| Concert Rating for this Show | | 3.6000 out of 5.0000 | | User Comments and Reviews for this Show | Sunday's concert in Toms' River, NJ was another breathtaking performance by Taylor Hicks. The audience, filled with a mix of adoring fans of all ages, genders, and races -- were treated to a HOT performance. Taylor sang Compared to What; The Run Around; Heaven Knows, The Deal, Just to Feel That Way and Take The Long Way Home. The highlight of the evening was the spectatular Ray Charles "tag" about reaching for "the pillow where your baby used to lay" and "crying so loud you give your neighbor the blues". The audience was silent as they listened to the beauty and passion of Taylor's voice as he sang that song.
Taylor performs blues, jazz, rock, Cajan, Calypso and a little country~~ he plays harmonica, guitar, tamborine, and cowbell. I truly enjoyed my evening in NJ -- despite a long rainy day. | |
Now that's what I call a night of pure musical fun.
Taylor was in a really good mood tonight. He and the band were fantastic - really tight. He had moments of brilliance - The Maze was unbelievable - and at different times throughout the night some beautiful harmonica. He seems to be growing really comfortable with himself.
I had a seat in the second row but it was off to the side - and when I pulled out my camera at the start of the show, the woman in front of me commented on my camera and asked if I wanted to "get out" and stand - so I stood throughout the whole show - but over on the right side of the stage.
The Right Place was beautiful once Taylor settled into singing (as you know, he did that teasing thing at the beginning and was enjoying it a lot).
People were standing most of the time I think, and there were lots of guys where I was - and some kids as well. Some were even standing on the chairs while they were video - um - taking pics.
At the end, when Taylor started singing Runaround, there was a surprising, big rush to the stage! It was funny. And when he finished singing, he came to the front of the stage and swept from one side to the other, touching the outstretched hands. He gave a good show with the wiggling throughout!
It was pouring rain for the whole drive there and back. Still pouring rain after the show - so most people assumed that there would be no activity at the buses. When I came out, I noticed that there was, nevertheless, a gathering at the buses - maybe about 20 people. Since it was on the way to my car (now that is a gross exaggeration!), I walked over to the buses. The word was that Taylor had left, as in "gone." Taylor had left the building and so had Elvis! Apparently, there was a car waiting for him to take him to the airport as soon as the show ended. In spite of that, people were refusing to leave. One of the security people (from the venue) kept begging people to please leave. He kept saying that he had no reason to lie to anyone - that the man had left. He said that he could not go home until they did. He was met with dull stares. People simply weren't leaving until they saw for themselves that the buses had left. I was getting soaked even though I had an umbrella and eventually left after talking to a few people.
There should be lots of people with video.
It was not a beautiful theatre - an arena sort of cut down to theatre size - but it worked, and it was a great show. And it was nice meeting a bunch of people that I knew only by name from the Soul Patrol.
| |
| Get Taylor Hicks stuff here | |
You never regret going to a Taylor Hicks concert and tonight was no exception.
Resembling a high school gym for its navy bleachers and the basketball equipment parked out in the hall, the venue was an odd hybrid as there was a permanent stage at the front, slightly elevated as in the Beacon in NYC. I nearly wet my Underalls when I slid into my fourth row seat, a few removed from dead center of the stage, to the right. Hubby's was in the same row but on the other side of town, to the left. You know you've come a long way -- well, I have -- when a total stranger comes up behind you, rubs your back, and not only do you do not smack her into next week, the thought never entered your head. I turned to find a woman with the sweetest expression, someone I've never laid eyes on before, admiring the back of my T (Taylor at the piano in Ray Charles' studio). Along with the tingling anticipation that rose along with the incoming crowd, there was communal joy in the air, so sweet it was almost palpable. Last night marked ten Taylor concerts for me, and it never ceases to amaze me that, before he even takes the stage, he creates this kind of feeling among people who don't know each other while strengthening bonds between friends.
As the boys in the band rushed the stage, everyone in my section jumped to their feet. As in the Beacon, I had to find my sea legs: unlock my knees and sway with the crowd until Baby Boy appeared in the spaces between the humans. I swear, that man does not need a spotlight; it's only there for showmanship. That thicket of hair is more silvery each time I see it, like a Christmas present waiting to be unwrapped. No blazer this time, only a simple black button-down shirt and dark jeans, just a tad baggy, that looked soft to the touch. Forget his feet; I'm not that tall, LOL.
In a Vinnie Barbarino voice, he greeted the crowd four or five times, "How ya doin', New Joisy? How ya doin'?!?" Taylor must be a fan of the Sopranos, as he was a full State removed from that accent. Happy and relaxed, he gave the crowd a great big emotional embrace. After the first song, I believe, he told us that he loved us and that we -- his fans -- are like his family. It was as if he'd reached into my chest and squeezed my heart, and I swear, I am choking up again as I write this. It was all that a mother could want, even a mother from a previous life: the validation that her child feels loved.
You know I'm going to forget the set list, of course I am. Whatever poured out of his mouth, he was spot-on, and this was his fourth consecutive night in concert. I am thoroughly convinced that St. Blaize and St. Cecilia both reach down from the heavens to stoke Taylor's throat before every gig. That golden throat had incredible tone and passion and staying power; when I wasn't singing along with him, my jaw hung open in awe.
As always, he poured all of his musical sensibilities into a blender, whipped up a helluva shake, and served it with a huge grin, as if to say, "Try it, you'll like it!" Selections from his latest CD and Under the Radar as well as covers spanning the last six decades. Notable among those were "Low Down", "Don't Bring Me Down", and "Compared to What". As he introduced "Low Down" as a tune from the disco era, I'd have doubled over laughing if not for the metal seat two inches in front of me. Baby boy, yo' mama remembers where she was when she bought and wore holes in that album, and it was well before the age of quadruple shoulder pads and quintuple neck chains. The band cooked on "Low Down" and Shine On Silver Boy was the head chef, Taylorizing it while still giving props to Boz. How uncanny was it to watch Brian Gallagher's Boz-like bleating his beautiful, battered horn? Somehow, it wasn't strange at all but very natural, a sort of passing of the torch.
"Don't Bring Me Down" had our boy standing at the mike for a good long time. Man, he was feelin' that song; his lungs were bottomless.
For "Compared to What", he went diggin' and uprooted one of the missing verses. Just when I was expecting him to forget or jumble the lyrics, he rearranged my head for me nicely. This one was one hot number, children, go grab the fire extinguisher kinda hot. And somewhere, I don't remember where and now you'll know why, he inserted part of the Ray Charles' gem, "You ever cry so hard you give the blues to your neighbor?" As he started that, with long pauses between the phrases, I accompanied him with guttural sounds that I'm sure scared the crap out of the people next to me, but trust me, not as much as if I'd hauled out the Kleenex. For "The Deal", he slung an acoustic across his chest and made it real purty, as 4tay would say. "My Friend" turned into a barely-controlled frenzy, replete with whompin' harp.
Taylor gave harp three times last night, making Mama Kat a happy, hollerin' fool, and oh, what harp it was. tish, you'll love this: he pulled Dueling Banjoes with Josh, except it wasn't banjoes, it was the harp vs. finger-lickin' guitar. Hicksie played that thang with his nose: the first time I've seen him do this live. I know that some of you are grossed out watching this technique, but weirdo that I am, I was transfixed. Of course I was, it was the bleedin' harp and he was bleedin' it all right. The last harp injection came at the encore, for "Takin' it to the Streets". What he did with that teeny little instrument knocked me on my butt, and not in the way that you'd think. How did he do this??? Instead of making it a locomotive screaming down the tracks, he made a bird of that harp, a tiny bird warbling.
For a guy who's so serious about his music, he cracked us all up throughout the set and cracked himself up as well. Must be the Libra in him, balancing things out. That playful chil' managed to pull Al Carty out of The Zone (no mean feat), sidling up to the bassist to drop a "How could ya have broken mah heart lahk that look?" that literally brought Al to his knees. He was laughing so hard, he had to swipe his arm across his eyes to clear the tears. Because we were all boogey'ing on our feet, I missed the knock-ya-on-yer-can move with Brian Gallagher and barely glimpsed Loren through the throng. But I did catch Baby Boy turn his back on the audience, hop up to Felix and extend his hand. Felix, God bless him, shook it heartily and how on God's green earth he did this while beating the skins to within an inch of his life, I'll never know.
Taylor crammed everything into an hour and five minutes, and for critics, I have this to say. Taylor Hicks' hour and five minutes is, compared to another performer's hour and a half of a plain ol' chocolate, a candy bar loaded with nuts and nougat and caramel. I like my candy bars loaded, thank you. Spring-loaded, in this case.
So, apparently, does the hubby. Down the other end of the aisle, I couldn't see him and I didn't even remember he was there, LOL, until after the concert. Now, y'all know this man is a rabid Katherine McPhee fan, right? He likes Taylor, but worships at the polished tootsies of Ms. McPhee. Well, as we made our way through the crowd toward each other, John was wearing the biggest smile, chanting, "Phenomenal, phenomenal!" He pronounced Taylor and his band fabulous and when pressed for a lengthier review, stated emphatically, "Highly entertaining. Fun. A lot of fun. High energy. When are they coming back?" Move over, Kat. Move on over. There's a great big dawg movin' in.
|
|
| I was really surprised by the venue. It was a gym. No getting around it. A gym with a permanent stage. I thought it was a theater. It was filled to the back bleachers and that made me happy for Taylor. However the place was full. Approximately 3,000 people.
The stage was set up for Taylor's band so I knew there would be no opener. I also saw a car pull up to the bus after the show to pick Taylor up so I guess being done by 8:45 was an advantage for everyone.
The band came out and without fanfare or announcement, Taylor strolls out and says in his worst North Jersey accent, "How's everybody doin'" several times. What a nut.
Any music Taylor chooses to throw our way is fine with me but I do have favorites after seeing this show so many times. He was looking good in dark gray shirt, nice fitting blue jeans and gray sneakers. He looks a lot thinner than when I saw him in VA but he looks fit and I know his soon-to-be rest will do him good. His hair is more silver and a little longer.
When Taylor got to Lowdown, I was completely happy. Such a jazzy, smooth feeling and it made think of just how far Taylor has come since I saw him in February. He's less mechanical in going from song to song and he plays around a lot during the numbers. I repeat what Kat said about the 'Silk Degrees' album. Wore that sucker out and bought a 2nd years ago. Taylor nailed it and the flute played by Brian G was perfection.
Compared to What is such a great song and he changes the lyric from the abortion line to something else. I was so wrapped up in watching him sing it that I don't know which he used.
I am not a huge fan of Soul Thing. But last night, it was so fabulous that I think it was the best song of the night. Until the Maze and the tags.
Not since Cohasset have I heard Taylor wailing so hard from the heart that I stopped breathing. I wanted to scream that we wouldn't make you cry Taylor during the Fool for You tag but couldn't because you needed air for that and I didn't have any.
His repeating do you believe 7 or 8 times before the FFY tag got a big YES! from the fans. As always, the Heaven Knows/Maze/FFY combo is my all time favorite. I was hoping for a little Dan Fogelberg but I heard that in a cellcert so that suffices for now. And THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME BE MYSELF!!!! I finally got to hear him sing that live!!!
The Right Place and Runaround (RA) really was much improved over the outdoor venue except for the harp playing in RA. In VA, RA harp blowing was right in our faces and since I was in the 3rd row last night, I didn't get to experience that. But he did nose harp, if that interests anyone. LOL> He did run and touch everyone's hands 2 or 3 times because by that time they were three deep at the front of the stage. He kept saying great job, good job everybody.
Takin' It To The Streets is not a favorite encore for me. I am still waiting for Places I've Been but maybe at Millersville. Maybe not. It was such a rocky show, I think it would have thrown off the tempo.
When Taylor sang:
Did ya ever wake up in the morning
Just about break of day
Reach over and feel the pillow
Where your baby used to lay
Then you put on your crying
Like you never cried before (repeat 3 times)
Oh Lord
Yeah you even cry so loud,
You give the blues to your neighbor next door.
This was the true essence of the evolution of Taylor Hicks for me. A heavenly man singing a torch song to 3000 strangers and we were crying for him because he was so convincingly hurt. (not reading anything into that, btw)
These concerts spoil me for any other performer. What? No cellcert? No bus stalking? No getting setlists from the stage hands? REally, his show is at such a high level that it is good to see that as he goes off into the sunset for a well-deserved rest, he has given us something that we will always treasure: all of himself.
This only makes me yearn for what is to come. What will the 'acoustic' tour be like? What will he write about? When do the tours start again?
It was a short and sweet night of Taylor Hicks and his band. How far they have come since they started in Feb. 2007. My 12th show with one more to go in Oct. and I am the luckiest person to have been here for the transformation and I will be here for the next phase.
I loved this show. It rocked, it was jazzy, smooth and achingly profound. It was an almost perfect day.
Make it a perfect MonTay.
| |
| To the above poster - Taylor has lost weight. Obivously you weren't at the show or you would have noticed. Don't you have anything better to do than bash Taylor? This is suppose to be about the concert! | |
| I saw Taylor Hicks at the concert last month and he looks great! He is such a handsome guy, great personality and an amazing performer! | |
|
