Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers!!

If you have a magnifying glass handy you can see Stevie Nicks on the stage next to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. (Yes the cardboard camera stikes again) http://www.tompetty.com/ Stevie has signed up to perform on the first eight shows with Tom on this tour. She sang on several songs, two of which Tom said they had not performed together in twenty years. "Stop Dragging My Heart Around" was awesome. Stevie still looks like she is 30 years old. If my "Rumours" album didn't have a date on it I would swear time has stood still. Yes I did have my Leica binoculars with me and I can see a gnats ass at 50 yards with those.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers left a mark on Charlotte. I have now seen them four times. I knew they were great but there was something really special about this show... maybe it was the fact that Tom said this band has now been together for thirty years and this could be the last concert tour of the big sheds. He told a reporter recently that "these shed shows can turn you into an animal by the time you are through" I can understand that. He said they would play some shows in the future but they would just be select venues over time.

Tom has so many talented guys in his band. They are all stand-out musicians. They have a guitar collection that must take a truck to haul. Mike and Tom changed guitars literally every song. Some of these axes were custom Rickenbackers and Fenders that are just awesome looking. The lighting was awesome. The hit songs just never stopped. The tempo of the show would blow your mind. The crowd never sat down. The crowd noise was ear-shattering. I left my earplugs at home unfortunately and I paid the ear-ringing price for 24 hours. As they say, no pain, no gain. Disclaimer: If you are reading this use your hearing protection! Anything sustained over 85 dbs will mess up your hearing!

The band even played some awesome blues covers. Nothing I like better than a great band who can make a song their own. They rocked and they rocked and they rocked.

I have several comments about this show. I paid less for these tickets than any amplitheatre show in the last eighteen months. Tom has a fan club that you can join and he reserves tickets for 1,500 of his fans right down front. As I looked around I didn't see anyone who looked like they got their tickets from the local corporate scene. You know the type, the ones who look like they really don't fit in at a concert. In most venues they are the ones in the front rows while the real fans of the artist fight for a seat in the rear or on the lawn at over-inflated prices. Many times these corporate clones leave by the middle of the show. I really like this fan club pre-sale approach to ticket sales. It is so awesome to be down front with the real fans singing on key to all the songs. What a night. The best music value in years. Thanks Tom Petty.

Tom Petty and Mike Campbell on stage Friday night. My camera let me down as I was roughly 20 feet from the stage but the large video screens were very helpful with seeing details!  

Trey Anastasio Rocks Charlotte!

Trey Anastasio Friday night at the amplitheate in Charlotte. http://www.treyanastasio.com/ Trey opened for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. A very nice jamming show. I had no idea cameras were allowed in the show so I put what I call a cardboard camera in my pocket to capture a few pictures of the show. Needless to say they are a bit grainy and have no zoom capability but at least you "get the picture." I talked to the twenty to thirty year olds in the audience and many were there to just to see Trey with the bonus of Tom Petty and his band. The guy who parked beside me told me he had driven from Columbia, South Carolina to see the show and that he had been to over one hundred Phish shows! Trey is one talented guy. A really nice way to start a spectacular concert evening.

Billy Preston. Always a Crowd Favorite

Billy Preston. http://www.billypreston.net/ I was really sorry to hear of Billy's passing this week. I have been a fan of the man since I was a kid. I remember as a really young child living in Meridian, Mississippi I earned some cash doing a few chores in the yard and walked over to the local theatre to catch the 'Concert for Bagladesh." That was my first time to see him play and realize who he was. Over time I have seen him live with the likes of Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones. He was a very special musician. No one could play like that. He will be missed but fortunately we have the music and the video to remind us of his special talent. Before I leave this story, a couple of memories come to mind of two separate shows. I can hear in my mind EC calling out Billy on the stage in his English accent as he looked at him from the center of the stage to lead the next solo "Billy !!!" Another is a band introduction from a Stones show some time ago, believe me I have seen a bunch of Stones shows so if you tried to pin me down on which one I would never get there.... but I can remember as plain a day Mick Jagger saying and I wish I could relate this to you vocally "Mr. Billay Presston" Billy was a crowd favorite and he always got huge amounts of ovations from the crowd. Thanks for the music Billy.

JImmy Buffett in Charlotte June 4, 2006

Jimmy Buffett on stage in Charlotte, North Carolina June 4th. (Picture by Marty McGraw - yes I left my camera in my Land Crusier) Jimmy took the microphone for "Bank of Bad Habits." I thought this was a very cool set list, probably the best one in a long time, just my perspective mind you. My highlight for the night was Jake Shimabukuro doing the introduction for "Desperation Samba" http://www.jakeshimabukuro.com/home.php and the final song "Nautical Wheelers" This was my 63rd Buffett show and I have never heard Jimmy sing that tune live....or did he do it in Key West one night? Hmmm....I'll have to check. All in all a great show. I did miss the horns and I will always miss Fingers Taylor. Fingers puts the zing into many of Jimmy's songs and he needs to get back on the road with JB!! In fact, as I write this I am listening to a cut from the Cincinnati show the other night. Fingers joined Jimmy on stage to play fins. As I write this I am wiping a tear from my eye. I would have paid big bucks to see Fingers and Jimmy on stage together again.... I already paid big bucks to see him without Fingers! Let's face it, one of my favorite songs "Tampico Trauma" just doesn't have any soul without that harp! There are some nice shots of Fingers on stage with Jimmy at Buffettnews.com in the photo gallery. http://www.buffettnews.com/gallery/displayimage.php?album=107&pos=15

The parking lot was a blast. I attended the last show here several years back where they didn't open the lot until 5:00!!! Something changed as the lot opened this year at 12:00. When I arrived at 2:00 the lot was half full and the party was on. I have never seen so many pop up tents! Colorful to say the least. I also ran into my friend from New Orleans, Joe Bennett. He was playing the parking lot on a small stage setup by a whole bunch of parrotheads from Charlotte and South Carolina. They had a bar, swimming pool, and even private Port o Johns!! The food was awesome. They had some wonderful shrimp and even tiny cheeseburgers made from York peppermint patties and vanilla wafers! Great stuff. This concert was my daughter's third JB show and she had a blast. She talked about this one all the way home! Yes, a nice way to start the Summer with a live outdoor JB show.