The Gorge

A few weeks ago I went to the Gorge to see one of my favorite artists, Tom Petty. He brought along his band, the Heartbreakers. Click here for the review that was in the Seattle Times the next day.

Steve Winwood opened up for them. I didn't recognize most of the songs he played, but he sounded pretty good when he sang. He played his own organ. I loved how his guitar player had a big, fat smile on his face the entire time the band was playing. It made me smile, and I liked the performance so much more than I otherwise would have because of his attitude. I figured I would only know one of his songs that he played - "Higher Love" - but was surprised, because one of the first songs I learned to play in jazz band was the last number that he and his band played, "Gimme Some Lovin'." I had no idea it was his song!

There was so much energy in the performance, and his saxophone player was stellar. At one point he had two saxophones in his mouth and was playing them both, at the same time. My companion said to me, "He's like a young, short-haired Kenny G."

I stood up the entire half hour that the roadies were fiddling around with Tom Petty's instruments. They all looked like ZZ Top. I think Tom Petty put in a rider that all of his roadies had to have white beards that were at least eight inches long. Seriously. I couldn't wait for my first glimpse of him. I did try to make myself sit, thinking that I might be standing for some of the concert and I didn't want to wear myself out, but I was too nervous. And then I saw him!! He looked exactly how I thought he would, but his hair was longer, and he seemed really thin. I think he has had the pair of jeans he performed in since the 80s...I dunno. It was GREAT.

Here's the set list:

So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star   (The Byrds cover)
From the first note, everybody was standing. I was surprised, because I didn't really recognize the song, but I liked it anyway. Tom Petty put his spin on it and it sounded amazing.

Mary Jane's Last Dance
This was about ten times better than any recording. It lasted longer, it was harder, grungier...there were elements that I could just tell: these guys are pros. They've been together, with the exception of the drummer, for longer than I've been alive.

Baby, Please Don't Go   (Big Joe Williams cover)
This reminded me of Arlo Guthrie's Pickle Song. This isn't my favorite version of the song, but it gets the point across...sort of talking singing. It made me smile.

American Dream Plan B
This was the first song he played off the new album, "Hypnotic Eye." I was totally amazed...and honestly surprised that this song was harder rock than anything of Tom's that I had ever heard before, and surprised at how much I liked it anyway. I was fully expecting to dislike anything that was new, just because I wanted him to play all my favorites...forget the new stuff! But in this case, I was glad for something untried...turns out it rang true.

Into the Great Wide Open
This song made me laugh so hard. Tom didn't speak very much during the show...he was there to perform songs, not jaw at the audience (which was over 20,000 people, I might add). But he did tell one story. He said, "I'm going to play you a song from 1991." The crowd went wild. "Oh, so that was a good year for you?" he asked. Everybody laughed. Then, "This song is the only thing I remember from that year." Everybody laughed harder. He chuckled a little at the memory and said, "We put Johnny Depp into this music video, and I'm telling you, I never met so many women in my life as I did while we were shooting that film." Then everybody cheered, and he started to play. It was so much better than the radio version...more riffs, and a lot more drums. They really had fun with it.

Forgotten Man
Off the top of my head, I don't really remember very much about this song. I think I was distracted, wondering if I would get to hear some of my favorites later in the night. Clearly, this is a Forgotten Man of a song.

I Won't Back Down   (Tom Petty song)
This was amazing. Everybody sang, as he waved at us to encourage "Hey, ah, there ain't no easy way out...Hey, ah!" It was great. I just swayed and closed my eyes and sang at the top of my lungs, which was probably pretty loud, because I had earplugs in and probably was overcompensating as a result. But I didn't care at the time, because oh, this was such a good rendition.

Free Fallin'   (Tom Petty song)
This song was so easy, I felt like I really could have fallen. It was an "across the universe" moment -- I could have been floating in a sea of tie-dye stars. Maybe that was because by that time the outdoor venue, the concert-going crowd and the fact that pot is now legal in Washington made it so I was probably high second-hand.

Tweeter and the Monkey Man (Traveling Wilburys cover)
This one, I didn't get. I've never liked it, and it was just tooooooo long. Like, ten minutes long. Maybe I could have handled six minutes, but it just seemed to take forever for me.

U Get Me High
Those of you who know me (which is my entire readership) know that part of the reason why I listened to "The Waiting" twice was because I was so entertained by how entirely stoned Tom Petty was in the music video. I mean, really, it's written all over his face. I don't know what that says about me as a person that I was entertained...I guess I was more amazed at the audacity he had to go to work completely high and have everything turn out okay anyway. Anyway, he made some joke about how yes, he did in fact note that pot is now legal in Washington, and everybody went crazy. It's true, I did practically get high from all the secondhand smoke I inhaled

Rebels   (acoustic)
He slowed this one down a lot from how I imagine he usually plays it. I did like the "hey hey heys" -- we all helped with those -- and he did have a little smile on his face the whole time. It was good...I had never heard it before. The lyrics aren't my favorite, and this wouldn't make my Tom Petty Favorites list, but I didn't hate it either.

To Find a Friend   (Tom Petty song) (acoustic)
This one, he said he hardly ever performs. From how he said it, it seemed like made him sad to sing it. I had actually never heard this before either (so much for being a true Petty fan, I guess. Just means there's more to discover!!), but I did like it, much more than Rebels. It is really a sad song, but it has a misleading upbeat quality to it. "Everything changed, then it changed again...it's hard to find a friend." So many times in my life I have felt like this. Tom Petty really has a way of putting raw emotion in deceptively simple lyrics. I think he has a genius for capturing human emotion and putting it in a context that almost anyone can relate to. That's why he has fans. It's not because he has a wonderful voice or because he is a Hendrix or a Clapton on guitar. It's because he understands what it is to be human and communicates his commiseration almost perfectly in song.

Yer So Bad   (Tom Petty song) (acoustic)
I also hadn't heard this one. I was just thinking, "These lyrics are terrible, and so sad!" as he opened up. It made me want to dance around though, during the chorus. It's not that Tom Petty was making fun of the brother in law in the song, but...in order to enjoy this song you have to get past the opening verse, which is just befuddling in its sequence of lyrics, and then just float with the song. I'm not really sure the song makes sense to me overall, but there's something fun and catchy about it that makes me want to listen again. 

Learning to Fly 
This is what I had waited for all night. All night! I knew that it was unlikely he would play "The Waiting," even though it is the song that made me a Tom Petty fan. I was disappointed, but I just told myself it wasn't going to happen and that I had to enjoy every last minute of every other song and then maybe I wouldn't be all sad and grumpy. Ladies and gentlemen, it appears I am not very good at being not sad and grumpy, but TP's rendition of "Learning to Fly" was almost enough to make me forgive the fact that I will forever be waiting for "The Waiting." 

He started out, and it was just so...amazing. I loved it. Every minute. I got goosebumps. There was something almost tender about the way he sang it that made me almost want to cry.

At the end, he had us all sing with him at the end...we sang the chorus with him probably six times, fading at the end. He sang line with us every once in awhile to make sure we knew where we were (there were some people there who definitely needed the help). I wish I had a recording. It reminded me of "Babylon" by Don McLean -- the live version where he divides them all up and has them sing parts in a round. It is so hauntingly beautiful. This was equally beautiful, but in a different way. To hear so many people singing together, each singing softly, but loud in aggregate, singing something so beautiful, I will never ever forget. It must really give Tom Petty satisfaction to know that many people will sing along with him, that they all felt the power of the song in that moment, and that he was helping making a magic moment. If you listen to the Tom Petty Live version, it sounds kind of like it, but ours was softer and slower. He could tell we all just wanted that moment to hang on forever. I can't say enough about this. Just this song was probably worth the ticket admission price alone. (And I paid a hefty price for my ticket.)

The lyrics to the song are so beautiful. They capture almost perfectly the struggle that is life -- we're all trying to rise above the mundane and sad and petty things of the world, and we're all trying so hard, but we don't have wings, and when we think we've gotten it figured out despite our wingless state, then we have to learn how to come down and accept that life isn't perfect. I can't describe it. You should just listen to the song, and then you'll know what I'm talking about.

Shadow People 
This just felt out of place for me...after the high of learning to fly, I wanted to just keep the goosebumps and energy going, and it seemed like Shadow People just went on, and on, and on, and on, and not the most wonderful way ever. There was something kind of creepy about it. Not as creepy as the "Don't Come Around Here No More" music video (not much is creepier than Alice in Wonderland turning into a cake and the Mad Hatter eating her while singing) but it was still dark and definitely not my favorite. There were a lot more cool guitar riffs and solos than are in the recorded version. It's another one off the new album. I liked the guitars in the middle, but the rest of it, I could have done without.

I Should Have Known It 
I liked the guitar at the beginning, but it became clear that instead of an Angry Girl song, this was an Angry Man song. Not like screaming metal bands, but there's definitely some anger there. I wonder how he feels playing this when he's not angry...if he just goes on autopilot, or if he gets a little riled every time because it brings back memories of what prompted him to write the song in the first place.

Refugee 
This one, I felt heart and soul. He really did a lot with dynamics on this. It just really hit me, that I don't have to be hostage to my own emotions. I don't have to keep it all inside. I can let it out by singing Tom Petty with every bit of emotion inside my being.

Runnin' Down a Dream   (Tom Petty song)
This is the one that was running through my head all the way home. It's got so much energy.  It just made me want to go run down a dream, to go after the things that I want, wholeheartedly, unapologetically...because just like the song says, the dream won't come true just because you want it to...you have to go get it. You have to work for what you want. Tom Petty worked really hard to make a good show for all of us. He probably dreams every night of having a successful show. Someone in the concert who sat in front of me yelled loudly to his concertmate that Tom Petty actually takes great pride in working hard to make sure every show is as good as it can be. He shows up, he performs, and he does what he can to make it a great night. He could just go on autopilot...he has a fan base that will forgive him for a lot of things, but he feels keenly the responsibility of putting on a good show for so many people who have paid a lot of of money and dedicated several hours worth of time to come to the middle of nowhere (the Gorge) to listen to him.

Then we yelled and cheered for a long time, waiting for them to come back. My arms hurt. I felt like my voice was going to give out. I was worried they wouldn't come back...they really made us work for that encore.

Encore:
You Wreck Me  (Tom Petty song)
 This one just makes me smile. It's so upbeat, and who can resist the "oh yeahs?"  It might have been meant to be sad in the beginning, but that's not at all how I think of it. Actually, this video I found online fairly closely approximates what we heard that night, except he built it more at the end...really cool stuff. You can tell he really just loves the music for the music.

American Girl 
Good, upbeat way to end the evening. Still wish he would have played "the Waiting" but you know, you can't have everything.

I really wish he had played "You Don't Know How It Feels." And now that I have listened to more Tom Petty, I really wish that he also would have played "Wildflowers." The live version is so wonderful. I listened to it twice today. :)

Thanks for reading my music rant. It was such a good time. Next up: Fleetwood Mac, if I can get a concert buddy!!