Welcome To The DECEMBER Tour! On The Road With MaggieMay... The phone rang and I struggled to wake up. Some Florida sunshine had arrived! Blueglow had decided that she couldn't LIVE without hearing DECEMBER live and on stage. I had an extra 2nd row pit seat to entice her, and she flew up to *do* New Brunswick with us. : ) The very proper desk clerk informed me that Blueglow was there (using that name, btw) and I woke up enough to give this answer: Tell her we're at the 'Y'!! The drive to New Brunswick was effortless compared to the epic journey to and from Albany. We arrived early and snagged our usual primo parking place in front of the State. The marquee was already lit and said exactly what we wanted to see: THE MOODY BLUES. I dragged the girls kicking and screaming to the Ethiopian restaurant around the block from the Theatre. SueC refused to try it the last time we were in NB and I had thought about it since April 2002.  My
spirit of adventure includes forays into the unknown forest of food, SueC's
is limited to gravy. She does not like being reminded that it is
actually roux. LOL SueC feared we would be given a plate with
4 grains of rice on it and expected to share. I promised her a pizza
afterwards and she grudgingly went along for the culinary ride. The
Makeda was a cute place and though the service was mediocre, the food was
very good and very interesting. I tried the Ethiopian coffee and
it tasted of cardamom. I remembered as we walked in that it was a
similar cuisine to Moroccan and that silverware was usually not provided.
(One scoops the food up from a communal platter with a type of savory pancake)
The girls did not know that! LOL Maybe they served us goat
brains, maybe they didn't. There was really no way to know!
We relaxed over coffee until it was time to go, and I admit I was a little queasy when I walked out of the restaurant, elegantly burping curry, cardamom and God knows what all else. Perhaps a food adventure wasn't a good idea before a musical one. I fished into my purse for Rolaids, which I always carry for my darling husband. Maybe they *did* serve us goat brains! I thought it best not to express my own stomach unease, since both SueC and Blueglow had turned a delicate shade of green. Wisdom knows when to keep its mouth shut! We ran into a number of smiling people in front of the State Theatre. I was serenaded with Tuesday Afternoon by a darling tike whose dad, Brian is a big fan. What a cutie! I was informed that my favorite cow correspondent had decided to stay home. NancyJ told me Moody Blue was primping for her next photo shoot. LOL I hope she remembers me when she's a famous cow model for Borden. Elsa, moooove over! A few people came up and thanked me and SueC for the concert reviews. I love it when someone says "You've taken me all over the world!". It's very kind of them to mention it, and it's greatly appreciated by both of us. My favorite moment was when I introduced a pleasant gentleman to SueC and he exclaimed: "You're the DRIVER!!!" LOLOLOL Yes, she is! And photographer, webmistress, editor and layout designer. My personal trainer, too! HAHAHAHAHA THE VENUE This was our second visit to the State Theatre in New Brunswick. There are a number of restaurants near the theatre and we managed to score an enviable parking place. Didn't get lost getting there, either! I looked up my venue description from our first visit, and my tastes have evidently changed. Yes, the State Theatre is devoid of ornamentation, but I find beauty in its spare simplicity. The curves in the auditorium have an almost Art Deco feel, and it was restful after the intense ornamentation of The Palace the night before. SueC pointed out that it is *not* lime, as I described it last time, but pistachio. Excuse me! LOL A nice lady took our tickets and no security was present. Restrooms were convenient off the lobby. The theatre has a balcony with a significant overhang above almost half of the main floor. A box was on either side of the balcony. A large recessed lighting fixture dominated the ceiling and was quite pretty, doughnut shaped with five lights surrounding it. I've been in a few dozen of these rescued Fox-type theatres and while the general architecture is the same in all of them, each is completely unique. The two row pit was filled with comfortable chairs with armrests and you didn't feel like a sardine packed in a can with olive oil. The pit was divided into three sections with aisles in between.  The
stage was a very comfortable 37 inches high, and the front row was about
4 feet from the stage. The stage was on the smaller side, and the
mikes were an intimate 3 to 4 feet from the edge of the stage. :
) I wonder why the mikes were placed SO far back the night before
in Albany. It gives the appearance of an emotional gulf between the
audience and the performer. The setup at the State, on the other
hand, with the mikes fairly close to the edge of the stage, represents
"connection". The Moodies are never closer to you than they are at
Caesar's in Lake Tahoe, and perhaps that is one of the reasons why the
performances there seem so energized. Ah! The psychology of
rock 'n roll! I just hope The Moodies never feel the need to embrace
Ozzy's ritual of baptism. Sometimes a wet tshirt is just a wet tshirt.
LOL
There was an impressive set of speakers on both sides of the stage: 2 large stacks of three speakers onstage, augmented by a front fill. None flying. The sound was loud and painful and moderately distorted. Drums were very loud and Bernie was pushed way too front, overpowering the lead vocals with her harmony parts. Vocals could barely be heard in Gemini Dream, and Big Red was muted. The earplugs went in and didn't come out until December Snow. Even then, Justin's "s's" shot through me. With earplugs controlling the distortion, it sounded really good. I swear by them. The backdrop for the Moody lightshow was changed from Albany. Perhaps the trapezoid screen was a trial; it was gone in New Brunswick and the usual 4 cloth panels were again in place. A friendly guard told me the theatre sat 1800, and when I asked her how many seats had been sold, she smiled broadly and said 1800. It was... SOLD OUT! THE FASHION REPORT JL - Black long-slvd bib shirt with pleats and ruffle, leathers, boots, 2nd half white long-slvd bib shirt JH - Black long-slvd plain shirt, black slacks, shoes, 2nd half Drops of Blood shirt GE - Santa World tour shirt, black slacks, 2nd half red Ho Ho shirt Norda - Black strapless top, black ruffled skirt, Tart's Trotters, no change at half Bernie - Black on black, no change at half Paul - White long-slvd shirt with tan stripes Gordon - Black knit shirt, white pants 2nd half THE CONCERT SETLIST CHANGE!!! The people of New Brunswick were treated to an excellent concert by The Moody Blues. There was a change in the Holiday setlist tonight! The Voice is out, The Actor is back in. The Actor replaced YWD in the first half, and YWD replaced The Voice as the lead off song in the 2nd half. The Moodies saw a clean start out of the gate, and the race to an outstanding performance was on. All the songs in the first half were both well and effectively performed with no gaffs or noticeable errors. GD made it through intact tonight. ; ) I thought ES was the star of the first half, a very strong performance with a little more *on* it than usual. IKYOTS and TSIYE were both exceptional, very well done. I was surprised and puzzled by the reappearance of The Actor. I had really liked the new setlist and felt it had a lot more punch in it. The Actor is lovely, a beautiful song, but it brought down both the tempo and the energy in the evening. Well...perhaps the Moodies will use that spot to cycle through a variety of songs! It's very likely Highway will appear in the setlist tomorrow night, to be followed by Gypsy, then Say What You Mean and Blue World. (Note: Intended Humor) 
As noted above, the 2nd half began with YWD. There were a lot of people there to hear the DECEMBER cuts, and Blueglow was on the edge of her seat. Frankly, so was I! DNaR (or AhDUN'T Need a Reindeer as Justin Swindonly pronounces it - you can take the man out of Swindon, but you can't take the Swindon accent out of the man) has not been performed the same way twice. Justin sings, he doesn't sing. I can't for the life of me tell how it is INTENDED that that song be performed. This was Blueglow's first experience on the DECEMBER cuts live and she thought DNaR was slower than on the cd. I *do* like JL singing "People will sing!" The song seems a bit uncertain and therefore isn't as strong as the studio version. Of the four new offerings, this one appears to need a touch more work. The old joke in the classical world was How do you get to Carnegie Hall? PRACTICE! LOL It's not as good as it could be. December Snow, though very lovely, was not as strong tonight as it has been. I thought JH looked a little tired. He's a man of subtlety and nuance. His face was more set than usual tonight, and there was less spring in his step, less passion in his playing. Still great, but this side of magnificent. Perhaps touring wears on him as it does on me, and thoughts of home and hearth begin to creep in. : ) The Spirit of Christmas and White Christmas were very strong.  H&H
was great! Great introduction, great performance. AYSC was
particularly well done, and carried tonight by Norda and Gordon.
Their flute interplay was a bright point in the evening. I appreciate
Justin's recognition by name of Norda, and for the record, the other performers
onstage supporting The Moody Blues are:
Gordon Marshall - percussion and flute Paul Bliss - master of the keyboards and guitar Bernie Barlow - backing vocals and keyboards There! *I've* given them some recognition! Humpf! Singer didn't escape without a minor lyrics flub tonight. ; ) It didn't impact a powerful performance. I noticed tonight that JL can NOT perform his fabulous blues runs in Question without rocking back on his heel. I shall put those boots in a prayer of thanks and appreciation before I go to sleep tonight. <ggg> JL is fearless! He's not in the least afraid of drummer retaliation, of rotten tomatoes or a hail of flying drumsticks. Or of getting whacked with a Strat, for that matter! It's obvious his adoring fans (GUILTY!) want to keep him at the edge of the stage, and he lingered a moment too long tonight, missing the count. LOL He grinned and said "I forgot!" He got to his mike in time to sing, and that's all that matters. Keep 'em guessing, I say! It's good for them. HAHAHA I noticed JL made a point of pointing out Paul, Gordon and The Girls. It was an EXCELLENT show in front of a sold-out crowd in New Brunswick. Great audience, with plenty of applause, standing, dancing and generally having fun. A gal yelled out I love you John (funny...usually it's the guys who yell that to JL) and she again called the equivalent greeting to Justin. He smiled and said (not into his mike) What about Graeme? He then indicated the rest of the people on stage. 
I had overheard security at the break warning the guards at the stage about controlling the rush after Nights, and they herded back a large group pushing forward down the right pit aisle. Alas, push came to shove despite their efforts. A more delicate friend was pushed hard into the stage by some overzealous fans. I repeatedly advise naive parents to watch their children at the stage at the end. Some nights it resembles a middle-aged mosh pit! A number of people came up to say Hi to me and SueC tonight, and I speak for both of us when I say we greatly appreciate ALL the kind words and comments. (Obviously, no one has yet come up and told us flat out that we suck - LOL) It's a thrill and a delight, and I find it both humbling and encouraging. Though it's *my* job to write the words, it's SueC who risks life and camera to take the photos, who helps me with mental "notes" (nothing is written DURING the concert, per Band "request"), lays it out, checks it for errors and then gently places it on HER website, giving me the honor of being read on the biggest Moody Blues fan site on the web. SueC does for me what no one else is able to do: She laughs at what I write. And THAT is what keeps me going. A toast (with coffee and Bailey's, of course!) to the best traveling companion and DRIVER out there! Here's to SueC! MaggieMay Drifting slow through time and space Not knowing where we are. How did we ever get this far? Photos courtesy of SueC |
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