Date: Fri, 2 Sep 1994 19:08:26 -0700
From: bobmacd@netcom.com (Bob MacDowell)
Subject: My first concert, part 2
References: <9409020355.AA04580@saul.cis.upenn.edu>

Well, this time I used the ticket I paid $26.50 for. I'm glad I came back.
It was a different show. 

She opened the show with one I didn't know, "Crucify" (hey! She didn't play
Crucify last night!!) and another I didn't know.  So far, three totally new,
unique songs that she hadn't played the last time. 

Then she stopped and did a great *big* monologue with her stuffed animals
that left Bill Miller in the dust :-) and would've given Spalding Grey a run
for his money, provided Spalding Grey would be willing to play with stuffed
animals onstage. :-)  Girl, anytime you want to quit singing and playing 
piano, you can pack 'em in just talkin'!!

It was the only thing she said the entire show. 

The rest of the concert was half different, half sorta similar, except that
I made a totally different connection to some of the songs.  I think this 
one's "grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl"
(from the end of Precious Things) was longer than the last one :-)

I can see why she doesn't use a lot of backing tracks.  She *loves* to play
with meter.  Whoever said "White folk have no rhythm" was right! :-)

I got an explanation of what they'd done to the "Bells for Her" piano; this
from a roadie from England.  They eliminated one of the three strings on 
each note;  they put felt in to "pad" the strings; they changed the way the
hammers struck; and they tuned the entire piano down an octave (!).  This is
all verbatim from the roadie; it doesn't quite sound right to me, not that
I know much about pianos.   He said this is not the same piano they used in
the studio ('course, I haven't heard the studio track to compare...)

There were many more people after waiting for Tori; they'd overflowed the
sidewalk, and winos/bums/drifters kept breaking through one side of the line
and getting stuck in the aisle we'd left for Tori. There was a tremendous 
amount of clowning around too, someone started "Give me a T!" "Give me an O!"
"Give me an R!"  "Give me an I!"  "Give me a Q!" :-)

For some reason, my 21 bus just *didn't* come for most of an hour.  I didn't 
really care if I saw her again, just seemed like a better thing to do than
stand by the bus stop :-)  She came out, spent forever talking to a bunch
of people, did photos, signed, gabbed with friends she'd met before, and 
finally disappeared into the Sunset. :-)  (well, actually I don't know where 
her hotel was, it probably wasn't in the Sunset district... :-)

My 21 trolleybus came two minutes later.  I went home. End of story.

All in all, it was a very good concert.  Thanks for two nights of fun, Tori.

--Bob