The Bridge School Benefit Concert Mtn View 2007

[lisaskye]

A new concert, a new step for the band.
The weather is set for 75 and dry, we are in for a great show.
We are getting excited to think what will they play?
The Bridge is a great atmosphere, all the artists milling around backstage and the kids from the school are on stage behind the artists stage.
The other bands on stage before and after MMJ compliment the boys very well indeed.
I am looking forward to having one memorable night.
The best is yet to come.
Luv Dawg

[BH]

A new concert, a new step for the band.
The weather is set for 75 and dry, we are in for a great show.
We are getting excited to think what will they play?
The Bridge is a great atmosphere, all the artists milling around backstage and the kids from the school are on stage behind the artists stage.
The other bands on stage before and after MMJ compliment the boys very well indeed.
I am looking forward to having one memorable night.
The best is yet to come.
Luv Dawg

Keep the reports coming lisaskye! [smiley=2vrolijk_08.gif]

[sweatboard]

Yeah, KEEP IT COMING!!

I'M getting excited.

[lisaskye]

what to bring???

For most shows Guests are WELCOME to bring:

   *
    Disposable Cameras or Digital Cameras
   *
    Low Profile Lawn Chairs.  In order to minimize visual obstruction, we ask that the seat height for chairs not excede 6 inches.  Chairs are also available for rental at lawn entrance for a $5 fee. (Will NOT be permitted at the following: Live 105's BFD, Vans Warped Tour, Ozzfest, Projekt Revolution, Family Values Tour, Download Festival)
   *
    Small Bags or Backpacks (Detailed Inspection)
   * Small Umbrellas (Tote Size), Ponchos or Rain Coats
   * Seat Cushions
   * Snack or Picnic Food in (1) Clear, Plastic Gallon Size Bag, (1) per Person
   * Factory Seatled Bottled Water  

**Items listed are subject to change or vary at time of show**

# For your safety the following items are NOT allowed for this event:
NO Professional Cameras
**This includes Sm, Med or Lrg Detachable Lenses**
#
NO Video or Audio Recording Devices
# NO Laser Pointers
# NO Sharp or Dangerous Items
(weapons, knives, spiked items, chains, fireworks & mace)
*If these items are in your possession when attempting to enter the gate, you will be asked to check in the prohibited item at Guest Services. You will be able to retrieve your items upon leaving the venue after the completion of the show.**

Thank you for taking the time to become familiar with our policies.

Enjoy the show!

[sweatboard]

No weapons, knives, spiked items, chains, fireworks & mace?  That Sucks!

[lisaskye]

Let us honor the past and look at photos of the 2006 concert

ftp://http://www.bridgeschool.org/events/2006concert/ev_stills2006.htmlftp://

for those of you new to the Bridge, it an annual concert only in October, only at Shoreline in Mountain View and all acoustic.  The photos show that the students of the school are on stage and enjoying the informal atmosphere.
For those off you savvy with Google earth you will notice that the MV Amp-theater is next to the Google headquarters on Shoreline Avenue in MV.  
It is a cool fall night in Silicon Valley.  I am grateful that I am here for this performance.  
I am bringing a new fan and  this will be her first MMJ concert.


I look forward to meeting Yvon and all.  I am wearing a "Got Elvis" T-shirt from Graceland.  

See you soon.
Luv dawg
Lisaskye

[Kory]

anyone going that hasn't left yet and wants my number to text us a setlist?  :)

[BH]

Small Bags  

8-)

[lisaskye]

we are home from Shoreline.
Are you ready for the set list?

Mountain View CA 2007, Oct 27
Shoreline Bridge school benefit concert

Line up in reverse order of appearance
Neil Young-Opened the whole day with "Sugar Mountain," after an opening state-of-the-school address from wife Pegi.
Metallica
Jerry Lee Lewis
Tom Waits with Krono Quartet
John Mayer
My  Morning Jacket
Tegan and Sara
Regina Spektor

Set List:
The Way He sings
What a Wonderful Man
Gideon
Golden
Bermuda Highway
New song(?)  "Feel Wonderful, wonderful is how I feel"
Anytime

[buymycar]

Actually, Neil came on before both Jerry Lee Lewis and Metallica.

IMHO, MMJ outperformed Metallica.

They took the stage right when it got dark, which set the stage beautifully.

The Way That He Sings was a surprise opener, and it sounded great acoustic.  The same for Gideon and Anytime, songs that are usually heavily plugged in.

The boys delivered, and they showed what talented musicians they are, because going all acoustic leaves you very vulnerable.

If that Wonderful song is new, y'all are in for a treat, cuz it's gorgeous.

[getinthevan]

I don't suppose there were any tapers were there?  

What did Metallica play?  

[LaurieBlue]

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2007/10/bridge_school_benefit.html

"My Morning Jacket was easily the rookie of the year. The Louisville, Ky., band, a last-minute replacement for Eddie Vedder and friends, was a perfect fit for the lineup. The double-shot of "Gideon" and "Golden" might have been the best music all day, and Jim James' soaring voice spoke volumes even when it was just singing "ooooh.""

[buymycar]

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2007/10/bridge_school_benefit.html

"My Morning Jacket was easily the rookie of the year. The Louisville, Ky., band, a last-minute replacement for Eddie Vedder and friends, was a perfect fit for the lineup. The double-shot of "Gideon" and "Golden" might have been the best music all day, and Jim James' soaring voice spoke volumes even when it was just singing "ooooh.""

I agree with this quote wholeheartedly.  It seems like MMJ was made to perform at the Bridge School Benefit.  Jim really came through when he thanked the true stars of the show - the kids.  He held up the drawings that three of the kids did for the band that were posted on their dressing room door and thanked each one individually - the only band to do that last night.  It was such a classy move on his part.

[pawpaw]

I love being able to have a lazy morning at home after a great concert the night before; have some coffee, play some music, talk about the show, relax. It's one of the most comfortable mornings I could imagine! That's where I'm at right now...

So, on with my little review. Bridge School XXI. My wife and I got down to Shoreline a little later, missed Neil's opening few tunes and all of Regina Spektor's set. Our seats were right on the rail behind the soundboard, dead center, so the sound was perfect. There were a few taper's mike stands up, though these may have been for the Bridge School archives. I'm sure someone pirated in some equipment though. We caught a few tunes from Tegan and Sara before My Morning Jacket came on...I'll get into them later. A quick run-through of the other bands:

John Mayer - You know, this is guy is an easy target, but I've got to give him credit, he is a great guitarist. He played (probably) the shortest set of the night, a lean, 4 song set, but he sounded great. Did a cover of Tom Petty's 'Free Fallin', which was really nice. Full on heart throb mode though, getting the obligatory "I LOVE YOU JOHN"s from packs of young ladies in the crowd between songs. And of course he loved them right back.

Tom Waits w/ Kronos Quartet - I'd never seen Tom Waits perform before, but have always been a modest fan of his music.  The guy doesn't just write and perform songs, he's creating worlds, and with the Kronos Quartet, the moods and colors of his characters and stories were heightened beautifully. Everything that I'd heard about his stage presence was true, all the demonic puppet posturing and howling. Highlights were 'Gods Away On Business' and a set closing 'Diamond In Your Mind', but the standout was a gorgeous 'The Day After Tomorrow'. It was just perfect with the string accompaniment, one of the high points of the whole evening, and (surprisingly) very touching for my wife, who has a sister in the Military.

Neil Young - The Bridge School Benefit is his show, and a large portion of the crowd are Bay Area Baby Boomers who've been with him for decades, so he can generally do no wrong on this stage. Neil's set was actually pretty heavy on songs from his new Chrome Dreams II album, which isn't a bad thing. I guess there are so many songs of his that I always want to hear but never get to, though with a song library like his, that's just the way it goes. Highlights of his set were 'Winterlong' and 'Oh, Lonesome Me'. As always, Neil was in fine rocking form, which always puts a smile on my face.

Jerry Lee Lewis - The Killer. He's old. But you know, he's still a rocker, got plenty of fight left in 'im.  It always amazes me to see old rock and roll musicians perform, to see them still having their charisma and ability to captivate and charm an audience. I say long live The Killer. Closed with "Great Balls of Fire" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" and he rocked 'em.

Metallica - They're the reason I initially bought tickets for this show. They are such a good band, and for those not into the heaviness of their recorded stuff, the acoustic setting of the Bridge School Benefit is a perfect way to appreciate them. They actually opened their set with about 4 cover songs, and though I can't remember all of them, the two I do remember were 'I'm Only Happy When It Rains' (Garbage) and 'Brothers In Arms' (Dire Straights). They also played a Nazareth tune, something with Judas in the title. The best tune they played was 'Disposable Heroes' which perfectly showcased the metal/acoustic sound that they do so well at these shows. It was a monster. Kurt Hammett is such a bad ass. They also did 'Nothing Else Matters'. Would've loved some more from them, but it was still a very exciting set. Oh, and I've come to the conclusion that James Hetfield is Tom Waits' nephew.

Alright, getting back to the REAL show...My Morning Jacket - I was VERY anxious when we were driving down the peninsula from San Francisco, did NOT want to miss their set, but the traffic gods were with us, and we showed up with about 20 minutes to spare. I'm not sure exactly how long they played, but they seemed to have a good amount of time allotted to them considering all the artists performing. I haven't seen them perform since last winter, and they've really cleaned up! Jim has short hair! My wife is even more in love! Patrick is the one holdout (keep the hair brother!).

The Way He Sings was a wonderful starter. The sound mix for them was a little off for the first part of this song; Bo (who was on a piano, and sounded awesome) was up WAY high, and I couldn't even hear Carl. The Shoreline crew quickly righted the ship, and it was perfect from then on. Their whole band acoustic sound is obviously a gentler animal than the beast that they can be when electrified, but they still brought a ton of energy to tunes like 'What a Wonderful Man' and 'Anytime'. Golden was THE song from their set though, I don't know if I've ever heard a sweeter version, and I MUST find a recorded copy. The sound so pure and full, and (for me) the highlight of the evening. Gideon was also a standout of their set.

It was fun talking to some of the older folks that were seated in our area who had never heard of My Morning Jacket, pumping them up before their set and hearing their reaction afterward. Like it or not, last night was a chance for our guys to prove themselves to a lot of savvy music fans who hadn't previously known about them, and they succeeded wonderfully. They were most gracious guests on the stage, thanking Neil, as well as some of the Bridge School students who had made signs for their dressing rooms. And they even got to enjoy some of the other acts; we saw the whole band come out to some box seats, drinks in hand, for the Metallica set.

I wish I was going back today! The Bridge School Benefit is a Bay Area treasure. It occurred to me yesterday that the first one I went to was 10 years ago, and I've been to 5 since then. My Morning Jacket pushed BSB XXI to the top of the list.

[Elizanne33]

It sounds like it was a great show yesterday. I'm going to be heading that way shortly :)

[loonylobo]

yes...great show by MMJ...even if the mix was a little uneven...those super melodic guitar lines are a key to the MMJ sound, so that was definitely a challenge for the band...
that said ...they sounded great overall, jj in fine voice...and i'm sure they won over a lot of new fans...now wouldn't it have been cool to have seen metallica in their early slot and mmj playing a longer set!  

[Nikkogino]

Sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo,

Did they play a new song, or was it just a cover?  Thats all I care about.

[sweatboard]

That "Wonderful The Way I Feel" song is a new one Jim has been playing as of late.

[Nikkogino]

Awesome...can't wait until someone puts up a recording...hopefully they had more luck than you did at the Superdrag show.

[LaurieBlue]

http://dailyrepublic.typepad.com/forthoseabouttorock/2007/10/bridge-school-b.html