With recent homegrown, in-GTB music being posted from Dave and zdaughter, Les Coole gets a little FOMO. Last week, he and The Cukes released a pair of songs, one new and one 15 years old.
The new one: virtual music collaborations are in increasing supply during the pandemic. Technology enabled this creation like nothing else could have. Three good friends of mine from high school, one of whom lives in New Orleans, contributed tracks of guitar, drums, bass, Hammond B3 organ, and background vocals.
30-some years ago, the four of us used to go see shows at nearby Hampton Coliseum, a 10k-14k capacity arena opened just more than a half-century ago. Fast fact: The venue held its first event on December 1, 1969, the College of William and Mary vs. North Carolina State University in a college basketball game. The Virginia Squires also played some of their home games there.
A laundry list of music's top stars have performed there, including Elvis, Springsteen, U2 (I remember my friends camping out for tickets to the Joshua Tree show; I wasn't that cool), and the Stones, whose 1981 show was recorded and released as Still Life and in full form here. Mick got a few local grins when he followed the show's opener of "Under My Thumb" (a great version) with:
Hey, welcome, Virginia. Welcome, Hampton. And welcome to everyone watching it on TV. Hope you're having a good time there drinkin' a few beers, smokin' a few joints at home wit' you, allll right.
Dave and I saw The Cult in Hampton in 1990 or so. FOGTB Lecky reached down to grab a tambourine that singer Ian Astbury brilliantly threw into the crowd down in front. He came up with a couple of fingers barely attached. But it was a good show otherwise.
For the Grateful Dead, Hampton Coliseum was a regular tour stop. 21 times, including two shows in 1989 appearing as The Warlocks owing to Hampton's weariness of "Shakedown Street," the traveling Deadhead bazaar and its lovably (to some) grubby, narcotic-bringing, trash-leaving inhabitants. I attended the first night of this stand, which was eventually given the box set treatment.
That group of friends saw more than our fair share of Dead shows there in high school, among many other offerings. Two Novembers ago, I went back to the Coliseum for Dead and Company show that brought back all the feels, including the neighborly pass-along ones.
Phish picked up where the Dead left off at Hampton Coliseum. "The mothership" was a mainstay, sometimes for a trio of shows at a time, and in 1999, the six-disc Hampton Comes Alive was released. Other than that, the venue had been dormant in recent years, at least relative to its heyday in the 70's and 80's. Plenty of Disney Princesses on Ice and such. I did see a terrific Pearl Jam show a few years ago.
I used to travel past the Coliseum twice a night when grad school class was in person. One night a song idea struck me, and by the time I got home, most of the words were written, via voice to text. For months to come, I dabbled in Les Coole Studios on my third floor, sketching out a song structure thanks to the aforementioned NOLA-dwelling friend Ned. Tracks would be exchanged on Dropbox, and here's the result.
The Coliseum
The Coliseum / Lay in ruins
Wasn’t nothin' / Nothin' doin
So many Dead / So long ago
The sun had set / On the old live show
Around the bend / A moonlight drive
Lights are up / She comes alive
CHORUS
Recount the times we came to see ‘em
Playing in The Coliseum
History like a museum
Hear it at The Coliseum
Gladiators / They don’t fight
But sloshy moshers / They just might
No emperors / On golden thrones
But skeletons / They shake their bones
The ghosts they fly / The boss, the king
The edge, the stones / They let Phil sing
CHORUS
BRIDGE
Tonight in old Virginia / I’m the evening Squire
So run with me and can’t you see / the Scarlet in the Fire?
All the shows / And all the showmen
Ancient now / But we’re still roamin’
So pack a bag / And hop a train
Or hitch a ride / Back home again
50 points / Of colored light
The mothership / She flies tonight
CHORUS
Song 2: Just One More
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20 comments:
i'm one game away from completing the second-most epic sporting prognostication in gtb history. tune in tomorrow to see how we did.
I saw "Just One More" on Spotify this weekend. You're prolific! "Beer and beer and beer and beer ..."
Les Coole is really cranking 'em out. Nice work!
I think I've only been to a show at the Coliseum once, when my college gf convinced me to go with her to a NYE DMB show. It was painful. In retrospect, breaking up before then would have been a good move.
les chose not to mention an r.e.m. show that he and i saw at the coliseum with fratre otis. the show itself was fine, but more memorable was the altercation we got into in the post-concert traffic, which featured an aggro townie punching otis and whitney exploding from the back seat of a two-door ford escort in defense. which had the effect of shoving otis' head into his lap (he was in the passenger seat) and probably humiliated him more than the sucker-punch he received. to his credit, otis was always pretty mellow about personal humiliation.
rootsy, is that the show where she ordered you to stand behind her and snuggle like all the other couples there?
In better news, it was 63 degrees out when I ran a lunchtime errand and "Big Up" by Rayvon and Shaggy was on the radio. I can't be in a bad mood now.
Further, zson turned 10 today. I can't believe he's been around that long. I remember the instant he was born, and when they stuck him on the scale while he screamed and cried I realized his philtrum is identical zwoman's.
les and the cukes have some range. the lead singer, well, he's got charisma.
Rob, I totally forgot to mention that R.E.M. show! That was ridiculous. I was standing in gridlock traffic and challenging a dude to a fight who would have kicked my ass for sure. Luckily Johnny Law was 10 cars back with a bullhorn. "Is there a problem?" A smile, a wave, a retreat into the back of the Escort. How did I not have shotgun???
Good set from that show. Too many Green inclusions, but that was the tour.
Makes sense that Kemba is 10. Twas the 10 year anniversary of his namesakes game winner against Pitt yesterday that kicked off his ridiculous March run. Still by far the most impressive two tournament March run by a wide, wide margin.
they played three encores? no wonder that dude wanted to know what time it was.
It was Otis who wanted to know what time it was. We wanted to make last call at the Delly.
of course. that's right. what an affront to that other dude, though.
I just remember that he responded to Otis’s request for the time with “hey man, I’m pissed off.” To which Otis replied, “Well, I’m pissed off now, too.” Then... wham! And not in the good George Michael way.
That’s more the Andrew Ridgley way.
nice whit! your voice sounds great, crisp and lots of space around it. I've got to remaster my song so it sounds as good . . .
Pipe down with the Ridgley slander Marls. And don’t even think about coming after Garfunkel or Oates!
The Fighting Christians’ hopes were dashed.
Impressive finish by Jalen Suggs. He’s damn good on both ends of the floor. Good size for a PG, engaged defender and an evolving offensive game. He doesn’t jump off the screen when you first watch him but he’s got a competitive greatness to him.
On the topic of Jalen Suggs, I am all in on the Zags this year. Mark Few seems like a decent dude, and not just b/c he resembles our old fraternity Major Tom. I always love me a mid-major contender. They are undefeated. And they are fun as hell to watch. Only caught part of tonight’s game b/c I was striving for mediocrity on a paddle tennis court, but an impressive effort to avoid a letdown loss.
I loved Ridgeley’s solo song Shake when it came out. And I say that with no irony. But a little retrospective shame.
Final point - I bristle at criticism of Dave Matthews Band. I think a lot of folks hate it b/c it’s so popular w/ douchebag white people. It’s not Dave’s fault that it’s so popular and accessible. Yeah, I hate Satellite too. But if you can’t dig Two Step or #41 or his take on All Along the Watchtower or the great Dave Matthews/Tim Reynolds double album (Live at Luther College), I think you’re bringing some baggage into your opinion. Wow, I sound like Whit arguing against me.
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