by Jen
Pre History
Holliday
was planned….but money was short, so decided against any gigs….
One day before holiday
Rute tried
to get me a ticket for
One week into my holiday
For private
reasons I let Alison do her magic and decided to go to
I told Itzik bout my plans to go to Birmingham
Which was so cool as he originally planned only to go to the
There
wasn’t really much time for making plans - Alison doesn’t have internet access
at the house where she’s staying in and Terri practically went off to L.A.
without telling us (well she did tell Alison who forgot!)
I booked
and paid for night from Thursday to Friday in backpackers’ hostel for 14 Gbp as
I didn’t know when and how we would come back and I didn’t want to wake my
friend Claudi in the middle of the night to let me
in…
But first
of, I caught a really nasty virus on Monday, not sure where from….thought I
just had a achy back from carrying around a laptop and having a really crappy
following sleeping night….but by Tuesday I had a 40 degree fever and felt like
shit and just wanted to go home and hide from everyone….I wasn’t happy at all,
started wondering whether fate is trying to tell me something….especially as it
wasn’t really better by Wednesday, which was also my last night in Oxford with
my friend Claudi and her flat mates!
Wednesday I
slept ‘til late in the afternoon and thanx to aspirin and other drugs I was ok
in the evening and just hoped for the best Thursday morning!
But I could
already tell that I was going to be fine…just my stomach made me worry a bit!
Checking in
the youth hostel Thursday morning around 10 am and the
first thing…. COMPUTER SAYS NO! on my payment of the
bed the other day…..Greg said he would look into it and not to worry! Had left
my luggage at Claudi’s as wanted to meet for
breakfast on Friday!
Then went
to national coach station at Gloucester Green in Oxford, got ticket, got meal
deal at Boots….and some candy….and waited and prayed my stomach would be fine
and not turn upside down when I don’t need it!
Itzik was
gonna go up by train from
I was lucky
as a nice girl who was also travelling to
The coach
trip was alright though I was quite tired yet not enough to sleep and my
stomach really was annoying….arrived on time in
Off to the train station I went…..though I could not help taking
pictures of the most awful constructions I have ever seen…..and its not so much
the buildings themselves, though I would never vote for them in my favour, but
for how they put them straight next to a really nice old church……I was in
complete shock, it was bizarre and surreal!
Actually if
you never really knew what there is about
(I’m not
sure if it was a millionaire who wanted to be a scriptwriter and his science
fiction play was rejected by studios all around the globe and so he or maybe
even she thought, “oh what the fuck, I’m gonna build it straight next to this
ancient church!!!”)
On the way
to New Station…..I started wondering what would happen if I wouldn’t recognize
or just won’t see Itzik and vice versa…..we know each other for I dunno almost
5 years now, but this was the first meeting!
But no
worries we found each other quickly.
He showed
me the beautiful RED BOOK Promo and we went for multi chain but yummy
caramel Frappuccino/Macchiatos at Starbucks!
Alison and Terri
wanted to be there around
Mats and Lisy wanted to come as well but we didn’t know when.
So we went
to find the venue, which wasn’t really far….and of course at almost
Well we
thought asking is free and since the box office was open…we asked for tickets
and ticketprices….
Itzik did
order via ticketline.com and got his for half price and he asked wether he
could pick his up already, but from Ticketline they
don’t get them ‘til when the doors open….I asked for ticket prices and she said
25 GBp…and she would tell us off for saying he only paid half over the net,
only to add when the doors open tickets will be 27 Gbp, cause that will sell
them massively im sure!
I would say
bitch….but wait ‘til you meet her colleague!
Anyways….far
from
Though I
still don’t want the songs in advance, as this one is rather personal to me for
many reasons I cannot explain or just generally put in words… and it will be my
treat for handing in my notice! Yeah though may I mention that I hope Master
Thief will be played on the real tour! I mean it is massive on the guitars!!!
And I’d love to hear it live!!!!! And it can be just Ally - there would go his
solo!! Ok Tony can add his guitars to it ;)
I chucked
away my iPod headphones as I thought I was squeezing them in my hipbag…darn it!
Oh and
across the
I just hope
she hasn’t changed her friend by the time I get back.
Around
And is
funny, after the bus was gone we kinda walked up a little and stood to the side
in hopes maybe someone would come out…and it amazes me how they train the
security people at the venues, but I won’t go into details …but it makes you
wonder sometimes….the wrong kind of people do exist….
Anyways…of
course 20 mins later Alison and Terri appeared….too late! They’ve been driving
around
Back at the
venue….may I introduce to you Miss Competent of the day….also called La Bitch
(and im not talking Maria Carey!)
Itzik and I
went back to the ticket office to ask for his tickets again….different
person….asking us where did he order it from….Itzik tells her in perfect
english TICKETLINE! She needed six times asking the same question as if we were
deaf mute….”Where did we order it from?” and getting impatient with us…..only
to finally say “I don’t know that site…!” as if that answers our question and
looked down at us “I cant help you get your ticket…..” Do I have to mention she
was super blond? We tried to reason with her that this was not a satisfactory
answer and Itzik started to worry….she concluded to get rid of us it would be
best to say to come back later when the doors are opening!
She was so
obviously pissed off at herself for her own incompetence that later when we
stood between the double doors to listen to the sound check, she told us to go
outside if we “don’t collect tickets!”
I stood in
the door, but still outside and she was so worked up she managed to get her
arse up her chair to come outside and tell us off for blocking the door as
there were crowds of people to come and ask for her help!
So we
queued, think it was around 5pm then…
Im not sure
when Nicki and Julia joined us - might’ve been around that time….
I haven’t
seen them in about four years!!!
I actually
thought
I actually
bought a notepad, mainly for setlist, but for little notes aswell to help me
remembering things….but I totally forgot to use it, the only thing I wrote down
is the clearest memory I have without the pad….Johnny and Eddie arriving…
So I
apologize for all my wrong guessings, don’t hunt me down if I’m wrong….
Roughly
around maybe 5.30 pm, well according to my camera it was 5.15 pm he he….a taxi cab stopped right in front the main entrance and
no other then Sharleen came out….(making me wonder
about what I heard as asound check
earlier ) and of course as always she was signing happily away with autographs
and taking pictures!!
I was so happy for Itzik, he got all his album covers signed and I took a really nice picture of him and Sharleen!!!
So yeah the
day was already worth it!!!
Well
finally Mats and Lisy arrived, sadly they had missed Sharleen, but it was great finally meeting Mats in
person!!! Five and a half years is ages!!!!!!
So cool!!!
Here goes
more amusement, having mentioned said big TOYS’R’US across the street, we kinda
had to look twice before we realized who came out main entrance of Carling Academy
again and walked across the road right into it ….well yeah but not only Sharleen - Johnny and even Ally!!
Lots of
rumours about what they could buy started….amazingly no one followed them in,
which I thought was quite great as the queue was not bad for the early hour….
The only
people going after them at the end were two girls sitting sorta behind us on
the floor and wouldn’t want to believe at first that they really were in the
store!
When they
came back out, I don’t really know what happened with Sharleen but Johnny and
Ally stopped for a bit of a chit chat and Itzik got his cd booklets signed by
both and Johnny seemed quite impressed that he came from Israel!
To top it
off he got his photo taken with both of them, I can’t wait for this picture it
must be great, but I didn’t take it!!
We can go
home now!
Yeah
right!!
It was
getting later and preparations started and plans were made…..cameras were
hidden, (brilliant idea btw!!!),
We were a
bit worried bout having to go to the box office first and then try to get first
row, but we had great support!
So I must
say, arriving at 1 pm, being at the venue at 2pm…..these five hours have been
one of the fastest waits ever…..
Finally
doors open, really bad body check….I have no clue if
cameras were allowed at this point, they did not come anywhere near mine!
Everything
went well with the first row yay!!!
Well
deserved one for both sides I believe! We almost filled the complete longside
of the stage with Texans! Started with Nicky or Julia on Johnny’s high down all
the way to Ally’s and Eddie’s side!
We were
Nicky, Julia, Alison, Terri,Janey
from Glasgow, Me, Itzik, Lisy, Mats, Karen and her friend !!
Oh and my
friend Marty,the zebra of course, I didn’t know where to put him, so I had him
under my tshirt with his head stuck out of my neck….it prob looked weird but I thought it was amusing.
Not many
zebras get to see such an amazing show like Marty!!!!!
They had
Promo Posters of Red Book and Can’t Resist up and stacks
of slip cases lying around!
And there
were no locks on any bathroom doors, just FYI!
We were
chuffed about our places and the stage being so close and so low! And I was
pleased to be in front of Ally and hoped Eddie would be visible after
Itzik and I
chatted to Janey (another Texan from TID), who was
next to me. She was working in
The support
was Robert Post and I was curious about him, cause
most people said he’s not really good or even complete crap but Janey said she liked him and “he has potential”. He reminded
me faintly of Feeder. Some songs were just plain awful,
others were really beautiful, especially when he played slower more acoustic
ones! I thought his 2nd single was rubbish because he had two really
brilliant songs. The drummer was interesting, in the most acoustic song of
their set, he played drums with his hands!! They were on for about 40 minutes?
Think they finished around 8.30 pm. During his performance the Academy was only
half full and we were almost shocked.
But
I have no
recollection of the exact set list or order of things being said, so this is just a random
list of memories…
I do
however remember the first song and that Ally sat on a nice stool for his very
famous and beautiful and brilliant intro to I Don’t Want A
Lover. Goose bumpy!!
And
classy!
They all
seem to have some new equipment but I'm no pro, so that's about all I can say
except Tony's new white guitar looks brilliant!
The line up
did not change but you could see Eddie!!!!
And it was
great because he had such a good time especially with Ally!
They all
looked kind of dressed up:
Tony was
wearing black shirt and red tie and Neal in a white shirt and a dark tie!
Ally did
not wear a tie but a black shirt.
Sharleen
was in TOP FORM and sparkles were in her eyes and a HUGE grin on her face!!!
Second song
was an old one as well because the annoying three press people stayed until the
third one which was “our” song: CAN’T RESIST!! Brilliant song, absolutely in
love with it ever since
It was
hilarious that someone from Texas Crew told Security off for positioning
themselves in front of the stage. I think “giant headphone” - dude was pissed
off about it!
Sharleen
demanded lots of response from the crowd and my god she was really chatty!!!!
And good it
was bed time for the little ones because her language - very charming
as always!
Of course Micheal was a BIG or was it TINY target!! ;)
I don’t
really want to give it back as I would surely tell it the wrong way, but it was
very funny and he couldn’t talk himself out of it!
But as much
as I felt sorry after
Especially
when it came to the beautiful duet Sleep:
Paul Buchanan was not in
And as Sharleen was introducing him for us, one of Michael’s
comments were:
“Handsome my arse!!”
It was a
good laugh!
And Michael
looks very smart in glasses.
Tony did a
very wonderful job singing with
Sharleen. He has such a lovely voice and I did love
his work with The Smiles.
Though his voice was too quiet. They should write a real duet, with solos on
both parts, I think they would blend well with each other.
Don’t get
me wrong, the song Sleep is amazing and gives you shivers down your spine, it
is really beautiful.
Especially Sharleen’s vocal in the chorus, her
voice is so strong and yet so sensitive and she keeps it where it belongs! It
blew me away from the first time I was able to listen to the King Tut’s recording.
Biggest
shock until the first encore was Ally though: When and why did he switch to
wine? It just looked wrong and was very confusing! Massive relief when he came
back out with a bottle of beer ;)
I
personally think the best and most hilarious and the most touching bit by far
was another monologue by Sharleen. She told us about
an interview she did with a
I nearly peed my pants when she got all worked up and started
swearing and gesturing at the guys!!! Well except Michael and Tony, they both
agreed with her!
Of course
it was helpful that she spoke my mind (not so graphically in my head) and I
wholeheartedly agree. So did part of the audience and oh well the other part
didn’t and they were told off for it!! After all it is in the name!!!!
But it also shows/proves my personal feeling that they as a band seem so
much closer and more involved with their fans this time around and interested
in what we are thinking even if it is something like this.
Though it
was a major major issue!
And this
all because of a passionate and lovingly dedicated vision called
TEXASINDEMAND.COM.
Thank you, Dirkie, you
rock and I hope
this pleases you as much as it makes us feel special being a part of it.
And of
course thank you
Before this gets too soppy, back to the music.
Although in the beginning Sleep was my favourite of the two ballads, in
the past weeks Nevermind really became something very
personal, as it happens very often with
The whole setting, the lightning, the atmosphere with Eddie and Sharleen on keys and piano.
And
everyone of the band being so much into the song, it was just beautiful and the
song really is so intense and takes your breath away.
As I can’t
remember the set list, I will just say that old classics like Halo and Black
Eyed Boy were
played as well as Summer Son of course and In Demand or When We Are Together!
One thing
that is disappointing is that the activeness of the crowd during jumping and
wavy songs has become less and less. This does not mean that they did not enjoy
themselves!! The crowd was loud and very appreciative!!! Especially during
encores! Wooing and clapping and hollering and screaming!!!! It was deafening
he he!
Maybe is
not IN to jump and wave? Or maybe the crowd is getting too old ;)
It was also
great that for those who did not want to know most of the songs in advance
before the album was actually released, there were no new surprises. As far as
I know they only played those new tracks that were already known and
“available”. Though originally Get Down Tonight was in
the set but it has been taken out after
What was
very surprising but of course superb was
little
extensions of songs, as their set was not so tightly linked to the lightning.
For at least two times
Ally and
Tony kept playing their guitars freely, which
gave it a
bit of an acoustic flair!
If I
remember correctly there were the two classic encores.
Despite Sharleen promising us to go on all night and then
disappearing in the end!!
The noise
we made during the wait for them to come back was almost bringing the house
down, especially in the first row as we started banging against the barriers and
trampling on them!!!
I think it
must’ve been a great feeling for them behind the stage!!!
And they
bloody well deserved it; they gave us an amazing concert!!
The new
stuff does sound awesome and fantastic!!! And they are in top form all of them
and it adds immensely to everyone’s enjoyment to see them this happy on
stage!!!!
The final
song is still Say What You Want and it is still brilliant! And always gets the
crowd going!!!
When they
came back out, toys were chucked on stage….and Sharleen
was being a bit of a Diva, telling Ally off for touching her toys, when all he
did was sitting a tiny purple teddy bear on one of the guitar stands!!!
Though not
all toys are chucked on stage for Sharleen!Highly
amusing though, especially since one of the toys was a pink ape with DIVA
written on its belly!!
I think the
gig stopped at shortly before
I picked up
a few guitar picks, though not entirely sure who they belong to, still a
mystery unsolved! We were not given set lists this time.
Some went
for the merchandise to check it out. But this time I was so dehydrated I needed
at least some air, if I wasn’t getting anything to drink!!
Due to
being sick I sweated like a waterfall sort of….
The only
shop open was a Fish & Chips and it was cramped.
As Alison,
Terri and I had to drive back to
I was so
tired, thirsty and exhausted I hardly said Goodbye to everyone, which I’m
really sorry for.
It was
awesome meeting everyone again and especially Itzik, Mats and Janey!!
On the way
back we needed about 40 minutes to find a Petrol Station to buy drinks…..we all
thought we were to dry out!!!
Alison was
our DJ and played us Sheryl Crow on the way back.
I didn’t
have to stay at that youth hostel as it was quite early – around
Although
she had been asleep already, she was sweet enough to listen to me and she
wanted to see the pictures. I was deeply touched as that is very rare among my
friends who don’t get my
But Claudi’s interest was honest and she was deeply impressed
by Texas and how they treat their fans and how down to earth they are and she
was amazed about how deeply we Texans all care for each other and how equally
important it is for us to meet at those gigs compared to seeing Texas Live!!
I can
assure you it added to my happiness after this exciting day/night!!!!!!
I tried
staying awake to write this review…..obviously I failed as I only manage to
finish it today (
I want to
close this with a final picture:
And Marty
is still her friend……
© Jennakinstxs 29Oct05
photographs
by Jennakinstxs and Itzik