The Dave Davies Band ~ 2001 July 31 (Tuesday) ~ World Trade Center ~ New York, NY
Band Personnel: Dave Davies, lead vocals, lead guitar; Jim Laspesa, drums and backing vocals; David Jenkins, bass and backing vocals; Kristian Hoffman, keyboards; Jonathan Lea, guitar, harmonica
Set List
Till the End of the Day - I Need You - Susannah's Still Alive - Creeping Jean - Gallon of Gas/You're Looking Fine - Tired of Waiting - See My Friends - Living a Lie - Picture Book - Death of a Clown - This Man He Weeps Tonight - Young & Innocent Days - Fortis Green - No More Mysteries - Living on a Thin Line - All Day & All of the Night - I'm Not Like Everybody Else - Father Christmas
Concert Review
After an off-day Monday, the Dave tour resumed with an unusual noontime show at the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan. We stayed at a nice (thank you for the) Days Inn just west of the Tappan Zee Bridge and took the Metro North train in from Tarrytown, so we wouldn't have to deal with parking in Manhattan. The venue is a big outdoor stage with a canopy, so the band is in the shade, tucked in right next to the twin skyscrapers.
I kept going into the World Trade Center mall building and getting lost in there and taking the exit out onto the wrong street. Had the same problem with the New Jersey Turnpike repeatedly during the tour, too.
Before the show the fans were in the direct sun, but fortunately shade from one of the towers crept over us by the time the show started. There were several hundred chairs arranged in front of the stage, and by showtime they were all filled and several hundred more people were standing around the perimeter. This is probably the biggest crowd Dave has played to as a solo act. They were a great crowd, too. Many were there just for a free concert, but hey, how many free concerts are this good? There was one concertgoer who asked me several times for the names of songs and what album they were on, as if he was planning on going right out and buying them when the show was over!
There were rumors that Dave would do two 40-minute sets (apparently the usual format for these free lunchtime shows), but somebody with sense prevailed and Dave did a normal 90-minute show. It was a surprisingly good show -- I sort of expected Dave to not be really into it, but he was! He joked with the crowd that he's usually "asleep at this hour" (which I doubt is actually true).
He tried to introduce "Picture Book" as a song from Village Green Preservation Society, but somehow got tangled up on the name of the album. He also introduced Jim Laspesa as his bass player, then made this face and said to Jim: "Sorry! I've only known you for seven years." (Jim DOES play bass, but with a different band in L.A.) Changed a lyric in "This Man He Weeps Tonight" to "the lighting's not so dim" (instead of the "lighting here is dim"). Skipped "True Phenomenon" (good choice for this crowd) but included both new songs, the unrecorded rocker "Living a Lie" and the quiet number from Fragile, "No More Mysteries." Both new songs were well received. The sound was good, except that Jim's vocals weren't loud enough, so I couldn't really hear his exquisite harmony singing on "Young and Innocent Days."
None of us could have known that a few short weeks after this joyful and carefree performance the twin towers were going to be destroyed and many innocent lives lost.
More Dave
Here is a page with a handy list of links to all pages on this website with content relating to Dave Davies and other members of The Kinks.