I like Amos Lee, he was in town last night for free, and he was playing outside so I could sit by the water and be all peaceful and everything. What could go wrong? Anyone who has ever read this blog and chanced across any posting of any concert (except Wilco) that I've ever attended is raising their hand and saying, "Oh! Oh! I know! It's the audience, right?"
Right.
Given that it was outdoors, it was a restaurant venue, the concert was free, and they were serving alcohol, I understood that the audience would be drunk and rowdy. Really, I promise that I did understand that going into the concert. So my usually tight-assed standards for audience behavior were really relaxed. Even so, I left. That's the first time I've ever left a concert. I couldn't hear the opening act, but I figured that once Lee came out, the audience would quiet down. They didn't. They got louder. Amos Lee adjusted his singing level to account for the talky, rowdy audience, but he couldn't adjust it enough. And it wasn't that I was far away -- I wasn't. If a drunk guy hadn't stepped in front of me to talk to two women and thus, with his big head, blocked any view I had of Amos Lee, I could have taken a recognizable picture with my cell phone to include with this post. I'm glad the concert was free as I would have had to demand my money back otherwise.
6 comments:
Bummer! This happened to us at a Bob Dylan concert -- and it wasn't free!I really wanted to say, "Sit down and shut-up!"
I have followed your concert/audience observations with glee because it is usually the way I feel about them - even when I try so very hard to go in with an open mind. Sounds like the poor man should have just gone and played in your living room - you sound like you were the only one that was listening! Very rude of the others.
I haven't been to a concert in a very long time. I guess I am not missing much. What a pain.
Nutmeg: Now THAT would have been perfect! I'd have appreciated it. I did feel like I was the only person who actually came for the music.
Les: Now if I'd paid for the concert, I'd have really been mad. My doctor was behind me at a Bonnie Raitt concert that was almost as obnoxious. He left but he didn't ask for his money back or complain.
Marsha: I think it's mostly the audiences here -- don't come to a concert here unless it's Wilco.
You know, at the first SENTENCE I knew there was trouble! :-) Sorry you had to leave, but at least it was free.
We took the boys to see Santana last weekend. I haven't blogged about it yet but it was fun, he was great. We sat on the lawn and amazingly, both of the boys fell ASLEEP, can you believe it?
The only thing was whenever Carlos tried to talk about anything, the audience would be screaming and screaming and finally he just asked everyone to be quiet so he could talk. As a Non-Drunk-or-Obnoxious concert goer, I thought it was rather amusing.
They fell asleep during the awesomeness of Santana? Did the audience listen to him when he asked them to be quiet? Our audiences never do.
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