Black Tornado
Cowboy
Waiting For Van Gogh
Ballpark
You're Not Here
Witness
Flying Geese
Hang Around
Starting Over
Crosses
Chelsea Hotel / Don't Think Twice, It's All Right
Disarmament
Hobo
Truth Or Consequences
El Paso
Monica (partial)
Opposable Thumb
Darva Conger
Street TV
Tiger Woods
Hannibal
Too Late To Die Young
Drips
Birds (partial) / Marilyn (one line)
You Are On My Mind
Most American Men / Gum On My Chair
New American Language
Estelle
Hope For The Moon
Cash & Nin
Lightning Jazz
Jerusalem
Back When The Earth Had Two Moons
True Revolutionaries
Pictures from this show (CourtneyF):
About this performance:
From: KevinR
Date: 3/13/00
Subject: DB Midwest
Just returned from a four-day, four-state Berndork adventure. What a trip.
I'm a little too tired and behind in work to write at length about each show right now, but I'll get to it. A brief teaser, though:
<snip>
After Madison, I wasn't sure what to expect at Shubas in Chicago last night, 3/12/00. I was concered that maybe his voice would be shot to hell. But no-- we got another two hour+ marathon with around thirty songs. Again, fantastic setlist and enthusiastic crowd. As I said, the setlists will come later, but there's one song I'd like to mention in particular that he played for the first time ever last night. You know how Don Freeman has been complaining lately about the lack of a powerful "epic" song in the line of Kids' Prayer, True Revolutionaries, and Wasteland? Well, Don, I think your prayers have been answered. The next big song is called Disarmament, and it's an intelligent, long-loud-and-angry cry for the abolition of guns in America and the repeal of the 2nd amendment. Idealistic? Yeah, fine. But in the song, he recognizes the question of feasibility and answers it fiercely and confidently. I don't want to paraphrase his arguments too much, because I want you to hear this thing word-for-word as he wrote it. But know that our man is at the top of his game with this one; this song is built with the bite, passion and command of the language that we see in his very best songs. He doesn't have it entirely committed to memory yet-- it's that new. But he sang it off the page like he's known it for years. Man. I mean it. Good song. What he's proposing is huge-- but it's songs like this that set the fires and put wind in the sails. I have a feeling that this one may silence those who've been unsatisfied with his new songs (I'll affectionately dub you the "Crotchety Fart Camp"). I come away from my four-day trek very sure that the guy's still got it.
From: Winelady
Date: 3/20/00
Subject: DB Schubas review
Hi all,
Just a few highlights from the Schubas show. Since I already posted the set list, I am not going to repeat it again.
First of all this show was about 2 1/2 hours long and packed with all sorts of wonderful songs. The night before this show, a few of us made some requests and each of us got at least one of the songs we wanted. That made our last night there very special. (note to Don: none of us requested "Back when the earth had two moons" that was all Bernstein's idea)
So now on to the show highlights.
In "Flying Geese," B added a new piece to the song that I had never heard, an imitation of the chicken they used to sample the drumming. I think I remember someone else posting something to this effect. But this was my first time seeing it, and it was quite funny.
Bernstein ran into a problem trying to remember the start of "Chelsea Hotel." He started singing, "I still remember all the things we've done." Then stopped and said "I don't have a song that starts like that,. . . but I should because whenever I can't remember a song, that's what always comes out." Anyway, a friendly front-row fan helped him out and he was on his way. Right before the last verse of Chelsea, he sang two verses from the Dylan song, Don't Think Twice It's All Right, then went right back into Chelsea. It was absolutely incredible.
Before the song "Truth or Consequences," B started a sports discussion with the audience, talking about Cubs' and Bears' players (i think). He asked if the audience felt hopeful for the season. No one answered; so he said "Hey you gotta be hopeful, it's March." He than went on to talk about a player who's been a real let-down for Chicago. Can't remember the name (sorry all you sports nuts). He said he could understand their let-down and made the following analogy. He said something along the lines of this, It's like for ten years a different, incredibly beautiful woman comes to your room every night and gives you a loooong slooooow blow job. Then all of the sudden she's replaced by some drunk janitor who gives you a hand job. <hehe>
He introduced "Street TV" as a song he wrote when he was living in Chicago. Someone in the audience asked him when he would be moving back. He promised he'd move back when the Cubs won the world series.
During the song "Most American Men," B forgot where he was and decided to start a little sing-a-long with the a song called "There's Gum On My Chair." The words are repeated three times in a row and done with a different emotion behind them. First he had us sing the words as if we were really pissed off. (think McEnroe)
Like this:
There's Gum on My Chair
There's Gum on My Chair
There's Gum on my, Gum on my, Gum on my chair.
Then we had to sing them as if someone we knew just died. (very
sad, and whiny)
Then we had to sing them as if we were defending ourselves in court.
After this little break, he remembered where he was in "Most American Men" and
finished the song.
"Cash & Nin" now seems to include an imitation of Johnny Cash and Anais Nin in one of the verses. A bit different from the first time I saw him do it and and a lot more polished.
During Lighting Jazz, in the part where God whispers in his ear, not only did God tell him "the best is yet to come," he also told him that the Cubs were never going to win the World Series. He asked God why and God said "some things aren't meant to happen."
Of course, of all the songs done this night, Disarmament was the show stopper. An absolutely wonderful song that I hope doesn't get released to MP3 right away; because I really believe the experience of seeing this song live for your first time is well worth it. But that's just MNSHO... and easy for me to say because I already got to see it.
Once again, this was an exceptional show. Lots of great songs were sung with lots of emotion and energy. It was definitely worth the long, COLD, trip to the Midwest.