Part 1 - First US leg - up to 29 June
Part 2 - Canada - 30 June to 4 July
Part 3 - Back to the US - 6 July to Nearfest
Photo galleries from North American tour
Features on North American tour.
NEARFEST, BETHLEHEM PA, 11 JULY 2004
Photo from Bill Knispel
The Strawbs were breathtaking tonight at NearFest. Sure, they were a couple of blemishes but this was indeed their best concert of the five which we saw on this tour. It was a remarkable show, one in which they were given an honoured place by the show promoters who made them the last act of the show. They had a wonderful sound system wityh which to work and they also had a great lighting system and technician to spice things up visually. All in all, it was the icing on the cake of this tour and Strawbs took full advantage of it. They were sheer magic and Dave Cousins & Company came out and showed the young prog bands how it's done... ;o)
One guy who was walking out said aloud that "Strawbs taught these young bands a lesson in melody and dynamics." He was spot-on in his assessment and I added aloud as we all were walking down the hall that "I can't recall a single melody or movement that was played by the band who was on before the Strawbs but I can't forget a single thing that Strawbs just did." Most of the audience agreed -- even most of the young under 30s who concurred that Strawbs were fabulous.
We were talking just prior to the show with Annie Haslam (Renaissance) and she told us that she had finally met John Hawken after all these years and that she was happy to meet him. She even joked that Dave Cousins came by to speak with her and she asked him where John was and Dave joked: "We are having him embalmed right now." (I think that Dave had the energy as he said that he had just recharged his pacemaker.) ;o)
I will give a more thorough report later but for now, I am sitting here in the hotel, ready to take the train back to California tomorrow and feel like the dream of a lifetime just happened to the Ole Boomie -- I got to see Strawbs and they were so kind to Kathlyn and I that they made us their guests numerous times over the course of the tour and were genuinely sweet and gracious people. These guys are as real as dirt and Dave's new song "If..." on the new album is one of the five most beautiful songs I have ever heard. Buy the Deja Fou CD when you get a chance.
What a tour!
Dave and Dave and John and Chas and Rod were such gentlemen, signing autographs and sharing their time with us all. I got to tell John Hawken how special his piano playing is to me, dating back to the first time I heard "Kings and Queens" by Renaissance. And I got to tell Dave Lambert how his singing on the chorus-y bit in "Ghosts" (I hope your dreams are not like mine) was one of the parts that brought me to tears from the emotional power of it. And "New World" set me to leaking as well, especially with the story about September 11 Such a poignant song, all the more true over 20 years on.
Out in the Cold
Round and Round
Shine On Silver Sun
New World
Burning For You
Simple Visions
Autumn
Ghosts
Remembering/You and I (When We Were Young)
Heartbreaker
This Barren Land
The River/ Down By The Sea
Hero And Heroine
Round and Round (reprise)
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
Lay Down
SELLERSVILLE THEATRE, SELLERSVILLE PA, 10 JULY 2004
Great show as expected, although a very short show...two 45min sets, I guess the guys are running out of steam rather quickly these days. The sound was decent, I was very impressed with Dave C's vocal on the reprise of "Round and Round", all the way through the show, and he just NAILS the last "...round and round we GOOOOO....." I thought his heart was going to pop out of his chest...amazing. My wife was saying how even after this brutal tour, he was still able to sound just like he did 30 years ago.
Nice new arrangement on "Down By The Sea", interesting new rhythm during the verses. "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" was absolutely beautiful, brought a tear to the eye...John Hawken's mellotron choir sample was OUTSTANDING, although with a mellotron right next to him, why did he use the Ensoniq as the controller? Obviously a sample, I assume that he only had an organ tape for the beast, as he only used it once, and with that particular tape...I wish I would have known, he could have borrowed MY mellotron tapes!! Also, the Mini-moog Voyager was on hand, the black 50th anniversary model, with the blue lights in the knobs and pitch and mod wheels; John definitely needs to spend more time learning how to use it, however...."New World" sounded so awesome during the instrumental bridge section..just brilliant. "Hero and Heroine", more of the same. No "Benedictus" was a little disappointing..."This Barren Land" was REALLY nice, and well received by the sold out crowd. "You and I" went down without a glitch, and Chas really adds such fullness with his harmonies, he was just great. Dave L. seemed to be having trouble with his sound the entire night...extremely muffled and bad tone were the issues..something with his Marshall stack? His outboard gear? Not sure, but not good...the e-bow was not happening either, which was a shame. However, as usual, Dave L. kicked absolute ASS onstage..."Ghosts" was his highlight, just nailed the solo with such fervour..hats off to him. I think I was most impressed with Rod...his drumming is simply phenomenal...his fills were just brilliant and so tight and imaginative...you can tell that he listens to Ian Mosley quite a bit...is this because of Chas? Who knows...Ian is one of Chas' favorite drummers as well.
"Autumn" was everything expected, Dave L.'s vocal in "The Winter Long" was right on!! The show ended with a "Hootenanny" as Dave C put it version of "Lay Down" .. again, John punched in the Mellotron choir patch at the end...so fat, so awesome...just loved it.
The theater was a great place to see them, all the hundreds of times that I have been there, I have never seen the place sold out for any event, so that was really cool. All in all, just fantastic. My daughter was a little disappointed, I think that she first of all is a little to young for the Strawbs, being 15, and I think I have taken her to way too many YES, Kansas and Marillion shows. The Strawbs require a certain maturity that she does not yet possess. I was disappointed that she was disappointed, but oh well...she'll remember one day seeing them, and surely thanking me for the experience and wish that she could see them again. I'm sure that all had a wonderful time, it was really nice to leave and be home in less than 20 minutes. A big Thanks to the boys, and lots of luck with the rest of the tour!!
Peace be with the Strawbs!!
I just got back from the lovely, historic Sellersville Theater and have undergone for the fourth time that feeling of complete euphoria that follows a performance by the "Electric Strawbs".
From the soft lyrical performance Mr. Dave Cousins delivered on "Out In The Cold" at the beginning of the concert to the rockin' "Lay Down" encore which received a standing ovation from all audience members in attendance, the Electric Strawbs held their audience spellbound. What is really amazing is the energy they had following their 2 shows last night at Joe's Pub. Dave C's powerful, expressive voice has remained intact and over the course of the tour the band's overall playing has grown more confident. To further add to the excitement of the evening...those of us attending tonight's show were able to witness Mr. John Hawken on mellotron for the first time on the tour!
Any one who is lucky enough to attend NEARFEST tomorrow, and has yet to hear Strawbs live, is in for a real treat. It's hard to believe tomorrow is their last day touring...they're just getting warmed up!
Saw the Strawbs last night at the Sellersville Theater in Bucks County north of Philadelphia and south of Quakertown. Great theater restored in great shape. Holds about 300 people. Excellent acoustics inside! Great performance...so true to LP! (showing my age)
Simply awesome. I saw the Strawbs previously in 1985 at the Chestnut Cabaret in Philly with Cousins, Hudson, Ford, Hooper, Willoughby, Parren and although they were great, this concert last night was simply awesome from the point of being so true to the original music on vinyl. Lambert was right on, and Hawken was superb (he doesn't play a single unnecessary note). The harmony when Cousins, Lambert and Cronk sang together was music to one's ears. Cousins was a little hoarse at first from a two night stint the night before in New York, but that seemed to quickly go away from a few more swigs of brew.
Many standing ovations which I think surprised and touched everyone in the band...Quoting Cousins "You made 4 old men and me very very happy" (or something very close to that ;-) ) Cousins was joking with the audience in between songs and asked everyone at intermission to "go recharge their pace makers and go out and get the same thing he was after" (or something very close to that) at the lobby (beer).
The new CD was on sale at the show. "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow was simply beautiful with just Cousins, Hawken and Lambert. I was euphoric when I left. My ticket was a birthday present from my older sister and brother in-law for my 44th. Great gift to say the least!
Delightful. a really nice place.
A few glitches with the sound here and there, especially in the beginning, and Dave C's voice was giving him a bit of trouble at first (can't imagine why, after all, it has only been one or two shows a night for days on end :-P seriously - I am amazed that he has any voice at all after doing two shows on Friday night, with the level of sheer passion he puts into his singing). By the time they got to "New World", they really hit their stride. as usual, powerful stuff...
No "Benedictus" :-( - real live mellotron though, sparingly played, but pretty cool to hear it.
Some different stuff going on during "Simple Visions", both in the instrumental parts and the vocals...wish I could hear it again to be sure just what. The music is evolving a bit as the tour progresses, some subtle changes here and there. "This Barren Land" sounded better to me this time than in Lakewood, again, not exactly sure what the difference was, just better all round.
Lots of seagull sounds on "Autumn" (some of you will be very happy to hear, I am sure) and nobody stole Dave Lambert's socks (at least not that I noticed)
I took a friend with me who had never seen them, and was quite unfamiliar with their music, despite my best efforts for more than 20 years. Just as I expected, he was totally blown away by the entire experience. One more new convert...my work is done for now.
Out in the Cold/ Round and Round
New World
Simple Visions
Autumn
Ghosts
Remembering/You and I(When We Were Young)
Heartbreaker
The River/Down By The Sea
Hero and Heroine
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
Lay Down
JOE'S PUB AND THEATRE, NEW YORK NY, 9 JULY 2004 - SECOND SHOW
The Strawbs were in NYC at Joe's Pub on July 9th. Once again they put on a great show. All members of the band were in fine form. There was a sold out crowd and all were very happy to see the Hero and Heroine line up for the first time in nearly thirty years. The stage was too small for the band, but, that did not stop them from putting on a great show.
The band opened with "Out In The Cold/Round And Round". Dave Cousins sang with great power and emotion throughtout the set. After the opening number the band launched into a set of Strawb fan favorites from the Grave New World album up to Burning For You. As for the rest of the band, they were all excellent. John Hawken displayed his keyboard prowess. Rod Coombes had his always steady drumming on hand. Chas Cronk supplied his fine bass and backing vocals. Dave Lambert displayed one hot lead guitar solo after another. He is such a under rated player. He also had his traditional lead vocal on Heartbreaker.
One of the real high points of the set was Autumn, fron Hero and Heroine. The intro was fantastic and all the vocals were very well handled. Another high point was The River/Down By The Sea. As usual Dave Cousins was in very, very fine voice. The set ended with a new song, Here Today,Gone Tomorrow from the new Strawbs CD, Deja Fou with Cousins, Lambert and Hawken. A very nice song indeed. They were then joined by the rest of the band for "Lay Down". A wonderful highlight to any Strawbs concert.
After the show the entire band came out to sign /autographs and take pictures with the fans. I brought my nephew Bryan Civitarese with me to the show. We had seen the acoustic strawbs last November at the Bottom Line. It was the first time he had ever heard the band and he has been a fan ever since. He has purchased all their CDs and is a huge fan of Dave Lambert. Needless to say the band was very friendly and warm to their fans. They all signed my Hero and Heroine CD and posed for pictures. Dave Lambert was very friendly to my nephew when he found out how big a fan he is. For me the real high point of the eveving was meeting Dave Cousins. He has always been a favorite singer/songwriter of mine and it was a pleasure to finally meet him. My nephew and I are looking forward to seeing the Acoustic Strawbs this fall when they will once again be touring the states. If you missed them this time be sure to see them in the fall. You will not be disappointed.
JOE'S PUB AND THEATRE, NEW YORK NY, 9 JULY 2004 - FIRST SHOW
Thanks (!) to your website, I learned about the Joe's Pub engagement, took the day off, drove up to NYC with my wife in tow (she took the day off also), bought tickets at 5 PM at the box office (took a chance that they were available) and had a tasty (but dimly lit) dinner at the pub, not to mention great seats for the 7PM show and a memorable evening. Whew, what a run-on sentence! But that's the way the day happened.
FWIW, here is a link to a web page with some photos I managed to take at the show. I am one of those sticklers for using available light (no flash) (except one photo inadvertently lit by someone else's flash, but I suppose that still qualifies as "available light" :) ). Sadly, dim stage lights at Joe's (my only complaint) forced slow shutter speeds and mandated a steady hand. :) Link to the page, or download the photos and host them at your website, as you wish...
More of Rob's photos are at http://www.channld.com/strwbjp9/strbjp9.html.
JOE'S PUB AND THEATRE, NEW YORK NY, 9 JULY 2004 - BOTH SHOWS !!
Joe's Pub. HATED the place. The room was nice enough and the food was decent, but the stage was way too small for the band. If Hawken leaned back, he would have fallen off the stage and Lambert was rather subdued by necessity. If attempted any of his trademark moves, he probably would have slammed Cousins in the side of the head. The lighting was very dim, as well, so you could barely see their faces.
Also, because it was two shows in one night, each was sort of abbreviated when compared with the performances in Toronto. Other than Benedictus, most of the Toronto set was included but divided between two shows.
I'm certainly not complaining and everyone at Joe's Pub seemed deleriously happy with both the early and the late. I would have been too had I not seen them in Toronto.
Album is FAB...but what's with NRG??? It's taken him 30 years, but Cousins has finally written a song that I simply can't stand! Israeli disco, perhaps???
BIRCHMERE TAVERN, ALEXANDRIA VA, 8 JULY 2004
Just back from a great show at a great venue last night. Both the band and the chicken wings were hot! The sound mix was kind of dodgy at points (even though the acoustics were wonderful when the mix was right), but overall it was all that I had hoped for after 25 years. I got to talk with the entire band after the show - what approachable, engaging, brilliant musicians! I ended up with an embroidered, short sleeve Birchmere shirt with Dave & Dave's, Chas', Rod's and John's signatures on the back, and "notarized" on the front by that gracious barrister himself, Dick Greener. It is a keepsake that I will truly treasure.
There were many musical highlights, but "Autumn" into "Benedictus" (#1 and #2 on my all-time Strawbs favorite songs list) was the one that really did it for me last evening.
Thanks, Strawbs, for a wonderful evening of music!
What a simply awesome show at the Birchmere! The band was still at the top of their game! Amazing that Dave Lambert got so much out of just one guitar throughout the whole two hours and other "so called guitar heros and legends of our day" change to sixty different guitars in less time to get "just the right sound" and never match his talent. Perhaps they should talk to Dave to get a lesson on how to tune their own guitars :>)
I was amazed at the combined musicianship of the band. I've been a fan since the early Seventies and this is definitely the Strawbs lineup I prefer. Everyone sounded crisp and truly looked like they enjoyed being there. The meet and greet afterwards was an experience of a lifetime. It's rare that a band even shows an interest in who is listening to their music.
The new album is phenomenal! It seems to be stuck in my CD player (or so I told my children). Tell David and Dave and the rest of the band they did well. I enjoyed all of the songs, but prefer "Cold Steel" and "Sunday Morning" (David Cousins said I would). Hope the rest of the tour goes well and the band considers coming back to the Birchmere this year.
Got a real nice momento of the show as all-five members signed the front of the new CD cover insert. I have four signatures by their pictures and Dave Lambert (taking an unnecessary break from a well deserved smoke and drink) placed an extraordinary three-inch wide autograph across the Stawberry on the front cover. Took the cover to work to educate the masses on one of the finest bands in the land. Then, I brought it home and framed it and placed it in a prominent place in my front room as a memory of a great show and greater band.
I was going to drive 200 miles north tonight to Sellersville, but the show is sold out. Quite a pity, since I have been a great mood since Thursday's show and was looking forward to increasing this natural "Strawbs-fueled good mood".
Out in the Cold
Round and Round
Shine On Silver Sun
New World
Burning For You
Simple Visions
Autumn
Benedictus
Ghosts
Remembering/You and I (When We Were Young)
Heartbreaker
This Barren Land
The River/ Down By The Sea
Hero And Heroine
Round and Round (reprise)
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
Lay Down
THE STRAND, LAKEWOOD NJ, 7 JULY 2004
What can one possibly add to what the Strawbs themselves said in spades with their performance at the Strand? Not much. But here goes anyway.
Dave Cousins, a somewhat taciturn storyteller these days (is that necessarily an oxymoron?), led this configuration of Strawbs to the twin promised lands that are unreachable under most circumstances these days: musical excellence AND wild audience adulation. But there is little question that they deserve both.
Cousins' crystalline-fine work on acoustic guitar gets little press, and so it delights me to be able to say that I noticed it anyway. Of particular note is his work on the newly minted "This Barren Land." The other Dave, Mr. Lambert, blond streak ever in tow, absorbed a great deal from Pete Townshend, and it is immediately evident in his superb electric rhythm work. Witness his power chording on "Down By The River and "Lay Down," missing only the windmills and a smashed Les Paul or two. Yet, Lambert's lead lines were always exactly what any particular segment of a song called for. Especially enjoyable is his ability to construct intricate lines that weave a delicate, yet powerful audio filigree with John Hawken's marvelous keyboard work, especially noticeable on "Ghosts."
Speaking of Mr. Hawken, the staid and solid one, with dexterity uncommon, and, using his wide palate of digital keyboard sounds, he marvelously orchestrated and punctuated the music as excellently as any keyboardist working today. To say he's an extremely talented player is understating his value to this unit. As John doesn't travel too far from his New Jersey home these days, I almost want to raise an absurd question: why don't the Strawbs consider relocating to the East Coast of the United States so he could always play with them? He's THAT good. (OK, so Iraised an absurd question. Sue me.)
Percussionist Rod Coombes is an absolute delight to watch and listen to; his superior cymbal work is rightly praised far and wide, but he's strong underneath, too. Witness the ominous backbeat of "Autumn" or the drive he provides for the rocking "Heartbreaker" and the aforementioned "Lay Down." Delightful! And not to be overlooked is Chas Cronk, the bassist who himself provides the rock solid foundation, while still executing some nicely subtle and intricate lines, as well as providing an energetic 12-string guitar accompaniment for "Simple Visions."
Vocally and lyrically, the Cousins, Lambert, et al may have leaned heavily upon old chestnuts for this all too brief tour, but the messages of these pieces are often actually more relevant and poignant now than they were 30 years ago. Cousins and Lambert both sing with expression and dynamics. Oh, and with Mr. Cronk joining in, these guys sing three part harmony spot on.
I'd waited the better part of three decades to see and hear this lineup of Strawbs in the flesh. Fact is, I'd long given up hope. After travelling 100 miles to attend this show, I can say I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Thirty years ago, it was my own dream to get a chance to play with this band. I knew why but dimly in 1974. I know clearly now. The level of musicianship, the attention to detail, the quality of the music, the joy of the atmosphere created, and the downright "gentlemanliness" evident at the post-concert meet and greet all point to the fact that this band is the complete package, and who wouldn't want to be a part of that.
But I digress. All that's really left to say is that (a) I hope Mr. Cousins will reconsider coming back with this lineup much sooner than his promised "25 years from now," (said with his tongue firmly planted in cheek), and (b) the uninitiated should purchase a copy of the new CD "Deja Fou." As Mr. Townshend himself wrote: "It's all here on the vinyl."* (OK it's aluminum, now. It was a good reference.) As for me, I'll be playing my copy 'til the laser burns through it, and wearing my new "Strawbs Over America" T-shirt until it's a rag.
I've never seen the Strawbs live but was an avid listener of the Ghosts and Bursting At The Seams LP's. My wife was partial to Hero and Heroine, to say the least we were not disappointed. I bought tickets a week before the show and luckily wound up in the seventh row orchestra right of the stage. The Strand is a small intimate venue (500-600) perfectly suited to the Strawbs and drew a loyal audience that was extremely appreciative of this class act.
The set list stayed the same as previous shows with highlights being "Out In The Cold", "Round And Round" (played twice - reprise toward end of show), "The Winter Long" and "Lay Down". The band was tight and fluid although at times the vocals (Cousins) could have been better mixed. Dave Lambert was phenonmenal in his guitar playing and his vocal additions were quite impressive ("Ghosts"). Hawken on the keyboards added great ambience and mood to the picture. Coombes and Cronk fill out the rest of the landscape quite admirably.
The sound and lyrics are timeless and truly nurtured and crafted by artisans. It's a shame that the Strawbs are not recognized as peers such as Yes and Genesis are today. Nonetheless, one of the best shows I've seen in years with the band enjoying themselves as much as the audience - especially D. Cousins - who was in great spirit bantering with the crowd in between songs.
I would hope that his abbreviated US Tour revisits us sometime in the near future as the Strawbs truly are a hidden gem, that like a fine wine, only gets better with age.
Just came home from seeing our boys at the beautiful, historic, acoustically wonderful Strand theatre. I can't really get my thoughts into words quite yet, my feet still are not on the ground and my head is somewhere up in the clouds...
Please forgive me for the long rambling post that follows, but I can't help myself.
What a show. These guys and this music are truly like fine wine, only getting better with age. The choice of songs not only encompassed music from nearly all eras and incarnations of the band, but also was an excellent sampler of the many moods and flavors which make the Strawbs so unique.
Wow. just wow. I will no doubt say more about the music itself at a later date, but right now, just wow.
Let me instead describe my experiences surrounding the show....
I had a front-row ticket, which turned out practically at Chas Cronk's feet, and was like a kid on Christmas eve all day long, literally bouncing around the house with anticipation. Now that the show is over and I am back home, I will probably be bouncing around the ceiling for at least a few more hours. Then on Saturday I will be heading up to Sellersville for another dose of this unbridled joy. So glad I was able to arrange to go to both shows, because music this big, this intense, and this good, needs at least two days to be fully appreciated. :-)
After the show, I said a quick hello to Mike the guitar guy at the edge of the stage, and then braved the crowd in the gallery room to meet the band and get my poster signed. I printed out a nice 8 X 10 of the "then and now" poster to take along for this purpose, and although I am frightfully nervous in crowds (and getting worse with age) I was a woman on a mission. I usually am too shy to do this sort of thing, and tend to become a blithering idiot and forget the English language if I finally do come into contact with people I admire this much, but like I said, on a mission... Beside that, for the past 30 or so years I have really, really, wanted to thank Dave Cousins for all his beautiful words and music, and the inspiration they have provided me in my life. And, of course, to meet some of the other band members who have each contributed so much to the magic.
I approached the table where the band was seated from Rod's end (the kinship of drummers, I guess), and we had a very nice, albeit brief, chat while he passed my poster down the line for everyone to sign. He seemed truly amazed and a bit humbled at the response to these shows, and said he didn't realize there was "so much love out there". I certainly hope that this positive response will influence all of them to come back out and do this electric thing again very soon. Not that I don't look forward to the acoustic shows, it is just so good to have the electric line up again, I hope it isn't another 25 years, as Dave C promised us at the end of the show...
My husband snapped some pictures after the show with my digicam, which he is not familiar with, but they came out okay. We were not allowed to photograph during the show, but I did give it my best try, hoping to get a nice shot for Dick to use on the website from my excellent vantage point. Sadly, an usher came along and made me put the camera away before I could shoot a single frame. :-(
After I got my poster signed I decided to stick around a little longer and see if I could get a word with anyone else, and finally I slipped along the back of the table (with permission of course) to finally deliver my long anticipated "thank you" to Mr. Cousins. To which he replied with a kiss on the cheek -- which my husband caught on camera, too.
I am a happy, happy, happy Strawbs fan tonight.
A big thanks to Ray Coles for his part in bringing them to the Strand. A big thank you to Dick Greener, who I also had the pleasure of meeting tonight, for all of the stuff he does to keep us informed on all the latest goings-on, and for maintaining such a superlative website. A big thanks to Mike the guitar guy for keeping the instruments healthy and the band happy.
And a big, big thanks to (left to right) John, Chas, Rod, Dave and Dave for making the music magic and the magic happen.
Out In The Cold/Round And Round
Shine On Silver Sun
New World
Burning For Me
Simple Visions
Autumn
Benedictus
Ghosts
Remembering/You And I
Heartbreaker
This Barren Land
The River/Down By The Sea
Hero And Heroine/Round And Round (reprise)
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
Lay Down
[Autumn - Krogh's only]
THE STRAND, LAKEWOOD NJ, 7 JULY 2004 and KROGH'S, SPARTA, NJ, 6 JULY
Two very different shows after the painful transition from Canada to the US - four hours wait at the borders as we joined what seemed like the entire population of the Northern states trying to get back home after the holiday weekend. This resulted in having to change plans to stop over in Binghamton, instead heading back to where the tour started, Rochester, meeting up with the nice folks involved in staging the show there. That also meant a longer than expected journey to the first of the two shows, at Krogh's restaurant in Sparta NJ.
Krogh's is in an idyllic setting, at the side of Lake Mohawk, two doors down from a classic American barber shop, and over the road at the lakeside, a clutch of shops. It's a brewpub, with a large bar serving their own splendid brews, and a dining area, and first thing on the agenda on arrival was to sample some of their impressive output - Three Sisters (a light beer), and a nice red (name I forget). The food too was excellent, I dined with Art Pushkin (who'd travelled over to take what turned out be splendid photos of the gig) on a substantial plate of ribs - one thing you learn on a Strawbs tour is to eat when you can - the only meal you can rely on with any certainty is breakfast (usually on this side of the pond in a suitably classic American diner). You can look through a window from the bar to see the brewery equipment in operation.
Sad to say, the Krogh's show suffered from a few disadvantages: the sound was uncertain pretty much throughout the show - the bass amp packed up moments into the gig, and Dave Lambert's vocal on "Autumn" just didn't happen at all - a problem the band ameliorated by performing the song again as an unexpected third encore, a gesture much appreciated by the audience. There are in any event huge difficulties inherent in fitting a theatre-sized band into a tiny performance area in a restaurant setting, not least of which was having to keep the space in front of the band clear for the waiting staff to use. Stage lighting was non-existent at either side, Dave Lambert virtually in darkness for the whole night, and Hawken was shrouded in an eerie blue glow (shades of Cousins' intro to "Ghosts"). A few knuckleheads in the audience too, sadly, one guy shouting down his mobile phone, another having a fascinating bellowed conversation with his girlfriend at the bar. One does wonder why they bother.
Nonetheless, the dedicated audience, many of whom had travelled from far and wide, were delighted with the band's performance. Particularly notable to me were "New World", which had power and depth, as Cousins spat out the lyrics, "Simple Visions" with Chas on 12 string, Lambert's guitar tour de force on "Heartbreaker" and "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow", which is already established as one of his best quiet songs in recent years. The reprise of "Autumn" had those of a romantic inclination holding hands with their partners (ah sweet!). Standing ovations at various points, and happy faces as the crowd chatted and got things signed at the end of the show (including a rather impressive blue guitar, brought along by its owner Paul Pfefferkorn).
A thoroughly different kettle of fish the next night at the historic Strand Theater in Lakewood NJ. A beautifully restored building, with an excellent sound system, at last giving due prominence to the keyboards, which has been lacking at some points earlier in the tour - you could hear every mellotron-sample note. The Strawbs absolutely back in their element - exactly how they should sound and positioned in the best environment in one could hope to see them, a large, well lit theatre stage with plenty of space for the theatrical elements of the show to be fully realised - plenty of room for the guitarists to move around - particularly Lambert (who sadly I couldn't see that well from my seat at the far right of the auditorium unless he stepped up to the mikes; couldn't see Rod at all, sadly, but sat next to the speaker, I could certainly tell he was there!).
And they faced a crowd of incredible enthusiasm From the first notes of Cousins' guitar on "Out In The Cold", audience recognition and delight were apparent - a standing ovation at the end of "Round And Round" set the pattern for most of the night, a few of Lambert's more blistering solos receiving their own well-deserved cheers. Cousins, resplendent in the first half in a smart yellow jacket over a black shirt, directing the sequence of events with his flamboyant gestures, a smile spreading across his face as it became apparent to him just how well the show was going. "Shine On Silver Sun" sounded fantastic as the harmonies soared, "New World" was unbelieveably powerful and dynamic. Particular standout for me (though very difficult to choose from all the delights on offer in such an stellar performance) in the first set was "Burning For Me", where Cousins simply took absolute command of the audience, the emotion in the lyrics matched by his sometimes plaintive, sometimes growling vocal, over Hawken's piano, and Lambert's astonishing guitar work.
In the second half, again Lambert's "Heartbreaker" drew a standing ovation, as did "Ghosts" with Hawken's keyboards much more to the fore - a welcome improvement. It was clear that the audience weren't just enthusiastic about the old songs - they took extremely well to "This Barren Land" from Deja Fou - the CD having arrived at last and on sale to some very happy punters. "The River/Down By The Sea" deservedly got another standing ovation - those fantastic mellotron chords rising to the rafters behind Lambert's solo. This was followed by Cousins raising his hand and Coombes (I'd imagine - remember I can't see him at this point) raising his drumsticks to herald an enthusastic "Hero And Heroine" which ended the show proper. Of course, there was no question that encores would not be required, and the band were clearly elated and relaxed, playing around with the accapella opening to "Lay Down" and joking with the audience (Lambert unusually played a little figure on the guitar).
The meet and greet was a more organised session than usual, with fans crowded round long table at which the Strawbs were sat, for signing and chat. Several thought it the best show they'd seen - ever; all had clearly enjoyed what had certainly been the Strawbs at the very top of their form. In retrospect, for the best show of the tour whilst I was with the band, though I gather the theatre at Belleville was up there too as a great show.
