From the Sky Down

Last summer I had the opportunity to see U2 in Baltimore, MD.  Without sounding cliche, U2 is by far my favorite band.  My brother, Scotty, introduced me to them when I was a young teen.  For 20 years, I have dreamed of being front row at a U2 show.  In June, that dream came true as I found myself standing basically front row within 10 feet of The Edge.  It is a night I won't soon forget.
   

   

So it was with great anticipation that I awaited the release of From the Sky Down - a documentary of a tumultuous time in U2's past as they struggled to come to terms with who they were and who they would become.  At that time, U2 had just come off a wildly successful tour of The Joshua Tree, however the band felt as they had lost their identity. At the end of the last concert of the tour, Bono said ( and I am paraphrasing here) "We need to go away and dream it up again".  Fans feared this was the inevitable, somewhat cliche breakup.   The film is about the making of the album Achtung Baby in Berlin and focuses on the walls the band put up as the Berlin wall came down.   


So the documentary was made quite accidently.  Apparently, U2 likes to have cameras rolling during all of their recording sessions.  Once they told a camera man, "It's the times you think you don't need to be filming, that you need to be". And now, twenty years later as the bad revisits the album in same recording studio in Berlin, we see the band raw and naked.  The band, on the verge of collapse, tackled long recording sessions. As each dealt with intensely personal issues (including The Edge's failed marriage), they attempted to create an album and avoid implosion.  What I found most interesting was the way they wrote together.  Chords and melodies were created as Bono improvised, often, with the most nonsensical lyrics.  The songs were just kind of came to be after being nurtured over a period of time. Bono equated it with trying to "build a house from the sky down".  And then came that pivotal moment - One was born.  It came from the second bridge from the original inception of Mysterious Ways.  And that- that was the moment the band was waiting for during all that time. The band would not break up  - they would tear down their walls, put away their artistic differences and make perhaps one of the  greatest albums in musical history.  Also examined is the creation of Bono's alterego "The Fly".  He described it as the armor he donned as he revealed part of his soul.


The film also offers The Edge singing an acoustic version of Love is Blindness and Bono solo on a particularly poignant version of So Cruel.   

Twenty year and I am now all grown up and appreciate U2 more than I did as a teen.  There music is simply thoughtful, intelligent, and poetic. For the U2 fan,  this film is a must see, must have, must watch. I remember my love of Rattle and Hum so many years ago.  I watched it so many times that I wore the VHS tape out.  And now, I anticipate watching From the Sky Down just as much.  It seem U2  is all grown up as well.

The Road Goes On and On (Toby Keith Sucks)

So as the story goes, Toby Keith ripped off Robert Earl Keen and The Road Goes on Forever.  REK could have sued Toby for plagiarism.  He could have bashed him in the media.  He could have made Toby pay.  But as it would happen, REK just wrote a song about Toby.  That's just how he rolls. Or at least that's how the rumor goes...

"Yeah, you're a regular jack in the box
In your clown suit and your goldilocks
All duded up in your cowboy crocs singing the same old song
How in the hell do you think you'll make it
When the real test comes and you just can't fake it"

                -The Road Goes On and On"   Robert Earl Keen


As you can imagine, I was extremely excited to see the legend in person at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh, NC.  Even if it meant getting into bed very late on a Sunday night/Monday morning and going to work the next day.  (You'll learn that I value sleep among anything else).  Jay and I drove 1.5 hours to Raleigh and arrived about an hour before the doors opened.  We opted to quickly get something to eat at a BBQ place named Dickey's and enjoy a beer before the show.  Texas Brisket at that! I highly recommend this place if you are near the Lincoln Theatre.  But since this is not a food blog, I'll move on.


The opener was a band named The Deep Dark Woods from Saskatchewan, Canada (yea I had to google the correct spelling of that one).  Close your eyes.  What do you see when you think of the deep dark woods?  Do you see tall dark pines, thinly veiled in a blanket of fog, with hushed whispers coming from the dark corners of the forest?  Do you think of towering mountains and the people who live within them? Folk? Bluegrass, tales of days gone by? These guys have a charming geekiness about them and definite unique style.  Technically classified, I guess, as indie folk music, they are a little edgier than that.    Together, they create warm harmonies with sometimes dark lyrics that envelope you and pull you into the deep dark woods- a place that can be somewhat deceiving.  We learned they are playing Merlefest in April and I think they will fit in with the hippy, folksy atmosphere there.  Hopefully, I'll get to see more of these guys then.

The Deep Dark Woods

After a quick stage change, REK came on and immediately walked up to the microphone.  "I'm sorry I'm late folks".  A quick look at my phone (who owns a watch these days?) and I observed that it was about 9:10.   I was puzzled, because after all who REALLY starts on time.  Well, apparently, REK starts on time.  But, this time as he explained he got caught up watching, the Liam Neeson movie Taken  and couldn't tear himself away.   Also, apparently, some cowboys don't wear boots.  Nope, apparently they wear blue and orange running shoes.  Or perhaps, having lost track of time he looked at the clock and said "Oh s#*t!  I'm late" and he ran out with his sneakers on. 

Forgot my Boots

REK played most of the songs one would expect with a couple of new ones sprinkled in.  What impressed me the most was how he acknowledged his band immediately giving props to his guitarist saying he was one of the most talented musicians he knew.  REK, though, has the innate ability to tell stories with each of his song.  He spins tells that somehow you KNOW they really happened to him.  His dislike for the CURRENT country music scene is apparent however.  And no more apparent is his disdain  for Toby Keith in the song The Road Goes On and On...I kept waiting for my opportunity to yell, "Toby Keith Sucks" but the crowd was too loud and he immediately launched into The Road Goes on Forever...

He did play one song that touched me to the core was "Lay Down my Brother" off of Ready for Confetti. It is a haunting ballad seeming calling out to someone to rest.  "Lay down my brother, take it easy take it slow.  Lay down my brother rest awhile, let it go".  It seemingly urges us to slow, take it in and appreciate life - for life is too short to worry about the petty stuff.  Having only heard this once, and not having the lyrics, this is only my initial take away. 

Having never been to an REK show I wasn't sure what to expect. He was like that uncle at Thanksgiving dinner, the one that didn't give a crap and would fart, cuss and essentially do what ever the heck he wanted.   Well, that was Robert Earl Keen.  He is a Texas Troubadour who lacks nothing in the ability to tell a story or a Texas Aggie joke. His music takes you back (even if you've never been) to a dusty, roadhouse where the smell of beer permeates the air.  Your are proud to be Texan even if you aren't Texan!

Walking away from this show, I developed an even deeper appreciation for singer/songwriters.  They are not going to sell out large stadiums or appeal to the masses.  But the sincerity of their music and dedication to their fans is unsurpassed.