Cheap Trick Appreciation Season kicked off on April 1st, and very soon after that, Cheap Trick came to town. This thrilled me, because they usually stop here in the mid-to-late summer or at the end of winter. I have never actually seen Cheap Trick in the springtime, when Cheap Trick Appreciation Season is in session, so I was very excited.
As you may recall, I was having a tough time deciding who to bring to the show with me. The candidates were Joejung, who is my Official Cheap Trick Show Buddy, or Jeff J., because he loves Guided By Voices, who just happened to be the opening act. I decided that I should treat my unemployed friend to the show. Oh, crap! They were both unemployed at the time. I opted to invite Jeff J., but you can be sure that I felt an empty spot inside because I couldn't also bring Joejung. I ended up filling the empty spot with beer.
We started the evening with a nice beer at Jeff J.'s house, and then we went downtown and had some more beer. We arrived at the venue a couple of songs into GBV's set. (Funny how beer sometimes makes your schedule a bit more flexible.) I saw a GBV show last year, and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed it. I only went because a friend provided me with a free ticket and free drinks. That is the kind of bribe that can get me to any show. If the free show sucks, odds are good that enough free drinks will keep me from noticing. I ended up enjoying GBV, thanks to the huge amounts of floor tom and the lead singer's witty banter.
GBV usually plays for two and a half hours, but they had to scale their set way back to open for Cheap Trick. They still played a ton of music, but they barely paused between songs, and there was 99% less crowd banter. I enjoyed it in a detached sort of way, leaving several times during the set to visit the restroom and procure more beer.
During the intermission, Jeff J. and I found his brother the Sea Captain. It's always good to see the Sea Captain, but it was extra good to see him at Cheap Trick because he held my beer when I went to the restroom again. (I really paced the beer drinking poorly at this show. To make matters even less convenient, the restroom was in the basement of the theater, and it was like trying to find King Tut's tomb. Next time I will start the beer drinking mid-way through the opening act.)
We were still standing in the foyer visiting with the Sea Captain when very suddenly, the house lights went down, the band was announced, and Cheap Trick kicked right into Hello There. We ran down the aisle, and were firmly planted in our spots by the time they started the second verse. Mmm...Cheap Trick. There is just something about a Cheap Trick show that makes me want to be the fourth or fifth Mrs. Robin Zander. He wears sequined shirts!
And Robin Zander sounded wonderful. That is the most important question from the Cheap Trick checklist, and I am always glad when yes can be checked off. If you need to be refreshed, this is the Cheap Trick checklist:
Even though Cheap Trick usually plays the same set and just varies the order of songs, they threw in a bunch of new stuff this time. They have a studio album coming out, and they are on a movie soundtrack, so they had all kinds of fresh material. I am judging the new tunes strictly based on the one time I heard them live, but they sounded terrific. I hope their new album is huge. They could stand to have a mega-hit that will wash the taste of The Flame out of our mouths once and for all.
It's too bad there is nothing to rid me of the trauma caused by the pink shirt Tom was wearing, but at this point I have almost built up immunity to his poor fashion choices. (I am a fine one to talk about poor fashion choices! I don't remember what I wore to the show, thank you so much Budweiser, but I am willing to lay odds that at least one garment had holes in it. But I can guarantee that none of my garments were pink.)
Speaking of Tom, of course they let him sing. I complain because I love. His voice isn't bad, and he always sings I Know What I Want, which is a tremendous piece of pop writing. (Except there is this one line in the third verse ("It's a one in a million, I was shootin' for the stars") where he has to cram in too many words. I guess Rick couldn't follow the established pace of the verses and finish the thought at the same time, and it always makes the rhythm seem off.) Drives me nuts every time I listen to the record, and it drives me nuts in person too.
But the main reason I don't like it when they let Tom sing is that it means Robin isn't singing! And when Robin doesn't have to sing, he wanders off and stands by the amps. If that guy is as shy as this one article I read in an issue of Rolling Stone from the late 70s claims he is, why is he the singer in a rock and roll band? A touring rock and roll band. Yes, yes, I know. Because he likes to sing. I get it, I'm just saying that I like it best when he is within eyeshot. You know who else was within eyeshot? GBV! From our seats, we could see GBV standing backstage, drinking beer and looking absolutely giddy. That has got to be maximum GBV job satisfaction. They already seem like they have a pretty good time at work, but getting paid to watch Cheap Trick every night is a nice bonus.
Anyway, Robin Zander. At one point, Jeff J. turned to me and said, "How old is that guy?" No amount of beer can make me forget the important things, and I said, "He was born in 1953. So...that would make him fifty some time this year." (I just looked it up. He turned fifty in January.) Jeff J. said that Robin Zander looks like he has been through some tough times. I would argue that he only looks bad when he is singing. I am of the opinion that although Robin can still hit the high notes, it takes a bit more effort than it used to. He sounds great, but when he is headed for the higher range, his neck is obviously straining. Veins are a-poppin' out on both his neck and his forehead, and he seriously looks like he is in pain. But when he is just standing around smiling while Rick does the crowd banter, he looks fabulous.
The best part of the set was when they played Ain't That A Shame. I usually get bored during Ain't That A Shame because of the incredibly long intro, but at this show it was the greatest thing that ever happened. It not only gave me a chance to get out the map and run to the restroom, I also had time to get more beer. Well, all of that adventure actually took 1.5 songs. Southern Girls started up after Ain't That A Shame, but not seeing the first part of the song wasn't terribly tragic. I've seen that song played at every Cheap Trick show I have ever attended. I arrived back at my seat in time for the second half of the song. (Smashing my leg on an armrest in the process. A bruise that didn't go away for a week was my souvenir of this Cheap Trick show.)
That may have been the best part of the show, but the absolute highlight of my night was the fact that they played Big Eyes. Big! Eyes! (Hum riff here.) Big Eyes is one of the songs that I always want to hear, but it isn't in the standard set list. Well, happy day for me, Big Eyes is in the latest set mix. I love, love, love Big Eyes. Yes, I know. I could just play In Color and/or Cheap Trick At Budokan if I want to hear it that badly. But it's not the same and you know it.
As the show was wrapping up, I started hoping for Way Of The World. It's another one of those songs that they occasionally throw into the set, and I was hope-hope-hoping. I should have been perfectly happy with the fact that they had played Big Eyes, but I got greedy. I heard no Way Of The World, but they did close the show with Dream Police, another great track from the Dream Police album.
Even though Dream Police isn't their biggest hit, it has been their closing number the past two times I have seen them, and I approve. That song packs a wallop, and it is a good way to make sure the audience leaves thinking that they saw a first rate rock and roll show. It worked on me! I left the show very satisfied with my evening. They played great new tunes, they played great old tunes, and best of all, they didn't play The Flame.