Not A Cracker
01/10/17 10:04
Man, what a concert. When we bought tickets to go see Graham Nash in concert at the Portsmouth Music Hall a few months ago in anticipation of the concert last evening I wasn't sure what to expect. I think I was hoping that I might recognize a few of the songs and that with any luck he might play a few from his days with Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. I was a little less concerned that Nancy may find the whole Graham Nash thing to be a bridge too far. I agreed to go see Chris Issak in this same theater back in July because she wanted to see him and when it came time for me to select a performer to see I pulled a proverbial rabbit out of the hat and said that I might like to see Graham Nash.
To say we were surprised at the performance we went to last night would be an understatement. Graham was on stage with a fellow performer who seemed to be more of a backup guitar player and someone who pitched in on an occasional harmony than anything else but he was astoundingly good and seemingly a perfect choice for the small venue. Nash looked every bit the aging rocker standing on stage rail thin and sporting a thick shock of white hair which only added to his mystique as a legendary and iconic band member of the historic group, CSNY. His light tenor voice gave no indication, not even once in the entire performance, that his 75 years was as issue or a distraction as he played various instruments and sang songs like Immigrant Man, Teach Your Children, Our House, OHIO, and he even performed Bus Stop from his days with the Hollies. There was no question that the voice we heard last night was the very same voice symbolic as it was of the great band, CSNY. Just magical!
He introduced certain songs with a discernible English accent and told stories of his days with David Crosby (stood with Crosby on his 75 foot yacht off the coast of Costa Rica watching 125 ft blue whales swimming off the bow), Joni Mitchell (she's getting better and better every day), and even referred to the genius of Stephen Sills relative to his song writing. He recounted a time in the 60's in England when he hired a Rolls Royce and a driver to take him to Stonehendge where he dropped acid and tripped over the head stone of soldier buried back in 1917 (his birthdate and that of the soldier were the same.) As it turned out, there were very few if any of songs during the performance that I hadn't heard before. Another thing that I didn't know but realized as I listened to this man speak is that he was and is still is a prolific songwriter. I whispered to Nancy at one point during the evening that this was the closest we would ever come to hearing a live performance of one of my favorite bands, CSNY.
I would hasten to add that he was a hard core Bernie Sanders supporter during the 2016 presidential campaign and with a social consciousness steeped in the tumultuous times during the 60's it came as no surprise to me that he would make occasional comments on the current political landscape. Of course, you can't go there without commenting on Trump and he went there willingly and at times with malice. There was additional garbage about wars, endless wars, etc but he didn't seem to connect a lot of dots other than to suggest that we all had a part to play or something to that effect. He even referred to items for sale in the foyer of the Music Hall which bore the trademark "Ivanka Trump" but were otherwise made in China. I was grateful that he didn't take a bended knee in solidarity with the clowns in the NFL. The thought occurred to me that he could have easily gone there without too much goading. I think it was all in good fun and at no time did I feel the impulse or need to leave the theater. Given the political leanings of the Portsmouth population in general, I think his taking a stand for Trump might have resulted in a few departures. Nonetheless, he received several standing ovations in the closing minutes with each one more energetic than the last. Yes, except for the fact that Nash is married to a woman half his age which Nancy was more than happy to bring to my attention, she enjoyed herself immensely. It was a good if not grand night.
To say we were surprised at the performance we went to last night would be an understatement. Graham was on stage with a fellow performer who seemed to be more of a backup guitar player and someone who pitched in on an occasional harmony than anything else but he was astoundingly good and seemingly a perfect choice for the small venue. Nash looked every bit the aging rocker standing on stage rail thin and sporting a thick shock of white hair which only added to his mystique as a legendary and iconic band member of the historic group, CSNY. His light tenor voice gave no indication, not even once in the entire performance, that his 75 years was as issue or a distraction as he played various instruments and sang songs like Immigrant Man, Teach Your Children, Our House, OHIO, and he even performed Bus Stop from his days with the Hollies. There was no question that the voice we heard last night was the very same voice symbolic as it was of the great band, CSNY. Just magical!
He introduced certain songs with a discernible English accent and told stories of his days with David Crosby (stood with Crosby on his 75 foot yacht off the coast of Costa Rica watching 125 ft blue whales swimming off the bow), Joni Mitchell (she's getting better and better every day), and even referred to the genius of Stephen Sills relative to his song writing. He recounted a time in the 60's in England when he hired a Rolls Royce and a driver to take him to Stonehendge where he dropped acid and tripped over the head stone of soldier buried back in 1917 (his birthdate and that of the soldier were the same.) As it turned out, there were very few if any of songs during the performance that I hadn't heard before. Another thing that I didn't know but realized as I listened to this man speak is that he was and is still is a prolific songwriter. I whispered to Nancy at one point during the evening that this was the closest we would ever come to hearing a live performance of one of my favorite bands, CSNY.
I would hasten to add that he was a hard core Bernie Sanders supporter during the 2016 presidential campaign and with a social consciousness steeped in the tumultuous times during the 60's it came as no surprise to me that he would make occasional comments on the current political landscape. Of course, you can't go there without commenting on Trump and he went there willingly and at times with malice. There was additional garbage about wars, endless wars, etc but he didn't seem to connect a lot of dots other than to suggest that we all had a part to play or something to that effect. He even referred to items for sale in the foyer of the Music Hall which bore the trademark "Ivanka Trump" but were otherwise made in China. I was grateful that he didn't take a bended knee in solidarity with the clowns in the NFL. The thought occurred to me that he could have easily gone there without too much goading. I think it was all in good fun and at no time did I feel the impulse or need to leave the theater. Given the political leanings of the Portsmouth population in general, I think his taking a stand for Trump might have resulted in a few departures. Nonetheless, he received several standing ovations in the closing minutes with each one more energetic than the last. Yes, except for the fact that Nash is married to a woman half his age which Nancy was more than happy to bring to my attention, she enjoyed herself immensely. It was a good if not grand night.