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COMBINED
REPORTS - Palookaville, Santa Cruz CA, August 11 2001
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To:
hix@yahoogroups.com Greetings Y’all, I thought I would give everyone an un-asked for show report. In the 40+ times I have seen Dan perform; Saturday's Palookaville show really sizzled. The show started remotely on time with a trio of SF singer/songwriters that really should not have booked a gig prior to Dan fans. Though each performer (I'll call them Peter, Paul, and Ms. Valium) had decent voices, their show was a bit of a downer lyrically. Who couldn't appreciate one ditty by "Peter" called "Cere-bro?" This "highlight" was however interrupted by a posse to the left of me that I'll call the "Ine-bro's." (It's all about having fun folks, I realize that, but when you can't identify how many members are on stage, it's time to seek help.) The trio exited stage right at 9p.m. After much hootin' Dan came out on stage around 9:30. Enter "Canned Music." A personal fave, as an intro, people sat up and listened. The ball was rolin'. I can't recall exactly when Dan mentioned that he too liked to use profanity in his music, much like the opening trio, but no less, his mention of a "fucking life affirming" or something of that nature (I was laughing to hard to remember the exact term) reminded all that "Dan the Man" had taken the stage. There really wasn't one particular highlight. I must say that all concerned were in peak form. Palookaville provided the occasional feedback, but even that didn't deter from some great tunes. The set-list consisted of: 1)
Canned Music (I think I am missing a tune???) Dan mentioned the new album (insert sensual Lickette promotion here...."Aliiive & Lickin'!) and took the occasional request. His favorite request for the evening seemed to be "She'll be coming round the Mountain." HILARIOUS! Annabelle & Susan have really come into their own in the last few months. Susan looks great with her shorter sexy do, and Annabelle holds her own in the Violin department. Simply Beautiful. And speaking of Violinists, it is always an honor to see the great Brian Godchaux. He is extremely gifted, and has perfect stage presence to offset Dan's straight-faced humor. New to me (live) was Dave Bell on the guitar. Bravo job Dave! Dan mentioned that maybe he would sign a few copies of his new CD after the show, but then added "promises were made to be broken." What the hell I thought, and waited around with my more than patient mother and luckily got to have a few words with Dan. He seemed awfully tired when he came out, but was more than courteous (as usual) to his adoring public. I have more than my fair share of autographs, so I just asked him for a photo (of which he obliged) and also took photos with Susan, Annabelle, and the talented Brian. I said my good-byes to Dan, and just as I was leaving, made off with the new CD, two posters, and my ticket stub. (Those past guests of Palookaville will note that that is a difficult souvenir to obtain.) The good news of that is that I didn't have to deal with "Surfdog," and I still got a poster. Feel cheated folks? Hey I never thought I'd be that fortunate. Live vicariously through me ;-) So all in all, this review isn't perfect, but it's my perspective on things. I wasn't able to meet anyone from the list that night, but I haven't the cohonas to go up and ask people if they are such & such, so I played it anti-social. In closing, GREAT job, by all and a tremendous Santa Cruz, Dan lovin' vibe. Doodlin'
Away, To:
hix@yahoogroups.com Howdy All - Unlike our previous visits to Santa Cruz, we didn’t spend much pre- show time shopping downtown on Pacific Street. We aren’t prudes by any means, and we’re sorry to say it, but the overall street ambiance in SC has become a turn-off. The city itself is very pretty, and the shops are generally very good, but the constant stream of drunks/druggies, aggressive panhandlers, and those omnipresent glum-faced pierced ‘n’ tatted holier-than-thou UCSC students finally just becomes depressing. Instead, we opted to spend more time enjoying the lovely drive over the mountains from Fremont to the coast. We stopped for a delicious lunch in the village of Pescadero, and paused at a beach along Highway 1 to watch a parasurfer literally flying over the crests of the waves; amazing, and so beautiful. After a short rest at the hotel in SC, we donned our typical “Dan Show” garb, which for us usually means dressing up a little, and headed downtown for supper and the show. As we walked along Pacific Street, it dawned on us that Kathy was probably the only woman in Santa Cruz wearing hose and a bra, and Ken the only guy wearing a jacket and tie. We were stared at in a way which left us feeling a little like Uncle Ben and Aunt Jemima at an Aryan Nation picnic. Ken remarked, “I feel like a Capitalist Pig because I took a shower.” After an enjoyable meal at a downtown Japanese restaurant, we walked to nearby Palookaville to get in line for the show. On the way, we had the pleasure of running into Hot Licks Brian Godchaux and John Clark, who were both very upbeat and outgoing. We’re never been first in line for a Dan show (although we do try to get to venues early so we can nab seats close enough to the stage to hear some acoustic ambiance), but we were first in line this time, which made us feel a little weird standing there…alone… all dressed up. We were soon joined, however, by a quartet of local 50-somethings (three men and one woman) who had evidently been drinking steadily since about noon, 1968. The most coherent and talkative guy was wearing a bright green Jameson’s Irish Whiskey T-shirt, the front of which was dappled with what we eventually learned were “burrito stains”. These folks would take turns holding each others’ place in line as they went off, in shifts, to drink more. In fact, nearly every action seemed motivated by either alcohol or cigarettes. Where they get the scratch for their lifestyle is anybody’s guess, as their communication skills were decidedly on the slurry side, and had been that way for a long time. Luckily, Bay Area Hixter Ralph M. soon showed up, and the conversation took on a much higher and decidedly more jovial tone. We last saw Ralph in Oroville, at Dan’s big Indian Casino show, where rumour has it that Dan won some big dough before the gig. A line of Dan-fans soon began forming along the sidewalk, and a good-sized crowd took shape. There was initially some confusion with Palookaville about the will-call ticket line and the tickets-in- hand line, but it was straightened out without anyone losing their place. Inside, Palookaville is a long room in a 50s-vintage commercial building, with a raised stage at one end and a bar at the other. The high ceiling is baffled with hanging rows of colourful international flags. It’s not fancy, but it is cleaner and nicer than the Catalyst down the street, where we saw Dan with the Christmas Jug Band last year. Dan’s gig was a “sit-down show”, which meant that rows of padded restaurant-style chairs had been set up. We sat on the center aisle, about three rows back, with Ralph M. right in back of us. The opening act was a trio of folkie songwriters, so well-described by Anita in her excellent show report. Kathy also thought "Etienne", who did the “Cere-bro” song, was the best of the three. His style seemed to be influenced by Michael Hedges and Nick Drake, which she enjoys. The other two artists were good-looking and competent, but to us their subject matter and presentation were somewhat depressing and tedious. Some audience members clapped approval when they announced that their set was over. Dan & Co. took the stage at about 9:00 to a boisterous round of applause and whistling. The Man looked snazzy in his Shootin’ Straight Checkered Shirt, a vest of dark red brocade, black slacks, and a pair of jazzy black-and-white oxfords. Since we last saw him play it, Dan has added some colorful artwork to the top of his black Guild guitar, evidently a work in progress. Dan and The Hot Licks were very well-received by the Santa Cruzians. We have to say that it’s wonderful to sit with so many people who are really into Dan and his music, and the Cruzians are definitely that. Dan noted how tolerant and mellow Santa Cruz is “The cops hand out joints…”. He also pointed out that SC is a college town - “And you know what they say about college towns…they suck!”. As Anita mentioned, the typical shouted requests from the audience were met with drippy choruses of “Michael Row the Boat Ashore”, and “She’ll Be Comin’ ‘Round the Mountain” (Kathy was hoping for “Kuumbaya”, but it was not to be). Anita nailed the set list in her Report -- the only one she missed was “Honeysuckle Rose”. We couldn’t remember “Caravan/Four Brothers”, but Anita reminded us of that one, which just goes to show that to Hixters united, nothing is impossible! The group was indeed in great form and high spirits. The crowd especially enjoyed Dan’s Dylanesque inflections in “Where’s the Money?”. His scatting throughout the evening was exceptional and most appreciated by the crowd. The lovely Lickettes did a few breathy “Alive and Lickin’” turns, a la “Happy Birthday, Mr. President”, as Dan plugged the CD. Ken especially enjoyed “Give Me the Simple Life”, which we haven’t heard Dan do for some time. It makes us long even more for an evening with Bayside Jazz. We wholeheartedly agree with Anita: Palookaville was a very good show, with lots of energy from both sides. For us, it’s now on to West Hollywood, and the Roxy on Saturday night. Ken & Kathy PS: A word of advice to Hixters who might seek overnight lodging in Santa Cruz: Avoid the Hampton Inn on Ocean Street. Really.
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