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With Special Guests Center Street Band And Eclectic Nobodies |
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Hartford, CT 11/14/97 |
| I'm driving through the ice and snow of the first winter weather in Connecticut,
wondering what the hell I'm doing. I'm going to see "Blue Oyster Cult."
About fifteen years ago I'd have thought nothing of driving through a blizzard
to see this band. For those unfamiliar with "Blue Oyster Cult,"
they're one of the mega bands of the late seventies, early eighties. Back
then, they could fill any arena. They were hot, with hits like "(Don't
Fear) the Reaper," "In Thee," and "Burning for You."
Tonight their at Toad's Place. It's a large bar, but nowhere near the size
of the arenas they used to fill. "Blue Oyster Cult's" career illustrates
the saying, "Be careful what you wish for." When they were big,
they complained of being unable to play small venues like Toad's. They'd
use they're old name, "Soft White Underbelly," just to get the
chance. It gave them a measure of anonymity. At the time, only hard core
B. O. C. fans knew that name. I was one of them. I'm late from the snow and my debate whether or not to drive in it, so I miss most the first opening act, "Center Street Band." They're playing a blues number as I enter. They're pretty good. The band has keyboard, bass, guitar, and drums, along with a lead singer doesn't play an instrument. The crowd seems to like them all right, but they're really calm, just sucking their brews and hanging out. "Center Street" finishes the blues number, then rock into "We Gotta Get Outta This Place," the old sixties tune, and their set ends at 10:30. A black light illuminates the crowd as one band breaks down their equipment and the second band, "Eclectic Nobodies," sets up. Everyone wearing white shimmers with a ghostly purple glow. "Eclectic Nobodies" is made up of guitar, bass, rhythm guitar and drums. They take a few minutes to get started as they wait for one of the band members to get on stage. Finally he arrives, and they dive into an original tune I'm guessing is called "Good Enough." It's a pretty safe guess. Their music is uncomplicated, straight-up rock, reminding me a bit of "The Goo Goo Dolls." The second song melts into the first as it begins. At the end of the song, the lead singer urges the crowd to buy T- shirts, CD's and band related items, because he's broke. They start playing "Void," and the drummer is really whaling on this song. The floor beneath my feet is vibrating unbelievably. He's really good. The lead singer introduces each song, engaging the crowd as he does, as they play their original songs "The King," "Sick," "Utopia" and "Circling the Planets." By now people are starting to yell, "B. O. C." They want "Eclectic Nobodies" to make room for "Blue Oyster Cult." To their credit, the band finishes their set undaunted, with "Joke" and one other song. I look around as the stage is cleared. Videos from bands like "Deep Purple" and "Def Lepard" play on the projection screens. I think back to the first time I saw "Blue Oyster Cult" during their "Cultosaurus Erectus" tour. It seems a whole lifetime ago, and that's not far from true. I think I was still in High School. I share that with many who are here tonight. The crowd is mostly guys, many of them in their thirties and forties. It's 12:30 and the band still hasn't come on stage. Intermittent cries for "B. O. C." go out from different parts of the audience. Finally, at 12:30, the lights go down. |
| It's completely dark as funky guitar, drums and synthesizer begin to play. The lights come on abruptly and "Blue Oyster Cult" breaks into "Stairway to the Stars" from one of their early albums. One of the singers, Eric Bloom, wears a T-shirt that says "Sick of it all." I imagine he would be after all these years. They wrap up "Stairway," start playing another song, and the crowd is really into it. Bloom thanks the crowd for driving through the snow to see them. He comments on how full the room is despite the foul weather. I think the next song is, "E. T. I." |  |
| I'm feeling as though I walked into some sort of time warp listening
to all these songs after so many years. It brings me back to my first year
of college, a party and an unsupervised tape deck. The music had stopped
for a long time, and I popped a tape I'd compiled of old B. O. C. tunes
into the deck. This was back when disco still ruled, so it didn't take all
that long before I was asked to leave. Bloom moves from guitar to keyboards for their next song. He introduces the song "Wait for Me," which will be on their new album, but quickly changes his mind. He switches to "Harvest Moon," which will also be on the new album. It's a great song, like something off "Mirrors." As they sing, a pretty blonde girl in a tube top is hoisted on top of two guys' shoulders, bouncing to the music. She's really enjoying herself up there. Reaching for the tube top, she flashes the band, flipping it quickly on and off her breasts, then puts it back on and jumps down into the crowd. As he introduces "The Guitars that Destroyed the World," Bloom picks up his guitar again, and they launch into a guitar heavy instrumental. |
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The next song is "O. D.'d On Life Itself." There are a lot of hard core B. O. C. fans here tonight, and someone behind me yells for "The Last Days of May." The guy next to him high five's him and joins him in yelling out the name of the song. I remember "Then Came the Last Days of May" was a sure fire way of identifying a true B. O. C. fan. If you didn't know that song, you couldn't be much of a fan. It was one of my favorites too. |
| My favorite B. O. C. album has always been "Mirrors." It's the one that got me hooked on Blue Oyster Cult in high school. They break into "The Vigil" from that album, and it sounds fantastic. This band is still tight after all these years! I still remember all the words to this song, so I'm singing along a bit. When the song ends, I hope they'll do more from "Mirrors." |  |
| Bloom re-introduces "Wait for Me" from the new album, then B. O. C. jumps right into a song about "3,000 Guitars," an older song of theirs. As they play the opening chords to their next song, many people in the crowd begin to shout, because it's "Then Came the Last Days of May." It's one of their softer songs, but it has places where the music gets really loud. They're attacking their instruments through the loud section, and suddenly the noise abates as the song goes soft again. It sounds great! |
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| "In Thee" from "Mirrors" is next. They pull out acoustic guitars for this one, and it sounds a little thin, but their harmonies are still on target. They do sound good. I think of the snow outside as they sing, "Tonight it's hot/ Without you tomorrow'll be cold/ Winter will come along/ Driven by snow." As they begin "Burning for You," I feel a hand pushing at my back. I step aside, and the blonde with the tube top pushes by me, heading for yet another show. |
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The roar of the synthesizer foreshadows the coming of "Godzilla." The band goes into a bass solo followed by a drum solo. Finally, Buck Dharma does a guitar solo, and it's incredible. This guy can still put others to shame. "Godzilla" melts into the song we've all been waiting to hear "(Don't Fear) the Reaper," and sounds awesome! It's updated a bit, and I'm really enjoying it - so is everyone else. I'm singing along, and I'm not the only one as they finish out the song. |
| Thanking the crowd, they put their instruments down. It's around 1:30
and they've been playing for two hours straight without a break. They start
high- fiving people in the front of the audience and shaking hands. People
begin stamping their feet and synchronous clapping as soon as the band leaves
the stage. Cries for "B. O. C." ring out into the darkness. It
isn't long before they take the stage again. Eric Bloom says they have time
for a couple more. The encore begins with "Dominance and Submission." This is a great concert song, because Bloom shouts dominance and the other band members shout submission back and forth as they engage the audience in shouting the reply. They play one more song, then shake hands and high- five people in the front again. Blue Oyster Cult puts on a great show, and they're definitely a band worth seeing if you have the chance. The years have been kind to Blue Oyster Cult. Perhaps the world of rock and roll will be too and they'll have another hit record in their future. |
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