Best show ever?

Review by Eric Lund (Switch to
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8/5/2003

Last night in Annapolis, in his third ever appearance at the Rams Head Tavern, Todd took the stage to the usual standing-O. He picked up his guitar, stepped up to the mike and the guitar strap came unbuckled and the guitar crashed onto the stage. Another ovation. "Two ovations and I haven't done a freaking thing yet...it could go on like this all night". More cheering. An omen?

In baseball parlance, last night OH pitched the perfect game, hit a grand slam...knocked the ball out of the park! Having seen over 60 shows (who's counting?) since 1972, I feel like I have a pretty good perspective to evaluate a TR performance. Last night was simply amazing. No strings broken, flawless playing, and in the best voice of his career. I can't believe I'm writing this. This was a show that should have been recorded for a live cd... the performance was that amazing.

Dare I say, before the show I was talking to another die hard and we both mentioned that our level of expectation and anticipation has been diminished, we knew what to expect, no new music in quite a while now...but we are so enraptured by this guys music that we have to show up and will continue doing so until he decides it's over. Yes, it's that legion of fans who keep throwing money! Last night we were truly rewarded with the performance of a career. 

Nothing special about the song list, except I must mention that the new arrangement and performance of "Beloved Infidel" was magnificent. Ditto on the ska flavored "Born to synthesize". Finally, my favorite..."Black and White"... again, I can't believe I'm saying this, but even without a band- this was the best rendition I have ever heard him do. I sat at a front row table not five feet away from Todd all night. You could see a concentration and intensity in his face to a level that I never witnessed before. The evening had perfect balance, as on a good night like this one Todd and his unique sense of humor, silly faces and antics can capture an audience and take them anywhere he wants them to go. Even "Bang on the drum" with the dopey lead in jokes- that Todd acknowledged to the audience..."pretend you haven't heard me tell this story before"...was dead on...right down to a rock & roll first....a blaze out Ukulele picking solo. What a night.

Gary- you missed the ultimate show. Sarah- I hope you got it all on tape.


Other reviews for Miscellaneous Dates 2003
8/4/2003 - Ram's Head Tavern - Annapolis, MD

Other reviews for overall Solo dates 2003

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