Taylor Hicks grooves Memphis and has taken it by storm! He arrived yesterday and visited Graceland. He also did an interview with Sirius Radio. You can listen to it here:
Seven Mile Breakdown
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Taylor Hicks....... Walking in Memphis!
Taylor Hicks grooves Memphis and has taken it by storm! He arrived yesterday and visited Graceland. He also did an interview with Sirius Radio. You can listen to it here:
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Taylor Hicks' Return to Nashville and Fulfillment of a Dream
Taylor Hicks spent over a year in Nashville, prior to appearing on American Idol, writing his music and waiting for that one big break to have his music heard and published. One day with no prospects in sight and when he felt that his chances for this happening had eluded him, he walked to the Ryman Auditorium in the early morning hours when the streets were still with only a few people stirring around. Taylor Hicks walked around the Ryman several times dreaming of one day playing at the Ryman Auditorium and sharing his music with the world. In some ways he probably thought that this was only a dream, but one dream that he hoped would one day come true. Little did he know what what was in store for him.
This is what one supporter/fan shared of that special moment when Taylor Hicks' dream of playing at the Ryman Auditorium came true.
Nashville, Tennessee is the "Country Musical Capital" of the world. Nashville is
also a very tough town, even for the best and the brightest. Living in Bakersfield, California has taught me a little about both titles. Bakersfield is known as Nashville-West. In the 1950s, when Nashville started adding flutes and violins to their over orchestrated hits, Bakersfield’s musicians, like Buck Owens and Merle Haggard responded by pickin’ the Fender Telecasters in the City’s honkytonks. In my employment at the County Museum, I walk by sequined pants worn by Barbara Mandrell and double-neck Mosrite guitars each day. Country music is never far my thoughts and its history is literally around the corner from my desk.
In March 2007, I had a chance to visit Nashville as part of my Taylor Hicks seven-concert swing through the south. I called the trip, “The Grits and Hicks Tour 2007”. Nashville, apart from Birmingham, was to be the highlight of the trip. I was not disappointed.
I arrived in Nashville after leaving Huntsville, Alabama. Huntsville, with its broad freeways and new construction, reminded me of Orange County, California. (Just a note about Huntsville, I really liked the town. During my visit, I saw street sweepers cleaning up the area’s poorest neighborhoods. I give kudos to a town that does not give up on its poor.) With my rental car’s GPS system, navigating the one-way streets in downtown Nashville was a snap. I was staying at the Marriot Courtyard because of its proximity to the Ryman. The bellman at the Marriot was gracious, but hesitated to give me the name of the closest sushi restaurant when asked. He said the owner of “Sam’s Sushi Bar” had requested that the Courtyard not send over any guests. Wow, you know it’s a tough town when a hole-in-the-wall sushi purveyor does not want out-of-towners leaving their soiled cash behind. (If you are ever in Nashville and want great inexpensive sushi, please visit Sam’s at 200 Fourth Avenue North – tell him someone staying at the Courtyard across the street recommended his place!)
There were dozens of Soul Patrollers strolling the halls and hanging out in the lobby of the Courtyard. Once a bank, the Courtyard’s lobby is beautiful. Its over stuffed couches and internet access made it a mecca for the SP member away from their DSL/lifeline connection. As we all scattered to various restaurants for dinner, I hooked up with one of my favorite SP members, RED. (Of course, her name isn’t RED and only Miss Clairol knows if she really is RED, but for her privacy, I will call her RED here) RED and I headed down to Broadway for dinner; it is a major thoroughfare and was located down the hill and just passed the Ryman. A real southern lady and Vanderbilt graduate, RED knew Nashville. After good food and terrific conversation, we decided to troll Broadway for great country music.
In Amsterdam, women of the evening stand in storefront windows enticing passersby with their wares. Nashville has a similar marketing system. Small three and four piece combo bands, crowd into tiny storefront stages and perform with their backs to the pedestrians along Broadway and hopefully to a full bar of drinking patrons in front of them. RED and I checked out a few of the bands and ended up at Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge. Probably the best known of the small clubs on Broadway, the band at Tootsie’s was wonderful. With all of the schlock on the radio today, I am ALWAYS dumbfounded when I hear extraordinary talent in clubs that charge .25 cents to use the restroom. The band in Tootsie’s was on fire and the middle-of-the-week crowd loved every hard jamming country minute. RED and I stood near the front and enjoyed the show on the stage. RED would tell you I was solicited by a Hottie Blonde that appeared entranced by the buttons on my blouse and by a Cowboy that suffered from manorexia. All I will say is that what happens at Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge stays at Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge.
After a near kidnapping by a gypsy cab and an attempt to visit the Bluebird Cafe, RED and I headed back to the Courtyard and talked until 4AM in the morning.
After waking up at the crack of 9AM, I dressed quickly and went exploring alone. All of the earnest hard working people of Nashville were scurrying to work with Starbucks and Blackberry’s clutched in their gloved hands. With my own coffee in hand, I walked the few blocks to the Ryman and sat down across the street from the Mother Church of Country Music. Dwarfed by the large buildings that surround it, the Ryman looks out of place amongst the steel, glass, and concrete. There is a nice new visitor entrance out front, but it still seems incongruous with its surroundings. I noticed in the ally behind the Ryman there was a familiar Provost Bus parked and I decided it was time to take the Ryman Museum Tour.
The Ryman is part auditorium, part museum, and the sanctorum of country music. I heard half a dozen languages spoken as I waited to purchase my ticket for the Museum Tour. When I entered the auditorium, I noticed the Taylor Hicks’ road crew had already set the stage with the band’s amplifiers and instruments. The “Taylor Hicks” light on the curtain that appeared at the previous four shows I had attended had not yet been lit.
The Ryman building is much larger than the auditorium you have seen in videos. A docent does not guide the Museum Tour, so I was provided an opportunity to explore all parts of the facility on my own. While sitting in a pew in the balcony, they lit the “Taylor Hicks” sign on the curtain. I took a picture of it with my cell phone and sent it to a friend. It was posted on Gray Charles within minutes (Love Technology).
While touring the building and reading its interpretative exhibit panels, I noticed that a film crew was setting up in the balcony area. A tall gentleman that was organizing the setup asked if I was a Taylor Hicks fan. I said sure and he suggested that I wait nearby. Within, minutes Taylor joined the film crew, just a couple of feet from where I was standing. There were about a dozen of us up on the balcony. This is what my camera captured.
After the interview Taylor checked out the Ryman’s stage area
After taking a few more pictures of the Ryman’s interior, I headed to Sam’s for sushi.
While the Ryman had its share of Soul Patrol in its pews that night, the majority of the audience was local. Men, women, and children that had sent text messages and dialed for their gray-haired blue-eyed soul singer during American Idol awaited his live performance with much chatting and anticipation. I had somehow been blessed and the TicketMaster gods had smiled on me and awarded me with a seat in a pew next to the stage. My view was super and the show was awesome. Loren lead the band in lock-step behind every move that Taylor made. Taylor worked each part of the stage.
After the show, lots of folks hung out around the buses. RED and I had made plans to have dinner at the same place as the previous evening, so I skedaddled out of the venue and crossed the street to the perch I found early in the morning and waited for RED. Besides the traffic immediately next to the venue, downtown was quiet. I was reminded how lonely large cities can be at night. Stripped of bustling daily commerce and lunchtime inhabitants, Nashville’s downtown after 10PM during the middle of the week was very quiet. As I walked down to the restaurant on Broadway, I could image how difficult this town must be for people chasing their dreams. Singers that stick it out in places like Nashville are driven. My own aunt’s experience reinforced Nashville’s mythology as a town that can suck the very life out of a creative person. My aunt, that today pulls down a hefty six-figure salary, once lived in the restrooms in Lebanon State Park about 30 miles from Nashville for three winter months while looking for work in the Nashville area. As I pulled my coat tighter around me, I could understand the desperation and subsequent depression that someone must feel when they are doing everything they can possibly do to make their dreams come true, yet having little to no success in turning their dreams into reality. It’s not about working hard enough or wanting it more than anything else; those two things and $4.35 will buy you a Venti White Mocha Frappuccino at Starbucks, but little else. That is the worst part of it, the seemingly lack of control over your own financial and creative future.
RED was a no show at dinner, so I took the time and began to plan a video on a cocktail napkin that would convey my gratitude to Mr. Hicks for sticking out the rough times in Nashville. I was very interested in doing something from the perspective of the stage. I wanted to record the time and moment when Mr. H returns to Nashville as a conquering hero. Written, it looks like hyperbole, but when my aunt returned to Nashville last year and was picked up by a limo at the airport, the ghosts of twenty years ago magically faded away and she no longer dreaded crossing the Mason-Dixon. I created the video below in hopes that it would serve as a reminder to Mr. Hicks that those ghosts are gone and his future his alone to determine.
I would like to thank RED, the Hottie Blonde, Sam the Sushi Nazi, and the Cowboy with manorexia for an absolutely fabulous visit to Nashville. I would like to thank Taylor Hicks for reminding each of us to believe in our dreams.
“Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.” Winston Churchill
Published by maryann1
Written by PaytheDevil
Tags: Taylor Hicks, American Idol, Soul Patrol, Taylor's Angels
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Taylor Hicks Holds A Revival In Chicago
In response to Taylor’s Angel’s request to highlight various fan sites of Taylor Hicks, we received the following submission from the Sarasota Soul Patrol! It is one of their favorite posts of the year and was written by “soulthinggirl”. It is with her permission that we share this wonderfully funny recap of one of the best performances by Taylor Hicks of his 2007 tour. We hope that you enjoy reliving this memorable night!
It's 3:30 in the morning and I feel as though I died and went to Heaven tonight… or last night, or whenever it was. I don't know what's up, down or sideways right now. By the way, who am I? I'm barely vertical as I sit here with my head leaning ever so closely to the keyboard. If you see the same letter being typed over and over and over again, it's because I fell over and smacked the keyboard! I can't believe I'm sitting here typing right now. But I can't help myself. My head is on overload from everything I took in tonight. I can't shut it off. I'm trying. Help!! MOMMY!
Tonight, I went to the Chicago House of Blues in Chicago and watched a revival at its finest, followed quickly by mass murder. Taylor's evil twin once again emerged and one by one picked his victims out of the crowd and killed them. Then, he cremated them. And all this was before he even parted the waters. Okay, am I getting a little carried away here? No, no, I don't think I am!
Now, let’s take this from the beginning. I leave work at noon and start the drive by myself to the House of Blues. An hour after I started the trip, I get off on Lake Shore Drive, make a couple of turns, and merge onto Dearborn Street. May I humbly add that I am quite proud of myself (is that an oxymoron or just moron?) that I managed my way around the one way, wrong way, get outta my way, you must be from the suburbs, OMG that bus almost hit me, turn back idiot, that cab's on my rear, don't turn here unless you want to die, it's all over, typical street pattern of Chicago! But then, there it is! Right in front of me is a bee-yu-ti-ful big sign looming overhead at the corner....
http://www.hob.com/venues/clubvenues/chicago/
Now that I made the first hurdle and found the venue, I have to figure out the parking. I knew the House Of Blues has valet parking and being by myself in the big bad city, I wanted a parking garage as close to the place as possible. I look directly up as I approach the HOB and see what looks like a giant sized, cemented over, corkscrew shape piece of macaroni jutting up into the sky with giant sized stationary matchbox cars that looked like they had been squeezed inside of it. I think to myself, “Do I have to drive my way up into that monstrosity in this little tiny Hyundai with the putt-putt engine?". Help!! MOMMY!!! I'm hoping to myself that this could be where the valet comes in as the “pasta garage” is directly across from the side of the House of Blues, separated only by a small street that is clearly used for the cars to come in and out of the garage onto Dearborn Street.
I pull my car up and around and a very nice man comes over and confirms with me that it's the HOB valet parking garage and he will park the car. Joy! Rapture! I wanted to give him a great big hug but, wisely, I just gave him the keys and left him with the car.
After waiting in line for 4 hours, finally, about 6:00 the doors flew open and insanity ensued. After a mad scramble to stake our place, my friends that I had met in line and I ended up about four people deep on the right side of the stage. At this point it really starts to hit me… I'm really here and this is about to happen. I must've done something right somehow, somewhere, sometime in my life to be here now. This is some gift!
As we waited for Michael Warren to make his opening act appearance, the crowd got bigger and squishier and closer as the people poured in. By the end of the evening I could have sworn I married the Elvis look-alike next to me. Help!! MOMMY!!! Yes, I actually had an Elvis look-alike next to me. I have to give the guy credit for his attempt to impersonate the King with his 6'3" big-boned and stocky frame, complete with ducktail hair and bushy sideburns. I didn't ask him if he was an impersonator. I wanted to, but I was too “skeered”. Actually, I was afraid he might say he was Elvis, he was alive and he was coming out of hiding to see his heir apparent- Mr. Taylor Hicks! This guy was hilarious during the concert! He kept raising his beer-filled plastic glass up to Taylor in a salute when he came to our side. With the guy towering over the crowd, I knew Taylor saw him, and a couple of times Taylor looked at me as if he wanted to say, "Are you actually with this guy?"! It was all I could do to keep myself from yelling, "No, Taylor! I swear, I never saw this guy before in my life!”
Yes, I digressed! But remember it is 3:30 in the morning…
When Michael Warren’s set was over, the band strolled onto the stage, sat down, strapped on and got down as Soulfinger began! And right on cue, Taylor appeared! The screams from the crowd were deafening. He was in fine fashion, overflowing with the music as it poured out of him. He had his wonderful "Soul Patrol" guitar strap over his shoulder with that beautiful guitar hooked to it. Taylor did a short tease of Want Ads in between Rough God Goes Riding and Let's Get it On. He introduced The Maze, but the music for Give Me Tonight started playing! Taylor turned around to the band and gave a slight laugh. I don't know if he was trying to confuse the band since he had already sung The Maze previously or if he had gotten confused and realized his mistake and laughed. Either way, it was funny! I loved Give Me Tonight live because he made it bluesy sounding, added a rock 'n roll touch to it, and turned it quite funky. It really rocked! During Dance to the Music, Taylor tagged onto it a couple of lines of Ride Sally Ride. Also, starting out Dance to the Music, he yelled out the infamous beginning of it, "All The Squares Can Go Home!” In the middle of Dance to the Music he sang to the tune of the song, "I thought you might like to hear my organ" and sat down at Brian's organ and played. That was awesome!
Taylor then went into a wonderful version of Just to Feel That Way. He was very emotional with the song, and his eyes were closed as if to channel the muses. On the song Compared to What Taylor went nuts on the cowbell, banging the stick at warp speed. During The Right Place, Taylor played with one line slightly and changed it up to sing it as, "That old country back door is open". It was just beautiful. Taylor sure knows how to wail out a plea.
During The Runaround, Taylor went over to a table on stage with all his harmonicas on it and got busy looking them over, eyes darting back and forth briskly as if he was at the deli trying to figure out what to bring home for dinner. He quickly found the one he wanted and came back to the front of the stage and went into his bad self on the blues harp. The harp screamed and Taylor brought home his point. Of course he did his spin cycle, top twirling, make it go round in circles dance, which we all couldn't get enough of.
Taylor left the stage to screams, cheers and applause, drenched and happy. Yet, he wasn’t finished. The kill had taken place at this point but not the cremation. That was saved for last. To the crowd screaming for an encore, Taylor came back out and completed the evil deed. As soon as the notes sounded for Sweet Home Chicago, people went crazy. I could actually feel the floor bounce slightly below me. Even the floor was under the influence of “the woo”. I cheered, my new friends screamed, the crowd cried, the balcony swayed, and “Mr. Swivel Hips Wannabe” next to me raised his cup high in salute as Taylor grinned out at us and ripped into Sweet Home Chicago. He tore the place apart and slammed us all into the furnace. Off stage, Taylor is a pussycat, but on stage a tiger. Don’t ya just love him for it?
Just when you thought the concert had reached its peak, who joins Taylor and the band on Sweet Home Chicago but one of Taylor's idols, Keb Mo! Taylor introduced him as a mentor who had helped him as a struggling musician in Alabama. Keb Mo promptly played the guitar and not just anybody's guitar - he had Taylor's strapped on complete with the "Soul Patrol" strap tightly draped over his shoulder. Talk about an "I'm making a wreath with Martha" moment! With Taylor doing blues harp and Keb Mo playing off of him with the guitar, Chicago was sweet home all the way. On Thursday night at 329 N. Dearborn Street, for just a little while, all was right with the world!
Like a speeding train, the concert went by way too fast and Taylor, Keb Mo and the band took their bows and then took their leave. It was now time for the crowd to exit. Still floating on cloud nine, we all were quickly brought back down to reality as we started being herded out. Now I know how cows feel when it's time to be herded off the farm and to their fates. Every cow for itself and then some! My friends and I somehow got separated during the cattle call. Already under the influence of the “woo”, I wandered around aimlessly inside and outside, by the parking pasta noodle, down the sidewalk, and past the tour buses.
Fortunately, I had given my new friends my cell phone number earlier, because my phone rang and on the other end they were excitedly yelling into the phone, "We're at a bar called Buddy Guy's!! Taylor's gonna be here! Get in a cab and get over here!". I have to laugh now thinking of what I must have looked like between my zombie walk and then my cell phone wakeup call. Here I am in the middle of Chicago somewhere, 10:30 at night, hopping into a cab by myself, not even knowing where Buddy Guy's is and doing all this based on info handed over to me by people I had known less than a day!
But it was all good. I got to Buddy Guy's, walked in, paid the cover charge and spotted my new friends sitting at a table. There was an empty chair sitting beside them with my name written all over it!
Well, sure enough, Taylor showed up about a half hour later, slyly walking in with his obligatory toboggan slapped on his head to cover that tell-tale hair. He was accompanied by a crowd of friends who were all seated at a long table in a chained off seating area (doh!) straight across from the side of the stage. They spent the remainder of the evening reveling, absorbing, witnessing and sometimes partaking in one of the greatest jam concerts I have ever seen. I still can't believe what I saw.
It seems as though every time I snuck a peek at Taylor, he had this big ol' giddy school boy grin on his face, at times a look of pure joy, just a regular Joe, in his element, hangin' out with his buddies, just chillin' and taking in the incredible sweet soul blues music pouring from the stage. He was in the zone. One time I caught a glimpse of him while one of the guest musicians was going to town on a blues harp, making him one with it. Taylor's head was leaned over almost to his shoulder, his face tightened in deep concentration, but yet softly taut as he just seemed to study this man and his music. I actually turned away because I felt I was intruding into an area so private, so sacred, it was none of my business.
But the coolest part was the fact that Buddy Guy himself was there as well as Keb Mo! They all jammed and fed off each other’s energy. Taylor was so into the scene that, he held that guitar like he was married to it, closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and just went to town on it. It was an amazing site for sure. He let us in to his world so deeply that we felt like he had invited us over to his house and then gave us the most precious of all surprise gifts… his soul.
If the House of Blues was the cremation, Buddy Guy's blew our remains away. To call it a treat would be grossly understating the matter. To call it a sacred ceremony would be much closer to the truth but still doesn't do it justice. A baptism in music is just about there but to be honest, there are no proper words to describe what took place that night. The rest of the world outside faded away as we all partied down with Taylor, Buddy Guy, Keb Mo and the gang inside our little happy bubble called Buddy Guy's Legends.
The good times continued until past 1:00 A.M. Buddy Guy sang a few more times before the evening came to its inevitable conclusion and we all danced in the clouds and reveled in the magic of the dream to which we were privileged.
I have many images of Taylor that will be with me forever. But one image of Taylor at Buddy Guy's sticks in my mind. Buddy ended his last song with the place happily drowning with him in the blues and when the final note of the song sounded, we all applauded and cheered and showed our appreciation for Buddy sharing his soul with us. Taylor however took it one step further. At this point, alone at his table, he shot out of his chair like a bullet, stood and yelled, whistled, cheered, stretched his arms out and applauded wildly for his idol and new friend, Buddy Guy. Standing alone slightly silhouetted in shadow but yet standing out and shining bright like a beacon, Taylor knew darn well the whole place noticed and was staring at him but it wasn't going to hold him back. Taylor was reveling in the world of Buddy Guy and he wanted to show - and share - his pure joy and appreciation. It didn't take long for the rest of us to jump up and join him in a standing ovation for Buddy. You see, when Taylor Hicks stands, it's no longer an option but a demand. His respect for Buddy was overwhelming and wonderful.
As I drove back home with the crisp waters of Lake Michigan outside my window glistening in the moonlight like waves of aluminum with the harbor lights reflecting and bouncing off them, giving one the impression that somewhere out there a grand waltz of invisible angels was taking place, I thought about the prior events of the evening and what an incredible gift I had been given- to be allowed to be a part of something so special and so glorious that it would be a unthinkable to chalk it up to just another event and cast it aside to simple history.
I thought about how all of us at Legends were treated to great music by so many incredible artists, how we had been taken into a different realm, a different time, a different place. I thought about how discovering the true roots of music had not just changed my life for the better musically but personally, how I've made new friends, how it's made me reconnect with myself. I only wish more people could experience what a happy place the blues can take you to.
I have been baptized by the blues, the river is warm and the current is fine. I dove in and I'm never looking back. Come on in everybody, the water's fine. Hallelujah!
Taylor’s Angels thanks the Sarasota Soul Patrol for sharing one of their finest posts! If you would like more information on this group, you may go to their site at http://srqsoulpatrol.proboards104.com/
Edited by Tina (DidNotExpectThat)
Tags: Taylor Hicks, American Idol, Soul Patrol, Taylor's Angels
Now that I made the first hurdle and found the venue, I have to figure out the parking. I knew the House Of Blues has valet parking and being by myself in the big bad city, I wanted a parking garage as close to the place as possible. I look directly up as I approach the HOB and see what looks like a giant sized, cemented over, corkscrew shape piece of macaroni jutting up into the sky with giant sized stationary matchbox cars that looked like they had been squeezed inside of it. I think to myself, “Do I have to drive my way up into that monstrosity in this little tiny Hyundai with the putt-putt engine?". Help!! MOMMY!!! I'm hoping to myself that this could be where the valet comes in as the “pasta garage” is directly across from the side of the House of Blues, separated only by a small street that is clearly used for the cars to come in and out of the garage onto Dearborn Street.
I pull my car up and around and a very nice man comes over and confirms with me that it's the HOB valet parking garage and he will park the car. Joy! Rapture! I wanted to give him a great big hug but, wisely, I just gave him the keys and left him with the car.
After waiting in line for 4 hours, finally, about 6:00 the doors flew open and insanity ensued. After a mad scramble to stake our place, my friends that I had met in line and I ended up about four people deep on the right side of the stage. At this point it really starts to hit me… I'm really here and this is about to happen. I must've done something right somehow, somewhere, sometime in my life to be here now. This is some gift!
As we waited for Michael Warren to make his opening act appearance, the crowd got bigger and squishier and closer as the people poured in. By the end of the evening I could have sworn I married the Elvis look-alike next to me. Help!! MOMMY!!! Yes, I actually had an Elvis look-alike next to me. I have to give the guy credit for his attempt to impersonate the King with his 6'3" big-boned and stocky frame, complete with ducktail hair and bushy sideburns. I didn't ask him if he was an impersonator. I wanted to, but I was too “skeered”. Actually, I was afraid he might say he was Elvis, he was alive and he was coming out of hiding to see his heir apparent- Mr. Taylor Hicks! This guy was hilarious during the concert! He kept raising his beer-filled plastic glass up to Taylor in a salute when he came to our side. With the guy towering over the crowd, I knew Taylor saw him, and a couple of times Taylor looked at me as if he wanted to say, "Are you actually with this guy?"! It was all I could do to keep myself from yelling, "No, Taylor! I swear, I never saw this guy before in my life!”
Yes, I digressed! But remember it is 3:30 in the morning…
When Michael Warren’s set was over, the band strolled onto the stage, sat down, strapped on and got down as Soulfinger began! And right on cue, Taylor appeared! The screams from the crowd were deafening. He was in fine fashion, overflowing with the music as it poured out of him. He had his wonderful "Soul Patrol" guitar strap over his shoulder with that beautiful guitar hooked to it. Taylor did a short tease of Want Ads in between Rough God Goes Riding and Let's Get it On. He introduced The Maze, but the music for Give Me Tonight started playing! Taylor turned around to the band and gave a slight laugh. I don't know if he was trying to confuse the band since he had already sung The Maze previously or if he had gotten confused and realized his mistake and laughed. Either way, it was funny! I loved Give Me Tonight live because he made it bluesy sounding, added a rock 'n roll touch to it, and turned it quite funky. It really rocked! During Dance to the Music, Taylor tagged onto it a couple of lines of Ride Sally Ride. Also, starting out Dance to the Music, he yelled out the infamous beginning of it, "All The Squares Can Go Home!” In the middle of Dance to the Music he sang to the tune of the song, "I thought you might like to hear my organ" and sat down at Brian's organ and played. That was awesome!
Taylor then went into a wonderful version of Just to Feel That Way. He was very emotional with the song, and his eyes were closed as if to channel the muses. On the song Compared to What Taylor went nuts on the cowbell, banging the stick at warp speed. During The Right Place, Taylor played with one line slightly and changed it up to sing it as, "That old country back door is open". It was just beautiful. Taylor sure knows how to wail out a plea.
During The Runaround, Taylor went over to a table on stage with all his harmonicas on it and got busy looking them over, eyes darting back and forth briskly as if he was at the deli trying to figure out what to bring home for dinner. He quickly found the one he wanted and came back to the front of the stage and went into his bad self on the blues harp. The harp screamed and Taylor brought home his point. Of course he did his spin cycle, top twirling, make it go round in circles dance, which we all couldn't get enough of.
Taylor left the stage to screams, cheers and applause, drenched and happy. Yet, he wasn’t finished. The kill had taken place at this point but not the cremation. That was saved for last. To the crowd screaming for an encore, Taylor came back out and completed the evil deed. As soon as the notes sounded for Sweet Home Chicago, people went crazy. I could actually feel the floor bounce slightly below me. Even the floor was under the influence of “the woo”. I cheered, my new friends screamed, the crowd cried, the balcony swayed, and “Mr. Swivel Hips Wannabe” next to me raised his cup high in salute as Taylor grinned out at us and ripped into Sweet Home Chicago. He tore the place apart and slammed us all into the furnace. Off stage, Taylor is a pussycat, but on stage a tiger. Don’t ya just love him for it?
Just when you thought the concert had reached its peak, who joins Taylor and the band on Sweet Home Chicago but one of Taylor's idols, Keb Mo! Taylor introduced him as a mentor who had helped him as a struggling musician in Alabama. Keb Mo promptly played the guitar and not just anybody's guitar - he had Taylor's strapped on complete with the "Soul Patrol" strap tightly draped over his shoulder. Talk about an "I'm making a wreath with Martha" moment! With Taylor doing blues harp and Keb Mo playing off of him with the guitar, Chicago was sweet home all the way. On Thursday night at 329 N. Dearborn Street, for just a little while, all was right with the world!
Like a speeding train, the concert went by way too fast and Taylor, Keb Mo and the band took their bows and then took their leave. It was now time for the crowd to exit. Still floating on cloud nine, we all were quickly brought back down to reality as we started being herded out. Now I know how cows feel when it's time to be herded off the farm and to their fates. Every cow for itself and then some! My friends and I somehow got separated during the cattle call. Already under the influence of the “woo”, I wandered around aimlessly inside and outside, by the parking pasta noodle, down the sidewalk, and past the tour buses.
Fortunately, I had given my new friends my cell phone number earlier, because my phone rang and on the other end they were excitedly yelling into the phone, "We're at a bar called Buddy Guy's!! Taylor's gonna be here! Get in a cab and get over here!". I have to laugh now thinking of what I must have looked like between my zombie walk and then my cell phone wakeup call. Here I am in the middle of Chicago somewhere, 10:30 at night, hopping into a cab by myself, not even knowing where Buddy Guy's is and doing all this based on info handed over to me by people I had known less than a day!
But it was all good. I got to Buddy Guy's, walked in, paid the cover charge and spotted my new friends sitting at a table. There was an empty chair sitting beside them with my name written all over it!
Well, sure enough, Taylor showed up about a half hour later, slyly walking in with his obligatory toboggan slapped on his head to cover that tell-tale hair. He was accompanied by a crowd of friends who were all seated at a long table in a chained off seating area (doh!) straight across from the side of the stage. They spent the remainder of the evening reveling, absorbing, witnessing and sometimes partaking in one of the greatest jam concerts I have ever seen. I still can't believe what I saw.
It seems as though every time I snuck a peek at Taylor, he had this big ol' giddy school boy grin on his face, at times a look of pure joy, just a regular Joe, in his element, hangin' out with his buddies, just chillin' and taking in the incredible sweet soul blues music pouring from the stage. He was in the zone. One time I caught a glimpse of him while one of the guest musicians was going to town on a blues harp, making him one with it. Taylor's head was leaned over almost to his shoulder, his face tightened in deep concentration, but yet softly taut as he just seemed to study this man and his music. I actually turned away because I felt I was intruding into an area so private, so sacred, it was none of my business.
But the coolest part was the fact that Buddy Guy himself was there as well as Keb Mo! They all jammed and fed off each other’s energy. Taylor was so into the scene that, he held that guitar like he was married to it, closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and just went to town on it. It was an amazing site for sure. He let us in to his world so deeply that we felt like he had invited us over to his house and then gave us the most precious of all surprise gifts… his soul.
If the House of Blues was the cremation, Buddy Guy's blew our remains away. To call it a treat would be grossly understating the matter. To call it a sacred ceremony would be much closer to the truth but still doesn't do it justice. A baptism in music is just about there but to be honest, there are no proper words to describe what took place that night. The rest of the world outside faded away as we all partied down with Taylor, Buddy Guy, Keb Mo and the gang inside our little happy bubble called Buddy Guy's Legends.
The good times continued until past 1:00 A.M. Buddy Guy sang a few more times before the evening came to its inevitable conclusion and we all danced in the clouds and reveled in the magic of the dream to which we were privileged.
I have many images of Taylor that will be with me forever. But one image of Taylor at Buddy Guy's sticks in my mind. Buddy ended his last song with the place happily drowning with him in the blues and when the final note of the song sounded, we all applauded and cheered and showed our appreciation for Buddy sharing his soul with us. Taylor however took it one step further. At this point, alone at his table, he shot out of his chair like a bullet, stood and yelled, whistled, cheered, stretched his arms out and applauded wildly for his idol and new friend, Buddy Guy. Standing alone slightly silhouetted in shadow but yet standing out and shining bright like a beacon, Taylor knew darn well the whole place noticed and was staring at him but it wasn't going to hold him back. Taylor was reveling in the world of Buddy Guy and he wanted to show - and share - his pure joy and appreciation. It didn't take long for the rest of us to jump up and join him in a standing ovation for Buddy. You see, when Taylor Hicks stands, it's no longer an option but a demand. His respect for Buddy was overwhelming and wonderful.
As I drove back home with the crisp waters of Lake Michigan outside my window glistening in the moonlight like waves of aluminum with the harbor lights reflecting and bouncing off them, giving one the impression that somewhere out there a grand waltz of invisible angels was taking place, I thought about the prior events of the evening and what an incredible gift I had been given- to be allowed to be a part of something so special and so glorious that it would be a unthinkable to chalk it up to just another event and cast it aside to simple history.
I thought about how all of us at Legends were treated to great music by so many incredible artists, how we had been taken into a different realm, a different time, a different place. I thought about how discovering the true roots of music had not just changed my life for the better musically but personally, how I've made new friends, how it's made me reconnect with myself. I only wish more people could experience what a happy place the blues can take you to.
I have been baptized by the blues, the river is warm and the current is fine. I dove in and I'm never looking back. Come on in everybody, the water's fine. Hallelujah!
Taylor’s Angels thanks the Sarasota Soul Patrol for sharing one of their finest posts! If you would like more information on this group, you may go to their site at http://srqsoulpatrol.proboards104.com/
Edited by Tina (DidNotExpectThat)
Tags: Taylor Hicks, American Idol, Soul Patrol, Taylor's Angels
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Taylor Hicks Delivers A Chirstmas Present To The Soul Patrol And Asia!
The Soul Patrol has spent the past month reminiscing about Taylor's Christmas performances last year. We've been missing the Soul Man, since he's been on his much deserved break. A few weeks ago, he sent the Soul Patrol an audio message at THQ wishing everyone a happy holiday season and letting us know he had a few "gigs" in December.
Little did we know, that he had been invited to perform on the first ever Asian Idol!
An honor for Taylor and a Christmas present for his Soul Patrol!
Taylor Hicks you have made us proud!!! Not only did America get Taylor Hicks right - so did another continent! Congratulations Taylor! Have a wonderful Christmas and may you be blessed even MORE in 2008!!!!
Taylor's Angels
Interview for Asian Idol
Heaven Knows
Do I Make You Proud with the 6 Idols
Taylor With The Hosts
Taking It To The Streets
Online Videos by Veoh.com
More Interviews and Performances!!!!!
Fox News Alabama Interviews Taylor 12/18/07
Inquirer.net Taylor Hicks Article
Taylored to Perfection
December 19th - Greenbelt
White Christmas at Greenbelt
A Fans Meet and Greet - Read this fun blog
Taking It To The Streets
Do I Make You Proud
Use Me
Written by: Teri(Cydter)
Tags: Taylor Hicks, American Idol, Soul Patrol, Taylor's Angels
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