First of all, I went with a group of people who included my brother and his wife, who had last seen Todd in 1978 at the same venue! Little did they know that they had picked the tour that was probably more geared towards them than any other generation of Todd fans. After all, the setlist for the WAT tour was probably closer to that '78 show than any gig since then, albeit 'with a twist'...

From the first moment of Caravan, there was magic in the air. As usual, Jesse was mistaken for Todd; at least by all the members of my group. I would have made the same mistake had I not paid so much attention to the reviews posted of earlier gigs in the tour. Todd's voice sounded as smooth in person as it did on WAT, and you could instantly tell that this was someone who was very comfortable on the stage, and wanted to include everyone in the performance. (We were up 2 levels to the left of the stage, and definitely appreciated Todd's turning towards us as often as he did.)

Really liked the warmth and intimacy of the venue. (renovated since my last visit) We stood for the entire show, but didn't care. Really liked the crowd as well. All in all a very mature and devoted crowd, at least in the upper left where we were. Thought the 'stop smoking that cigar now' comment was a tongue-in-cheek joke, as I could swear I've seen photos of Todd with a stogie in his mouth... (leaning back in a big cushy chair with his wing tips on a large mahogany desk...ok, I get it...the cigar just completed the picture....nevermind!) In any case, the offender evidently put out the cigar, because the show continued on.

Very funny, if not entirely PC comedian after the first set. A real abrasive guy, probably in his 50's with his grey hair tied back in a ponytail. "I'm half Italian and half Irish, which means I get really drunk and then beat myself up..."

A nice surprise for me was 'Eastern Intrigue', which I had not heard of him playing on this tour through this page. And the 'oldies' medley of 'I'm So Proud' and 'Ooh Baby Baby', were like a 'shiver and a sigh'... (although I was expecting La la la I Love You to follow after...I'll manage, somehow)

Can't wait till next time!

*An interesting aside: we were standing right near Peter Wolf, who watched the show motionless and expressionless throughout.

There it is, /leo