John Prine - In Concert !!

Who : John Prine (opening act : Jason Wilber)

Where : Orpheum Theater (Phoenix, Arizona)

When : 10 November 2007

Rating : B

This is the fourth time I've seen John Prine. The first time I saw him, the Cowboy Junkies were the opening act; the next time he opened for Bonnie Raitt; and last time, Iris DiMent opened for him.

I've been a JP fan for almost 40 years. He writes catchy tunes, plays a mean acoustic (usually) guitar, and the only one who can touch him as a lyricist is Randy Newman.

- VENUE -

The Orpheum Theater is ancient by Arizona standards. That means it's been around for 80 years or so. About 5 years ago, they spent beaucoup d'argent to fix it up again, as part of a general revitalizing of downtown Phoenix. Inisde, it looks like one of those Viennese concert halls that you see in the movies.

There is adequate parking nearby. They skimped on the A/C. It verged on being too hot for me. That means everyone else was comfortable.

The place seats about 1300. Alas, there's only one concession stand for buying drinks at Intermission. We tried. So did everyone else. We failed. Venue Rating : C.

- PRICES -

Tickets were $55. That seems a bit steep, although it has to be said the place was sold out. As mentioned, we weren't able to buy any refreshments. Jason Wilber had his CD on sale somewhere in the lobby, so maybe JP did likewise. If he did, I didn't find it what with 1300 people milling around in the lobby, trying to buy a drink. Prices Rating : C.

- CROWD -

This ain't no Metal concert. Half the people were dressed like it was an opera. A few feeble attempts by folks in the audience to clap along with the songs flickered out quickly.

One strange sidelight. As we were making our way into the hall, I noticed the guy in front of us (dressed like he had just gotten off work as an electrician), had an unusual adornment. In his back pocket was a cheap, yellow, plastic fly-swatter. No, this wasn't a Reader's Digest-promised flashback. I pointed out to Liz, and she saw it also.

Then at Intermission, I saw another guy, in blue jeans, also with a cheap, yellow, plastic fly-swatter in his pocket. All I could think of was that there was going to be a Rocky Horror Picture Show-ish moment where knowing people in the audience broke out the props. Alas, that never happened. The fly-swatters-at-a-concert phenomenon will forever remain a mystery. Crowd Rating : D+.

- OPENING ACT -

Jason Wilber played 7 or 8 songs on an acoustic guitar. He also happens to play lead guitar for JP, and is quite good. He's been doing that for some 10 years, and he is nicely influenced by the John Prine wit.

Alas, people playing unaccompanied acoustic guitar are a dime-a-dozen. Haply, he didn't make us wait too long for John. Opening Act Rating : C.

- JOHN PRINE -

What can I say? I love the guy. He wasn't on tour promoting his latest album, so this allowed him to play all his "fan-favorites" from the past four decades. He picked 'em good.

There was no drummer. Just JP, JW, and a guy who provided rhythm via a bass fiddle. At times, all three would be playing guitars. This may sound like it's rather minimalist, but it works when all three are accomplished musicians.

One thing I've noticed at all four John Prine concerts. People in the audience always feel compelled to request their favorite JP songs by shouting out the titles in between songs. It is blatantly obvious that John Prine already has a set song-list and I've never seen him deviate from it. Get a clue, people!

John played about 1½ hours, so you got your money's worth. The band chemisty was good, considering that the audience verged on being comatose. JP is older than me, so he's nearing the end of a long concert career. It looks like he mostly just plays on weekends anymore. If you have the chance to see him in concert, do it! John Prine Rating : A-.