Kanada Kev Posted September 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 You nailed it fluffhead. THat show last night was one for the ages. Still sends chills up my spine thinking of it. To be standing 10ft away from Garth Hudson as he plays a piano like he's a wizard, to seeing Daniel Lanois urging Brian Blade to keep a jam going was a treat. They were so into their performance and seemed to be enjoying it just as much as the very attentive crowd. There were a few moments of pure IT. Brian Blade is seriously a PHENOMENAL talent. My buddy who came with me is a drummer and he was shitting his pants watching blade work that Gretsch kit like it was a painter's canvas.It's gonna be a while before a show can top this one in my books.Amazing venue too. I can imagine seeing many more concerts in there.Here's what the reviewer from the Globe and Mail had on the show last night: Daniel Lanois does a lot with a littleROBERT EVERETT-GREENSeptember 12, 2007Daniel Lanois was in a good space on Monday, and I'm not just referring to Toronto's Great Hall, the gracious old auditorium on Queen Street West where he performed the first of two concerts with drummer Brian Blade. The night before, Lanois had cleared Niagara in a barrel, or so it may have seemed to him after he presented his first-ever film at the Toronto International Film Festival, to an apparently good response.He looked relaxed and unburdened when he appeared with guitar in hand and nothing more to fear from picky cinephiles uptown. He's a songwriter, so of course he played songs, but mostly he played his mind. For someone who has spent much of his career seeking the perfect studio take (with Dylan, U2 and many others), Lanois has great faith in the bounty of the moment. Much of his concert felt like a train of thought made audible, or rather a conversation in music that was more lucid than anything that could be put into words.He and Blade have worked together for a long time and their instincts complement each other so spontaneously that I kept wanting to rewind and re-examine things that had gone by in a brilliant flash. Lanois seemed at times to have felt the same way, at one point telling Blade that he wanted some time to revisit a tom-tom figure that had emerged during their performance of The Messenger, from Lanois's 1993 album For the Beauty of Wynona.They played songs old and new, charming the capacity crowd with Jolie Louise, Lanois's homey classic from his Acadie debut album, and previewing some music from an album that he expects to release next spring. Here Is What Is (which shares its title with the film) seemed likely to be one of the outstanding tracks of that disc, after a juicy performance in which Lanois shared the vocals with Serena Pruyn (of Toronto rock band Oliver Black) while his sister Jocelyn played bass.The show began, as the film does, with an improvisation by pianist Garth Hudson. Looking like an Amish elder in his black coat and brimmed hat, Hudson played a virtuoso solo that was part jazz, part Bach and a little bit of The Maple Leaf Forever. His unfinished final cadence led into a jam for guitar and drums that began with the abrupt angular energy of a powerful boat starting up in a small harbour. Soon enough, Blade and Lanois got to open water, with nothing but the horizon to limit their searching, excitable dialogue.As always, Lanois did a lot with a little. He played one guitar all night, cramping down to a dry finger-picking style for his Acadian stuff, roaring out with a deep bass extension for the music's more Olympian moments. He went to the pedal steel (his first instrument) for only a couple of numbers, including the sublime JJ Leaves LA. Whatever the temper of his thought and action, Blade seemed to read the moment before it had occurred. I don't know when I've heard a drummer with a better sense of phrase and melody, and a more astute instinct for how much is enough.Adam Vollick, the young photographer who shot most of the footage for Here Is What Is, prowled the stage all evening, shooting continuous video that was projected on the ceiling above the stage. It was fun to glance up there and see different angles on a wonderful show, and to speculate whether Lanois, having had a taste of moviemaking, may already be thinking about where to take that camera next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamilton Posted September 12, 2007 Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 And Dan. Shaking that man's hand and extolling my appreciation for all that his body of work and performances have meant to me makes me the happiest person alive right now. The most humble and enigmatic person I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing.Lanois is a truly nice guy, and really interesting to hang out with. I've spent a few evenings drinking with him, as he's a friend of my cousin Daniel and also knows several Hamilton-area musicians that I know. I can't claim to really "know" the man, but my limited experiences with him would suggest that he's an exceptional individual indeed. Plus, all of his albums kick ass! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluffhead77 Posted September 12, 2007 Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 you would have loved it Greg... it was the embodiment of everything that Dan is and represents. Pure creativity and exceptional talent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velvet Posted September 12, 2007 Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 I wish I had opened this thread earlier. I love Dan, but not enough to travel nowadays, but Dan with Brian Blade?!?! I woulda made it down for that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Boy 2.0 Posted September 12, 2007 Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 good shit brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevO Posted September 12, 2007 Report Share Posted September 12, 2007 Was there more pedal steel on night #2? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisley Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 great reviews, sounds awesome... love Garth Hudson's keyboard "wizardry" - aptly put... guy's a geniusthat whole crowd seem totally laid back when you come across the opportunity to converse with them... have spent a few afternoons chatting with Daniel running into him here and there in Hamilton... the first time he introduced himself by coming up to me in a bar in Hess Village and asking if I realized I had a big hole in the back of my lumber jacket perfectly shaped like a heart (coincidentally had personally just fallen into the love, the jacket ripped that way from a single rip from getting caught on the bar stools... which he thought was so great)... Garth is also really easy to talk to, if occasionally a little hard to understandthanks for the reviews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted September 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Was there more pedal steel on night #2? I wasn't there the first night, but I was surprised that he wasn't on it for as much as I thought he'd be. Maybe he had had too much fun with the guitar the first night Lanois is a wild guitar player too. He really gets that thing to come to life and generate such emotion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted September 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 (edited) Edited September 13, 2007 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted September 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 (edited) Just caught the interview with Daniel Lanois on The Hour with George Stromboulopolous. Daniel ran through a version of Here Is What Is on a nice old acoustic Gibson (signed by Emmylou Harris) as a soundcheck. Normally musical guests don't perform on this show, so this was a nice treat. I was close enough (and there were only about 15 people there) to hear them talk off camera. Ran through the interview explaining his new film. Showed the clip where he's talking to Brian Eno. Daniel said it was really fascinating spending a week in Shreveport, LA with Brian Blades family. They performed in Brian's father's church band for the whole week. Daniel said that he had spoken with Bono as he was starting the film. Bono said "you're doing a film about yourself? Death by narcissism! Be careful". Supposedly U2 has seen the completed film and were astounded. He's been working on their new ablum with them recently. They are thinking of touring with the film in much the same manner that they just did in Toronto. Show the film and have a "cocktail party". Then stick around for a couple of nights and do a couple of shows. "Give back to the town that is having you there." Right on. They finished the interview with Daniel strumming and instrumental piece that was really good. Man, does he have a distinct sound or what. After it was over, I went and thanked Daniel and complemented him on the show from Wednesday night. His eyes light up and he said "did you SEE Brian Blade?!" Oh yeah, and I told him that it was magical. He agreed and said that it was truly a monumental show. He then got excited remembering it and started telling George how amazing Blade played that night and how he encouraged him a number of times to keep a song going and extend it because it was working so well. He was happy to hear that the crowd at the show had found it as entertaining as HE did Good times ... and I can't wait to get to another Lanois gig. Here's a couple of pics I grabbed with my phone: Edited September 13, 2007 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluffhead77 Posted September 13, 2007 Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted September 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2007 Of course, i forgot to ask when the interview will air ... d'oh! I'm sure it will be next week sometime. Check http://cbc.ca/thehour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted September 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2007 BTW - i gotta thank Big Wooly Mammoth for turning me on to Lanois back in 95 when he convinced me to come out to see him perform with Emmylou Harris on the Wrecking Ball tour. What a SHOW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phorbesie Posted September 14, 2007 Report Share Posted September 14, 2007 awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamilton Posted September 14, 2007 Report Share Posted September 14, 2007 BTW - i gotta thank Big Wooly Mammoth for turning me on to Lanois back in 95 when he convinced me to come out to see him perform with Emmylou Harris on the Wrecking Ball tour. What a SHOW!That's a great album, too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanada Kev Posted November 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2007 The interview with Lanois on The Hour is up on their website. You get to see him perform twice ... which guests on that show don't normally do:http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/video.php?id=1780 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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