Cerritos Review
Cerritos Concert Report by LC Suzanne Sweeney.
Jeff and I arrived in L.A. spot on 2:00 the evening of the Cerritos
show. We retrieved our luggage without too much struggle. I had
Susan's number with me and managed to get in touch with her. It was
funny describing ourselves and what we were wearing so we would
recognize each other, having only talked online before. (BTW Susan,
the blue shirt you were wearing that day looks FAB! A very good
color on you!) We saw Susan, and I didn't think twice about running
over and giving her a big ol' hug. I was so pleased and excited to
meet this smart, funny lady in person, there was no helping it!
Susan drove Jeff and I up Imperial Highway (woo-hoo!). The sun was
shining like crazy—it really was another perfect day—not too hot, not too cool. We drove a bit around Manhattan Beach while Susan gave us
the guided tour of the town. That was fun. What a great place to live!
We had just enough time after that to grab something to drink, plan
the driving route to Montalvo for the next day, relax a little at the
house, and then get ready for the LC dinner. Traffic was a little
sticky on the way to the hotel. There were a few phone calls from
concerned LCs asking for Susan's ETA. I asked her "How does anyone
get anywhere on time? How do you know how much time to allow?" I
think she told me that you just know somehow. I'll bet a lot of
traveling advice is tossed back and forth between friends.
When we arrived, Susan dropped us off so she could park the car, so
we went on in to the hotel. When Jeff and I walked into the dining
room, there was a good group of LCs gathered around a couple tables.
Two tables grew to three, and then four, as more and more people
arrived. I sat with Rebbe and his wife to my left and Jim Foley to my
right. Dinner was lively with lots of conversation and laughter and
some cool announcements by Joan.
Time flew pretty fast and before we knew it, it was time to cross the
road to the venue. We were there with just minutes to spare before
curtain. I had Jeff's sizable digital camera in large tapestry bag on
my shoulder, but no one stopped me or asked to open it—which was
pretty cool, `cause we only wanted the camera for later backstage.
After a couple minutes, the lights went down and the crowd applauded.
I was holding Jeff's hand and he gave mine a little squeeze and
smiled at me, as if to say, "Here we go!"
Randy cheerfully ambled onto the stage--my heart doubled its beat.
I'm here! Finally seeing him play! I think I may have emitted a
sound, something akin to a muted squeal. (Karen can probably confirm
this. Poor gal had to sit next to me for two hours while I carried on
like a hyper, teenaged fangirl. ;-D Karen, thanks again for sharing
your binoculars with me. That was a real treat to see Randy close up
when he was singing!)
Relaxed and confident, Randy launched immediately into the first song
of the evening--Last Night I Had A Dream. I won't detail every song
the setlist for this show, because so many other folks have already
covered it so well, but I will say this... (hee!) to hear Randy's
songs loud and proud in that glorious theatre was stunning. And on
top of that, to hear the first laughter of the evening, during the
line "But you scared me the most" was almost startling, but so
satisfying. Randy seemed pleased that all those people were enjoying
his music so much. I knew we were all in for a great evening. The
vibe from the crowd was very positive. Everyone was there to have a
good time. There seemed to be a lot of true fans in attendance.
YELLOW MAN
LIVING WITHOUT YOU
BIRMINGHAM
I always enjoy hearing this song. Just a normal guy talking about the
home city he loves. It has such an honesty to it. And like Patrick,
my fave line in the song is, "Get `em, Dan!" which got a good laugh.
When Randy said, "Take it!" before the piano solo, I laughed out
loud. "Um, take it where, Rand? You're the only guy playin'!" Of
course, that's the wonderful, playful silliness of the moment.
GREAT NATIONS OF EUROPE
MARIE
Wow. You could have knocked me over with a feather after this song.
Sooo achingly beautiful…and so sad. The narrator of the song is so
out of touch with his drunken "sensitivity." Makes you just want to
weep for him. I'll admit, I was misty-eyed. Amazing job, Randy!
SHORT PEOPLE
So, a stature-challenged person tried to broadside Randy in an
interview, kinda like Michael Moore did to Chuck Heston in Bowling
for Columbine? Seems like a story out of Bizarro World, not reality,
considering how completely ridiculous the song is. But Randy says
it's so, so I believe him. ;-)
GIRLS IN MY LIFE PART I
THE WORLD ISN'T FAIR
REAL EMOTIONAL GIRL
LOVE STORY
Just sat back and let these songs roll over me in waves. Randy is
such a fantastic musician and performer. It's not hard to get
completely caught up in his presentation.
FOLLOW THE FLAG
SONG FOR THE DEAD
These two songs combined said a helluva lot. From the bits I've read
in recent interviews, Randy sounds as frustrated as many of us with
the "war movement." When he sang the last line of SFTD, "We won't
forget, we won't forget." The second time he said it, he emphasized
the word "won't" and the word "forget" sounded kinda choked off. I've
heard that sound before. It's the way a vocal sounds when the singer
is extremely passionate about what they're singing and their voice
simply stops because the throat constricts with emotion. Please
forgive my clinical notes. Randy's performance was so much more
moving than I can describe, so much from the heart, you could almost
touch it.
YOU CAN LEAVE YOUR HAT ON
We could hear the gears shifting as Randy left the somber feeling of
the past two songs and revved up again for some fun and friskiness.
I'M DEAD
This song ROCKED!!! I think the beautiful irony of ID is that Randy
has never been more vital or important a musical voice than right
now. So, if he's even suggesting that he should be included in this
blowhard group he's sending up, I'd say he's DEAD WRONG!
The audience gleefully participated in the backing vocals, Jeff and I
happily singing along, trying to bend a note here or there like they
sang it in EORN. Big fun!
POLITICAL SCIENCE
This song is kinda spooky to me right now, all things considered. But
Randy played the hell out of it--good on him!--just like the rest of
the first set.
---INTERMISSION---
Randy came back on stage after intermission in a very striking dark
shirt. (Thumbs up on the costume change, Randy!) He jumped into a
rousing rendition of...
IT'S MONEY THAT I LOVE
IN GERMANY BEFORE THE WAR
Randy introduced this song very simply, "This is a song about a
murderer." Call me a sick puppy, but IGBTW's darkness really
intrigues me. It's fascinating how effectively Randy captures the
disassociation in the killer's mind. From the eerie intervals in the
song's intro, to his gentle, fragile vocal, to the off-kilter quality
of the major to minor chords in the last verse, Randy pulls out all
the stops on this challenging song. By the end, you could have heard
a stiletto swipe, the theatre was so deathly quiet. Brilliant!
BALTIMORE
I MISS YOU
I believe this song is one of Randy's best. It is so candid
(painfully so) and on the money. Anyone who has had a relationship
that ended badly--and regrets it--can relate to the introspection in
the song. But I think that's what some of the best songs do. Make us
think and feel very deeply. Randy really puts himself on the line
with this song, and I really love him for it. Another great
performance from The Man.
YOU'VE GOT A FRIEND IN ME
DIXIE FLYER
When Jeff heard the intro to this song, he leaned over, squeezed me,
and whispered excitedly, "YEAH!" This tune is his favorite Randy
song. With the nimble, flowing piano arrangement and the down-home
feeling in the lyrics, what's not to love?
MY COUNTRY
BAD NEWS FROM HOME
Beautiful and darkly creepy. Another one of my faves.
REDNECKS
Man, I always cringe when I hear this song. It's that WORD, y'know?
This song is such a finger in the eye to racism. Randy was downright
ferocious singing it. He has this way of kinda growling his "R's"
on "We're Rrednecks!" It's subtle, but wonderful and wicked all the
same. Get `em, Rand! Great job...but I still cringe.
I JUST WANT YOU TO HURT LIKE I DO
MY LIFE IS GOOD
FEELS LIKE HOME
I LOVE L.A.
This part of the show was so cool! Everyone sang the "We love it!"
BVs. I wasn't sure if Randy wanted us to join in, but then he kinda
backed off the mic as if to egg us on. He didn't have to ask twice!
SHAME
Randy introduced this song with the story about its narrator, an
older gentleman, "not unlike myself"
desperate for the love of a sweet young thing. But none of this
fellow's southern gentlemanly manners and obscene wealth is going to
bring him his loin's--er...heart's desire, so he's basically pretty
stuffed. Next, Randy explained that there are usually six women
singing in response to the narrator's entreaties. He showed the
audience how and when to sing the "shame" BVs. I have to admit, Jeff
and I got so carried away on the last bit that we kinda forgot that
he tells us to shut up at the end. When Randy yelled, "Shut UP!" and
then just GRINNED, it made us jump and then LAUGH. It was pretty
funny.
SAIL AWAY
---ENCORES---
I WANT EVERYONE TO LIKE ME
Bless his heart! I believe Randy really DOES want everyone to like
him! Well, there was a whole audience of clapping and cheering fans
tonight that he didn't have to wonder about, if indeed he ever was
wondering.
GOD'S SONG
This song is really heavy. I was surprised that Randy played it, but
I'm awfully glad he did.
GUILTY
At the insistence of some loud audience members, Randy interrupted I
Thing It's Going to Rain Today and played Guilty instead. I was a
little disappointed because I really love ITIGTRT, but Guilty turned
out to be a barnburner of a final number. Great show, Randy!!!
After the show, with backstage pass stickers attached to appropriate
places on our bods, all the LCs gathered in a hallway to wait to get
backstage. But I really needed to find a restroom. It just wouldn't
do, standing there talking to Randy and thinking, "Oh man, I wish I
had hit the loo!" y'know? There was a line for the Ladies', and by
the time I got out, the gang was on the move. A few seconds later and
they would have locked me out—yikes! Jeff and I, Aaron, Ivan,
Patrick, and Melanie were kinda holding up the rear of the line, so
we didn't get to hear a lot of what was going on at the front. Just
standing there was a little hard, because I was becoming more and
more nervous. (Silly, I know, but there it is.) Many thanks to the
LCs in that part of the line for the great conversation and keeping
my mind off of...OHMIGOD! In a few minutes, I'm going tomeet Randy
Newman!!!
At one point, Barrett asked if he could borrow my Sharpie, I said
sure, and kinda teased him, "As long as I get it BACK from ya!" He
assured me I would, as did Julia, Barrett's wife.
Barrett was talking with Randy and getting some things signed, and
then it was Jim Foley's turn to speak with Randy. There were two
folks ahead of me, and then it would be my turn--aaaahh! Just then, I
noticed I didn't have my Sharpie. Oops! Darn that Barrett! ;-) So, I
kinda tried to flag him down. He was standing a little too far away
for me to holler over at him. Karen and Jim Foley were there, though.
I mentioned my pen to Karen, who said something to Jim, who went over
to Barrett, who looked kinda sheepish and mouthed "Sorry!" across the
room. (That's OK, Barrett. You had just talked to The Man.I TOTALLY
understand.)
Believe me, I DO, because a couple seconds after I got the pen in my
hot little hands, the two folks in front of me walked away and there
I was, standing in front of RANDY NEWMAN!!! OK, this is the point
where things went all weird and slo-mo, like in the movies or
something. For a second, I just stood there looking at him, this
amazing man that I've been wanting to meet, smiling a smile thatI
sincerely hoped wasn't some kind of scary, death-rictus grin from my
nerves. I saw a hand being thrust out from my direction--wait, that's
MY hand!--and a dry, cracking voice—whoa, is THAT my voice?!--
say, "Hi Randy, it's such a pleasure to meet you. My name is
Suzanne." And then he said, "Hi Suzanne! It's nice to meet you." My
mind was yelling at me, "Way to go, Suzanne! This is going
frightfully well! Keep up the good work!"
And then time conspired to speed up as surprisingly as it slowed
down. I held up a small gift bag in front of him. He looked
surprised, but pleased.
S: I have a little something for you--a gift.
R: For ME?!
S: Yes, for YOU! Open it up!
As Randy took a tissue wrapped bundle out of the bag, I said to him,
smiling,
S: I'm a full-time student, so don't expect TOO much!"
R: What could it be?
Jeff:
Cheeky! :-D No one ever mentioned that Randy would get flirty with
fans. Man, if I wasn't blushin' before, I'm sure I was blushin' now!
He unwrapped the package.
R: What IS it?!
S: Post-it notes. Shaped like lil' Hawaiian shirts. Everyone has to
put notes on stuff sometimes. I was getting some stuff in the
bookstore at school, saw them, and they made me smile and think of
you. I thought you might like them.
R: You said you got `em at school?
S: Yeah, I'm a music student.
I noticed that Randy seemed genuinely interested in everyone that he
met and talked to. My conversation with him was no different—it was
so wonderful. I was blown away that someone as famous and
accomplished as he is could be so attentive and curious about a
complete stranger. While he signed the tape I brought for my music
theory professor, he asked me about school: where was I going? what
was I studying? I told him Composition and that I'd be starting a
film scoring program in the fall, after I finished my degree. We had
some happy "music geek" talk about Neapolitan 6 and German 6th
chords, which was great! I told him he is a huge inspiration to me in
music and sincerely thanked him for his great work. He said that
was "kind of me to say" but I think he was happy to hear it.
Then, Randy signed my Bad Love CD liner--Suzanne, Good luck in music!
Love, Randy Newman. I mentioned to him that Bad Love was my favorite
album and that the performance of Shame went over like gangbusters.
He said he enjoys getting everyone to sing along. Next, Randy signed
my Box Set liner notes. As he handed it back to me, he cracked, "NOW,
that's worth a buck forty-nine!" I laughed, but said, "Not to me."
Maybe I was a little too gooey with that, but I sure meant it. And he
kinda looked down and smiled again.
There were more folks waiting, so I shook Randy's hand again, thanked
him for a great show, and then floated over to the area where the
rest of the LCs were hanging out. A little later, once Randy had
spoken to everyone in line we were able to get an LC group photo that
turned out pretty well.
Before we left, I called over to Cathy, introduced myself and thanked
her for making it possible for us to talk to Randy backstage. I told
her that Jeff and I were looking forward to the Montalvo show--the
second leg of Randypalooza 2003. ;-) She encouraged us to go
backstage there after that show and talk to Randy. We said we would.
After we left the venue, we stopped in the hotel lounge across the
way for some after-show conversation and refreshing adult beverages.
It was really wonderful to get to meet everyone finally--Susan and
Terry, Joan and Ernie, Karen and Ted, Barrett and Julia, Jim Foley,
Ivan, Aaron, Paddy and Melanie, Nancy--I know I'm probably leaving
some people out--I'm sorry! Thank you LCs, for making my "first time"
at a Randy show such an incredible experience.
And many thanks to Susan for organizing the dinner, backstage passes,
and for graciously hosting Jeff and me in her home. The rumors are
true. Susan's guest room does indeed have The Most Comfortable Bed in
the WorldTM.
Coming soon...Jeff and Suzanne's Excellent Montalvo Adventure...
Take care,
Suzanne S.
