Friday, May 28, 2010, Beachland Ballroom

           Just as Thursday nights at Hoopple’s became ritualistic in many ways over the course of 10 years of hearing Glenn, so now do the final Fridays of each month. These days, however, my ritual seems to be dining with a few friends at Pacific East on some sashimi and a little dessert and then heading to the Beachland. Me, Jforce & Damee had a wonderful meal that included a fine new sake called “The Mirror of Truth,” and made it to the show by about 9:45. As we exited the car in the Beachland lot I could already hear that the band was loud and ON. We made it into the show as they were wrapping up the 1st set with a hard blues-boogie.

           Brett filled me on the 1st set which consisted of many songs (My Poor Generation, Ode to Glenn Schwartz, etc..)  in abbreviated versions. This is not uncommon for Glenn to do in a 1st set and apparently serves the band well as a warm-up for the later sets.

           I did not write down the set list for sets 2 & 3, but I will attempt to relay the high points. First of all, the crowd consisted of about 75 people which is a big change from the first few “comeback” shows where there were 200-300 people. Now the people in the crowd are there to HEAR what Glenn has to say. There are no agitators, (well, there were a few silly things said from the crowd, but nothing major) only people that WANT to be there. This bodes well for the show since Glenn now seems comfortable to preach as long and as frequently as he sees fit. Summary: he’s found a new comfort zone. Perhaps we’re entering the 4th Glennaissance??

           The 2nd set consisted of a lot of blues jams. Usually this does not hold my interest, but this evening the band was SO locked in that they stepped through the medium and arrived at the true goal of great music, DIRECT COMMUNICATION with the audience. From a musical view, Paul and Gene were incredibly laid back and created a HUGE pocket for Glenn. Glenn did his part by finally breaking through “playing guitar” and doing what he was born to do. His playing was as ferocious, exciting and emotional as I’ve ever heard. He was going from zero to 95 in 2 seconds flat. The high point for me was a fantastic “Fear & Doom” which leveled the room. Glenn played his hollow-body the entire night and the Strat was not missed for a moment.

           The 3rd and final set was just as strong as the 2nd. Glenn came out with the harmonica around his neck and played some very old traditional tunes. He then went into a beautiful song by Mr. Zimmerman (“When He Returns”) to which Glenn added some dramatic pauses near the end of the song (check out the recording some time!). After some other beautiful jams Glenn said the show was over but it was obvious to the crowd that he really did not want the show to be over, so the minute someone yelled “Wagon Wheels” from the crowd, Glenn said “Wagon Wheels! We can do that one!” and the band proceeded to whip out a WW that was simply ridiculous. Gene took this one over and dropped bombs that I’m still feeling. His bass playing just gets better as the years pass. God bless all three of these men for sharing something special with those who have ears to hear.

Final thoughts:

           In summary, these guys are playing as well as I’ve seen them play since November 1998. Paul is like Buddha behind the drum kit, Gene is able to raise the intensity of any song at will, and Glenn has become “Young Glenn” (as he occasionally refers to himself). If you are a musician and have a chance to see this band, you must make every effort to do so ASAP. We’ve been blessed that they’ve returned to performing and every show could be the last. Again, this is not some “blues band” hammering away on tired progressions. This is three men who’ve dedicated their lives to creating what can only be called great art: honest, beautiful, and transcendental.

TZ