Fantastic time last night! A bevy of visionary local bands gathered together in a great venue, working with unimpeachable source material for a good cause, all in front of a large, loving crowd.
Highlights were too numerous to mention, but I gotta say I haven’t seen that much guitar skill in one place, like, ever. Fogerty is a formidable axe-man, and justice was more than done as guitarist after guitarist pulled out all the double-stops with jaw dropping lixx at every turn. It was a joy to behold.
Tribute shows happen all the time in Seattle. Over the years we’ve participated in tributes to everybody from U2 to Beatles to Bowie (twice), and they consistently stand out as some of my favorite shows. Last night was no exception.
Typically, immediately after you’re invited to play a cover night, you pick the songs you want to do, usually on a first-come, first-served basis. The first ones to go – the signature crowd-pleasers – get snapped up at light speed, forcing the relative late comers to dig deeper and find the sleepers that make the show transcend a greatest-hits compilation.
The unwritten rule is to keep your choices a secret till you play. It adds an air of mystery to the proceedings. For last night’s show, this practice made for an interesting post from Megan Seling on Slog:
“…Half Acre Day play lush pop music with a vintage twist—they’ll no doubt bring out the sunny side of CCR, while alt-country singer Kim Virant’s deeper, dramatic voice would sound perfect on something like “Have You Ever Seen the Rain.” Of course, we don’t know who’s singing what—the only way to find out is to show up.”
Megan’s educated guess was solid – I might’ve made the same one if I didn’t have the inside scoop. But it turns out we did “Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” along with “I Put a Spell On You” (itself a CCR cover of an awesomely disturbing Screamin’ Jay Hawkins tune) and “Ramble Tamble,” an epic stomper about getting the fuck out cause this place sucks. Kim, on the other hand, kicked particular ass with “Proud Mary,” one of CCR’s more joyous tunes. So yeah… you never know, indeed.
Kudos are due to Gary Reynolds of Electrokitty Studios for putting this show together in spectacular fashion. All this was a benefit for MusiCares, an organization that provides financial assistance for musicians without health insurance.
Stellar work all around, and we’re thrilled to have been a part of it.