Monday night on Halloween eve’s eve, Seattle’s Triple Door hosted the illustrious and legendary Robyn Hitchcock. Although Hitchcock was posted as the headliner, this really was a stellar line-up of bands, all of whom are legendary in their own right (such as the Young Fresh Fellows, who are local legends).
Peter Buck (of REM fame for those of you living in a cave the last 30 years) opened the whole performance with his new band, which includes YFF members Kurt Bloch and Scott McCaughey on guitars and harmony). Bill Rieflin rounded out the line-up on drums.
Buck played music ranging from very bluesy to poppy (“Gotta Get Out of the House”) and even some songs that were reminiscent of the mid sixties Rolling Stones’ songs. Seeing Peter Buck and his band open the evening was a pleasant surprise and judging by the reaction of the audience, I wasn’t alone in this sentiment.
The Young Fresh Fellows followed and this time McCaughey was sporting a Giants shawl and baseball cap that covered his wild but thinning hair. The inevitable class clown, Tad Hutchison took over on drums, although at one point, Reiflin came back and played on another kit and the audience was subjected to three guitars and two drummers battling it out with their sticks with zany energy.
Other highlights from the Fellows’ included a cover of “Georgie Girl,” and a classic YFF song, “Hank, Karen & Elvis” (one of my favorites). I suppose it was just as well they didn’t perform “Rock n Roll Pest Control.” There is no dance floor at the Triple Door and that song is impossible not to dance to.
After the Fellas left the stage, it wasn’t long before the legend himself, Robyn Hitchcock, came on stage, playing harmonica and guitar. When he spoke to the audience, he stated that, “if Peter Buck was the hors d’oeuvres and the Young Fresh Fellows were the main course, then I guess I’m the pudding.”
Early in the show came the pleasant surprise of Hitchcock beckoning Sean Nelson (of Harvey Danger fame) onto the stage to do harmony. Then after a few more songs, Bill Reiflin returns to shake a rattle in time to Hitchcock’s singing and Nelson’s harmonies. Hitchcock then quipped that the three of them are now on the same astrological scale as the Beatles with Reiflin as Lennon, Sean as McCartney, and himself as George Harrison from England. Shortly after this, Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck came on stage and Reiflin once again took over on drums (no mention on whether or not he became Ringo at that point) for “Chinese Bones.”
After a few more songs, Kurt Bloch joined the fray and Tad Hutchison took the drums and suddenly Jimmy Sangster was on stage with them making the stage a Seattle all-star happening.
For the finale, Hitchcock sang “Viva Sea Tac.” I remember the first time I saw him perform that song. I think it was mid nineties and at the Crocodile. Great song with quirky lyrics like “The Space Needle points to the sky. The Space Needle’s such a nice guy.” Who else would dare refer to the Space Needle as such a nice guy? This gives anyone who is unfamiliar with Robyn Hitchcock a sampling of what he’s like. His quirky songs and equally quirky stories describing each song, give him an almost child-like quality.
Although the whole entourage returned for an encore, it was only one song and the show was over. Pity too. I could have stayed and listened all night. It’s been three or four years since Robyn Hitchcock played in Seattle and I hope it isn’t as long a wait before he plays here again.
Incidentally, Hitchcock has two new songs out with videos. One, “There Goes The Ice” was written after he was taken on a tour to view the melting arctic ice cap. “Twitch 4 Sam Surfer” is the other one and I strongly urge you to check them out at http://www.robynhitchcock.com/category/news/
All photos property of Holly Homan, all rights reserved.
