09-Oct-10 Santa Barbara Bowl, Santa Barbara, USA
Here's Christopher's review:
Setlist
I was lucky enough to go to both these shows and they were both terrific. Van was in a good mood and in good voice both nights. The set lists were very similar. Ballerina in San Francisco but not Santa Barbara. Precious Time in Santa Barbara. Most importantly, he seemed into the music both nights so there were lots of surprises along the way. During All in the Game in San Francisco, he sang "Open up your heart," while looking straight up in the air and then said, "That's really hard......I don't want to do that." During the same song in Santa Barbara, he sort of got the giggles early on and never really recovered. He kept breaking himself up laughing. It actually seemed like a nice change.
He also tried to tell a joke both nights before Playhouse (in which jazz guitarist Jay Berliner plays an unlikely banjo). I couldn't hear the answer the first night, but it goes, "What's the difference between a banjo and a trampoline?" "You take off your shoes before you jump on a trampoline." (rim shot).
He played In the Garden wonderfully both nights but kept it very quiet for a long time in Santa Barbara. During "No Guru.....," he said something like, "That line came from a man not far from here...Ojai!" A reference to Krishnamurti, I think. Because then he said, "One more time for K" before singing another chorus of "No guru."
The Santa Barbara Bowl is a wonderful outdoor amphitheater. The sound was gorgeous but it's a hike to get in and I wondered if he would stick to his usual on-time start while lots of people were still filing in. I think he actually started almost 5 minutes early.
For awhile, I'm healed...........
- Chris
Setlist
Baby, Please Don't Go
Here Comes the Night
Brown Eyed Girl
Fair Play
Keep Mediocrity At Bay
Little Village
Playhouse
Keep It Simple
Back on Top
Rough God Goes Riding
It's All in the Game
Precious Time
In the Garden
Celtic Excavation->Into the Mystic
Moondance->My Funny Valentine
Help Me
Gloria
Big Hand for The Band!
David Hayes
Paul Moran
Jay Berliner
Andy Jones
Richie Buckley
Bobby Ruggiero
Becky Ramsey
4 comments:
Just wanted to first thank you for covering and reviewing the concerts. I was fortunate to see Van last night for the first time at the SB bowl. What an amazing venue. Amazing. What an amazing show. Van was great, and it made for one of the most special and memorable experiences of my life. I am glad I discovered the website and keep up the good work. I hope I have the chance to see the Man again someday.
Conor Scotland
For what is worth, I spent all I could on three tickets this summer to hear/see Mr. Morrison in an outdoor venue in the Houston area this past summer. Fully expecting this to be his last major tour to the U.S. and with my many accolades going to him to encourage my eleven year old piano player, we went expecting to be wow'd. Needless to say the man was not on his game that night and my son left with a whole new perspective on many of the artists of this generation.
Van Morrison knows that he was no where close to his best that evening. It would really be a nice gesture if this giant in the business could somehow acknowledge this and perhaps even make up up for the opportunity he lost to influence the offspring of some of his faithful followers over the years.
Here is my review of the Santa Barbara show:
http://www.noozhawk.com/arts/article/101210_jeff_moehlis_van_morrison_in_top_form_at_santa_barbara_bowl
What a performance! BTW, your setlist was useful for the review - thanks!
Thanks for the set list. We were able to see Van for the 1st time @ the SB Bowl show. I have over 20 of his albums and have been a long-time fan. He sounded absolutely amazing that night, much better than I expected! Wish the show went longer than 90 mins though...
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