Tuesday gig?

Have at it, all. Video of "The Saturday Gigs" from ofitato via YouTube.

Saturday video: The Moon Upstairs

An early sound glitch, but still OK. Song was the best in the set IMO.

"I swear to you, before we're through you're gonna feel our every blow. We ain't bleeding you, we're feeding you, but you're too f***ing slow."

Thursday's show

MOTT THE HOOPLE SETLIST

Jupiter
Hymn for the Dudes
Rock N Roll Queen
Sweet Jane
One of the Boys
Sucker
The Moon Upstairs





Acoustic portion
The Original Mixed Up Kid
I Wish I Was Your Mother

Ready for Love
Born Late '58
Ballad of Mott the Hoople
Sweet Angeline
Walkin with a Mountain/Jumpin Jack Flash
Like a Rolling Stone
The Journey
Golden Age of Rock N Roll
Honaloochie Boogie
All the Way from Memphis

Encore I (with Buffin)
Roll Away the Stone
All the Young Dudes
Keep a Knockin

Encore II
The Saturday Gigs

They played for a little over two hours. Buffin came out only for the three songs on the first encore. They had a second drum kit set up for him. He needed assistance. It was moving to see Martin Chambers help Buffin onto the drum chair and off, and lead applause for him. Buffin did bang away on his kit and kept a rhythm, but someone was crouched behind him in case of accident. It still was good to see him. Wonder if he'll come out tonight?

They had a chorus line of five backing vocalists on some songs. They were Ian's kids Jesse and Tracey, Mick Ralphs' son (is it Stan?), Stan Tippins with cowboy hat, and a woman I did not know. A sixth choruser joined them on ATYD -- Joe Elliott. He also came to the front and sang a verse (yeah, I know -- Joe Elliott got stage time and Morgan and Ariel didn't). Joe wore a T-shirt with the name of MMA fighter Randy Couture.

Mick had a goldish, spotted jacket, which he soon took off and went with a white shirt and black pants, Ian the same topped by a black jacket. Verden had a maroon T-shirt. He's rail-thin. Pete had on a multi-colored sweater that made him look like he was off to ski the Alps after these shows, and with all the money they're making, he could. The only concession to glam of anyone was Pete wearing white shoes.

The front line, Mick, Ian and Pete, looked really relaxed and into it. They clearly were enjoying it. Mick and Pete came to the edge of the stage several times. Pete came all the way across the stage once. I did not really see Verden interacting with the others, but I was on the other side of the stage. They lined up Mick left, Ian center, then Pete and Verden with Martin in back. Ian had keys all the way to the left and played them on maybe four songs.




The band smoked on the rockers, I mean smoked. The Moon Upstairs was off-the-hook good and a highlight for me as I'd never heard it live before. If you'd closed your eyes you'd never guess these were performers aged 65 and up. Angeline and Memphis were also highlights for me, though I hear them all the time with Ian's band. Mick's solo on Honaloochie Boogie was amazing -- made the song a lot different from the novelty song Ian has made it out to be in recent years. It was great.

They came forward on stools for a two-song acoustic set with Martin on bongos.

Finish of The Saturday Gigs saw Mick, Ian, Pete and Verden come to the front and lead the fans in singing "Goodbye, goodbye!" a capella, and they walked off with this as the backdrop. They teased another song but this was it.

Everyone I talked to was really satisfied, and overall so was I. You can go on about setlists, but I'd really rather hear "No Wheels to Ride" than "Sweet Jane," NWTR being a group composition that would bolster the representation of the earlier albums.



Oh I got a drumstick -- off the floor after it had struck my seatmate Platform Boots in the face. Yes, I offered it to him -- twice! But he was kind enough to let me bring it back to the U.S. Thanks Toni! Martin had broken it at the end of The Moon Upstairs and I guess heaved it. Martin should be an Olympic javelin-tosser.

Day 12: Watt of Whats?

"He didn't see me coming but he surely saw me running, faster than the U.S. mail." -- Born Late '58 (1974)

Or maybe it should be "What of Watts?"

With the Buffin issue sorted out this week, the biggest remaining mystery of the MTH reunion is the status of bass player Pete Overend Watts, who has had nothing to say publicly. He was the only band member who didn't appear at the MOJO awards, and the only one not interviewed for the (London) Guardian's recent piece.

I'm not speculating Watts won't play. It's clear to me he really is involved, despite his elusiveness. But fans must be wondering what the guy even looks like, as all the others have been seen in recent weeks. Here's a person last widely seen standing on foot-high platforms with silver car paint coloring his hair. Whatever Watts 2009 looks like, it will be a shock. I wish I could be at Monmouth to see.

I always thought Watts was second only to Ian Hunter as the visual symbol of MTH. He adopted the glam look -- "tarted up," as Hunter says -- more easily than any of them. I also thought he was the one most screwed over by the 1974 split, as he had apparently turned down a spot in Bad Company out of loyalty to MTH only to be left with nothing. And remember, it was Watts who made the overture to David Bowie that led to "All the Young Dudes" and the very survival of MTH beyond Brain Capers.

His post-MTH endeavors are generally known. He ran an antique shop where his MTH stage gear was on display. He became an endurance walker, so we shouldn't worry about his stamina or leg strength for these shows. Now Watts returns to us with his own theme song, courtesy of the U.S. band Mambo Sons. As a songwriter we know so well once wrote, "Overend's just a rock 'n' roll star."

So here's looking forward to our reunion with Lord Watts, and here's hoping there's a place for "Born Late '58" on the Hammersmith set. It will be good to see him, and hear him.

Day 18: Countdown No. 2, The Hoople (1974)

"Hear me swear, hear every word. I ain't just a number, I wanna be heard." -- Crash Street Kidds (1974)

I always considered this possibly the most theatric album of the early 1970s. It has such a showy feel to it, from the MC's introduction of the first track, through the operatic "Marionette" and the barroom sounds at the opening of "Pearl N Roy," and ending with the chat sequence and soaring guitars on "Roll Away the Stone."

I think it is underappreciated by fans who missed the old, raw MTH and also by fans who missed Mick Ralphs.

I understand the shortcomings. It's dominated by Ian Hunter's songwriting, with the only exception being the rush-job "Born Late '58" (which I love regardless). There is little guitar presence, with keyboards dominating. It's poppy. The one track that hearkens back to vintage MTH, "Crash Street Kidds," is somehow wimpy, with an out-of-place musical interlude at its core and poor effects on the machine gun fusillade that ends the track.

But it has so many guilty pleasures. "Pearl N Roy" is such a fun song, with great political lyrics. "Alice" is a neglected gem, one I know I'll never hear live because there's no way Ian Hunter will remember all the words. "Through the Looking Glass" -- my interpretation of it -- is inspirational, with its message to not fear looking at oneself. I was outraged when the profanity-laced out-take of this song was included in the MTH retrospective collection of the 1990s. Why spoil a beautiful track? It irritated the band as well.

And this is before you consider the masterpieces -- "Golden Age," "Marionette" and "Roll Away the Stone."

It's an unloved stepchild among many fans, but this is the only MTH alnum on which I love every track.

SONG RATINGS (OUT OF 5)

The Golden Age of Rock N Roll (5)
Marionette (5)
Alice (4.5)
Crash Street Kidds (3.5)
Born Late '58 (4)
Trudi's Song (3)
Pearl N Roy (England) (5)
Through the Looking Glass (4)
Roll Away the Stone (5)