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You never forget your first time
I’m a 37 year old woman. So far in my life, I’ve been lucky enough to see a show of some sort at most iconic music venues across the US. A few have eluded me- the Roxy and the Fox in Atlanta, the Opera in Santa Fe, NM, and I’m sure there are hundreds of theaters that if I knew about how cool they were, I’d add them to this list. But I don’t know them, so I don’t know what I’m missing. There will always be more.Tonight, though, I got to cross a big one off of my list… the legendary Hollywood Bowl. Since I moved to LA a few months ago, I’ve been scheming about which show would be my first there. I was all ready to try for a double night whammy of John Mayer and Dave Matthews Band, sentimental, rockin’ and memorable, but ended up on Phish tour, thus was out of town for my big plans. Pink Martini is there in a week or so, so I considered that after enjoying them at the Oregon Zoo last week. But today, at 5pm, my good friend Bart offered me his spare ticket to tonight’s Herbie Hancock 70th Birthday Celebration Concert. I had no idea what I was getting into: didn’t know where the seats were, didn’t know who was playing, didn’t know what I’d be hearing (didn’t have a clue). Not knowing how lucky I was to being on the receiving end of this offer, I am so thankful I said yes.
I like that you can’t see the venue from Highland Avenue. Unless you’ve seen photos, imagination doesn’t do the scale of the venue justice. It’s massive yet somehow maintains intimacy and a feeling of personal experience. Once you make it through Highland traffic and arrive at the entrance to the Hollywood Bowl, you drive in and park in lines- one car stacked after another, 5 rows wide, 20 cars long. “It’s part of the Bowl Culture,” says Bart. I laugh outloud, cause seriously there’s nothing you can do to avoid this clusterf*ck. You commit and stay for the long haul. There’s no alternative, so the best option is to laugh about it, park and find a glass of wine.
We arrived a few minutes after 8p. The show had started, but because my concert companion rocks, he showed no stress while waiting for me as I wrangled red wine and sweet potato fries (best concert treats ever). Box seats he said. Following to the first entrance, though the pearly gates and into magic. Stage to the right was lit up. To the left, seats as far back as I could barely see and two spots beamed overhead, illuminating a masterpiece being played on stage.
There aren’t too many moments in life that I can’t think about anything else but this: “I’ll never forget this feeling/ moment/ experience/ energy for as long as I live” but that was all I could think as I took it in. Overjoyed as we walked to our seats, perfectly centered and close in, geeking out with the jazz pros, we found our way through the dark to perfection.
Like I said earlier, the venue has great juju. The energy in the space is tangible and the stage radiates with luminescentsy glow- impossible to duplicate shimmers of pinks, greens and blues. Perhaps that’s due to the proximity you feel to the people in your box… new friends after a few notes. Perhaps it’s because you can so clearly see the people in your area or hear even their whispers so closely. The audience tonight seemed to be composed of (mostly older) musical/ jazz geeks. They knew the value of a ticket and paid willingly. Sometimes it’s a grateful audience that can make all the difference.
I feel like I owe it to you to list the musicians in case you know of them- Alex Acuna on drums and percussion, Terence Blanchard on trumpet, Paulinho da Costa percussion, Jack DeJohnette on drums, Zakir Hussain on tabla, Juanes singing, Niladri Kumar on sitar, Wayne Shorter on sax, Esperanza Spalding (HOLY SMACK) on bass, Derek Trucks guitar, Susan Tedeschi singing, Debbie Allen Dance Company dancing for a number, Vinnie Colaiuta drumming, Lionel Loueke on guitar, Pino Palladino on bass, Greg Phillanganes (don’t know what he did, but it was fantastic), Kristin Train singing her arse off (“Imagine”, “Don’t Give Up” background vocals and more I’ve forgotten), India Arie singing (“Imagine”) and an Irish woman singing (“Times are a Changing”) but sadly I’ve forgotten her name. I don’t know the man’s name who sang ‘A Change is Gonna Come’ but it was fantsatic, too.
Bobbing, tapping, chair dancing, air drumming, leg playing joy. Tonight I got to witness an incredible concert and got to experience a first. I love the firsts and will figure out ways every day to continue to have them. Firsts keep life fresh and new. They give your brain a reward for you efforts, great and small. Our senses need to be reminded how exciting it is to try new things and tonight, I got to give my senses a workout of all-news.
I dig, I dig.
Please send me suggestions (via email or comments) to add to my list of ‘must visit before I can’t any more’ venues. I’ll take any excuse to travel to new places. Rewarding your senses is soul pleasing so I’m going to do it as often as I can for the rest of my life.