Some girl lets her. I have been to enough shows like this to know that is her sneaky way of stealing a prime spot later in the show. I hate her already. She’s one of the flippin’ vultures who doesn’t give a crap about LMBO – and that ticks me off.

The first performer who comes out is a young man named Michael Warren. He is such a little cutie and he looks so young. It’s just him and his guitar and boy is he something. He has a beautiful voice and a sweet nature. He jokes with the crowd a little, pimps his MySpace, seems genuinely overwhelmed by the crowd. Despite the announcement beforehand to keep conversation to a minimum, people don’t stop talking (very loudly) through his entire brief set. I think of my favorite downloads of Taylor – The Open Door Café – and how I wish there wasn’t so much noise and I feel for this young man. Some fan is going to get ahold of this WP download in two and a half years and wish to God the crowd would shut up. I was gratified to find this picture on his website tonight of him with Taylor backstage:

Part Three
Okay, so Michael leaves the stage and I can’t remember if there was a break or not – yes, there was. We talked about how much we liked Michael. I make a mental note to visit his MySpace as soon as I get home.

Now, I don’t have a watch on, so I have no time frames here. It may have been 8:30-ish when LMBO came out, but who the heck knows? I am not possibly going to be able to give a complete and total pbp simply because they played so many songs, I would have to be an android to remember them all. There were lots of funky songs, bluesy songs, dance-y songs. My favorite tune of the night was “Not Fade Away” which blended into “Who Do You Love” and back to NFA. The audience was singing, we were all dancing, the groove was flowin’, the band was kicking all kinds of ass…wow! It was abso-freaking-lutely awesome! I LOVE these guys!! At one point during their first set, Robin4T leaned forward and said, “They just all look so happy, Amy!” And they did. They looked ecstatic.
Sam is Mr. Cool. He grooves along with the music, his vocals are bluesy and buttery.

Mitch hangs in the background, peeking up between Sam and Jeff every so often as if to say “What’s goin’ on up here?” then he grooves on back to his spot.

Jeff is crazy, man! He moves from sax to sax effortlessly and then to that flute. Have I said just how cool the way he plays that flute is? Well it is. My only beef is that he does not play the baritone sax enough. Jeff – Play. More. Bari.

Brian is, of course, Brian. We have all heard him tearin’ up that keyboard. To see it live is a thing of beauty. He could hold his own against the greats any day. And man can he sing! I was very pleasantly surprised.

Don’t ask me about Zippy. Typical drummer, hiding in the back (I love ya’, man. I’m only funnin’). He did stand up long enough to fling a drum stick to somebody who was a little too close for my comfort. That’s the last thing I need coming at my eye!

I never did get the other percussionist’s name. Again, sorry, man.

These guys rocked for two complete sets – I’m guessing 3 and a half hours total? I couldn’t believe it. You know how we all comment on Taylor’s seemingly endless energy? Well, the whole freaking band has that – and then some!

Part Four
I’m going to cheat a little here…

The Little Memphis Blues Orchestra, as always, provided solid support for Hicks and offered two tight, funky sets before he arrived on scene.

Their highly competent covers, sans Hicks, included “Tiny Dancer,” “Hey Pocky Way,” “Right Place, Wrong Time” and “Not Fade Away.”

by Mary Colurso

As I said, they played for a long damn time = a lot of music. I couldn’t believe when they did “Tiny Dancer”! Who was it who said they were going to yell for that one? Of course, that “Hey Pocky Way” is one of my favorite songs period –

Feel good music,
I’ve been told,
It’s good for your body,
And it’s good for your so-oul!”
They also did “Great Balls of Fire” – and let me tell you something…Jerry Lee ain’t got nothin’ on Brian Less. Really bad pun alert: Less is more. (wah wah wah)

I kept taking pictures and wound up with a Buttload of pics of Jeff and Sam (they were right in front of me), but more of Jeff. Lee and SpaceyTracey kept teasing me. What can I say? I dig the sax. At least I didn’t manhandle Jeff’s “sack” like you two… BWAHAA!! I kept my hands to myself all night.

Time wise, I don’t really know what was going on, but I danced constantly – well, when I wasn’t taking pictures. Mary Colurso said that Taylor and his “boys” came on about 10:15, but I woulda sworn it was a bit later than that.

Part Five
Before I dive in, I got the other percussionist’s name: Jay Smith. He deserves his props because “Hold On To Your Love” just would not be the same without the congas, chimes, and that shaky thing. And I don’t think he stopped moving all night! Way to go, Jay!

Preface: I bought tickets for this gig the day they went on sale. My thinking was that LMBO is a great band on film and for 12 bucks…what the hell? Right? If Taylor shows, he shows. If he doesn’t, he doesn’t – we have a good time anyway. Since I couldn’t get online Monday, I didn’t know what was going on with the AI stuff. Usually there’s someone, somewhere who knows exactly where the buses are and what the “kids” are doing. In other words, I wasn’t expecting Taylor to appear…until Brian made a reference to a “good friend” who was going to be joining them later. Then he said, “Y’all are gonna get your money’s worth tonight!” I think it was during the second set, but that’s when I knew – Taylor’s comin’. What do you do when you have that kind of information? You boogie. You jam. You defend your mother-effing spot in front of the stage.

We got to the break after the second LMBO set and I turned around to talk to friends. I notice there are new people beside and behind them who were not there during the previous set. Vultures. If they think I’m movin’ they’ve got about a hundred ‘nother things coming. Trampy Grandma makes a reappearance, bitching loudly about how she had been standing there and someone took her spot, and Look! Her purse is right there…that proves it. So the chick next to me … lets. her. in. (she must be a pit virgin).

I don’t have time to really process this new development because stagehands are bringing out more microphones! They put two right in front of me. Ack! There is also a new guitar laid in front of the drum kit. Double Ack!! I check my camera and wait patiently. Well, maybe not that patiently, but whatever.

The lights finally go back down and a local DJ comes out…and announces LMBO with Taylor Hicks. Well, out he walks and the place freakin’ exploded! I’m sure you all have watched the video on the Boogie Blog by now. My eardrums are still recovering.

You know how everybody says you don’t know how you are going to react until you are there? Well, I honestly had no idea. Am I going to go freaking nuts? Am I going to cry? Am I going to remain calm? Turns out I am a pretty cool cucumber. Actually “stunned” is a good word for it. I can’t believe I am standing here.

It is at this point that the time warp that began at the door reverses itself and we are moving forward at supersonic speed – kinda like a rubber band snapping back into place. Taylor says some stuff. “How’s everybody doin’ tonight?” (screaming from crowd) Mentions how glad he is to be home – “I’ve been waiting for this for a whole year!” (more screaming) And in the midst of all the screaming comes a shrill, high-pitched tone…wait! That is in my ear. Yep. My ear. Nothing sounds right to me the whole rest of the night.

Part Six
Taylor picks up the guitar and they launch into “Call Me the Breeze” – and even with my wonky ear I can tell you it was damn fine! Taylor goes from band member to band member…they all play together and off each other so well. These guys clearly love each other and love playing together. It’s just such a happy feeling to see their happiness. It’s …rather difficult really…to find the right words, but I am gonna try…

For those who have yet to see Taylor in person (and remember that was me less than a week ago) – you know how you feel watching the videos? That…weightless, yet heavy…happy, yet crying…every emotion happening at once feeling? All of that comes at you like a force from the stage. And trust me – there is a physical force. It either affixes you to the spot in which you are standing or whips you into a freaking frenzy! This explains the picture of half the crowd just staring at Taylor while half is reaching for him – while every one of us looks dazed…

I can’t remember an exact setlist – time was flying, people were screaming, the most amazing man I have ever heard/seen is less than two feet in front of me – but I can recall certain moments. I know Elliott came out and he and Taylor sang “Whipping Post” and “Use Me” (I almost melted!). I think the only thing keeping me from swooning (seriously) was that it didn’t sound right. Apparently the busted eardrum was a blessing in disguise. Can you imagine slumping to the floor in that crowd????

They did an extended version of “Hold On To Your Love”. It was similar to the Open Door Café version, but (as we all know) he never does a song exactly the same way twice. I love the calypso beat, and the way he pronounces “Senora,” and the way he sings “Okay! I believe yooo!” At one point, he starts into “The Tide is High” and gets the whole audience singing along. Over 400 people start singing at Taylor’s very command!

Part Six, Deux
Now, here’s something I found interesting. We had been talking on the Board about the way he shushes the crowd…and for the most part they shut up. I’ve never had the visual (other than the “Finding the Groove” video – but that is a bit different), so it wasn’t entirely clear what he was doing. He shushed us several times that night…and each time, right after, he highlighted a band member. It’s almost like, “Shhhh…listen to this guy!”

He shushed us one time and pointed to Brian, who started playing hard and fast. Meanwhile, Taylor goes into this weird, Bali-esque dance with his hands twisting and turning above his head. Nobody seems to know what that was all about – but it was pretty hot.

He then starts twirling around with the guitar and goes off on the side stage. The cord got wrapped around the cymbal stand and pulled it over. I could see a poor stagehand frantically trying to untangle everything while Taylor just keeps smiling and never stopped playin’! By the time the cord problem was straightened out, it was about time for the drum solo. Taylor and Brian went behind the piano and it was like a trapdoor – I had no idea what they were doing back there. Zippy kept the solo going, passing it on to Jay seamlessly. The problem was eventually solved and Taylor and Brian came back out. People had thrown long stemmed roses onto the stage and, yes, Taylor put one in his mouth and did a crazy dance. It was just for a moment, and he took the rose out and gave the crowd this devilish, yet innocent, elated grin/half-laugh. I’m so glad there is video to capture that. I don’t know exactly how long this song was, but that FOX video is 7+ minutes long and there was more (I think. Help!) where Taylor squeezed in a bit of “Jesus is Just Alright.”

Part Seven
Taylor and company played for a damn long time. If Mary Colurso is correct about them coming on stage at 10:15, they were up there for close to two hours. I’m glad we are working on a setlist because I am interested to know just how many songs they did.

There was a point where Taylor was playing his guitar and put his foot up on the amp that was just to my left (practically right in front of me). All the women around me were reaching out to touch him, but I did keep my hands to myself. Part of that is I was still somewhat stunned, but part of that is due to Trampy Grandma. She reached up and grabbed his ankle. Quite frankly, I didn’t want to be associated with her and that behavior. I got the impression that Taylor liked it, though. He looked down at us and flashed this wicked, devilish smile and kinda crinkled up his face with a laugh. He jerked his leg up out of the arms and winked as he backed away from the edge of the stage. Oh yeah. He liked it.

Taylor also kept bending over a lot more than I felt was really necessary, but what the hell? Like I’m gonna be the one to tell him to stop. Every time he bent over to pick up his guitar, Trampy Grandma leaned across the stage and took pictures of his butt. She must have a whole freakin’ photo album of just Taylor’s ass. If something like that shows up on eBay, you’re probably buying it from her.

Everybody’s watched SoulKaren’s video of “Dance to the Music” with the harmonica, right? Well, I just thought I was gonna die! He took that thing out of his pocket and the crowd went NUTS! I’ve never seen so many people get so excited over 5/6 inches of steel. Damn did he play the hell outta that thing!?! It was that nice grunty playing, too. Mmm. He fell to his knees right in front of me. I had a brief thought that I hoped the roses had no thorns, but it didn’t last long. Holding onto a coherent thought in a moment like that would challenge a Yogi master. I tried to take a picture, but my camera did not function – for all I know I was the one malfunctioning. What do you expect? Taylor Hicks was on his knees, playing the harmonica, less than two feet in front of me! Thankfully SpaceyTracy got pictures of this momentous event from right next to me, so likely our pictures would have looked exactly alike. Love you Tracy!

Part Eight
“The shout heard ‘round the world!”

You all know that Taylor likes to highlight the band. How many times have we all heard “Let’s hear it for this band!“ I don’t remember exactly when, but at one point after such a shout-out, Taylor says “If you want to hear more from these guys, e-mail J Records!” So, mental notes all around. He must have made that announcement 3 or 4 times, and it didn’t take a full 24 hours before people were online doing just that. J Records must have been inundated! They may need to hire more interns – so it’s good for the band and the economy. It’s good that Taylor realizes his power and is using it for good. He is a good man.

At some time during the evening, he introduces his pals – Elliott, Ace, and Bucky – like we really need them to be introduced to us. I know he made some reference to The Rat Pack, per the BlogCritics article. He then said (shouted) “We’re gonna bring real music back to fucking pop music!” (screams and shouts from the crowd) He backs away from the mic, shoots one of his now famous devil grins over to the AI boys (who are laughing and grinning uncontrollably), steps back up to the mic – “We are gonna bring real music back. to fucking pop music!! (Points at crowd) And you can take that to the bank! (Points off side stage) And e-mail J Records!!” The freakin’ house fell down! The screaming was almost as deafening as when he first came on stage.

Part Nine
Wrap it up!

So, I don’t know how long we boogied. I don’t know how long LMBO played. I don’t know how long Taylor was there. I don’t know all of the songs that were performed.

I do know that we partied down. I do know that LMBO kicks all kinds of ass. I do know that Taylor rocked the fucking house. I do know that they played several of my favorite songs.

After the stage was cleared and the lights came up, we all filed outside where we sat and talked and shared pictures (aren’t digital cameras the best?). Some people were wanting autographs, some were just smoking and waiting for a ride. I saw Trampy Grandma come charging out and catch a cab like she was on a freaking mission.

Michael Warren exited and hung out for a bit before catching a cab with a bunch of his friends. I should have talked to him for a minute, but I didn’t.

We followed the big black limo around back. As far as I could tell nobody ever got in it. I think it was a decoy. Elliott and Bucky, mystery blonde and Bucky’s wife came out the back and got in a Nissan. For some reason that struck me as funny. They signed some autographs. A couple of girls tried to get at Bucky but the wife said, “Sorry girls. He’s leaving with me.” (This was according to my Mom. The exchange was jokey and light.)

I think we left the place a little before two. It was so hot and steamy…yipe! Somebody said “It’s unnatural to be this hot this late at night.” Not in Birmingham, apparently. We drove to Waffle House – it was the first non-smoking Waffle House I have ever seen. I didn’t know there was such a thing. We sat at the bar – Robin4T, completelylostmymind, Mom, Maria, and myself – which I have never done. It’s easier than shoving 5 in a booth. We tried to explain to CLMM what grits are, but I’m afraid we fell short because she is still asking. They had damn good grits at this WH. I didn’t have to salt them at all – they were perfectly seasoned. That almost never happens.

We dragged our butts back to the hotel where I laid in the dark for at least an hour before finally being overtaken with a death sleep.

My ears were ringing, my body was aching, my eyes were burning…and all I could hear/see was Taylor and all I could remember was what a wonderful night it was. I was afraid to go to sleep because then it would be over…much like writing this recap. I don’t want it to end.

I just read something on the “Other Board” from someone who met Taylor in Columbus. She asked when he thought his solo tour would be. He said “In the spring” – better start saving your pennies now. It’s worth every cent, my friends.