Graham Parker and the Figgs ~ 2012 April 22 ~ Bull Run Restaurant, Shirley, MA
Band personnel: Graham Parker (vocals, guitar); Mike Gent (guitar, backing vocals); Scott Janovitz (keyboards, mandolin); Pete Hayes (drums); Pete Donnelly (bass, backing vocals)
Set List
(playing Gibson electric) It's My Party - Turn It Into Hate - No Holding Back - If It Ever Stops Rainin' - Hole in the World [early demo that sounds a lot like "The Raid"] - Dislocated Life - (playing Fender electric) Black Lincoln Continental - Impenetrable - (with Pete Hayes) When You Do That To Me - (with Scott) You Can't Be Too Strong - (with Pete Donnelly) Blue Highways - (with Mike) Under the Mask of Happiness - (with all Figgs) You're Not Where You Think You Are - You Hit the Spot - Get Started. Start a Fire - Bad Chardonnay - Fools' Gold ... encore ... All or Nothing {Small Faces} - Do Me Like You Said You Would {The Figgs} - Soul Shoes
Scroll down past the videos for review; photo gallery to the right.
Videos
"Turn It Into Hate":
"If It Ever Stops Rainin'":
"Soul Shoes":
Review
It rained all the way from Cape Cod to Shirley, which declares itself to be a fun-loving community on a sign as you enter the town. I was early enough that I pulled into a parking spot right in front of the restaurant, and when I got inside, could hear the band sound-checking one of my favorites, "If It Ever Stops Rainin'." Hearing that was a good omen for a great show.
I took my seat up front at table 63, ordered pub food from the friendly waitress, said hi to various Figgs, and engaged in conversation with Bob and Melissa, two other experienced concert goers who were at my table. They said they'd been to the Bull Run just once before, and it was 10 years ago to see Johnny Winter. Well, time for another visit, folks.
Right about on time the Figgs came on stage and blasted through four rockin' songs from their new record, The Day Gravity Stopped. A cover of the Who's "Happy Jack" came next, followed by a change of pace, three acoustic songs from the new record. They finished up with two songs from their previous album (released two years ago), The Man Who Fights Himself, Mike Gent's "Leather Seats" and Pete Donnelly's "Ravena." The new songs (none of which I had heard before) all sounded great.
The band returned to back up Graham Parker, with the addition of Scott Janovitz on keyboards. Graham was dressed very stylishly. He was wearing a black button-down shirt that was sprinkled with red dots and white stars, and a suit jacket of a dark gray with a hint of purple. He was wearing his trademark dark glasses (naturally) but the lenses were a lighter shade than what Graham used to prefer. He has retained the subtle beard, and his hair was a little longer than it has been at other recent concerts (I don't mean his hair was long, by any means ... it was about a half inch as opposed to practically not there at all). Mike was dressed all in light colors with a jaunty cap, Pete D. was all in dark colors with a flannel shirt, Pete H. was wearing a light shirt adorned with pink squares, and Scott was wearing a brown suit jacket and a tie. Everyone looked very well put together.
The band started with a song from GP's most recent album, Imaginary Television, "It's My Party." That album was released two years ago, at which time GP toured with the Figgs to promote it. (Reviews of those concerts are here.) In the course of the 21 song set they played only one more song from that record, "You're Not Where You Think You Are," and they played no songs at all from GP's upcoming release, Three Chords Good. GP started the show on a Gibson electric that I have seen him use in previous band shows. He did not play his trusty Gibson acoustic at all, switching back and forth from the Gibson electric to his trusty Fender electric.
Although there's less time for a banter in a band show than at a solo show, Geep was still his usually wickedly witty self. For some reason he got into a rant about the horribleness of cupcakes. He said there's a vending machine in California somewhere with 600 varieties of cupcakes, and invited any audience member who happened to be out there to smash the disgusting thing with a hammer. The cupcake banter continued throughout the show, often with witty additions from various band members.
Well, it was a rockin' great show. GP has played enough with the Figgs now that they have started to grow together into an organic unity. Even Scott, who has played in this group less than the others, seemed totally at ease with the songs. In addition to his usual keyboards he played the mandolin on two songs ("If It Ever Stops Rainin'" and "Dislocated Life"). I was thrilled to hear two numbers from the album that GP recorded with the Figgs, Songs of No Consequence: "Dislocated Life" and the easy sing-along "Bad Chardonnay" with its tip of the hat to the Ramones ("ba ba ba ba, bad chardonnay"). There is no doubt in my mind that the Figgs are the best possible backup band for Geep.
A feature of any GP/Figgs show is the alternate "conFIGGurations." The entire band left the stage except for drummer Pete Hayes, who reacted to being introduced by standing and waving happily to the crowd. GP joked about the huge, awful drum sounds used on recordings made in the 1980s, and Pete demonstrated with a loud, harsh pounding. Geep suggested Pete use something else, like a brush, and that worked much better on the song they did together, "When You Do That To Me," on which GP demonstrated his guitar skills. Then Pete left the stage, replaced by Scott on keyboards who accompanied GP on "You Can't Be Too Strong." Pete Donnelly's turn on bass next, with the lovely "Blue Highways." Then Mike Gent returned to accompany Geep on "Under the Mask of Happiness" (a song about a murderer, said GP).
The main set ended with "Fools' Gold," followed by an encore of three songs. The first was a surprise, "All or Nothing," a cover of the Small Faces. Then Graham said: "The Figgs have a hit song out right now, so we thought we'd play it for you." The song was "Do Me Like You Said You Would" from The Day Gravity Stopped. It's a soulful ballad with an easy sing-along chorus, and it was an instant crowd pleaser. I'd call that the ultimate compliment to a backing band, to include a song of theirs in the encore set. They ended the show with "Soul Shoes" during which Graham put down his guitar and did the Rawk Star.
It was a great show with a well-balanced set list and superb performances by five talented musicians. Graham himself played a lot of lead riffs, particularly when he was using the Gibson.
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