SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Fall Nationals, Night 4 of 10, The Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto (December 11, 2005).
This series contains the final Rheostatics live shows that are left to write about. This was the 4th night of their 10 night Fall Nationals run at the Horseshoe–(All ages Sunday afternoon set). Ford Pier was on keyboards. And once again Dave’s daughter Cece sings a song.
Recording starts at the end of Home Again – not sure what was played prior. Given the length and set list they probably didn’t play much before “Home Again” but we only hear the end of it anyway.
All ages shows are typically shorter. But with having no beginning, this one is really short at just over an hour and a quarter.
“It’s Easy To Be With You” starts with an unexpected bluesy riff underneath the song before it starts properly. It’s followed by a nice “Loving Arms.”
Then you hear Cece ask, “Dad, is it my turn, yet?” “No.” “Awwwwww. How many more song?” “4 more.”
“Aliens (Christmas 1988)” (not kid friendly, actually). But mid-song Dave starts playing the “When Winter Comes” during the quiet part, but they never leave the song.
Then Dave says, “We have to do this next one because we’re playing it at guest vocalist night.” “Many words.” Martin: “Good luck, Timmy.” Mike counts out 7 but nobody follows through. Tim: “So far, not so good.” They make it through “The Woods Are Full Of Cuckoos” and Tim says, “I can’t believe all those words are in my head. It’s a weird feeling.” Dave: “Yea, you said you wouldn’t remember the second verse and you did.” Martin: “Here’s a request for “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” “Shhhhhhh” Tim: “Speaking of many words in your head.” Dave: “And that request will go unfulfilled.” Mike: “If anyone is going to make that request they have to make cue cards.” Dave says, “We did it well at The Boot.” Mike: “I had a fever, I can’t remember. 101 a rock n roll fever. Dave: “I think the rock n’ roll fever is 102. I’m just quoting Foreigner.” Mike: “It’s 103 with Foreigner. Check it and see / got a fever of 102? I don’t think so, Dave.” “103 that’s like malaria.”
We’re going to do a new song of Tim’s that we have been learning in advance of a record that we hope will some day get made. After we rest on our laurels for the next 8 months. Whatever laurels are. Tim: “they’re like chaise lounges?” Martin: “Or are they like haunches?”
Tim starts “Sunshine At Night” then stops. “Ford is building something back there. Ford: ” No I’ll catch up.” Dave: Ford is just finishing his Chinese food from last night.” Martin: “And building an amplifier.” Mike: “What can’t he do?”
After the sweet “Sunshine” they play a cool “Christopher.” The middle sections slows down quite a bit and then bursts forth loudly with the drums (I hope they had earplugs for the kids). It’s followed by a lovely “Little Bird, Little Bird.”
Then Dave lays out the schedule for the next few days:
A wonderful week planned:
Tuesday its free. That’s wonderful for you and… okay… for us.
Wednesday is the Whale Music album with many guests
Thursday is guest vocalist night with about 14 people singing–we give about 43 percent. That’s not free.
And then the weekend is the last two licks so we all go crazy. Paint our faces (not really).
And we have a hockey game on Thursday at 4 o’clock. 4 bucks to play. Sticks and skates. There’s a sign up card.
Then Cece asks, “Dad, is it my turn?” After a sweet “Making Progress” it is finally Cece’s turn.
She is quite excited and yells “Perfect!” right into the mic. She calls all the kids up on stage and then says you sing the song with me…that’d be even better. You hear someone says “I wanna sing in the microphone.” She says “After me!” And then she sings a great “Everyday People.” The whole song is fun. And at the end Dave says, “we gotta teach you to throw to the guitar solo.”
Dave starts “Bread, Meat, Peas and Rice” and then realizes, “Hey, the same chords as ‘Everyday People,’ only faster. At the end he notes, “Everybody has fun when the bongos come out and then half an hour later nobody’s having fun. It’s the overstay-its-welcome instrument.” Mike asks if they were expensive and Dave says they are the real things, I think they were like $150.
Martin says “next is a song about being lost in the wilderness. And it’s called “Personal Identification Number” for some reason. Dave asks if it was supposed to be a longer title and Martin says, “My publicist said the name was too long so I shortened it.” Then he says, “This is a tenor guitar. It’s got 4 strings.” He starts singing “my guts, my guts, my ooey gooey guts” which Mike picks up on and sing “The ones in the back and the ones in the front.”
Martin finishes with a really fast solo. He says, “that was very 2112. But small.” Dave: “like point 2112.” Mike: “It tastes like Rush but doesn’t get you drunk.”
They move on to “Four Little Songs.” Dave asks if Max is here, but he has left. When they get to the third section, Dave says it’s traditional for Ford or someone else to do that slot. But he wants to know if there’s anyone out there who has a song that must be sung? At the back of the room? It’s the wallflowers who have the most significant musical contribution.” Mike; “It’s a die Fledermaus moment.”
They call Max over, not sure who Max is or if he even comes, but they play a jam, with Dave saying “it’s Max, ‘it’s not Max.” When they get to the end Dave says, “Hold on, we need a new ending. We have three: By Mennen, the two yells, and the Yes!” Mike says “by Mennen is usually editorializing” and that he’s been with the band for almost five years and he;s never done “Yes!” So they demonstrate. Mike says, “this is like a DVD where you can choose the ending.” Dave says, the new ending is the discussion of the ending.
And then Ford suggests that the new ending could be “like a zinger on The Muppet Show (wah wah).” Cookie Monster ate all the cookies. Bert will you ever win?
Dave says, “A couple more songs.” Martin: “and then the clowns.”
So Dave tells a story “When I was in Moscow there as an Americana diner and there was a security guard who looked like Captain Kangaroo expect he carried a gun. Every Wednesday he was to dress like a clown. So they have clown security in the American diner which tells you everything you need to know about the coming together of the United States and Russia. Then Ford says, “And Australia…kangaroo.”
Dave: “Captain Kangaroo had never been within 15,000 miles of a kangaroo in his life.”
They play two final songs. Dave: “Remember kids, only steal a car if you really have to. And be careful when you invest in the Steinberger product, it’s hit and miss.”
They play a terrific “Stolen Car” and then surprisingly, given that this is an all-ages show, end with “Horses.” “Horses” opens with a very different intro than usual, it sounds pretty cool. The song rocks, but Dave doesn’t do any crazy ranting. At the end, Martin does the horse sound with his guitar and some one says “whoah woah, horsey.”
[READ: July 9, 2017] The Big Bad Fox
First Second continues to publish first class French graphic novels and children’s books (this one translated by Joe Johnson).
This is a children’s book, but it is quite long. It’s not hard to read by any means, but it’s a not a quicky 32 page picture book.
It’s possible that this was originally released as a series–there does seem to be a kind of punch line every few pages, but the story is consistent and quite funny (even if it’s not all that original). (more…)
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