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07/02/99 - 4TH & B CLUB, SAN DIEGO, CA Review by Chris Mirell: The soundcheck started around 5:10, while we snuck around, listening and at the same time trying to find out what was going on with the fanclub tix. Bryan's driver and another guy were soon looking into it, and soon enough a handful of us were promised we would be let in first, before anyone else. We were let inside while the soundcheck was still going on, and we could see Bryan on the viewscreens (we were supposed to wait on the side of the stage, out of his sight). The band left and we hurried in, taking spots near the left center of the stage, right in front of Bryan's mike. The rest of the crowd came in, surprised no doubt to see us standing there, and the next wait began. While we waited for the show, we chatted with other ba fans, and the whole time Keith returned to the stage over and over looking for something. Turns out he lost his wallet. The show started about 8:30, opening with Getaway. The band was dressed in all white and full of energy. Bryan and Keith continually got right in our faces (just wait till we get these photos developed!). At one point, about a half hour into the show, Bryan was strumming away on bass just three feet away from me, and he made eye contact with me. His face lit up in a goofy surprised smile and he pointed at me in recognition. I pointed back, and while the song continued, he asked, "Where's your brother?" I did my best to rub my finger together and shake my head, indicating my brother didnt have the money. Later on in the show I thrust out my fist and called Bryan's name so he would se my 18 Til I die ring, but he just nodded at it (I was trying to get him to play it, but no luck). The
show ended about 1015, and during the first bow I stuck out my hand to bryan...he
smiled and shook it, putting his pick in my hand! Then Keith tossed his to the
front and it was swatted down onto the stage, so I scooped it up as well. A drum
tech brought out Mickey's sticks and handed them to the front row...I managed
to grab one of those too (I couldnt believe I got something from all of them!)
Then Bryan signed autographs for 30 min on the stage! Most of the time he was
kneeling right in front of us. Keith and Mickey did the same. When Bryan got close
to me he said, "Chris, how are you?" I was stunned that he remembered
my name. I said "Good how are you?" He said he was fine and then asked
"You live around here don't you?" I replied, "No, Sacramento."
He then signed a flyer for me, which I got the rest of the bad to sign as well.
Bryan said he would be rereleasing OADLT, and releasing WYG on March 2nd. Mickey
said Dave was "home" and that he hoped he'd come back. He said Tommy
was in NY and real busy. Then I told him we were going to vegas and he asked me if I had any requests. I immediately blurted "I'm a Liar", and Bryan shook his head yes and said, "Yeah, Ok I'll learn it for tomorrow. I want to learn that and Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman." I joked that he should already know them, and he said, "Not on bass." That made sense. I told him as I was leaving that the new album was great, and that I would see him in vegas. Then, as I'm waiting outside the bus for the others, Bryan leans out of the bus and yells, "Where's Chris?! Chris?!" I ran right up to the steps and he asked me if I knew they were playing the Viper Club in Los Angeles on Feb 10th. I said we just found out. Bryan told us that the club only held 175 people and it would be hard to get in. I dont know why I asked this, becasue I wasnt even sure if i could make it down there, but i said, "Any chance you can smuggle me in?" Bryan nodded and said he would put me on the door, set a ticket aside for me. I was STUNNED. He asked for my last name and said he would take care of it. I tried to get a few others on the list, but Bryan only said no. He seemed to be joking, but nonetheless he didnt put anyone else down. Then we left, and contemplated going to LA. ********** Review
by Brad Jones: I ROLLED THE DICE. I RECOGNIZED CHRIS MIRRELL FROM THE MTV FANATICS SHOW. MY BUDDY JIM & I HAD OUR PHOTO TAKEN WITH CHRIS UNDER THE MARQUEE, PUTTING THE VOLUNTEER PHOTOGRAPHER AT RISK, AS HE WAS SEVERAL PACES INTO A DOWNTOWN INTERSECTION. CHRIS IS A VERY NICE GUY. CHRIS & I ATTEMPTED TO CONNECT LAST FALL IN SACRAMENTO BUT IT DIDN'T WORK OUT, DUE TO MY TREATMENTS. HE ENDURED MY ENDLESS QUESTIONS REGARDING BRYAN & HE KEPT A GOOD CHECK ON WHETHER I STILL HAD VITAL SIGNS. NONETHELESS, CATHERINE (FROM THE UK) SHOWED US A SMALL SAMPLING OF HER PHOTOS THAT SHE HAD TAKEN WITH BRYAN. I GAVE HER A HARD TIME ABOUT NOT SNEAKING ME IN WITH CHRIS...MY APOLOGIES. WHILE WE WERE OUTSIDE WAITING IN LINE, WE COULD HEAR BRYAN & THE BAND WARMING UP WITH VARIOUS TRACKS. ALONG WITH CATHERINE WAS ANOTHER FAN, WHO WAS NICE ENOUGH TO GIVE ME ONE OF HER FLYERS FROM THE SHOW, WHILE THE BAND WAS SIGNING AUTOGRAPHS. I'M POOR WITH NAMES, BUT THANK YOU!!! WHEN THE DOORS OPENED, WE WERE AMONG THE FIRST GROUP TO BE ALLOWED IN.UPON WAITING TO GET INTO THE MAIN FLOOR, WE WATCHED BRYAN & THE BAND REHEARSE "GETAWAY" ON A VIDEO MONITOR. THE MOST REMARKABLE ASPECT OF THIS WAS THAT I COULD TELL THAT BRYAN WAS PLAYING A FENDER BASS. I RECALLED THAT FOR BRYAN'S LAST BIRTHDAY (11-5-98), KEITH SCOTT BOUGHT BRYAN THIS BASS. KEITH IS SO COOL! HOWEVER, AFTER THE RELEASE OF "WAKING UP THE NEIGHBOURS," I BOUGHT THE IDENTICAL FENDER STRATOCASTER THAT IS ON THE COVER. HENCE, I WAS SORT OF SHOCKED THAT BRYAN & KEITH WEREN'T ALTERNATING PLAYING LEAD / RYTHYM GUITAR. I SUPPOSE WITHOUT DAVE TAYLOR, THERE WASN'T MUCH CHOICE. I HOPE THIS ISN'T PERMANENT. I DEBATED AS TO WHETHER TO GET A T-SHIRT BEFORE OR AFTER THE SHOW, THINKING THAT I DIDN'T WANT TO HAVE TO HOLD IT THE WHOLE TIME, ETC. I WENT FOR IT PRIOR TO THE SHOW, WHICH PAID DIVIDENDS LATER (BRYAN & THE BAND SIGNED IT). I HAVE BEEN TO 3 OTHER BA GIGS, & THERE WERE NO AUTOGRAPHS GIVEN. THUS, I DIDN'T THINK TO TAKE ANY ITEMS TO BE SIGNED. PERHAPS MY FEVER IMPAIRED MY THINKING HERE. THE SHOW STARTED WITH "GETAWAY." THIS IS LIKELY MY FAVORITE FROM THE LATEST RELEASE. THEN THEY PLAYED "SUMMER OF '69." AFTER THESE 1ST 2 SONGS, BRYAN SAYS "...YA KNOW, WE'VE BRIEFLY BEEN ON TOUR WITH THE ROLLING STONES. AND BASICALLY WHEN YOU TOUR WITH THE STONES, YOU PLAY A GIG, THEN YOU REST FOR 3 DAYS. YOU PLAY ANOTHER GIG, YOU REST FOR 3 DAYS." (THE IMPLICATION BEING THAT THE STONES ARE OLD & NEED TO RECOUP AFTER A SHOW). THIS DREW LOTS OF LAUGHS. BRYAN CONTINUED "...SO WE'D RATHER COME TO SAN DIEGO & HANG OUT WITH YOU GUYS!" THIS ALSO DREW A ROAR FROM THE CROWD. AT THIS POINT, BRYAN LOOKED RIGHT AT ME, & I SAID "YOU SHOULD JUST MOVE TO SAN DIEGO, YOU CAN LIVE AT MY HOUSE!" BRYAN REPLIES, "OH YOU WANT ME TO MOVE HERE HUH!?!" AGAIN, STIRRING THE CROWD. BRYAN THEN GAVE ME A HIGH 5. I LIVE IN SAN MARCOS, WHICH IS JUST NORTH OF SAN DIEGO, SO IT ONLY SEEMED APPROPRIATE TO MAKE THE SUGGESTION. IT WAS JUST REALLY COOL TO INTERACT WITH BRYAN IN HIS ELEMENT OF PERFORMING & ROCKING THE HOUSE. THEY ROCKED!!! THIS WAS NOT A SHOW FOR THOSE THAT PRIMARILY APPRECIATE THE BALLADS & SOUNDTRACK MATERIAL, & THAT WAS VERY ACCEPTABLE TO ME. THEY PLAYED ONE ENCORE. BRYAN ENDED THE SHOW BY SAYING THAT WE WERE TOO KIND & A GREAT AUDIENCE & THANKED US FOR COMING. THEY THEN SIGNED AUTOGRAPHS. THIS IS WHERE HAVING THE T-SHIRT CAME IN HANDY. THEY ALL SIGNED IT. BY THE END OF THE SHOW, MY WEAK VOICE WAS BARELY AUDIBLE. THUS, I ASKED CHRIS IF HE COULD ASK BRYAN TO SIGN MY T-SHIRT FOR ME. BRYAN ASKED ME WHAT NAME WAS & I COULDN'T REPLY, BUT CHRIS TOLD BRYAN MY NAME & BRYAN WROTE MY NAME & SIGNED HIS. THANKS CHRIS!!! YOU ARE SUCH A DUDE OF LEISURE. MARY FROM POINT LOMA KEPT SUPPLYING ME WITH DRINKS, AS I WAS BECOMING MOST DEHYDRATED. THANKS MARY. MEANWHILE,
THE CRUSH OF THE CROWD WAS BECOMING OVERWHELMING. CHRIS & CATHERINE RECOGNIZED
THAT I WAS ABOUT TO EXPIRE. THEY SUGGESTED THAT I GO UNDER THE STAGE. THE BIZARRE
THING ABOUT THIS WAS THAT MARY & I HAD BEEN LOOKING FOR MY CAMERA ON THE FLOOR,
AS I LOST IT WITHIN THE 1ST HALF THEN KEITH CAME OVER, I SHOOK HIS HAND & HE SIGNED MY T-SHIRT. I ASKED HIM IF HE HAD ANOTHER PICK. HE SAID THAT HE THOUGHT THAT HE HAD GIVEN ME ONE. I SAID SOMEONE INTERCEPTED BEFORE I COULD GRAB IT. HE APOLOGIZED, BUT SAID HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY LEFT. MICKEY COMES OVER & SIGNS MY SHIRT. I ASKED HIM IF HE HAS DONE ANY FURTHER WORK WITH MITCH MALLOY. HE REPLIED THAT HE DIDN'T THINK THAT MITCH HAD A RECORD CONTRACT ANY LONGER. I THEN ASKED HIM IF HE HAS DONE ANY FURTHER WORK WITH SURVIVOR (I JUST BOUGHT A SURVIVOR CD THAT MICKEY PLAYED DRUMS ON. IT'S CALLED "TOO HOT TO SLEEP"). HE SAID THAT HE LOVES THOSE GUYS & TALKS TO THEM FREQUENTLY. HE SAID WHEN HE'S NOT TOURING OR RECORDING, THEY MAY DO SOMETHING AGAIN. HE ALSO TALKED EXTENSIVELY ABOUT SOME WORK HE DID FOR A JOE PECSI RELEASE (JAZZ). MICKEY WAS VERY NICE. HE ALSO WAS SURPRISED & APPRECIATIVE OF MY FAMILIARITY OF HIS WORK. AT THIS POINT, I WAS OVERHEATED & HAD TAKEN LOTS OF PHOTOS. I THEN SPOT KEITH SCOTT SITTING SEVERAL ROWS UP IN THE SEATS WITH ABOUT A DOZEN PEOPLE. NOT WANTING TO ANNOY HIM, I ASKED IF I COULD TAKE HIS PICTURE. LIKE A ROCK- N-ROLL SANTA CLAUS, HE SAID...WHY DON'T YOU COME UP HERE & HAVE THE PHOTO TAKEN WITH US TOGETHER. I QUICKLY HAD MY PAL JIM HURRY UP THE STAIRS TO JUMP IN THE SHOT. KEITH SAID THAT THE GUY THAT TOOK OUR PHOTO WAS HIS BROTHER-IN-LAW. I SAID, YEAH...YOU JUST GOT MARRIED RIGHT? HE SAID YEAH, MY IN-LAWS LIVE IN SAN DIEGO. KEITH SAID, YOU'RE THE GUY THAT SUGGESTED THAT WE MOVE HERE RIGHT? I SAID YEAH, YOU CAN ALWAYS STAY AT MY PLACE. HE SAID WE'LL DEFINITELY BE BACK TO SAN DIEGO. ********** Review
by Debbie Seagle (Rock n World): Bryan
Adams has come back to the North American music scene, beginning with a string
of charity concerts in December of 1998 and continuing now with his stint as the
opening Best known for classic rock anthems of the 80s (Cuts Like a Knife, Summer of 69, Can't Stop This Thing We Started) and dramatic movie theme songs (The Three Musketeers, Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, Don Juan DeMarco), Adams has spent recent years touring in Europe, where he is consistently in the top 10 on the European and UK charts. His duet with Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm, "When You're Gone" has occupied one of the top five chart spots in several countries. A veteran member of the A&M stable in North America for almost 20 years, some say Adams has been a victim of the record label upheavals and suffered a severe lack of promotion because of it. Opting for the sure bet in Europe has been his standard for a number of years, but with the reorganization of his label and the re-release of his last CD, "On A Day Like Today" in early 1999, things might be changing for the groover from Vancouver. Although there is talk of his presence at the European summer music festivals, there is also rumor of a full United States tour in the fall of this year. If the reception he has received at his most recent US gigs is any indication, those fans could be seeing much more of Bryan Adams in the future. At a recent solo gig in San Diego, California, Adams wisely chose a set list that included mostly hard driving rockers and upbeat pop tunes. Although his hallmark hits were what hooked the audience and invited them to join the party, the pop tunes from his latest effort kept the momentum of the concert moving right along. His presence was that of an innocent mop top with a sexy little story to tell. He chatted shyly with the audience between songs, saying that he would much rather be "here with them" than sitting in his hotel room between Rolling Stone gigs. His usual 5-6 piece band has been trimmed to a trio, with Adams on base, Mickie Curry on drums and Keith Scott on lead/rhythm. Although this set up lacks some of the depth heard in the larger version, their solid musicianship enabled them to pull it off, where others might have failed. As an added treat, the band stayed on stage for 30 minutes after the end of the concert, signing autographs and meeting the fans. More the norm in the European music scene, this gesture seemed to tell the audience "I'm glad to be back," and made his long absence from the US concert circuit a thing of the past. Setlist: | |||
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