My fourth stop on this tour was the port city of Bristol, where I had actually spent a whole 20 hours last June when Bon Jovi had performed here on their tour.  This visit, unfortunately, didn’t last much longer than that one.

That is always the case when you’re following some crazy band around the world. You end up seeing the train station (or airport), the hotel, the venue and whatever sights may be on the way to/from any of those three destinations.  Luckily, I ended up with a very friendly taxi driver from the train station who gave me a brief history of the region and any “places of interest” we passed while en route to the hotel.

My hotel was right on the “floating harbor” running through the old part of the city, providing me with some lovely views out my window.

Once again, I decided not to queue in favor of walking around the city a bit. Amusingly, I still ended up in the same old spot I usually am. As in London, the Canadian band The Trews was serving as the support act … though with fewer technical difficulties. (As an aside, I ended up hanging for a couple of hours with a few of the guys at the hotel after the show in Wolverhampton – just shooting the breeze talking music and sports. Really nice guys. If you can, check them out – their newest album, Hope & Ruin, was released back in April.)

In my opinion, this show was the best of the five I saw while in the UK. Everything just seemed to click … including an absolutely BRILLIANT improvised narrative by Southside during “Why Is Love Such a Sacrifice.” That man’s ability to string together words on the spot is just downright amazing. It was also great to hear Jeff Kazee’s kick-ass performance of “I’m A Man” — one of the two songs I had hoped to hear during this trip (the other being “Some Things Just Don’t Change” … which I actually got at my final show. I’ve basically given up all hope of ever hearing my beloved “Don’t Call Me Baby.”)

The band just seemed to be in a great mood and simply having fun. That energy is contagious and translated into all of us simply having fun as well. By the way, I have no idea why there was a blow-up plastic wallaby on stage, but it did prompt a parody of Eric Carmen’s ”Don’t (Wallaby) All By Myself” during the encore set. It was that kind of night.

Ended up having a late dinner at an adorable Italian cafe after the show. Perfect end to a wonderful night.

up next … my final stop: Wolverhampton

I learned a number of things on this trip – of both personal and practical nature. For example, how to cross the street without dying (thank goodness for the “look right” and “look left” directions painted on the curb.) And, that Cardiff is in Wales and Wales is not England.

So, off I went on the train to Wales. After missing my connection in Westbury — three trains and one shuttle bus later — I arrived in the waterfront city of Caerdydd (that would be Cardiff in Welsh *wink*) I had completely lucked out with hotel accommodations and was staying for two nights at the absolutely gorgeous St. David Hotel and Spa (thank you Asbury Jukes for touring during the off-season!) Surprisingly, the weather was quite nice, encouraging me to just sit on my balcony for a while with a glass of wine and one of my biggest obsessions, the UK edition of Vogue magazine. *smile*

The hotel is a five-minute walk from Mermaid Quay, the restaurant/entertainment district on the waterfront (also where the Jukes would be playing the next night.) Home to dozens of restaurants and small boutiques, I enjoyed exploring the streets, eventually stopping for an absolutely fabulous dinner at Las Iguanas …

(burrito stuffed with butternut squash, spinach, cheese and chickpeas … yumm!)

I spent the next morning relaxing in the hotel spa *big sigh* and then headed over to Cardiff Castle (well, one can’t visit the UK and not see a castle, right? LOL) By then, the wind and rain had moved in and I headed back for the show at The Glee Club, where I almost expected a set list of the Jukes covering Broadway songs. LOL

With this being generally a comedy venue, acoustics were downright lousy — but the show was really quite excellent. There were some great surprises (at least for me) including I Remember Last Night and Long Distance, and stand-out solos from Jeff Kazee and Neal Pawley. Of all the concerts I attended this tour, I think this one displayed how truly diverse the band is stylistically – from R&B to soul to funk to reggae to rock. It was a treat to experience it.

I must apologize for almost getting Glenn Alexander killed. In true Southside fashion, he tried to get someone up on stage to sing. This time I was the “lucky” target. When I refused (cuz seriously, wouldn’t y’all rather hear the band than me?!), Johnny requested my camera and sent Glenn down so he could take a picture of us. Unfortunately, the monitor Glenn used as a stepping stone wasn’t anchored to the stage and he ended up tumbling off the stage. Thankfully, the stage was very low and he was fine.

The stage was so low, actually, that us regular first row people sort of created a no-fly zone in front of it so that we weren’t standing eye-to-eye with the band. Holding down our spots, we felt a bit like the offensive line for the New York Giants. LOL Additionally, the small stage space inspired the need for some choreographed moments between John Conte and Southside, though at one point they got their signals crossed and Johnny got himself knocked on his noggin.

This show continued my photographic woes with the amount of red light used, but musically (which is all that really matters anyway) the night was fantastic. Oh, and I’m wondering if Jeff Kazee gets doubling fees for all the percussion instruments he insists on playing. Haha.

As someone who finds a lot of strength, comfort and solace in being by the water, I was sad to leave Cardiff. But, I definitely look forward to returning there on next year’s tour.

next stop: one seriously awesome show in Bristol

After not nearly enough sleep the night before and still feeling a bit jet-lagged, Sandy and I decided to forgo the whole queueing thing and just enjoy a nice, quiet meal (I love tapas!) at a cafe near our hotel.

When we arrived, the energetic crowd was lined up around the corner and down the block. Nonetheless, we ended up with decent spots, second row center with Tasha and Quilly right in front of us. It was sort of like being back in the States … but with better beer.

The Brook is a tiny, little venue right across from an auto dealer/repair shop (NOT a pub, like the attendant at our hotel had told us. Oops.) I sort of snickered at the description they used in their marketing materials.

Umm…I think the Jukes are pretty darn good whether it’s a Tuesday OR a Saturday … in my humble and completely objective opinion, of course. (oh … and note to marketing people … don’t use bold colors behind black text or you can’t read what’s written. #justsaying)

With no opening act, the band took the miniscule stage by storm and never looked back. I had thought that given the previous night’s challenges that this show was probably going to be a great one. And it was.

It is a known fact that these guys can really play … and really sing. Those talents were certainly on display at The Brook and lucky us who got to witness it.

One of the many highlights was an incredible solo by John Conte. Ya know … I love bass players. They just stand back there, holding down the fort, usually out of the spotlight, simply doing their job (and often very well.) It was nice to see JC up front and given the opportunity to really shine.

Then there was the asbsolutely breathtaking performance of Many Rivers to Cross. Southside called Jeff Kazee the most soulful guy to come out of Lima, Ohio. I would expand the geographic description to include most of the Northeast … or maybe North America. Just one time listening to him sing that song will convince you. Also outstanding … Johnny doing A Change is Gonna Come. I will never tire of hearing him do that. And there was Chris Anderson’s solo in Fever which just about brought down the house. Great versions of Umbrella in My Drink, Why Is Love Such a Sacrifice and Lead Me On (though that song just kills me.)

Some amusing comments from the stage included Johnny opening up the floor to a vote on soccer … Manchester United vs Manchester City, and a not-so-flattering description of the cuisine in Wolverhampton. We also had SSJ and John Conte doing strange bird/alien sounds, as well kung-fu fighting (later reprised by Conte and Kazee.) Then there was this long talk about ladies being attracted to Glenn (apparently it’s the hair … and the hat.) Yes, folks, this is why we go to Jukes shows.

I actually really liked this venue. Small and quirky — with a pool ladder that you could use to get up on stage from the floor. And a stage so small that they put brackets on the wall to hold guitars (or a cowbell) so that it didn’t take up precious floor space. There was a balcony with tables overlooking the stage and even a spot where you could sit and look directly down onto the stage from above.

But, at the end of the day, it’s really about the music. And we had plenty of that … and LOUD. (no joke … really loud! When they were playing “Talk to Me” I was thinking … well, not tonight, cuz I won’t be able to hear a damn thing you’re saying by the time this show is over. LOL)

Next up: Cardiff (where I am currently … and loving it … and contemplating looking for an apartment. Haha.)

p.s. The lighting at The Brook was lousy for pictures .. so rather than subject you to numerous less-than-mediocre shots, I’ll just post a few barely acceptable ones, instead.

After a suprisingly enjoyable ”crossing” (row to myself, upgraded with extra leg room, unlimited wine and some very nice salmon. Thank you, Virgin Atlantic.) I landed at Heathrow at the crack of dawn Friday morning ready to see the Jukes rock London.

This was not the first time I had been to “The Old Smoke” (apparently, that was London’s nickname at one point??? Like Paris is “The City of Lights” … or New York City is “The Big Apple” *wink*) But, unfortunately, every time I’m in London I never have enough time to see as much as I’d like as I’m usually here for a concert of some type. Damn bands! LOL

My dear friend Sandy from Germany met me at the airport and we headed into the city to check-in and drop our bags at the hotel (where it seemed everybody and their brother was staying) and hit a good English pub and some shopping … in whichever order it may come. We’re girls … food and shoes are equal priorities. Fact.

Anyhoo, we eventually made it over to queue for the show. I had never been at Shepherd’s Bush Empire before and was blown away by the beauty of the venue with its ornate multiple balconies. The Canadian band, The Trews, was serving as support act … to me, definitely a “North of the Border” type of rock sound somewhat reminiscent of Nickelback … well, once the guitarist was finally able to get plugged into a working amp after his original one blew. Unfortunately, those weren’t the only technical issues of the evening as Glenn was also having significant amp problems during the Jukes set. Must have been some bad energy (literally and figuratively) on that side of the stage.

I realize that living on the East Coast, I’m spoiled in terms of seeing the Jukes on a regular basis. Still, I was happy to get a decent spot … actually, my favorite spot – front row basically between John Conte and Jeff Kazee (who was sporting some new footwear … orange, of course. LOL)

Opening the set with “Shake Em Down”, the night continued with, in my opinion, more fast/sing-along tunes than usual. There were very few mid- and slower-tempo songs, though it’s nice that “All the Way Home” is becoming a more regular inclusion in the set list. A couple of funny moments stood out including SSJ demanding 2£ for a song request (and getting it), as well as a very vocal audience giving their opinion on Johnny’s soccer jersey from Greece (maybe he should send the 2£ there … I think they could use it!)

In the end … sure, it was a slightly weird show that didn’t quite flow. BUT that is live performance – and I’ll take that ANYDAY over a computerized, scripted presentation. Performance is meant to be organic … ok, sometimes it might need a little more Miracle Grow … but each show is an experience and that’s why we keep coming back.

Afterwards, Sandy and I stopped at the pub next door where we had yet another experience … an ENTIRE bar of people singing Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody … and I mean every word … together. Only in England!

By this point, jetlag had pretty much kicked my bum and I was ready to crash for the night.

One down. Four to go.

Next Up: The Comeback in Southampton.

Let’s see … last we spoke, we were leaving Maine and headed for New Hampshire — and waiting to see what Hurricane Irene was going to bring us.  Made me wonder if this sign on the highway would be somehow apropos for NYC post-storm. Would Times Square or Rockefeller Center become one of those “waterfront historic sites”?! Eeek!

We had a pretty uneventful drive to Hampton Beach and actually arrived quite early, especially for a seated show. Walking up and down the boardwalk, we quickly came to the conclusion that we had only a few options: get a henna tattoo, play skee ball for three hours or find a beach bar. You can probably guess which we chose …

We did, however, make a quick stop here (… never did find the fake one … hmmm. Haha.)

So, we spent the afternoon drinking hurricanes (c’mon, you know we had to!) and catching up on emails, picture editing and blog posts (see what I do for y’all?!) and then headed over to the Casino Ballroom — which by the way is not a casino at all (probably good given my weakness for poker.) I had been envisioning something like Atlantic City or at least one of those riverboat casino set-ups. Nope, nothing like that at all! It was a HUGE dance hall that apparently attracts quite a bit of big name performers.

I was sitting with my friend Lisa, who is a professional photographer, and her husband for this show. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t let her in with (what we affectionately call) the kick-ass camera with the MF zoom. So, you’ll have to just get by with my mediocre pictures. Sorry.

This was a fun, raucous show. The crowd reminded me very much of B.B. Kings … umm … so did the quality of the wine. Haha. Everyone in the band seemed to be in a mood to play loud, rockin’ tunes and the people were definitely eating it up.

Of course, there was some great commentary from Southside – including a merchandise plug for band member bobbleheads and a not-so-flattering jab at our favorite keyboard player. No worries, Kazee got back at him with a very extended solo … (sorry, that’s a “you had to be there” reference.) All Johnny could do was sit and wait for Jeff to have his say.

And, I’m sure that the front table appreciated SSJ taking their cheese plate … at least he was willing to share it…though Jeff seemed understandably skeptical given it was from Johnny.

Other high points included a great improvised tale of Billy Walton and his horse, his guitar, an untimely passing and Glenn Alexander eventually stealing the guitar tombstone. Very funny … slightly odd … but funny. I got a whole host of my favorite songs in one show (Lost, Into the Harbour and Lead Me On) making me a happy camper. There was also a gorgeous cover of “A Change is Gonna Come” — Johnny just kills that song. Incredible!

Having Mark Pender around for this run of shows was a blast. Never a dull moment when that man is on stage. Here’s one of my favorite pictures from that night.

By the time the show was over, Irene was definitely headed towards us with the rain steadily coming down. I was sufficiently worried to hear that a couple of the band members had decided to drive home through the mess as the storm was due to hit the New York/New Jersey area hard early Sunday morning. As for us, Tasha and I only drove about 45 minutes South and spent the night outside of Boston and glued to The Weather Channel.

Next Up: “Hey Tasha, does this car have flotation devices?” LOL

So, day two of our sojourn brought us to Freeport, Maine.

Ahh, Maine. Love that state. Spent a summer there as a fellow at the Bowdoin Music Festival. All I remember is blowing out my knee playing basketball on the second day of the festival (a viola player landed on me … there MUST be a joke there somewhere. LOL) Oh, and LOBSTER! I remember lobster. Lots of lobster.

Anyhoo, off we went. Was a pretty short drive … though had the potential to be much longer when we almost ran out of gas as we were gabbing, laughing and singing along to SiriusXM radio and weren’t paying attention to the gauge. BUT disaster was averted and we arrived at our hotel after passing the perfect hangout for JukesNation …

Side note: from what I understand, at least a couple of Jukes made it over there for some brew and wings making it an official “juke joint.”

We checked in and headed to stake out our spots on “the grassy knoll” for the free concert in front of the LL Bean flagship store. Apparently, we were not alone in that thinking …

It was an absolutely gorgeous day for an outdoor show (almost hard to believe that a hurricane was barreling its way up the coast.) After the obligatory lobster roll (yumm) and incredible cake with Maine blueberries, we headed off for a bit of shopping before sound check. The trees behind the band made a nice backdrop, don’t ya think?

After that we went to watch one of the true highlights of the day (well, aside from “the orange vest” … more on that later) which was the Dock Dogs jumping competition. Some pretty amusing instances of dogs pulling a “yeah, owner … YOU jump in the water and get the damn ball!” But, there were a few great jumpers.

Next time, they need to combine the dog jumping competition with the show … wonder if The Dude can swim? (just kidding Neal)

As for the show…I would say it was by far the best of the three so far on this trip. The sound was truly excellent … it was the perfect mix and you could hear all the lines well. Even the stage banter was crystal clear. And, of course, there was plenty of that.

Kazee definitely “took one for the team” in sporting a neon orange L.L.Bean hunting vest. Now, we all know he is a fan of the color in general — but I’m not sure this particular glow-in-the-dark variation. Nonetheless, he modeled it quite well!

…sorry that the balloons that came with it ended up floating away…

As usual, there were some wonderful unexpected covers including a fantastic coupling of One More Night to Rock with Won’t Get Fooled Again. But, my personal favorite was throwing in the Alabama Song (aka “Whisky Bar”) into Tango Til They’re Sore. ONLY at a Southside show could you find the band quoting Bertolt Brecht/Kurt Weill. BRILLIANT!

Fun moment near the end when the horn section descended their perch to serenade the woman doing sign language during the show. Eventually, (a slightly jealous? haha) Southside took her for a spin around the dance … ummm … hill.

It was truly a wonderful day/night all around. Fab food. Canine chaos. Musical Madness. Oh … and shopping. That always makes a girl happy! :-)

Next Up: Hampton Beach, NH

It felt like quite a while since I had seen the Jukes … and in reality, I guess it was … as the last time was way back in early July at the Stone Pony. Even though we had all just experienced the super-rare earthquake in the Northeast … and Hurricane Irene had her sights set on pounding the area, Tasha and I decided to take to the road for this slew of shows. *currently humming Riders on the Storm*

So, after a really enjoyable ride up to Pittsfield, we stopped at The Colonial Theatre to pick up our tickets before grabbing some dinner … hmm, seems they got the graphic for the marquee just right!

Kudos to Tasha for noting the slightly confusing Hall of Innovation we passed on the way to Patrick’s Pub … yeah, that dinosaur definitely screams “innovation” LOL

We also ran into quite the anti-war protest. Those people (all three of them) are dedicated!

The show itself was fun, with a crowd that was REALLY vocal about how happy they were to have Southside in town. As a result, quite a bit of stage banter accompanied this show – including, of course, commentary on the pending weather craziness. I’m not sure that beer and Slim Jims are part of the emergency kit recommended by the Red Cross … though maybe they should be! We had tickets for the first row, which always means your are sort of “in the line of fire” when it comes to Southside. Amusingly, during Talk to Me when Johnny was looking for a woman with money, he seemed to make a beeline straight for me … ohh, if he only knew what was going on in my life right now! Hahaha.

The set list included quite a few of my favorites like Paris, Into the Harbour and Tired Skin. And it was great to welcome Mark Pender back to the horn section. Somehow his presence always seems to “up” the dance quotient back there. Hmmm … maybe it’s the word dance that should be in quotes. LOL

All-in-all it was a good show. Felt a bit like everyone was getting their bearings back in a way.

Late in the show, it was announced that Southside and the band would be doing a meet-and-greet afterwards. Following just a quick wave to a few of the guys, Tasha and I hit the road and headed North. Had a lovely (NOT!) drive thru a rainstorm but made it to our destination to rest up and get ready for the most important activity of the next day … SHOPPING! Oh, right … and another show. *wink*

Next Stop: Freeport, Maine

“…and when the cow kicked it over
She winked her eye and said
There’ll be a hot time in the old town tonight…”

That FOLK(ish) song is about the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Dang, I wonder what Old Lady Leary would have said about the old town Friday night. She never heard the Jukes!

As soon as I got word the band was playing in Chi-town, I knew I had to go. Though I very much consider myself a New Yorker (I moved here when I was 17), I actually grew up in the western suburbs of Chicago and easily would say it’s my second favorite city in the U.S. I have many great memories – sleeping on the steps of the Field Museum with hundreds of others trying to get tickets for the King Tut exhibit, lunch under the big Christmas tree at the Marshall Field on State Street (now Macy’s…grrr), trips to Orchestra Hall, the Art Institute, Wrigley Field and Grant Park. And I vaguely remember my father slipping a $50 to the maitre d’ at Berghoff’s to get us a table. Shhh. (Interestingly, I noticed there is now a Berghoff Cafe at O’Hare now…hmm, fast food wiener schnitzel…not too sure about that!) … sorry, I digress … but I love this town (little Bon Jovi reference there *wink wink*)

In true Big Apple Girl fashion, there was some slight (understatement) stress getting there. I decided to forgo my usual bus travel for one of those fancy flying things. After two canceled flights and a United agent who worked miracles to get me the last seat available on flight #3, I finally arrived and jumped in a cab for a (ridiculously expensive) ride to the North Side of the city. I was meeting my friend Sharon for dinner and treating her to her very first Jukes show (ain’t nothing like the first time, right?)

So…dinner. MONTHS ago, at the recommendation/urging/directive (haha) of Jeff Kazee, I made a reservation at Anteprima (the restaurant is owned/managed by his brother-in-law.) Knowing Jeff is a bit of a foodie, I was sure dinner would be wonderful – and it was! From the sinfully delicious zucchini flowers that melted in your mouth to the pasta with spicy lamb sausage, everything was fantastic. The salad (with grilled apricots – yum!) was excellent, too. But then came dessert. Oyy. Jeff’s brother-in-law was taking great care to make sure we weren’t late for the show and came over to say “you have seven minutes before I kick you out, what would you like for dessert?” and recommended either the chocolate hazelnut tart or the lemon panna cotta. We told him to surprise us. He came back with both because even he couldn’t decide! Being girls, of course we liked the chocolate, but the panna cotta. Oh. My. God. I give ourselves credit for not coming to blows over who was going to finish it. Seriously, it was absolutely incredible. It would have been worth being late to the show to have some more.

But, I am a good Jukesfan and so off we went to The Old Town School of Folk Music. I knew the venue was small and that was an added attraction for traveling out for this show. Historically, when I’ve seen my favorite bands in really intimate spaces, the show ends up being something truly special. And, this was no exception.

There were so many great moments throughout the evening. I think maybe the one that stands out the most for me was Southside’s devastatingly amazing harmonica solo on Fever. I hope somebody got that on video. Puts a smile on my face just thinking about it.

Amusingly, the band kept trying to come up with folk songs (or play a Jukes song “folk style”) which resulted in a few hilarious mish-mashes of songs. Brilliant … but slightly wacky. (well, that sort of sums up the Jukes in general, doesn’t it?)

I swear it was maybe the best performance of Without Love I’ve ever heard. And You’re My Girl was really fantastic as well. Maybe it was something in the water on the bus, but there were blistering solos from every member of the band. Everyone was super-relaxed and it showed in their playing. And is often the case with the Jukes, there was some mind-boggling stage banter … including John Conte making the customary venue announcements at the top of the show (if you’ve never heard JC’s “announcer voice” it’s something to behold … I think. LOL) And the SSJDRINK sign made another appearance, which prompted a tutorial in texting (mostly for Southside) by Kazee. Let’s not even try to introduce him to Tweeting! (by the way, I enter that contest every time and never win … maybe Kazee was right when he said it’s rigged for family members! Just kidding. LOL)

The full set list is posted over on the official site. It was one of those shows that you didn’t want to have end because you were just having so much fun. My cheeks actually hurt afterward from laughing.

It is quite apparent that Chicago loves the Jukes. They waited a long time for them to return. Hopefully, they won’t have to wait so long again.

p.s. By the way, what a treat to hear All the Way Home (kudos to Miss October for helping Johnny out with the lyrics). I’ve always loved that song …

“I know what it’s like to have failed, baby
With the whole world lookin’ on
I know what it’s like to have been so sure
And to wake up and find it all gone …”

Well, it was another energetic evening at BB Kings on Saturday. Never a dull moment when Gary US Bonds joins Southside on stage. An absolute riot – the two of them trading irreverent insults like an old married couple – all the while belting out some great tunes. As always, there were fabulous covers and standout performances … Chris’s truly kick-a** solo on Fever, Eddie’s sax on Renee, a beautiful accordion solo by Kazee to close out Princess of Little Italy…

It’s a consistently fun crowd at this venue – which inevitably brings out the wackiness in Southside. I just like the fact that it’s only a block away from my apartment … no buses, trains, boats or unicycles needed.

Sorry the pictures aren’t as good as I’d like…I wanted to pummel the lighting guy who seemed to just be pushing buttons at random, often leaving the band completely in the dark. At one point, I gave in and used my flash … yeah, sorry to John Conte, who caught one right in the eyes! Oops…my bad. LOL

Of course, there were times Southside was in the dark, too … but that’s a whole different story. Haha.

p.s. regarding blog title… definition: barb (n) 1: an aggressive remark directed at a person like a missile and intended to have a telling effect … (yeah, that just about sums it up)

So, how did YOU spend your Wednesday night?

Me? Well, after bolting from the office at the stroke of 5:00, I jumped on the train down to Asbury Park to simply catch the opening show of Outside the Box’s summer residency. What I ended up with, however, was the privilege of experiencing one of those great nights at the legendary Stone Pony.

I have often felt bummed that I missed out on Asbury Park during its glory days (ahh, Bruce’s “Glory Days”…a shout-out to SS on that one. LOL) There is something about the mix of music, boardwalk and beach that just resonates with me. And, due to the storm that had blown through, there was hardly anyone on the beach. Perfect…just the way I like it.

As for the music. I only found Outside the Box recently, having been impressed by lead singer Jeff Cafone’s acoustic set last year at the Pony when he opened for the Jukes. After cursing (and eventually accepting) the fact that he has better hair than I do, I started investigating the band a bit more. And the more I heard, the more I was intrigued. So, I was already set to go to this show even before hearing Southside Johnny and Jeff Kazee were going to be special guests. Bonus!

OTB opened with a few of their songs, including the popular “Suddenly Saturday”, “Silenced the Radio” and “You and Me (and Just Us For All)” as well as a few tracks I’m assuming will be on their forthcoming debut album.

*insert shameless plea here*

Please, PLEASE go to this site to pre-order their album. I have it on good authority that it’s gonna rock. And! You’d be doing a good deed by supporting a talented, young, smart group of guys.

*now returning back to our story*

In addition to just wanting to hear the band live, I was excited about their idea of playing some seminal rock albums over the course of their Stone Pony summer.

Honestly, I’m not sure the audience really grasped how brilliant it was to have them do Elvis Costello’s “My Aim Is True” in its entirety. But, I certainly liked it. Considered one of the great albums of all time, it’s only about 32 minutes, prompting someone (I think Jeff Kazee, maybe?) to yell out a request to play it twice! Funny.

In my opinion, “Welcome to the Working Week” (the first track) is one of the best openers ever. And it’s only 1:22. The guys really did a great job presenting the record…damn, Costello certainly fit a whole lot of words into that half-hour masterpiece. I thought their performance of “I’m Not Angry” (probably my favorite track on the album) was particularly excellent. Jeff Kazee joined them on stage for “Blame It On Cain” and Southside did an awesome job spitting out all the lyrics on “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes.”

Coming back to the stage after the end of Costello, Southside mentioned that the OTB guys had also learned the Jukes’ most recent album from start-to-finish, too. I should get points for refraining from yelling out to have them play that whole record as well. Hehe. I think the 20+ copies (no joke!) of “Pills and Ammo” that I’ve purchased since its release is a testament to my love of that collection of songs. (Could also be proof of something else – like my mental instability – but let’s not go there. LOL) In any case, they did launch into a truly fun version of “Cross That Line” which sounded fantastic, though admittedly a little weak on the “ooohs” that Johnny loves so much (given no horn section). Haha. That was followed by “Talk to Me” … this time with the audience filling in on the horn parts.

But, it was after that when the fun started with impromptu performances of a few songs by The Band — including The Weight, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down — as well as Gimme Some Lovin’ and after calling the Jukes’ Billy Walton to the stage, appropriately closing out the jam with Costello’s (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding. It was just one great performance after another. I was especially happy to hear them do “The Weight” as I had seen a video of the performance they did last year at the Pony and Jeff Kazee can sing the hell out of it. Southside wailed on the harmonica at a few points, Jeff Cafone did some killer guitar solos and everybody just generally had a fantastic time.

But, like they (who exactly is “they” by the way?) always say … all good things must come to an end. And for me, they definitely had to because the last train out of Asbury Park is at midnight. I miss that and it’s a long walk back to New York City. I was sorry I couldn’t stick around for Piehole with Billy Walton and Joe Prinzo who were playing after Outside the Box’s set. Next time, guys. Promise.

I better get used to that train … it’s gonna be a great summer.

Next Up, BB Kings.
xoxo
Big Apple Girl

p.s. sorry this is a bit long-winded…lack of editing ability due to sleep deprivation (got to bed at 3am, up at 6:30am.)

p.s.2. by the way, the guys weren’t all sunburnt (or is it sunburned?) from being on the beach, just a whole lot of red lighting going on. And my apologies to Mr. Valentino … it was hard to get decent shots with you back there in the dark.