Back from a great 2nd set in Seattle last night. The band sounded absolutely fantastic (not that there was any doubt of that happening) -- and they were having a real blast. Super tight playing, and at the same time a real relaxed, fun vibe. This is my 5th concert and it seems they just keep getting better and better.

Not sure what they played for the first set, but thought some of the hardcore and/or longtime fans on the board would like a quick rundown. Jay noted at one point that they were doing a bunch of brand-new things and putting together a new setlist. "We're using the club here to reharse".

First off, the true new tunes sounded so tight you would never guess they were being done live for the first time this weekend. The only real clue was that on a couple tunes Jay had a music stand with some lead-sheets that he would occasionally consult.

1. "A Quote from Mr. Z" - Brand new tune from Tom that will appear on an upcoming solo project. "Mr. Z" refers to the late Joe Zawinul. Nice tune - funky groove and some old-school fusion keyboard sounds.

2. "Catching the Sun"

3. "Shaker Song" - The newer swing version they've been doing that features the entire band. All the guys were really digging in on this one. Tom's fingers were just flying over the keyboards. Crowd went nuts at the end of this one.

4. "Unspoken" - Song structure was the same as on the CD, but with much longer soloing from Jay and Julio.

5. "Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat" - the Mingus tune. Bit of a new arrangement from what they did a few years back. Jay laid down some real beautiful stuff here on soprano sax. Did everyone know that Jay had the fortune of taking some jazz theory classes from Mingus while in college? Lucky man.

6. "The Deep End" - Lots of Scott. Lots of screams and cheers from the audience. What more do I need to say?

7. "Ice Mountain" - Just as much of a wild ride as on the CD. Jay had to use the music sheets more here for some of the crazy licks. Once again, the structure of the tune was just like on the CD but with some longer solos. At the end the band got quieter and quieter, then started dropping out one by one until we were left with.....

8. Drum/vocal solo from Bonny - How does he do it all??

and finally...

9. "Funkyard Dog" - Pretty much exactly like they were doing a couple years ago. Jay got super-funky while doing the 2-horns-at-once thing. Love when he does that!

So there you go - some brand new, some old, some in between classics. I'll be interested to see what makes the cut over the next few weeks and becomes the main material for the rest of the year.

Great review, Michael. Some of my favorites plus a few new songs. I hope I get to see them this year.

I hope this isn't a sign of what we have in store for later shows in '10. Due to nothing more than timing, it's starting to seem that some of us regular, domestic Spyroheads aren't going to get to see any material from Down The Wire performed live.

In March, '09, we experienced an "oldies but goodies" show since Down The Wire hadn't yet been officially released (makes the "A Quote from Mr. Z" scenario a little curious. ) In Dec. '09, we got a Christmas show. Now it sounds like the live Down The Wire material has already been abandoned for the most part.

Ponderous...

Dittos to everything everyone else just posted!!!

Thanks....I am ALWAYS amased at the wholesale changes in the setlists, and I NEVER take that aspect of the band for granted, as most bands do not do that these days....Dylan does on a nightly basis, but who else???


PORKPIE HAT!! YES...got my wish!!

paul

BTW....as described, that set opener...."Mr Z"....sounds very interesting....

What else would you expect of Schuuuuuuu.

Paul