Sunday, September 15, 2013

Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite @ The Fillmore


This show ended up being redemption for me.  Many years ago I saw Ben Harper in Vegas and unbeknowst to me it was for some animal benefit.  We were herded (no pun intended) in the back of the Joint while tables at the front were served a meal as Harper tried to play.  The sound was atrocious, and the short set left me feeling severely disappointed.

Tonight couldn't be any more different.  What a great night!  An early Sunday night kick off (thanks from the old man who has to get up and look after the twins in the morning).  The band came out to rapturous applause which they seemed quite humbled by.  And from the first song, Get Up!, things were great.  While not a lot of sings were familiar to me (except the Innocent Criminals Homeless Child), Harper, Musselwhite & band played tight old school R&B.  I kinda thought Musselwhite's harmonica was a little limited, but his gravelly vocals really authenticated the blues sound.

Highlights for me were I'm In I'm Out & I'm Gone, I Ride At Dawn and Long Distance Call.  But the piece de resistance was the encore's final All That Matters Now where Harper sang acapella without a microphone.  The crowd was near silent (there's always some dickheads aren't there) and his voice boomed and then the crowd sang back.  Brilliant!

Just a question for some show goers - Why do you pay good money to see a great band and then spend the 2 hours talking about useless crap or reading your cell phone?  SHUT THE FUCK UP AND PAY ATTENTION!  Half a dozen times I had to move away from different people who had no interest in being there or were so busy watching the show through their phones  They completely missed the experience.

Harper stated a couple of times that they'd have to come back to Charlotte soon - I hope he meant it.

Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite Setlist The Fillmore, Charlotte, NC, USA 2013, Get Up!
 
The Crap Facts
This is my 363rd concert.
This is my 4th concert at The Fillmore.
This is my 14th concert in Charlotte.
This is my 15th concert in North Carolina.
This is my 171st concert in the USA.
Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite are the 433rd band I've seen.

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