Sunday, May 31, 2009

Loudon Wainwright III and Hot Tuna ~ Fillmore Auditorium

Loudon Wainwright III
and Hot Tuna
~ Fillmore Auditorium
San Francisco, California
May 14, 2009


After his opening set
Loudon Wainwright the third
peered over the shoulder of the person in front
when he spotted me waiting to talk to him.
"Hey, aren't you from Toronto?"
The first time I met Mr Wainwright, I told him...
"Loudon, your songs move me like no others...
I absolutely adore you".
With a male-dominated fan base such as his
including four hundred pound men,
am I safe to assume he doesn't get very many
five feet middle-aged Canadian women
expressing sentiments such as this?
I was particularly emotional on this day
having got into a snit outside on the sidewalk with Amy.
So when Wainwright walked out on the Fillmore stage,
I shit you not, I cried my eyes out.
Expressing in song so much of what I'm feeling,
there is no other singer-songwriter like him.
And for this, Loudon Wainwright is my hero.
During our chat, he autographed One Man Guy
and told me he was going for dinner with friends.
Surely they'd have room for one more
and invite me along?
But no.
No, no, no, no, no!
Of course not.
Loudon Wainwright the third now ranks high on the list
of Men Who Don’t Feed Me, that is.
All I want is food dammit, food.
But I’m only kidding,
I never said that.
I was getting drunk on tequila instead.
What a treat to see Mr Wainwright perform
in the historical Fillmore Auditorium,
the house that rock impresario Bill Graham built.
A definite highlight of my trip to San Francisco.
At least eight chandeliers hung high above the audience,
and psychedelic posters plastered the walls and stairwell.
The sound system was the best I’ve heard
and the customer service, outstanding.
But hanging out by Loudon near the end of the bar
thrilled me to the core.
Only now do I think of all the things I should’ve said,
yes, I had so much more.
But just as Hot Tuna took the stage
Loudon left the venue for good
and I began to wonder where Amy had got to.
Several tequila shots later,
I was left with little to no memory
except for Good Shepherd, San Francisco Bay Blues
and Death Don't Have No Mercy,
that came from the microphones of Kaukonen and Casady.
Later that night on Divisidero Street,
there were photos taken of Amy and me.
I remember none of it.
But I do recall the photo she took of Loudon and me,
and I absolutely love it.
Thank you so much Amy,
not only for the photo,
but for taking good care of me.


http://www.lwiii.com/
http://www.hottuna.com/
http://www.livenation.com/The-Fillmore-tickets-San-Francisco/venue/229424

Set List | May 14, 2009
Loudon Wainwright III
Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco

Doin' the Math
Mr Hubble
All I Can Do Is Play This Song
Heaven
I'm Alright
Motel Blues
Fear Itself
New Depression
We Can't Sell Our House
Durango/Suzi
White Winos
Surviving Twin
Rufus is a Tit Man
The Acid Song
encore: Not the End of The World (Just the Middle of the Night)