The long anticipated concert in the Point by Dave Matthews Band was well worth the wait. They played a two and a half hour set to a packed house last Wednesday night.
The gig kicked off around 7pm with Delorentos, the support act, playing about a forty-five minute set. The Dave Matthews Band started at 8pm with the now common initial song “Don’t Drink the Water”. It’s a great crowd pleaser, and it immediately got the crowd going. There wasn’t the same conversation as at Dave’s previous acoustic gig in the National Stadium, so the two and a half hours were filled with music and the odd thank you!
During the second or third song, an Irish flag with “DMB” written across it made its way up onto the stage. Dave held this up on stage for all to see, and thanked the crowd for it! I’m not sure, but I think this may have come from the large Ballinasloe contingent present!
It seems my family may have a knack for predicting unsuspected guests, with my sister wondering aloud on the way in if Rashawn Ross, the incredibly talented trumpet player, would show up. (They also predicted the arrival of Tim Reynolds at the acoustic gig in February!). And sure enough, when the band made their way out on stage, he was there beside LeRoi! He stayed and played for the entire concert (well, except for the couple of solo songs Dave did). At one point, he had a trumpet in either hand and was swapping between them during a chorus. We were also treated to some solo tennis between himself and LeRoi at the end of “Jimi Thing”, which was followed by a violin solo, a keyboard solo and even a guitar solo by Dave himself! Unfortunately, the only time Carter got a drum solo chance was the transition between “So Much to Say” and “Too Much”. As a drummer myself, I really would’ve liked to have seen and heard something akin to the ending of “Crush” from “The Central Park Concert”.
Dave did a couple of solo numbers during the gig. Before starting into “Sister”, which we also heard at the acoustic concert, he told us that it hasn’t been released, but should be available on the internet and to get it there. This isn’t the usual line from artists, but in his own words – “I’ve already been paid”!! I haven’t managed to find a copy of it yet, but will continue looking!!
The set list was packed out with many other great tunes, like “Dancing Nancies”, “Grey Street” and “What Would You Say”. The encore kicked off with “Gravedigger”, the second solo number by Dave and ended with “Ants Marching”. At the end of both the main set and the encore Carter gave away his sticks. After the encore he even threw extra sticks out into the crowd, landing one up on the balcony!
The overall consensus was that it was a brilliant concert and a great night. I’m delighted it went so well, and I hope it’ll prompt a few more Irish gigs from Dave and the band!
