Tuesday, October 6, 2009…..Columbia, MD

Last night’s show at Merriweather was all it was set up to be…..stress free.  The home front was good, the road had been kind and the weather was holding its own.  The weather in particular was of major concern to me for good reasons, so I didn’t even want to mention it prior to the show being over. This was a full circle show in so many respects, given I saw the GD all the times they played the venue….from 83-85…and then a JGB show in 89.  The most memorable one by far for me…other than that 85 Shakedown…..was 6/20/83 which happened to be my 3^rd show and 1^st one outside.  I did not get the picture perfect day I had hoped for.  If fact, it was just the opposite….it started drizzling just as the show started and by the time the final lightening bolts met above the stage at the end of the Baby Blue encore, it had rained 6 inches.  Being on the lawn the entire time, I caught the full effect.  It was amazing…..the lawn was turned into a mud slide and a free-for-all.  The band totally fed off of the energy even through about 5-6 total power failures…each bringing a couple of seconds of silence before the music returned.  I still find myself loving to read the reviews of this show on the internet streaming sites….do yourself a favor and check some of them out.  No one has to exaggerate when telling stories about this show.  I really walked through chest deep water to get back to my car in the green parking lot….so I know.  I found the bridge that washed out that night and it was surreal walking in that same area again.  Lots of crazy memories from sleeping in parking lots to the worn out ticket stub from that drenching night. 

 

 

 

 

For that matter, this venue is quite the experience in itself.  Both Hardy and Dan had never been there before and are already for the next time.  With great sound and an intimate setting in the woods, this place has it all….even a screened in back porch with a artist lounge out back in the woods by a pond….and hammocks for the weary.  We had great time all afternoon just soaking up the good vibes this place provides.  By the time show hit we more than ready and the band did not disappoint….they played exceptionally well throughout the whole evening….in my opinion.  I finally felt relaxed given the path taken to get to that point.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speaking of paths to that point, I guess it is time to introduce everyone to Betty….Hardy’s GPS system.  Well, Hardy and Betty weren’t communicating well yesterday morning and we ended up back where we had ended the night before….The Crab Shanty.  Things got better after that for sure….but those roads around Columbia all look the same.  We found that a long time ago in 1985 when a friend of ours left us after a show to go get a shirt he had seen a few rows over from our car.  Well, after a couple of hours, we were told to leave by the cops and after having them search the hospitals and jails, we were left to find our way back to our hotel about 20 miles away.  Finally we made it back and found our friend in the bed eating pizza wondering where the hell we had been.  Damn.  It would saved us a bunch of grief had we had a cell phone. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were off to the Portsmouth show by about 11 today after a good sleep.  Looking forward to a cooker tonight….something just makes me feel that way…hopefully, I’ll be right.