Hi all! Well I was never
planning on this show, until a certain someone (ahem...Gerald) planted the idea in my head last week and woke up those
little devils
on my shoulders, and next thing I knew I was jonesing, lol. And it was a quite satisfying fix, I must say! First, here's the setlist:
Magic City Music Hall
Johnson City, NY
4/19/08
Set 1
Have a Cigar
Signs of Life >
Learning To Fly
Breathe >
Time >
Breathe reprise
One of These Days
Shine On You Crazy Diamond pts 1-5
Hey You
Arnold Layne
Comfortably Numb
Set 2
Pigs On the Wing pt 1
Dogs
Shine On You Crazy Diamond pts 6-8 > jam
Happiest Days of Our Lives >
Another Brick In the Wall pt 2 > jam
Free Four (!!!)
Wish You Were Here
Any Colour You Like >
Brain Damage >
Eclipse
Encore
Waiting For the Worms
Stop
The Trial
Outside the Wall
I know the word is overused, but man, what an AWESOME show! It was a very enthusiastic crowd, and the band was definitely feeding off their energy. Everything sounded absolutely terrific, from the note-for-note stuff to the rockin jams. I'm pretty sure this was the first time I've ever seen them play Free Four, which is a great song, so that was a real treat. And I don't hear Arnold Layne much either, so that was cool, even though it's not one of my personal favorites. When I saw Joe's talk box wasn't rigged up, I knew we weren't getting 3 Pigs, and I was a little bummed cuz I've developed a real thing for that, lol... but then we got Dogs, so I was still real happy.
You might notice that they played Shine On pts 1-5 and then only 6-8. Well, pt 9 was on their setlist too, but this was a high-energy show and they started jamming and "getting crazy" as Scott put it after the show, and never got to pt 9. I sure didn't mind, because it was great. Also, according to their setlist, the encore was supposed to be Run Like Hell, but instead, and I think this was due to it being such a great crowd, we got the last four songs from The Wall... very nice!
I really got into this show, even all the crowd-pleasers and Wall stuff. I think this was because I went there with absolutely no expectations or hopes or special requests. All I knew was I needed a TM fix; specifics didn't matter. I just let things unfold however they were gonna unfold and enjoyed the hell out of each minute of it. It also helped that I was standing up front where I had a good view of the guys and their playing and all of their expressions. Gerald was hoping for Fat Old Sun... such a beautiful song, I would've loved it too... but in retrospect, I don't think this was the show for it... wrong crowd, wrong vibe, something. But as I told Joe, I go to a lot of shows and I haven't seen them play it for a long time, so that tells you it IS soon about time.
Magic City Music Hall is a very cool venue... I know Gerald agrees with this, as he mentioned it more than once on the way home, lol. It's on the smaller side, all general admission, with a standing room only pit area, and tables too. In the back was the bar, where drinks were very reasonable ($4 for an Absolut & cranberry). There was also a food bar, where I paid $7 for what was supposed to be a 1/2 lb cheeseburger, which would have been fine except for the fact that it was much smaller than that, but it was very good. The staff was pretty friendly, there wasn't a bunch of unnecessary security, and they didn't kick us out immediately after the show (unlike the Trump Marina in AC, grrr). Overall, this venue gets a thumbs up.
And last but not least... I want to thank each of the guys, including Randy and everyone else who makes this happen, for keeping doing what you're doing, and for doing it with such excellence. I hope you all understand how grateful I am for all the good music, good times, and good friends The Machine has brought into my life these past couple of years. THANK YOU.
--Vik
