of my 16 times seeing the Moodies this was far and away the best! some think the band may've been holding back a little, but given the enhanced state of the audience, that was probably best ;)
the thing about it *is* that George is literally surrounded by hundreds of miles of wilderness. it is a complete break from the strange times we live in ;) the amphitheatre descends one side of the glacially carved Columbia River channel and is seperated by a steep draw from the on-site camping area. we pulled into parking-lot camping area and set up our tent. people bbq, have a few drinks, and by the time the music starts are UP for it!
for those of us lucky enough to get to stay, the event is like a huge
slumber party. when you arrive you choose to be in either the "rowdy camp" or
the "quiet camp". you're there under the full moon with a few thousand of your
closest soul mates, and then oh, by the way, the Moody Blues turn up to
provide the entertainment!
thankfully the sound equipment had been properly set up. i noticed that as the evening progressed and the music was going well, Justin's voice relaxed and he was singing as effortlessly as you could hope to see.
so anyway, we were all just having a grand time. Ray was HOT!! he started something going, i'm telling you! J & J got into a raunchy battle of the guitars and turned the show into an adult-rated performance that was dangerously too much fun!
except for those leather pants, i couldn't tell you what any of the band were wearing, but i'm still processing what i did see ;) ;) ;)
okay, i'll take a moment to calm down my hormones and get back to the music. the Spokane orchestra was fantastic. i could see Larry watching the J's for his cues, and the violinists, cellists, etc. watching Larry for theirs. John didn't even get to the part where he calls on the audience to appreciate the orchestra before we were sending them applause. when they did stand for their kudos a prolonged moment of recognition ensued, and i could tell the individuals who played behind the Moodies that night were well pleased.
at the end of "Singer" i saw Graeme motioning to Gordon to bring the volume down. the next three songs were heart-full. yes, Justin consumed a lot of water, but the climate is arid and the night was warm and calm. i was parched. at the point where he seemed to Wendy to be snuffling, i thought he seemed choked, and it was exactly during our chance to sing to him "The love you've been giving has all been meant for you." that's my take, and i'm sticking to it!
"See Saw" spins us off on a high note. as we walked up out of the canyon fans lined the fence, watching the guys get into the van. sporadic howling rippled through the departing crowd. when the van and limos drove out up the draw, i know the band could hear us cheering them all along the road.
... and in the rowdy camp, baying at the moon went on until 2:30am. i personally was still awake when it started to get light at 4:30. there was a 7 hour drive home; we played Moody tapes; Heston and i did some howling of our own!