The Black Crowes

[Thorpesaurous]

Saturday morning I got up and came into work at 5am. Generally I work till 10, but lately I've been keeping the place open till noon for the handfull of machinists that come in to get a few extra hours OT. Good for everyone.

When we stay that late, we get a coffee break from 9:45 to 10 (right now which is why I'm typing this). And I usually head down to the deli down the street and grab 6 or 10 Bacon Egg & Cheese sandwiches for whoever is in.

So I'm sitting there in the deli waiting for them to cook the pound of bacon they're gonna need, and I'm thumbing through one of those Music Scene type of newspaper/fliers that were all the craze when I was in HS and College. I didn't even know they still existed. They're basically 50 pages of ads, telling you who's coming up when at one club or another, letting you know when karaoke night is, and the like.

As I'm sifting through I notice The Black Crowes, one of my favorite bands from back in the day, they're a truely great band out of the American Southern Rock Tradition that really doesn't exist anymore. They're performing live, accoustic shows, Oct. 18, 19, 21, and 22, at a place called The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester New York.

I saw them last year live at Terminal 5 in Manhattan, but this was an accoustic show. And I don't really have anything to do. The 18th is over, and 21 and 22 are Monday and Tuesday, so that's unlikely at best. But seeing as I was up at 4:30am, it's a long shot that I'm gonna make it tonight. Plus I've never been to this place. I've never even heard of it. And at best I've driven through Port Chester on the highway, but by no means know my way around.

But I mean really ... when am I gonna stumble on something like this again. I send out a mass text to the people I know who'd be interested in this sort of off the cuff adventure, mostly hoping I'd find someone who'd drive. But I'm caught in a weird world of people married and or with kids who can't swing this sort of thing, and a younger group of friends who don't know who these guys are and probably don't have 80 bucks.

I'm really on the fence. I get home and watch as much Childrens Hospital as I can which I just recently became obsessed with, thinking it will lazy me out, and I'll just find a movie to watch and forget about it, but I can't. It's an hour drive. No big deal. And I finally decide **** it, I'll just go myself.

It was spectacular. Opening act ran 8-9, a guy named John Fullbrite, who was pretty good. They ran 9 to about 1. With an 8 man band, accoustic plays pretty hard. If you're not familiar, they will jam out. Two drummers. Two Fiddlers. 3/4 guitarists. A keyboardist. Sometimes a slide guitar.

The theatre was The Capitol Theatre. Apparently quite famous, but I'd never heard of it. The Gratefull Dead was there like 20 times over a two year span in the mid 70s. It fell into disrepair in the 80s. Re-opened in the 90s as a movie theatre. Then tried in the 2000s to revamp the music scene, failed, and now is under new leadership going strong since 2012. They really pimped it out, because it's got killer sound and lighting systems. They also added a bar attached to the front lobby, with a small stage that does pre and post show acts for 2 hours before and after. Great beer selection on tap, although not cheap. $8 Newcastle.
My gripe with theatre was that there's not much around it. Parking was iffy. There were some 10 dollar lots, but they were in front of the theatre on the street, so I didn't even know I was there yet. Then I got past it, and there was no parking. However, I went around it, and found the Train station is right behind the theatre, with free weekend parking. A total no brainer, and a tip to use the train next time to free up drinking. They also had a state of the art phone app that allows you to text in drink orders, and they'll deliver them to your seats in the balcony and loge levels of the theatre. And the downstairs is a general admission standing area, with bars in each corner for service. I can't wait to go back to this place.

The Crowes were awesome. First two songs were great. Then I felt they went a little too dark for a little too long. They picked it up mid set with a long medley with some Floyd covers, then handled business right out to the end.

Torn and Frayed (Stones Cover)
Downtown Money Waster
Good Friday (I really liked it, but it started a kind of slow stretch)
I Don't Want to Talk About It (Crazy Horse Cover)
Fork in the River
So Many Times (Manassas cover)
The Hobo Song
There's Gold in Them There Hills (It started to pick up here)
Wiser Time
The Gnome (Floyd Cover)
Chapter 24 (Floyd Cover)
She Talks to Angels (a good chunk of people left here, which I was fine with. It's part of the problem with cheap tickets. It yields a mediocre crowd often that just wants to hear the four songs they know).
Appaloosa (a favorite)
Milk Cow Blues (Guitarist Jackie Green sang this. I didn't know the song, might be one of his. It was really good.)
Lost and Found (Lead Guitarist Rich Robinson did this solo. He's the Chris's, the singer, brother, they've had a classic rock tumultuous relationship over the years.)
Like a Tumbleweed in Eden (This a cover from Rich Robinson's personal band.)
The Last Place that Love Lived (among my favorite songs ever, but came out a little dry actually.)
Quinn the Eskimo (Dylan cover, was spectacular, and the place lit up.)
Soul Singing (another of my favorites songs by them, and it was a long jam out to close the show, and the place was alive.)

They came out for an encore and did:

Hot Burrito 1 and 2, by The Flying Burrito Brothers, which I was not familiar with, but really enjoyed, although I was a little upset I was getting such a weird one for the encore.
But then they went into The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, a cover of a song by The Band (a Bob Dylan group), which I've heard them do before, and it was spectaclar again. Again the place lit up while they jammed out. Took a bow and outta there.

I kept it to three beers, and drove home in drizzly rain more dangerously exhausted than anything. But totally 100% worth it.

There's maybe 6 people on here who will give a shit about this. But that's alright. If you're not familiar with them, check them out.

[rufuspaul]

Saturday morning I got up and came into work at 5am.

Reason #1 why I'm glad I'm not Thorpe.

I wasn't a big fan of them back in the day but it is pretty cool to see a band you love in an intimate setting like that. Wasn't the lead singer married to Kate Hudson at one time?

[Thorpesaurous]

Reason #1 why I'm glad I'm not Thorpe.

I wasn't a big fan of them back in the day but it is pretty cool to see a band you love in an intimate setting like that. Wasn't the lead singer married to Kate Hudson at one time?

I believe so. If not married certainly dated for a long time.

[DeuceWallaces]

Love the first three albums, but they are way too jam bandy the past few times I've seen them relative to their much tighter shows circa '92-'00.

Glad you enjoyed it.

[HarryCallahan]

One of the most unique bands that made it (somewhat) big. Wish I could've seen the show.