Slambovian Circus of Dreams ~ 2016 October 8 ~ Wachusett Music Series ~ Sterling, MA
Band Personnel: Joziah Longo, lead vocals, guitar, harmonica; Sharkey McEwen, guitar, mandolin, vocals; Tink Lloyd, accordion, cello, tambourine, cowbell, theremin, flute, recorder, backing vocals; Felipe Torres, drums, percussion.
Set List
Grand Slambovians - Lost Highway - Pushing Up Daisies - Baby Jane - Very Unusual Head - Step Outta Time - Folsom Prison Pinball / I Wish - Flapjacks From the Sky - Very Happy Now / Epistle to Dippy / I Wanna Be Sedated ... intermission ... Stephen Hawking (Force Of Nature) - Fumes - Solve It All Daily - Great Unravel - Moondog House - Talkin' to the Buddha - Within You Without You / Trans-Slambovian BiPolar Express ... encore ... Long & Winding Road {very short snip} - Golden Slumbers intro / The Invisible
Video
Scroll past the videos for review of the show
Great Unravel
with the local high school horn section
Within You Without You / Trans-Slambovian BiPolar Express
Review
The Slambovians put on a fantastic show at this out-of-the-way church hall venue to a good number of members of the Slambovian Tribe as well as a good selection of new folks. Joziah always asks the new people to raise their hands after the first song so he can see how many have never seen the band before. Tonight he had to ask for the house lights so that he could see them.
The band revived a few older songs they haven't been playing lately: the wonderful "Baby Jane" (dedicated to the invincible spirit of women), the always crowd-pleasing "Talkin' to the Buddha," and the lovely sissy song "Fumes." A new song was played in its entirety for the first time: "Stephen Hawking (Force Of Nature)," on which Tink played the theremin. A brass section comprised of three local high school musicians (Mitchell, David, and Ryan) joined the Slambovians on two songs, "Very Unusual Head" and "The Great Unravel." They played superbly and added a beautiful extra dimension to these two Slambovian classics.
The band were about to play "BiPolar Express" but first they played a minute or so of the mystical Beatles number "Within You Without You." I had the good luck to video this song so please do check out the videos (scroll up). George Harrison's commentary on the love that connects people and the spaces that separate people was a perfect lead-in to Joziah's commentary on how the force of love erases fear and carries people to a new place of joy. I hope they continue using George's song as a lead-in to "BiPolar." It was an exciting moment in the show.
New drummer Felipe Torres continues to impress with not just his style and skill but the range of instruments he uses. Tonight he played an Egyptian hand drum called a tablah on one song. I recently watched his DVD, Drummer, That's My Day Job, and found it very entertaining and interesting.
The Circus continued their Off The Beaten Track Tour at this lovely church hall venue. The Wachusett Music Series is hosted by the First Church of Sterling. The folks in charge kindly let us wait inside the lobby of the building as the band were finishing their soundcheck. The mothers of the three boys who were playing with the band anxiously flitted in and out with food for their teenage sons. The venue had long tables facing the stage and inexpensive coffee, soft drinks, and yummy baked goods for sale. There is an excellent Mexican restaurant right across the street where Concert Going Partner and I celebrated his birthday before the show.
More Slambovians
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