[Slowhand] R: Slowhand Digest, Vol 11, Issue 161

[liabar at tin.it]

Dear Slowhanders,
It is Sunday moring, and am still in London after 
the concert in HYDE PARK of yesterday evening.
It was a great event .
a 
vast sea of people in front and behind me. I am Italian but didn't have 
time to get a sun tan yet.
well I got it yesterday!! Such a wonderful 
weather that made everything finer.

I let other better euipped fellow 
slowhanders write a detailed report on each song we heard.
I would like 
to share with you just a couple of general notes "a caldo"  which 
means  straight out after the experience"
I was stricken both by Robert 
Randolph's and j. Mayer's performances
After a local band, without 
annoucement therecame R.R with a series of notes as if he were saying  
"Hey, Wathc out, I am Here , Listen to me.
The audience rose up highly 
especially after  some notes of Jimi Hedrix's (Purple Haze?)
I was 
disappointed with the young peple who stood in front  of me talking 
aloud when Mayer's performance went on
I  tried to shut them up, as I 
really thought they were missing something important and intense. He 
was playing so well as he is keen on reaching higher tops, a very 
ambitious musician I would say....

meanwhile S Crow was doing her 
number the area filled even more and I felt great expectatiopn in the 
air..
One thing I am sure of  99% of them were there for Eric only, and 
sometimes we read of an artist in decay ..... yes
Yesterday I have 
realized the affection British people have for Eric..... warm sincere 
affection.

it is a little sad that a great lot of the outskirts of  
the  audience  were just keeping on stuffing themselves with japanese 
spaghetti or hot dogs and drinking their souls away with beer or 
spirits.....and talking  very loudly .......
I don't want to sound a 
puritan, but when we have these great musicians on stage, our 
concentration should be on what we hear not on our belly's needs...
I 
told myself I haven't got up at 3  a.m. and made my way up to London to 
just see people getting drunk

So I said to myself, I have to push my 
way ahead towards the stage as I am sure people there will be 
different....
and I was totally right...
I found myself surrounded by  
all ages that jumped at the rythm sang waved their hands ..
my biggest 
surprise was to find out hearing  italian exclamation of approval  that 
I was also surrounded by  several Italians who, like me, thanks to the 
low cost companies, had been able afford a trip to London just to hear 
eric playing .....
I really haven't realized the big following Eric has 
also in my country where you can hardly hear him on the radio or even 
more rarely seeing Eric on a TV show.

the last two hours with Eric 
passed in a blow, when I heard Layla's introductory notes I felt 
NOOOOOO
It can't be true he already on his closing set of songs.
I 
enjoyed two songs that I have never heard before  probably the 5th 
song  and one in the acoustic set (a kind of ld time jazz song)  that 
were great
I am sure Eric's long time followers will tell you the 
titles of.
but when I hear i new piece from him , it is always a 
pleasant discovery that soothes my very soul......
How much I love the 
guy...
we were transported onto another planet, another level of 
music.....
still if my perception wasn't wrong, Eric let Doyle shine as 
he was not  in one of  those magic evenings when at a certain point he 
takes his glasses of and takes off over the rainbow .
his 
solos or 
phrasing between other band member' s numbers or improvisations were 
not many or not particularly long, even if they were masterpieces but I 
believe he was only 9o  per cent in it.....(and this is not a critic it 
is just I am demanding from him superhuman performances all the time)
I 
am not a particular lover of Doyle's  kind of playing but yesterday i 
revaluated him a lot.
Probably he was the best on stage
Still I am 
happy with the event even at 90 % Eric is a galassia away from 
others.......

this badly written but totally sincere review is 
dedicated to Bluesgirl whom I wished  could have joined me .

Eric's 
addicted
lia