Indianapolis, IN
Indianapolis, IN |
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Date: August 26, 1999 Location: Indianapolis, Indiana JOHN PRINE WINS THE INDY (CROWD) Tonight was the big night for about four thousand fans of John Prine. They had gathered, same month, just two years ago, for this same troubadour. The bus must be his! Alas! It was not! This huge transport was the digs of his opening act, the multi-talented Nanci Griffith. John? He and his "gang" of five arrived in a series of rented trucks and cars. Friend, mentor, and manager, Al Bunnetta, drove up alone from Nashville to take in the spectacle. This is a group that make their impressions not on their material holdings, their glitz, or their oversized egos. They choose to make music: music that shakes you to your shoes, mists your eyes, causes you to laugh out loud at times, and creates a memory-in-the-making with each additional song. When Nanci Griffith's bus is in a Nashville junk re-claim, folks in Indianapolis will still be remembering the show put on by Prine, Wilber, and Jacques in August, 1999. They came to play, and play they did. John guested on Nanci's slot, and sang "Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness" and "That's The Way That The World Goes 'Round." It was a nice choice of songs, but the haunting harmonies shown in their practice of "Streets Of Baltimore" earlier in the day was not present. John sang a verse, Nancy sang a verse, John sang a verse, Nancy sang a verse. Nice...but it didn't do much more than show them able to sing together on John's songs. Apparently needing to leave right after her opening, it was disappointing that she didn't feel compelled to stay and sing perhaps "Angel" or the "Streets" and to join in on the typical guest-opener-finale, "Paradise." Maybe she had other places to go at eleven o'clock at night.
Were those girls who screamed, in unison, "RYE-CHEER-JOHN!" when he vocalized that he "wisht I had a woman/ made muh knees knock!".....were they...were they....Fannie...Donna....and other culprits who had planned it ahead? Their voices sure sounded familiar..... Most concert goers will never hear "Far From Me"....and it is too bad. One chatter mentioned in 1997, after learning that John had performed it, that he'd drive a thousand miles to hear John do it. I have to agree: this song is beyond belief, and will make you feel how bad Cathy made John feel. This is a song with such a wistful feel to it. John based it on "the first girl who gave me back a ring"....and it is clear that it still hurts a bit to him, despite his world-apart situation today. What other song will you get lyrics such as: 'ain't it funny how an old broken bottle/ looks just like a diamond ring?' and.... 'well, a question ain't really a question/ if you know the answer too' and... 'she asked me to change the station/ said the song just drove her insane... but it weren't just the music playing/ it was me she was trying to blame...' and... 'why we used to laugh together/ and we'd dance to any old song... well, ya know, she still laughs with me/ but she waits just a second too long...' There just can't be enough said about this song. It sums up the lyric prowess of John Prine, the ability to grab your emotions and squeeze them until you yell "uncle." We met John's quirky, loveable family of oddballs, misfits, and outcasts. Wanda the whore was with us tonight, as was her suicidal son James Lewis...Grandpa was there and we could see him with a little John on his lap, reading the comics to the child. We heard of lonely young people in a masturbatory fantasy, a couple dancing in a goofy world, a drugged-up vet with nowhere to go but down, a failed marriage culminating in Canada, and a woman's views out the windows of her life, as she wonders, "how the hell can a person/ go to work in the morning/ come home in the evening/ and have nothing to say?" We watched as James Dean went to Hollywood, and the Navajo lost his soul, as a marriage failed but was reflected upon with wishes for "All The Best." We took a trip to Hawaii and heard the tourist junk John spent his "moola" on.... You hadda be there......! See John this year....if you have seen him before, you already know you will. If you haven't, you need to question your own judgment! John is a piece of Americana. He is unequalled. He MUST be seen by anyone who enjoys our country, our people, and understands somewhat the wide gamut of emotions each of us has experienced. John knows those feelings, and has condensed each into a single line or two that says it all for you. When you leave a John Prine concert, you feel better about yourself, feel appreciative at having seen a person with such delightful insights, and generally make a mental note of the friends you will bring the next time this guy is in the area! The ratings at the top of this year's reviews will result from an average of several factors: these include Lighting, Audio, Audience, Visibility, Comfort, and Show Quality. John basically is responsible for the last, and often can get the "audience" score higher. The other factors will depend upon the facility. SET LIST, INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA 1. BLOW UP YOUR TV (SPANISH PIPEDREAM) band leaves John alone 11. DEAR ABBY band returned to finish 'Sam Stone' (Dave used "pornophone") 18. BEAR CREEK BLUES 20. PARADISE (with Larry Crane)
INDIANAPOLIS: STILL A SPECIAL PLACE FOR THE GATHERING FANS... It was a most interesting night in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August
26, 1999. This was the site of the now almost revered Wogstock of August two years
previously. ŠJerry Briggs 1999 |
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