My Shining Hour (and a half) with Grant-Lee Phillips

[Note: I started this post on 5/1, just a couple of hours after the show. But I didn't want to post it until I had some time to devote to it.]


Go buy yourself every piece of recording by Grant-Lee Phillips. Now.

Back in the 1990s, I wanted to emulate musicians and rock stars. Eddie Vedder for his anger. Kurt Cobain for a scream that defies his body. Henry Rollins for his intensity. Ian MacKaye for saying what he means. Ani Difranco for all of the above. Plus, they all have killer wardrobes.

But ever since I listened to Grant Lee Buffalo's Fuzzy in 1993, I've wanted to be Grant-Lee Phillips.

Why? To put it simply: because he's so fucking cool.

To tell you the truth, I bought Fuzzy without actually previewing the CD first. There was a lot of talk about it in small music fanzines and bigger mags like Spin. I'd heard it was one of the best things in alt.country, which at the time I was only beginning to get familiar with. Of course, there are different styles of music that fall under that category. But the ones I liked the most were the ones that had an edgier sound -- punk, garage, with a loving touch of folk and country. Bands like Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, and The Jayhawks. There are many, many more. And I thought Grant Lee Buffalo would be the same.

I was right. And wrong.

Fuzzy is in part the same as all of those bands, yet so much more. So much more original and artistic. Yes, even more so than anything that I've heard from Wilco. It's an album with influences that go back to the early and mid part of the 20th century. And perhaps even before that. The instruments -- involving guitar, bass, drums, and Hammond organ -- invoke country and Americana of years gone by, with hints of Jazz, Folk, and Vaudeville with distortion. At times, Phillips's guitar is smoothly strummed like what you'd hear on open mic night at the coffee house. Then at other times he steps on the pedals and the guitar sounds as loud as any Sonic Youth album, but with solos that are as masterful as any rock guitar god out there. Also, the album features a distinctive piano style, like what you'd hear in an Old West saloon. Their other albums, Mighty Joe Moon, Copperopolis, and Jubilee, in succession, got poppier as the band matured. But they all had that trademark GLB sound.

What held GLB and everything that Phillips has done since the band's demise (somewhere between 1999-2001), is Phillips's songwriting. He pens such beautiful music, that sometimes I feel like I'm in a different time. And his lyrics lends to that, often making references to small town struggles, the conquering of the west, the loving tribute to Native American history (I believe he's part Creek). And to top it all off, Grant-Lee's voice is perfect for his music -- low and smooth like Neil Diamond, yet much clearer and powerful. And a falsetto comparable to Chris Isaak. All that and he sings with a southern twang that doesn't seem to identify with any one area in the South (which is kind of odd, since I don't think he's lived anywhere but California). Along with the GLB albums, Phillips's solo efforts (with the exception of the experimental Mobilize) have the same feel. I like to think of it like going on a drive with Mark Twain -- classic and never boring.

Now, for all the devotion I have to Grant-Lee Phillips, I've been to only two of his concerts. Before GLB broke up, I had ample opportunities to see them live, but I kept finding ways to do something else. One year, I went to see Luscious Jackson at the old RKCNDY on the same night GLB played at the Crocodile. It turned out okay for me anyway, because that night I got to dance onstage with the girls from Luscious Jackson. And I got to see then up-and-coming Ben Harper and The Presidents of the United States of America open the show. (Pause to reminisce on that awesome night. Ahhhh. Anyway...)

Years ago, I saw Grant Lee Buffalo at the Showbox, but I had mixed feelings due to a short set and my view from the crowd (I'm short and I usually have someone over 6'3" in front of me). But Grant-Lee's solo performance last Friday (4/30) at The Hideaway, formerly The Sit n' Spin (it doubled as a laundromat), was 100 times better. Not only was I up front for the show, the music was excellent, and I had the pleasure of watching the inimitable Mr. Phillips do his thing. There were a couple of surprises for me that night. First, it was the size of the venue and the crowd. It was very small, considering how much press his new album, Virginia Creeper, is getting. The album is so rich and refined, yet catchy, it's getting some airplay on the mainstream adult contemporary stations. With that listener base, you'd think they'd be clamoring for Phillips to play at Benaroya Hall. Lucky for me, he didn't get booked for a place anywhere near that big. For me, it doesn't matter the artist, the smaller the venue, the better. Anyway, as for the crowd, it too, was surprisingly small. The Hideaway can hold about 300 or so people comfortably, but I found that even at right in front, there was a lot of room to move.

The second surprise was that Phillips played as many GLB tunes as his solo ones. Along with songs from the new album (Lily A Passion is the best one on it), he dragged out some GLB oldie but goodies like Truly, Truly, Mighty Joe Moon, Honey Don't Think (my all time favorite of theirs), Jupiter and Teardrop, The Hook, Stars n' Stripes, and finishing with Shining Hour. One song in particular, Bethlehem Steel, which is dark and sexy (yeah, I'm man enough to admit it) on the CD, sounded even more amazing live, even if there were no keyboards that night. He even covered Lucinda William's Drunken Angel. Most concerts, even ones that I'd looked forward to, come to a point when you think to yourself, "yeah, it's time to wrap it up now". That didn't happen tonight. I didn't want it to end. Unlike the show I saw at the Showbox, this show lasted over an hour and a half. And I loved every minute of it.

Grant-Lee Phillips is a sight to behold in concert. He's a ball of energy while he plays -- Elvis-like -- doing his rock star thing when he solos (yes, he does the kneel down thing). He practically swallows the mic. He's also a fire hydrant of spit and sweat, something that anyone standing two or three deep in the crowd can tell you. He's hyper and talkative, and very friendly with his fans. He and I shook hands and even had a brief conversation about the water he was drinking during one of the breaks between songs (that's another thing I do. I try, annoying or not, to talk to the musicians).

When the show ended, the backup singer, Cindy, came over to me on her way to the bar to say hello. She was very nice. I told her they had a great set and that they should play more Lucinda. She thanked me for coming, and she thought the crowd energy was incredible (I think I had something to do with that, since I was up front. Uh huh. ;) ). Then I made small talk with the drummer and bassist. I hung around and waited for Grant-Lee to come out to the bar area to talk with him, but he never showed up. Before I left, I could see him hanging out in the dressing room. He had company, so I didn't bother him. That doesn't normally stop me, so I don't know why I didn't go say hello.

It would have been the topper to the best show I've seen so far this year. I just finished my Gin & Tonic and moved on.