Dave Matthews Band Show

On 4/20/09, we went to see the DMB with our friends Eric & Kelly in Birmingham. We all went to eat some BBQ at Full Moon BBQ before the show. For those of you unfamiliar with Birmingham, it has great BBQ. There is literally a BBQ joint within blocks of wherever you are in Birmingham, it's crazy....it's also crazy good. We left in plenty of time to make the show, however we barely made it in time. Full Moon was about 5 mins from the venue and we left there about an hour and a half before the show even started and traffic was so bad it took us 45 mins to go about 5 miles....and to make things worse, when we get to the show, the will call line is a mile long and barely moving. We finally got in, missed the opening act and didn't sit for 5 mins before Dave and the Band came out....wheeewww! That was a close one!

Now...this was my 16th time seeing the DMB...crazy huh? What makes them so good is that no show is the same and this one was no exception. We got to hear an incredible set that flowed very well. They played some really old tunes like Recently (one of their first songs) and jammed out some of my personal fav's like Ants Marching, Grey Street, and Dreaming Tree. They played 3 brand new songs (Funny the Way it is, Why I Am, and Spaceman) from the upcoming album and all of them were great. I believe we all agreed that Why I Am was probably our favorite of the 3...it has a great upbeat sound and a great hook. It will likely be the second single from the new album....I'm always excited for new DMB music, however their past few albums have just been OK in my opinion. This album has the makings of being a great one. Ok...back on track...they jammed out the song Recently with some clever rhythm changes (Did I ever mention Carter, their drummer, is a phenom) and jams with the horns that were crazy! Same goes for Rhyme and Reason, Ants, Cornbread, and Grey St....crazy jams! Dave let the crowd sing nearly the whole song called Jimi Thing...it was pretty cool. After Jimi Thing, they went into a Jam called "Anyone seen the bridge" into the song Too Much (Just for a second) as a fake...then into a rocking Tripping Billies to close the set. Now...in amongst all of this...Dave was in a funny mood all night, dancing crazy and being silly on stage, talking to the crowd quite a bit which also added to the entertainment value as he is a pretty odd individual.

The Encore was super...They played a few verses of another incredibly old song of theirs called Blue Water and then Dave played a very pretty song called "Sister." After sister, we all got a super surprise of DMB covering the old 80's song "Burning Down the House." It was very very awesome...and it wasn't even over then. We got Rapunzel as a closer, which is one of mine and Jennifer's favorite songs. It was a great great show...always leaves me wanting more. This was also Eric & Kelly's first time seeing DMB...and Kelly's first big rock concert in general. We all had a great time and I think DMB set the bar pretty high for Kelly with it being her first show...tons O fun. Below is the setlist they played and a pic of all of us before the show.

Don't Drink the Water
Dreaming Tree
Recently
You Might Die Trying
Why I Am (New Song)
Rhyme and Reason
Funny the Way it is (New Song)
Ants Marching
Raven
Crash Into Me
So Damn Lucky
Spaceman (New Song)
Cornbread
Grey Street
Jimi Thing
Anyone Seen the Bridge--->
Too Much (Fake)--->
Tripping Billies

Encore:
Blue Water (First verse)
Sister
Burning Down the House (Talking Heads Cover)
Pantala Naga Pampa--->
Rapunzel

Picture of all of us before the show...

Our Trip to B-ham

Last weekend our family traveled to Birmingham, AL to visit our friends and see a DMB show. It has been a year since we were last there, but we haven't seen most of our friends since Brody was 6 months old (4 years ago), so we were really excited to catch up with everyone. We stayed with good friends, Eric and Kelly Smith, who we also went to the concert with. The Smith's have three boys too-Eli, age 7; Brandt, age 5; and Asher, age 2.

On Saturday Draven & Brody participated in a track meet that the Trussville, AL Track Club was having. Our friend, Kelly, created the track club last year, so we had an in with the staff to get the boys signed up! They each ran the 50 meter, 100 meter, 200 meter dash, and 200 meter relay. They also had the opportunity to participate in the Shot Put and the Long Jump, but we missed the announcement for the Long Jump so the boys only did the Shot Put. Draven really enjoyed running and "getting exercise," but his inexperience hurt him a little. He came in 3rd, 4th and 5th in his events. He got better as the day went on, and worked really hard. Brody was the only boy in the 4 and under group, and they awarded the top boy and girl, so Brody won all his races! He really did win the 50, and would have won the 100, but he stopped half way through. We think he got confused and thought he should stop at the same spot he did for the 50 even though we explained it a couple times! The 200 was half way around the track and Brody lost some steam on the longer distance-I think he was 3rd overall. Brody has been wearing his medals ever since. It was really fun to have the boys participate, and Kelly's boys, Eli & Brandt, were participating, so boys had fun cheering them on too.

Sunday we attended church in our old ward and got to see lots of people! It doesn't seem like we've been gone from there very long, but when we saw the youth it seemed like we had been gone half a life time! The boys I used to sing with in Primary were passing the sacrament! Pierce enjoyed giving the Alabama fans a hard time about Coach Saban, and they did the same about Coach Kiffin. After church our friends, Aaron and Jordan May, came to the Smith's and we grilled hamburgers and let the kids play until we heard a tornado siren and we all came in. Luckily the tornado warnings were south of us so we didn't all have to huddle in the basement while we were eating!

Monday we visited our old house and had lunch at Nikki's Authentic Southern Restaurant-one of Birmingham's best eateries-before going back to rest up for the concert. Draven still talks about our "old yellow house" sometimes and seeing it made us all a little homesick for it.

I'm pretty sure Pierce feels differently, but if it was just up to me, we would still be in Birmingham. I love our friends and family that are here, but Birmingham, and the memories of our family there, have a special place in my heart. Brody was born there and our family grew so much, as a family, while we were there. I never thought I would say I miss Alabama, but I do!

Leroi Moore 1961 - 2008

As you may or may not know, Leroi Moore, the saxophonist for DMB passed away last fall. He passed due to complications from an ATV accident that actually happened a few days before the July 4th show we attended last year. It's extremely weird to me seeing photos of the band (like the one from our earlier post) without him in them. He was known for being extremely shy and almost always wore sunglasses on stage because of it. He was also known for being extremely funny and a prankster. He was a huge part of their unique sound and I don't believe it will ever be the same without him. The new album is going to be a tribute to him. The album is called "Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King." Groogrux was a nickname given to him by the band and I have know idea what it means. I've posted below a link to a tribute video to his memory...you may want to pause the player on our blog located at the bottom of the blog so you can hear the music in the video. The song played is called #36 and is off their first album...its an instrumental song that features Leroi.



Here's a video regarding the upcoming album and how it is dedicated to Leroi...

Operation Rescue Teddy 2

Those of you who read our blog when we went on vacation last year may remember our Operation Rescue Teddy post. Brody's teddy was lost at Cumberland Caverns and we had to drive an hour both ways to rescue him. Well, last week, we had to rescue Teddy again. This time from being hit by a car! As we were leaving a friend's house, we were riding with the windows down and Brody was letting Teddy look outside. Suddenly, he jumped out the window! Teddy may be 4, like Brody, but he has not learned to keep his hands and feet inside the car yet. So, Mommy had to turn the car around, park on a side street, and make her way along the very narrow edge of Pleasant Ridge Road to rescue Teddy. One thing that was really cute was that the cars that were coming slowed down and waited for me to run down and pick Teddy up. The car in front was driven by two old ladies-they have probably had to rescue teddies themselves! Brody was very grateful, and Teddy said, "I love you," so I guess it was worth it.

A Milestone

Today is Monday, Laundry day. Which means that I have no clean socks. So, I decided to borrow some of Draven's, thinking of course, that they would be a little smail, but do-able. No, they fit! Draven's foot is only about 1/2 inch smaller than mine. I didn't plan on sharing clothes with my boys at all, but definitely not when they were 6 years old. I can't believe my little boy is as big as me in any way, but I guess it is a milestone; to be celebrated?!