Concerts #249 & 730 - P.F. Sloan at various venues (2001 & 2014)

This post covers the following two concerts:

• P.F. Sloan at McCabe's Guitar Shop - May 12, 2001
• P.F. Sloan at the Coffee Gallery Backstage - November 22, 2014

Both events were quite special, as they gave me the opportunity to be under the same roof with one of my all-time favorite musicians - not only that I absolutely adore his compositions, but I'm a huge fan of his singing as well. 

Last night's proceedings kicked off with writer S.E Feinberg, whose ten-minute-long introduction included the playing of P.F. Sloan's first hit, "Kick That Little Foot, Sally Ann", recorded in 1964 by a singer named Round Robin. No, the original singer did not show up - Mr. Feinberg played the song directly off of his Apple laptop, by holding it up against his microphone. By the way, S.E. Feinberg is P.F. Sloan's co-writer on Phil's newly-released memoirs titled "What's Exactly The Matter With Me".

Taking the stage to a rousing reception, P.F. Sloan started out with "Whatever God Wants" and "This Love", two outstanding songs from "My Beethoven", his brand new album.

P.F. Sloan at the Coffee Gallery Backstage

What followed was a veritable smorgasbord of great songs, interspersed with equally great stories that involved some of P.F. Sloan's contemporaries, such as Bob Dylan, Fred Neil, Donovan, Barry McGuire, the Mamas & the Papas, Lou Adler, the Grass Roots, Jim Webb, Van Morrison and others. 

The Set List 

Whatever God Wants

This Love

What's Exactly The Matter With Me

The Sins Of The Family

Take Me For What I'm Worth

I Can't Help But Wonder, Elizabeth

Eve Of Destruction

Let's Live For Today

Where Were You When I Needed You

Hold On

A Must To Avoid

(Here They Come) From All Over The World

Tell 'em I'm Surfin'

California Dreamin'

Upon A Painted Ocean

New Design

From A Distance

My Baby Left Me

Secret Agent Man (encore)

Somewhat surprisingly, Phil's set included two numbers he did not write, namely "California Dreamin'" and "My Baby Left Me", the song made famous by Elvis Presley. And speaking of "California Dreamin'": Phil shared with us that, even though the song's lyrics were penned by Michelle Phillips, the full writing credits went to hubby John Phillips, with Michelle's consent, in an attempt to market him as the "next John Lennon".

P.F. Sloan delivering "Secret Agent Man"

During the intermission, I had the distinct honor and pleasure of conversing with the master for a couple of minutes. Barry McGuire's name came up and, referring to his strong belief in Christianity, I told Phil that Barry could have written a Christian song by simply changing the name of his best-known hit into "The Destruction Of Eve". Phil saw the humor in this word-play, laughed and then autographed my newly-purchased book.

P.F. Sloan's autograph

Phil went on singing and telling stories for almost two full hours and I loved every minute of it. A well-deserved standing ovation kept Phil on the stage for one final number, "Secret Agent Man", which got everyone standing up yet once again.

Phil's singing voice sounded pretty much like on his more recent studio recordings. Throughout the show, he accompanied himself on an acoustic guitar. The whole event felt more like a gathering of friends taking place in someone's living room. There were only three songs I did not know, and one of them, "New Design", was among the highlights of the evening. There were no musical guests and no opening act.

P.F. Sloan at the Coffee Gallery Backstage

P.F. Sloan at the Coffee Gallery Backstage

S.E. Feinberg at the Coffee Gallery Backstage

P.F. Sloan interview after the concert

P.F. Sloan chatting with a fan at the Coffee Gallery

The Coffee Gallery stage

A few words about P.F. Sloan's appearance at McCabe's in 2001. The place was only half full, which surprised me very much. Phil took the stage and announced that the first half of the show would consist of nothing but new material, with the hit songs scheduled to come later, after the intermission. Initially, I wasn't thrilled with the idea of having to sit through a bunch of new songs, but - as it turned out - my fears were totally unfounded. Phil's new music, while having little in common with his hit songs, still sounded great to these ears.

As promised, the second part of the show brought us many of his well-known hits, as well as an unannounced guest, Creed Bratton of the Grass Roots fame. It was also goose-bumps time: Phil's delivery of his always-relevant gem, "Eve Of Destruction", was one of the most emotional moments I have ever experienced during a live concert. Phil closed his set with "Secret Agent Man", a song that, as he told us, brought him more pride than any other of his songs.

Tom Freund was the opening act.

Concert #593 - Willie Nile at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 21, 2011)

Willie Nile's small body is no indication as to how huge he is as a performer. Why isn't he better known than he actually is? That's just another unexplained mystery of the Universe. Actually Willie did talk about fame and the benefits of not having achieved it, but also mentioned, in good humor, of course, that he could use the money that often accompanies fame.

This was my third time to see him in three years and I thought he was better than ever. Wearing his usual all-black clothes and armed with an acoustic guitar, Willie put on yet another blistering show that was exceptionally well-received by the sell-out crowd. I was amazed by his intensity and the incredible amount of energy that he exuded throughout the concert. His new songs were all catchy and instantly likeable, not unlike his earlier work.

Twice during the show, Willie sat down at the piano to play slower songs, namely "Streets Of New York" and "Love Is A Train", but his "rock & roll attitude" kept coming even while his guitar wasn't in use.

PARTIAL SET LIST

"Seeds Of A Revolution"

"House Of A Thousand Guitars"

"I Wanna Be Sedated"

"People Who Died"

"The Innocent Ones"

"One Guitar"

"Rich And Broken"

"Streets Of New York"

"Love Is A Train"

"Cell Phones Ringing (In The Pockets Of The Dead)"

"On The Road To Calvary"

"Les Champs Elysees"

Willie brought along drummer and backup vocalist Frankie Lee, his longtime sidekick, who did a great job from his low-profile spot right in the corner of the stage.

Just like in 2009, Creed Bratton, of the Grass Roots and The Office fame, popped up for a couple of songs and he was definitely a welcome addition to the show.

Without a doubt, this was one of the best shows I have ever seen at McCabe's

Willie Nile and fans, before the door opened

The McCabe's crowd, minutes before the lights went down

Concert Director Lincoln Myerson addressing the crowd

L to R: Creed Bratton, Willie Nile

Willie Nile chatting with fans after the show

Some of the folks I dragged with me to McCabe's

The evening kicked off with an opening act of some renown: Peter Lewis of Moby Grape, the internationally known American rock band. Peter came out with three other musicians, among them Willie Aron, a very good guitar player I had seen a few times before. Peter's performance was passable at best.

Peter Lewis' set list

Concerts #473, 519 - Willie Nile at McCabe's Guitar Shop (June 28, 2008 - September 12, 2009)

Willie Nile is yet another huge favorite of mine who, as far as I was concerned, came out of nowhere. It was Lincoln, the Concert Director at McCabe's, who suggested that I catch Willie's show, his first ever at McCabe's, so I did.

With his passionate singing, countless songs of superior quality and rock star moves, Willie blew me away. Although short of stature, he radiated power, energy and confidence, but then off-stage, after the show, he appeared to be just a regular guy, happy to chat with his fans.

His 2008 and 2009 shows were somewhat similar, and I don't mean it in a negative way - both shows were great. Drummer Frankie Lee and guest Creed Bratton, of the Grass Roots and The Office fame, provided able support on both occasions.

Creed Bratton

Naturally, the June 2008 gig focused primarily on Willie's then-current album, "Streets Of New York". My favorites were "Cell Phones Ringing (In The Pockets Of The Dead)" and "The Day I Saw Bo Diddley In Washington Square". His rousing rendition of "I Wanna Sedated", one of the signature songs of the Ramones, brought the house down. After the show, I had the chance to shake hands with Willie and tell him how much I enjoyed his show. He then autographed the live CD I bought right there.

CD autographed by Willie Nile

In September 2009, Willie played most of the songs from his outstanding just-released album "House Of A Thousand Guitars", but sadly skipped "Now That The War Is Over", arguably the best song of the album. But he did play most of my other favorites, "Magdalena", "The Midnight Rose", "House Of A Thousand Guitars" and "Give Me Tomorrow". There were also a few new numbers, among them "One Guitar" and "Innocent One". Just like in 2008, Willie played a few songs while accompanying himself on the piano.

Willie Nile at McCabe's (September 2009)

I went to the show with my friends Michael, Nicole, Sabine and her boyfriend, who all had a fabulous time.

Willie Nile autographing for Michael and Sabine

Concert #559 - Creed Bratton at McCabe's Guitar Shop (May 23, 2010)

I first became aware of Creed Bratton in 2001, when he was one of P.F. Sloan's special guests at McCabe's Guitar Shop. Creed's association with P.F. dates back to the days when Creed played guitar for the Grass Roots, a band whose repertoire included quite a few songs written by P.F. Sloan.

But Creed Bratton wasn't the only reason why I drove out to McCabe's - I also happened to know that guitarist extraordinaire Val McCallum was going to play with Creed. Moreover, I was also hoping that P.F. Sloan would return the favor and join Creed on stage for a song or two. Well, that didn't happen, but I still got to see P.F. Sloan - he arrived early, when McCabe's was still closed, so he stood in line, like everyone else, until they started letting people in.

A few weeks before the show I started looking for Creed's music on YouTube and that is how I found "Rubber Tree", Creed's excellent single from his just-released CD:

I sat in the front row, together with my friend Steve. The concert was decent, not earth-shattering, but definitely worth the drive (102 miles round trip). Creed played many good songs, all written by himself, but none were quite as good as "Rubber Tree". Unfortunately, his set did not include a single Grass Roots song, which is hard to fathom.

The stage, just before show time

P.F. Sloan (right), before the show

P.F. Sloan (with shoulder bag), after the show