The Best Of What's Around - Part One

Next weekend I'll be in Chicago, standing in the sun for three straight days. Next weekend I'll be sunburned, dehydrated, and I'm almost sure that I'll not smell too great. I'll be down by the lakefront, and I'll be wearing a wristband. Next weekend I get to avoid the terror that would be a year without Dave Matthews Band. Originally scheduled to take the entire year off from touring, the band decided to do four three-day "festivals" this summer. At each stop they would bring in a variety of bands, large and small, to do the full summer concert festival thing. And, at the end of each of the three nights, the band would do a full set.

When the news of their plans broke I mentioned it to Bows and The Wiese. Both were in without hesitation. We eagerly awaited the announcement of where the shows would be held. We knew there would be four, and the speculation on the internet settled on 1 east coast show (believed to be Atlantic City), 1 midwest show (rumor had it placed at Grant Park), 1 southwest show (rumors placed it anywhere from Texas to LA, with Red Rocks being a popular guess), and 1 west coast show (rumors placed it at The Gorge Amphitheater). We put our hopes in the Chicago show, and sure enough they announced that Chicago would be the second stop (although not in Grant Park; lakefront will have to do). As soon as the rumors of the shows started I joined The Warehouse, the DMB fan club, so that I could pre-order tickets. It only logically followed that these tickets might be hard to come by since DMB sells out cross country, and this would be only 12 shows total in 4 locals. So I signed up, then ordered the tickets the day they were available for the pre-order. All things told it was pretty affordable ... just shy of $200.00 for three days worth of music ... and our plans were set.

Now, next weekend, DMB comes to Chicago. And here I am, wondering a few things about my history enjoying the Band. I know that I've listened to DMB since 1994. I know that my first live show didn't happen until 2006, and I know that I've seen DMB 12 times and Dave and Tim once, for a grand total of 13 concerts. I know I went six times last year to three different locals (Noblesville, Wrigley Field, and Charlottesville). But I'm curious ... upon further review, which show was the best, and which was the worst? Which songs have I had the chance to hear live, and which songs am I still looking for? I don't know how many more times in my life I'll go see DMB live, but I suspect I'll go every summer as long as I can, because I know one thing about DMB: seeing them live makes me totally happy. And you can't put a price on happiness.

So here is a breakdown of my very first DMB show. I'm going to rate each song, on a scale of 1 - 5, based on the following breakdown:

1 = A song that I would gladly go to get a beer, use the restroom, or do anything else that I needed to do during.
2 = A song that will make me want to stay in place, but that I'll hunt down the beer man during
3 = A song that I'll dance a little to, has moments I'll love, but that I'll talk to The Wiese or text during.
4 = A song I'll be totally lost in, and one which brings me the aforementioned joy and happiness.
5 = Epic; a top ten song, or such a rarity to hear live that I am going to lose control, and might knock someone over I'm dancing in such a crazy way. MJ almost got thrown over a balcony for one of these.

With that defined, here is the breakdown of my first DMB show, which was at Tinley Park, IL on September 15, 2006. The Wiese was along for the ride, and we had the Murto Bros as special guest stars. We drove up from Bloomington for the first DMB show of my and The Wiese's life, and got stuck in traffic. We were cutting it close, I was getting pissed, and we could not stomach the idea of being late. After agreeing we'd split a ticket/tow cost four ways if either happened, we abruptly pulled into a residential neighborhood that said "no event parking" and parked. We then ran a few miles to the concert. RAN. The Wiese fell off first, as he was by far in the worst shape. The Murto Bros both ran Cross Country in high school, and left me in the dust. As I struggled to breath, I head my name yelled loudly. I figured The Wiese had just caught up to me. As I turned around I saw, in disbelief, that he had commandeered a vehicle that had A) attractive girls in it, and B) free beer. I quickly joined him. We walked into the show, met up with the Murto Bros, and got to our seats just in time to enjoy the following (all songs in order of play):

1. Pantala Naga Pampa > Rapunzel - 4
2. Everyday - 3
3. Proudest Monkey - 2
4. Satellite - 5
5. Bartender - 5
6. Hunger for the Great Light - 2
7. Louisiana Bayou - 1
8. Can't Stop - 2
9. Dream Girl - 2
10. The Idea of You - 2
11. So Much To Say > - 4
12. Anybody Seen The Bridge > - 4
13. Too Much - 4
14. Jimi Thing - 4
15. You Might Die Trying - 3
16. Ants Marching - 5
17. E: Sister - 2
18. E: Granny - 5
19. E: Stay - 4

If you didn't follow, > means that the song went right into the next, and "E" means Encore. Okay, this show wasn't too bad. Only one song that would have had me running to the rest room (Louisiana Bayou), and a handful of 2s. A total of 19 songs, with a total score of 63 results in an average score for this show of 3.32. I bet that I will end up remembering this show for the fact that it hit my all time top two right out of the gate (Satellite > Bartender) and for the fact it was my first show ... and that probably skews the memory. All told, a solid show. Next, we'll break down my first Noblesville experience, my only Dave and Tim show thus far, and the second Noblesville show, which taught me never again to go to only one of the two nights (camping is a must).