Bochum Jahrhunderthalle

The heart of the industrial Ruhr area of Germany welcomed Todd, Joe and Ethel on Thursday night. How industrial? The venue is an old steel mill converted into a public space. I can easily say that this is the most unusual setting I have ever seen Todd perform in. The strange thing is that the ceiling is mostly glass, therefore it was light in there well into Todd's set. Joe didn't seem to appreciate this fact at all...he commented that musicians are like vampires and curse sunlight! The 400 or so in attendance were overwhelmingly there to see Joe, but almost everyone stayed after the intermission to hear what Todd was all about. He came out singing Wayne Newton's "Danke Shoen", which he later explained was the full extent of his German speaking ability! I thought it was funny, but it was also pretty clear that nobody else in the house was familiar with that song or with Newton. Hey, at least he tried. This is what we heard after that:

Love of the Common Man
Cliché
Black and White
Tiny Demons
I Saw the Light
Song of the Viking
Compassion
Hello It's Me
Bang the Uke
You've Got to Hide Your Love Away (easily the biggest reaction from the mostly Todd ignorant crowd)
Afterlife
Lysistrata

With Ethel:
Pretending to Care

With Joe and Ethel:
Soul Brother
While My Guitar Gently Weeps

So ends my week of three shows (having bee lucky enough to see both nights in Amsterdam last weekend). To be honest, after the initial US reviews I was sorry to have invested so much money into three tickets and a trip to Amsterdam. However, I am happy to report that it was all money well spent. Todd was very good throughout (and only one broken string in three shows: Foamy tonight just as Got the Time began...Todd had to go acoustic the rest of the evening!) and I am now a confirmed fan of both Joe Jackson AND Ethel. I am left feeling very fortunate that less than a year after I relocated to Germany, Todd just happened to play his most extensive European tour ever. It's a typical day on the road to Utopia.