We may have been way up in the balcony, I couldn't help but wonder how amazing the show must have been from the front (something like $500+/seat) rows, but it was still a great experience. Our first time at the Chicago Theater, which is an interesting theater space. We spent some time before hand discussing how they dust and generally keep it clean, and also counting the sculpted faces all over everything, including the chandeliers.
The show itself was a good 3 hours long without an opening act. Maybe not the greatest thing for Chuck, the night before his final review for studio, but I didn't hear many complaints. Cohen did bring along a slew of musicians though, including his collaborator Sharon Robinson and the duo The Webb Sisters, who were well featured over the course of the evening. I didn't know a lot about Sharon Robinson, and it turns out she wrote one of the great tracks off of Bettye Lavette's I've got my own hell to raise in addition to collaborating with Cohen on "The Future," "Waiting for the Miracle," and "Everybody Knows," among other songs. Her website features several tracks, including her take on Everybody Knows, which is quite different!
It was a great evening. The set decoration was sparse, but I was one of the many things I really loved about the show. Rugs covered the stage floor, which combined with Cohen's comfort on stage and his great soothing voice...It felt quite comfortable, warm and sweet. I'm still contemplating the way the pacing on several of the songs was different, slower, more dramatic in person than on the albums...which I think may lead to the need to own a copy of the live DVD that just came out. Regardless there will be many more listens to his catalog...which is always true, I never seem to get tired of any of it...but I've seen him live! That's really too cool for words.
1 comment:
AWESOME! I wouldn't pass up an opportunity like that at all!
Post a Comment