Tour Diary – San Francisco, CA (May 2, 2013)
We arrived in San Fran this morning and everyone scattered, taking advantage of the few hours that we had in this great city tocontribute to its economy. Al bought some vinyl, Pete bought a hat, Jeff bought an origami book, Margo got her hair done and I bought a beautiful mahogany, Hawaiian made ukulele…a birthday present from my parents. It was hot in the city today, but its always a pleasure to be here even if it is only for a few hours. We did two shows tonight at Yoshi's. We have played its sister club in Oakland, but this one is fairly new. They've done a good job at creating a very unique performance space and have put in some good production as well, but it has a bit of a corporate, sterile feel, maybe over time it will develop it's own character. It was a hard night, we are tired and two shows is always difficult. Despite that I think we played fairly well, the second show was a little wacky with a few train-wrecks as our brains slowly shut down.
Pete's ipad sketch of the Bay:
JASON LENT FOLLOWED OUR TOUR BUS BACK IN 2011 AND SUPPLIED US WITH HIS TOUR DIARY. HE WILL BE DOING THE SAME FOR THE COMING WEEK. HERE IS JASON'S SAN FRANCISCO DIARY Crossing the bridge to San Francisco, I was again swallowed by this mysterious city. I’ve been coming to Junkies shows here for years but I still haven’t fully grasped the lay of the land. A crowded bus ride to Ameoba Records gave me another glimpse at the Haight-Ashbury district but the 60’s vibes of peace and love are felt only in the occasional mural on a wall.
The show tonight was a doubleheader at a jazz supper club. Would you like a spicy tuna roll with “Square Room”? The first show was being streamed online which meant the stage was swathed in light. It felt like watching a TV show about Cowboy Junkies starring Cowboy Junkies. Surreal in a way but it didn’t hamper a very tight performance highlighted by even more special songs pulled from albums past. Every breath of Margo or the slide of fingers down a string fluttered in the air. The venue staff were attentive without disrupting the live music experience, as good as any I’ve seen from an audience perspective.
The second set was as fun and lighthearted as any Junkies show can be. The band was laughing, the crowd was having a blast, and the set list built off the first set perfectly. We headed out into the San Fran night and ended up in a non-descript bar, literally a hole in the side of a building, where two bartenders recently arrived from Korea tossed dice with us for shots of tequila. We closed down the bar as Townes Van Zandt’s “To Live Is To Fly” blasted through the jukebox. I still haven’t figured out this city but that might be the charm of San Francisco. Anything can happen.