Boston - Bank of America Pavilion is no Oakdale, and ...

[christratton]

Just got back to CT from Boston, where I saw DK last night at the B of A Pavilion. I am pleased to have seen DK on two of three nights, but I must say the first was by far the better of the two shows. The venues had a lot to do with that, I was entirely unimpressed with the Pavilion, in which we and 5K-ish others were seated in small(!), folding metal chairs!?!?! It felt like a high school assembly. Second was the, sadly, utterly forgettable opening act. A guy and his guitar. Poor fellow simply hadn't the chops to pull off this gig by himself, and deprecated himself first thing when he walked out on stage (may have simultaneously done something that rhymed with that, chuckle). He, sorry to say, belonged in a much smaller venue. A pleasant enough fellow, and I kinda felt bad for him. The contrast with Chris Botti could not have been more stark.

Finally, likely because Thursday night was after a layoff of a day likely spent at home in New York, and, moreover, last night was the third night DK and the band played in succession, well, last night gets a generous B-, as opposed to a singular A+ for Thursday night's show.

The setlist, best as I can recall:
I Love Being Here With You
Let's Fall In Love
You Call It Madness (the high point, quite lovely)
Deed I Do
Exactly Like You
Let's Face the Music and Dance
Devil May Care
A Case of You (the other high point, superb)
I Was Doin' Alright
Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You?
I Just Found Out About Love
---------
'S Wonderful
How Can You Mend ... (quite nice)

The Wallingford, CT show left me and my friend and several others around us buzzing, shaking our heads at how marvelous it was, from the opening act to the last note of the last song. I still reckon it the best show I ever saw. It far exceeded my expectations. The Boston show started strong, then slowly descended into what I would have reckoned an average DK show (not having seen many, just based on expectations, DVDs and Thursday's superb show). Then went on and just became a somewhat, sorry to say, sloppy, uninspired effort. The venue had a lot to do with it. An open-air, oversized tent, really, it lacked the atmosphere and cozy, friendly feel of the Oakdale (Chevy Theater), which is a superb place to see a show. There was only a little of the crackling banter between DK and the audience found in CT. (One nice note: the Pavilion is an oceanside facility, so a nice seabreeze blew through on occasion, nicely whispering its way through Diana's lovely hair. Perhaps the only thing the otherwise lousy venue had to recommend it.)

I think, simply, DK was tired and it permeated the show. She spoke early on of being the "tired, slouched-over mom in the Park (probably the Boston Public Garden next to the Common) pushing the Hummer baby carriage in the tunic and high heels." She also said she had seen a beautiful woman in the park with very short hair, tempting her to cut her own locks, she said teasingly (to the horror of the audience), so her twins would not pull so forcefully on her golden strands. I think the gal was tired on the third day performing in succession with the kids in tow. She leaned heavily on her accompanists, giving them a lot more solo time, like three times as much, as on Thursday. They performed two fewer songs in the same time frame as Thursday, due to extended solos.

Thursday night she was demonstrably melancholic, Saturday she was sunnier and happier. The relatively foul mood of Thursday fueled an astounding effort. The sunny side of the street, perhaps due to fatigue, gave us a much lesser show.

So, I am THRILLED I got tickets to the Thursday show. I only wish DK.com had notified me of it as it did the Boston show, so I could have nabbed even better seats. But I am ever so pleased I caught that special Thursday show.

Anyone else see a less than sublime DK effort along the way? They can't all be first rate. I'm glad I caught a great one Thursday. One needn't dwell on the less stellar outing, and that's for sure.

-CS

[mapache61]

Thanks for the review. Your mystery song (I Like It?) isn't ringing a bell. I'm sure I'll kick myself when someone posts the title.

[johnfoyle]

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living ... rited_set/



MUSIC REVIEW

Krall channels jazz royalty in a spirited set

By Joan Anderman, Globe Staff | July 16, 2007

The jazz world can be a tough place to find a comfort zone. It's intimidating (all those complicated chords and tricky time signatures) or ingratiating (cheese whiz Kenny G) or just plain off the radar for folks reticent to open that vaguely exotic can of worms.

Diana Krall is neither a cerebral innovator nor a smooth, toothless stylist. She's one of that near-extinct breed of jazz artist s with legitimate cred and impeccable chops who also relates to the masses : Think Nat "King" Cole and Peggy Lee . They were certainly on Krall's mind at her sparkling show for a near-capacity crowd at the Bank of America Pavilion on Saturday, during which she invoked those artists' musical legacy again and again. The 90-minute set kicked off with Lee's spirited "I Love Being Here With You." It's Krall's signature show-opener, but the song seemed to have special meaning in Boston, where Krall moved when she was 17 to attend the Berklee College of Music.

"It feels like home when I'm here," she said, and that sense of affability and ease infused everything from her fleet-fingered piano playing and classy phrasing to a spot-on, standards-saturated set .

Krall is a self-assured band leader, and her nimble trio -- guitarist Anthony Wilson, bassist John Clayton, and drummer Jeff Hamilton -- followed her clean, uncluttered lead. "You Call It Madness," one of several tributes to Cole, was pared down to a muted, breathless elegy. The Gershwins' evergreen "S'Wonderful" swung so slow and sweet several couples couldn't resist falling into swaying embraces.

Krall, a seriously unassuming performer, cracked a rare smile when she messed up her solo during an effervescent read of " 'Deed I Do," and again while apologizing for her shapeless tunic. "They said the weight would come right off during breast-feeding. That's [expletive]," explained Krall, the mother of 7-month-old twins with husband Elvis Costello.

Motherhood also seems to have endowed Krall with extra weight of a more welcome sort. We felt it when she sang Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You" in husky, bitter tones, and during a surprising, show-closing cover of the Bee Gees' "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" In stripping the song of its anguished melodrama, Krall discovered its desolate soul.

Joan Anderman can be reached at anderman@globe.com. For more on music visit boston.com/ae/ music/blog.

[christratton]

Thanks for posting the very nice second Globe review. I posted another in another thread, and both were quite positive.

I think a few things contributed to my less than enthusiastic take:
1) The venue, as discussed at length;
2) The fact that the show's setlists overlapped SO MUCH. DK has so many splendiferous songs in her repertoire, it was frustrating that in show # 2 I got only 3 or 4 new ones. I know lots of people love ILBHWY, it is a favorite of many, but not so much for me. I would MUCH rather she opened with Deed or Let's Fall, allowing us to hear The Night We Called it a Day, or I Miss You So, Popsicle Toes or I Remember You (somehow reconfigured to make up for the missing flute), Besame Mucho, you get the idea. I know this is unrealistic, but can I be faulted for wanting to hear more of her songs and a different set arrangement? Since she is only doing 13-16 songs a show, it seems such a waste, to me, at least, to ALWAYS do the same 8 or 9 songs and then sprinkle in a few others. Pls pardon my kvetching;
3) The Thursday show was truly stellar. Knocked my socks off. Stunning. Very hard act to follow, and so soon after;
4) My friend who accompanied me Sat was not as big a DK fan as I, whereas my Thurs night friend was. So the bad venue and uncomfortable seats and relative lack of focus and intensity in the show had her drifting and cranky about a third of the way through, looking at her watch. That certainly did not help;
5) The DK-crowd back and forth was much livelier and more extensive Thurs than Sat. She remarked how live a wire we were Thurs and credited Chris Botti & Co's super effort warming us up. She mercifully said nothing about the opening act Sat;
6) She did lean much moreso on her three accompanists Sat than Thurs, lots more solos.

So there you have it. I would say How Can You Mend, Let's Fall, ILBHWY and Deed were the equal of Thurs nite, and You Call It Madness and A Case of You were excellent, but the show definitely did not reach the sublime heights of Thursday's. Again, I am thrilled I got to see the Thursday show, which was not slated to happen for me, as I thought the show was sold out, only to find a month ago that it was not. Lucky me! I think had I missed the CT show, I would have emerged from the Boston show pleased but not so effusive as I was after Thurs.

-CS

[Coda]

I like the idea of doing "Deed I Do" for the opening song. I think it could fit the fast pace and lyrical tone as well as "ILBHWY."

[christratton]

REM used always to close with "It's the End of the World As We Know It." It is a GREAT show ender and an extraordinarily fun concert song. But I gather they have retired the notion of ending EVERY show with it. Now this is just one fan's opinion, of course, but I think Diana has done easily 20 songs which are superior to ILBHWY: Popsicle Toes, I Remember You, I Miss You So (to my mind, at least), most all of the album "The Look Of Love," Black Crow, Pick Yourself Up ... I could go on. Nothing wrong with starting the show with it, even often, but every time? Really? Should we wind our watch to it? </grumbling>

-CS

[TRX-C]

It took me a while, and almost drove me crazy, but the song is "I Just Found Out About Love". More famously sung by Shirley Horn. It's on Shirley's CD "You Won't Forget Me".
I heard DK sing it when she was at the Sonoma Jazz Festival a couple of years ago.

I Just Found Out About Love
Lyrics - Harold Adamson, Music - Jimmy McHugh

I just found out about love and I like it,
I like it.
I like what love’s been doing to me.
I hold you close in my arms
and I like it, I like it.
Oh what a wonderful future I see.
It’s a one time only.
It’s a lifetime deal.
I know it’s real.
I can tell by the way that I feel.
Right now I’m living it up
and I like it.
I like it.
Hey, you, give me a clue.
What’s love doing to you?
Looks like you could be liking it too.
Look like you could be liking it too.

[christratton]

Yes, that's the song. Thanks for catching it. I tried to track it down with Google to no avail. I bow to your superior skill. I will edit my setlist accordingly.

-Chris S.

[drumkab]

Hey Chris:

While I have not seen Diana at any other venue on this tour, I have seen her in concert no less than eight times over the years, many of those at Oakdale, but several at larger venues. Her show on Thursday was far and away the best performance I have ever seen or heard from her...from the interplay with the other musicians to her impeccable vocal stylings; the spot on soloing of Anthony Wilson, John Clayton and Jeff Hamilton; the relaxed banter with the boisterous (for a DK show) crowd and the selection of jazz gems that burst with sparkle when she applied her musical cloth...it was a joy to behold! I was lucky enough to be in the third row nearly in front of DK and I could tell that the affection she has for the members of her "group" as well as for the music she plays is definitely genuine...it was a night that I won't soon forget!

[christratton]

Wasn't Thursday at the Oakdale the one of the finest performances ever? It was breathtaking. It was the best concert I ever saw, as I noted in the "Setlists" thread, and that includes Norah Jones three months ago in the same venue. As a DK fan of only 5 months, I may well have already had my peak live experience. I am so pleased to hear from you that you also found the Oakdale show so singularly excellent. And it certainly only helped that Chris Botti and his team were in such fine form. Show don't get much better than what we and 5K or so saw and heard from DK last Thursday night. Aren't we lucky?!?

PS: Are you also in CT? I've spent about half my life here, having come here from down south to attend college and having mostly remained since. I like it here, but I do miss home.

Cheers,

CS

PPS: I was the one who yelled out for "Popsicle Toes" right after "Little Girl Blue" and before "I Don't Know Enough About You" when everyone else was trying to get their requests in, at which point she teased and taunted us with "Do you think you get to hear what you want just because you paid a lot of money? It's all about me, Baby!" Gracious, is she a hot ticket!

[drumkab]

Yes, Chris I'm born and raised in CT...live in Wallingford (just a few miles from Oakdale) and work in Farmington...I'm also a drummer...have been playing for over 40 years...

I don't think I've ever been to a DK show and left disappointed, but I know I never left so completely awed as I was last Thursday!

That's was also the second time I've seen Chris Botti at Oakdale (last time he opened for Sting) and I have really enjoyed both of his shows as well (though honestly I thought his drummer badly overplayed last thursday, but that is my own totally biased opinion !

Also saw Norah Jones' show at Oakdale and just didn't feel the energy I was hoping for...she was in great form (sang well, too!) and the band was very good...just didn't get the "you're at a live show" vibe I was expecting...oh well!!

Can't wait for another DK fix!

Jim Stavris

[christratton]

I agree with you that Chris B's drummer might have gone a bit over the top, but man, was he talented! It was fun to watch him put on the show, even if he was stealing the star's thunder a bit. Being in Wally World makes it pretty easy for you to get to the Oakdale shows, eh? I loved the Norah show, myself. I would put it up there amongst the best I ever saw, behind Diana and Botti, and maybe ahead of the Eagles in London last summer and REM on 9/11/99 at Great Woods. But that's just me, and I am VERY fond of Norah, and especially of her most recent album.

Cheers,

-CS