Even though I had just driven six hours and then raged four sets of music (I also went to the Doom Flamingo after party), I still sprang out of bed at seven in the morning, feeling refreshed and ready for night two. The next stop of the weekend was Raleigh, North Carolina which is only about two and a half hours from Charlotte. This night was my thirtieth show, so I needed to do something special.
I had been wanting to have a shirt made that says, “Simon and Garfunkel are poetry!” for quite some time. This quote is from my all-time favorite movie, “Almost Famous.” I would actually sell everything that I own to get one of those Umphrey’s posing as Still Water tee shirts. But since I can’t have one of those, I thought of the simple idea to have this quote pressed onto a t-shirt. It was just an idea for a long time, but Simon and Garfunkel had been mysteriously appearing in my life on various occasions. Paul Simon was going to be the musical guest on SNL the Saturday night of the Baltimore show of the run. With having a couple hours to kill in Raleigh and this idea in my head, I got into my car to leave Charlotte and plugged in “Custom t-shirt shop” into the GPS.
I got there, and it ended up being a college t shirt printing shop, but I went in with high hopes anyways. I saw a lady working and I said “Hi! I’m Leah, and I have sort of a weird request.” I told her what I wanted, nothing too fancy, plain and simple. She said that they usually don’t take orders that need to be done right away and on such short notice but since it was so simple she would do it. We sat down and made the design together. We picked out a plain black t shirt and she said that it would be about an hour. Lucky for me, my best friends favorite coffee shop was right down the street. The coffee shop is called “Cup A Joe” and if you ever have time to kill in Raleigh, I suggest getting yourself a cup a joe.
I came back into the shop and she had it made perfectly for me! I was so happy that I put it on right then and there. She said that I looked so happy in the shirt that she wanted to take a picture of me and post it on their social media page. I of course let her but only if she let the people know it was for Umphrey’s. She even gave me a discount on the shirt. I left the store beaming because step one of my plan had worked! Everything was falling into place which made me more excited for the show. The rest of my plan was to post up right in front of Bayliss, who I assumed to be the biggest Simon and Garfunkel fan of the band. I was hoping that he would read the shirt and then bust out “50 Ways to Leave your Lover” the next night in Baltimore. They haven’t played this Paul Simon song since 4/26/12, so it was a stretch of a request but if you don’t try, you’ll never know.
The show was at the Red Hat Amphitheater in downtown, Raleigh on 10/12/18. I got there early enough to get a good spot on the rail so Bayliss could read my shirt and so I could experience the show up close. I picked the spot right between Bayliss and Joel. The main reason I like to ride the rail is to use it as a piano, so I can play along with Joel, so I was in the perfect spot. It wasn’t long before the phreaks started trickling into the venue and the music began to start. Zach Deputy was opening the show. I’ve seen him many times and he has opened for Umprhey’s a couple times before. Most people there to see him play had never even heard of him before. But that didn’t keep them from dancing along with his groovy songs. He’s kind of like Keller Williams because he does his music alone by using looping equipment. But his sound completely different than Keller’s. Zach ended his set and the crowd was growing more and more anxious for the rock show we were about to receive. My pre-show jitters weren’t as high tonight because of the cooling vibes I got from the crowd and because of the venue. And before I could even think about anything that could go wrong, the boys started walking out on stage.
Even though they opened the show with “Rocktopus,” the first set had a mellow, feel-good kind of vibe to it. “Xmas during wartime” and “Example one” provided us with a melodic tone. Even the jam in “Mantis” was low-key and had a slower tempo. It was slow paced right up until they started to play “Got Your Milk (right here).” This was a pleasant surprise that I was not prepared for! Getting to cross this one off my wish list had me reeling. I would consider this song a rarity, considering that they only play it about twice a year. The last time this gem was played was back in March of this year. When they do play this song, they don’t usually jam on it so when it’s paired with a JO (jazz odyssey), you’re in for a thrilling ride. And as thrilling as it was, they still took a more mellow spin on this jam. You could tell that Bayliss was in tip-top shape in the guitar lines that he provided during the jam. Then Joel came in and made me feel like I was in space listening to his fingers attack the synth. This jam is for sure going on my votes for Hall of Fame 2018.
They closed out the first set with a killer “40’s theme.” This song is one of those that, no matter how much you hear it, it will never get old. And while they do keep it in rotation a lot, I will always welcome a 40’s with open arms. Ryan and Joel supplied a jazzy base to the jam which Jake and Bayliss played around with before Bayliss took his solo. Bayliss’ three-minute solo kept up the melodic aura of the first set. The bubbly undertone of Bayliss’ PRS helps him create a salivating sound when he solos and you just don’t want him to stop. His solos wail into your heart and make you feel warm in your belly.
The minute they started the second set, I could feel that “Nothing Too Fancy” coming our way. The N2F was beautiful. It made me feel like I as watching the stars in the night sky. Joel played the same notes but in different octaves which made his piano sound voluptuous. Almost like bells were ringing. Then the night got a little darker with “2x2.” The jam started out serene but turned into some funky darkness. “2x2” is one of my favorite um songs. They use it as a jam segue often and the jams that come out of it are always something to write home about. The darker vibes that were bouncing off yet another face melting Bayliss solo lead perfectly into “Young Lust.” This song also has a dirty bassline which followed the “2x2” very well. They play a lot of pink Floyd covers but young lust isn’t one that gets played too often. The transition from “Young Lust” back into N2F was flawless. They ended the show with fluid-like playing. They hit the notes beautifully and at the right moments. The “Ringo” was spacey but well put together. Jake was having a lot of fun, making all his classic Jaco faces.
I concluded the show to be a Bayliss and Joel setlist. Bayliss soloed his dick off and Joel had various solos and moments to shine. The ambience of the show was laid back. The song choices and the improve was low-key and slower paced, but still thrilling (an “FF” would’ve fit into this setlist perfectly). The improve that I had been hearing over the past couple of nights was exemplary. At that time, I wasn’t planning on doing the last night of the run in Port Chester, New York, but these past two shows were working towards changing my mind. Right after the show I had to head to Richmond, Virginia to stay with my friends for the night. They were joining me the next night on the tour in Baltimore, Maryland. Anytime I’m in the car, usually I listen to music. But after this show I sat in silence for almost half of the drive reflecting on the music that I just witnessed live. My mind was blown at various times during the night which caused my brain to go crazy thinking about it. Even after a two-and-a-half-hour drive north, I had trouble falling asleep. Maybe the real problem was that I was excited to go to tomorrow’s show with my best friends.
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