No question what my favorite memory of this date is. 2007: We play a Sounds of Science show in Brookline and decide to make the 4-hour drive home afterwards. Georgia’s at the wheel, and she’s doing all she can to shave some time off our ETA. We’ve just entered New York when she roars past a police cruiser, who pulls us over. “You didn’t even slow down,” is his opening line, at which point you or I might start explaining how yes, I know, I guess I lost track of how fast I was going, or something equally obsequious. Not Georgia. Her one-word answers exude, Obviously I’m in a hurry, so could you just get this over with and give me my ticket. The officer is not so easily deterred. Noticing our vanful of equipment, he asks if we’re a band. Yes, says Georgia. Do we play any Zeppelin, he wants to know. No, says Georgia. Kids, don’t try this at home, but somehow he lets us go without a citation.
That’s it for the new business. On to old business: Mick from Hoboken got in just under the wire for yesterday’s post, and though he tries to butter me up by demonstrating his familiarity with previous entries, I couldn’t bear to make yesterday’s any longer. So here’s his recollection of five years and one day ago: This probably puts me in your “waits till the last minute to do his book report” club, but . . . I went to see the Roseland show on Sept. 25, 2009 with my girlfriend Cory and our friends Sherin, Frank, and Amanda, and a fine night it was. We missed Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die, Co., sadly, but we caught the Black Lips, the comedic stylings of John Oliver, and the amazing Yo La Tengo set, with the added bonus of the full-on Popular Songs string section, and the Joshua White and Gary Panter Light Show was another special treat. I took note at the time of the reactions to the light show in particular:
Sherin: I love how old-school this light show is – analog everything!
Cory: You can see the hand of the artist, like with Jackson Pollock.
Frank: I feel like I’m at Iron Butterfly.
Amanda: Why isn’t anybody dancing?
We were standing toward the back of the room, but even so, it seems to me that some people were dancing, and the whole show was fantastic – if memory serves, “Blue Line Swinger” was extra-special amazing – one of many fabulous shows over the years. I’ll try to send some Hanukkah reminiscences with a little more advance notice. Meanwhile, L’Shanah Tovah, and see you at Town Hall.
A sheynim dank, Mick. You and your friends might want to mark this on your calendar, if you haven’t already.
