The Del Amitri Concert, August 15/16, 1997
by Kristine Munholland

Greetings Dels' fans!! Having had the opportunity to see their recent shows in Chicago and Milwaukee, wanted to let those of you awaiting their upcoming shows know you are not likely to be disappointed. Our favorite Scotsmen (and now one Englishman, with the addition of Mark Price on drums) are in FINE form on this first leg of the SOSP tour and one would expect they will only continue to improve (i.e. don't miss them when they come your way!). But enough preliminary ramblings...onto the details of the shows.

The first night in Chicago was at a large, two-story club called The Riviera (max capacity about 2,300). As I am not from Chicago (residing in the much smaller environs of Madison, Wisconsin), it was my first exposure to this apparently well-loved Del Amitri haunt. The facility is an impressively restored, old movie theater with purple and gold-gilded ceilings and walls. The first floor seats have been removed providing much standing room, while the balcony's seats remain in tact for those preferring a more relaxed vantage point for the show (although it is still unclear to me how anyone manages to stay seated thru a Dels' set!). I don't know exactly how large the audience was, but judging from how cramped we were standing up front, the Dels' Midwest loyalists had turned out in ample numbers.

Needless to say, there was much energy and excitement as we awaited the show. Our excitement was slightly hampered, however, as we endured Jackopierce's opening set. This is not to suggest they are a bad band, just not a very exciting one. Their songs all sounded pretty similar and a number of us frequently checked our watches in the hopes that it would soon be time for their last song. They did have fans in the audience, however, all of whom appeared to be young college students (this was an all ages show),and one of whom in particular who felt the need to repeatedly trash the Dels, asserting rather loudly that, "Any one here to see Del Amitri should be shot", and "Del Amitri sucks", on several occasions. Of course, being the altruistic and wise souls that Dels' fans are known to be, we simply ignored her and kept our focus on the impending arrival of the Dels.

Finally, a little after 9,and following the taped introductory message previously referred to at this site that says something about"the best night of Del Amitri's life",the boys took the stage for a rousing performance of "Some Other Sucker's Parade". Although this is not one of my favorite tracks on the new album, it does come off well live. They rapidly went into "Just Like A Man", followed by "Always the Last to Know". The crowd was CLEARLY into the show from the outset and Justin wasted no time in letting us know how much they enjoy playing Chicago. Although his exact choice of words prevent me from providing a verbatim account, he said something to the effect of "You guys are f---ing great! We love playing here" and then, as a humorous afterthought, added, "But that doesn't mean we won't try our very best anyway".

From there, I am uncertain of the exact set order (as I always am too into enjoying the show to follow exactly what songs come in what sequence), but what I do remember included: "Not Where It's At", which was simply introduced as the first single; "Here and Now", which got a phenomenal reaction from the crowd, replete with the audience singing measure-for- measure especially on the "Hey!" verses; "Paper Thin", a beautiful, softer, bluesy number with a killer beat and 2 harmonica solos from Iain, which (in my opinion) nicely highlighted the Dels' range of expression and abilities; "Roll To Me" (of course), which Justin intro'd by letting us know Kris was playing for the first time on a 12-string (and to his credit played quite well); "Hatful of Rain", always a welcome inclusion; "Move Away Jimmy Blue"; "What I Think She Sees", intro'd as the next single and performed with a yellow and green backlighting that, combined with the swirling stage smoke, made for an impressive visual effect; "This Side Of The Morning", which we were told had not yet been played on this tour and that if any mistakes were made, would therefore be the fault of Kris and/or Mark; "Start With Me", perhaps the highest energy song in the set; and a regular set ending of "Stone Cold Sober". Encores followed of "Medicine", previewed by the first verse of "Opposite View" which Justin broke off after singing "you say you just got paid, money's not for wasting it's for holding onto" instead of "I want to stay in and get wet with you", though it was hard to tell whether this was an accidental or intentional "mistake"; "Be My Downfall/Drowned on Dry Land", highlighted by Andy not missing a note on the accordion as Justin attempted (playfully of course) to back him off the stage during his solo and culminating with an overwhelmingly outgoing "Wow" from Andy into the mike which broke up the crowd and the whole band as well; "Kiss This Thing Goodbye"; "Driving With the Brakes On"; and a final, frenetic and climactic closing of "Being Somebody Else", which Justin indicated they don't always play but love to when they're in Chicago.

Although I for one would have listened to many more songs and wished a few less prominent, newer songs might have been included (e.g. Sleep Instead of Teardrops, Lucky Guy) the intensity of the show was extremely high throughout and very satisfying. Iain and Kris often played off one another while Justin spun about(the large size of the stage well-accomodated their frequent position changes), and the guys were actually thoroughly drenched about 4 songs into the show, so much so that Justin seemed to have some trouble keeping his fingers dry enough to place them where he wanted. Somewhere towards the end of the show, Justin again proclaimed their love of Chicago, stating "We want to take all of you home and sleep with each and everyone of you...we've got REALLY large beds and coolers full of LOTS of beer", to which the crowd enthusiastically responded. All in all, it was a top-notch show, if perhaps a bit tighter in terms of interaction with the crowd in between songs than usual, but I heard several people comment that it may have been the best Dels' performance they'd seen. The after-show stuff also did not disappoint (does it ever?), and it was truly a pleasure to get to know Kris and Mark a bit, as well as a number of the instrument techs - I'm starting to think being a genuinely nice person must be a prerequisite for becoming affiliated with this band in any capacity.

The next night, on very little sleep and even less food, it was off to Shank Hall in Milwaukee. A considerably smaller venue (max capacity 300), I was hopeful that the show would provide a bit more interaction with the audience while maintaining the same level of vocal and musical quality. The night started off on a better note than in Chicago, as Jackopierce was replaced by a local band, The Yell Leaders (a 3-man, 2-woman band who are friends of Justin, according to Quinner) whose performance style and energy seemed much more well-suited to a Dels' opening act. Although I'd not heard of them previously, they apparently have some national notoriety, as the lead singer indicated they've been asked to contribute to a Bruce Springsteen tribute album. Anyway, they definitely set a better stage for the Dels and were well-received by the audience.

A bit after 11, Quinner stepped on stage and said something along the lines of "Bringing you the good sounds, the bad sounds, and sometimes just THE sounds...Del Amitri!", quickly followed by Justin welcoming us with "Hello all you beautiful people" as they began "Some Other Sucker's Parade". The show followed much the same set list as the night prior with some exceptions - at some point, we heard the first verse of a Beatles' song whose title I don't know but that starts out "I once had a girl, or should I say, she once had me", which was sung until the line "... and noticed there wasn't a chair", after which Justin announced those were the only words he knew [ed note: the song is "Norweigan Wood"]; and the encore of"Be My Downfall" was mixed with the first verse of "It's Never Too Late To Be Alone" instead of "Drowned on Dry Land". "Driving" was absent, as was "Being Somebody Else".

As I'd hoped, the show had a greater degree of audience interaction and an overall more relaxed feel. For example, during the second chorus of "Always the Last to Know", when he should have been singing "..if he's pleaded with you like I pleaded with you if you go..." but instead sang for the second time "if he's treating you the way I treated you or if he's cruel", Justin made a face of self-disgust, but at the end of the song said something like "I'm sorry about screwing up the words back there, but you can't imagine some of the things you think about when you're up here in the middle of a song and then you just forget what the hell you're doing. So I was up here thinking about the fact that Christmas is usually at my Mum's house, but this year, because I've got so many nieces and nephews, it's at my sister's, and I'm supposed to make something for it, and I have absolutely no idea what to make, and I was thinking about that, so there you have it". The audience was extremely receptive to his humor and this type of levity dominated the show, as evidenced by: Quinner and some of the crew (and possibly Mike Gomoll?) dancing enthusiastically at the side of the stage during "Here and Now", prompting broad smiles from Justin and Kris; Justin responding to an audience comment about his new haircut with "You know why I did it? To make it shorter", and informing us that the absence of longer locks was now causing his sweat to run down his face and into his nose which was rather annoying to him, since having longer hair had enabled it to just "sluiced" (his word, not mine) off down his back, for which he sought confirmation from the sole remaining long- tressed band member, Iain; Justin telling one audience member that he was very disappointed to see he'd purchased one of their new tour shirts, as such purchases "put money in the hands of our alcoholic crew members who rush to the nearest pharmacy for hordes of drugs which will only damage their seminal vessicles"; and Iain and Kris barely making it back on stage and smiling broadly while sharing the mike for the harmonies to "Downfall". Clearly, the night was one of good spirits which always, in my opinion, adds to their performance. The show wrapped up a bit after 1 a.m., leaving the guys with a 2,000 mile sojourn to the West ahead of them. As a somewhat interesting aside, I noticed that Sammy Llanas of the BoDeans, perhaps Wisconsin's favorite musical sons, had been among the audience members. Thought it was kind of cool that he'd come to check out the Dels.

Anyway, the weekend and the shows were absolutely a delight. The guys are sounding as good as ever, and Mark and Kris have quite readily and adeptly stepped in for Ashley and Jon. While the pressure on the band to achieve platinum- or gold-selling status appears to be ever-increasing, it seems the Dels have not buckled under the weight of such reponsibility but rather simply continue to be one of the best and most enjoyable live popular bands around, all the while remaining always pleasant and gracious when interacting with their fans. Can we ask for anything more?