From: dsle@cbnewsj.cb.att.com (david.s.lerner)
Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead
Subject: PK & Wooden Ships Review from Phila 11/6
Date: 7 Nov 92 16:54:07 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: AT&T


Paul Kantner and Wooden Ships at 23 East Cabaret, Phila PA 11/6/92


I drove 75 miles to go to this show all by myself, as my friends were not
interested in going. Too bad for them. Acoustic Paul is as good as it gets.

This cabaret is very small, holds maybe 200 people. However, only 40 people
showed up for the show. PK & Wooden Ships is now just Paul and Tim Gorman.
No Slick on lead. I knew this was going to be special because it was Paul's 
1st gig since the election and I knew he would have a few words to say about it.

The opening act was a 3 girl band, that was mostly vocals. Not much to see.

Paul came on at 11:05 PM and immediately started rapping about Bush and how
happy he was to see them lose. He also admitted he was in bad voice as it had
been a month since he last sang. (IMO, his tobacco habit hurts his voice)

Anyway, here's the setlist, followed by review of the songs and the gossip I
got after the show when I was backstage.
 
Light (new Paul song)
Wooden Ships
The Mountains Song
Crown of Creantion
I'm On Fire
Castillio Poem (Last Tuesday)
Shadowlands
We Should Be Together
Peggy-O (or Fennario as some call it)
Castillio Poem #2 (For the Good of All)
America
Poem #3 (Get Ready)
Blows suite

enc #1: Other Side of This Life
        Show Me the Way To Go Home
    
enc#2 - Poem #4 (The Original Ancestor)
        Volunteers

This bar was very cool, Tables with candles on each one, waitress service for
the cold Heinkens, and such a small crowd made it was very intimate.
Plus, I was friends with the only guy taping the show. I'll have a copy soon.
Tickets were only $10, and with 40 people, I doubt the bar made any money. 
I still don't get it, why do the crowds stay away?

Paul thought he knew where he was and thanked everyone who came to his 
Phila Be-In last month during the rainstorm. Too bad the show was in Camden, NJ
and the crowd made he realize this. He said he didn't care, he only knew about
California. South Jersey and Phila are very close anyway. 

He talked about how the deficit had become the new American issue to rally 
against these days now that the Republicans and their family values are no
longer the main issue. Before Peggy-O, he mentioned that this was a Civil War
song (I never knew this). But, the best was the ending of Blows when he changed
the words from "no more war" to "no more Bush". This Bush loss is as big a
victory to him (and to me) as when Nixon resigned.

After the show ended, he and Tim just sat on the stage and signed autographs. I
had him sign a really cool picture I got from a netfriend at a San Jose gig.
He looked at it and really complimented the picture. Tim saw it and said
that Paul must have about 25 shirts with that logo on it as if he buys them in
bulk. 

Paul mentioned to us that they are still trying to put on the BLOWS cast
re-union show on Pay-Per-View at the Oakland Coliseum. But, bad things keep 
occuring to prevent it, First the promoter died (Bill G.), then Jerry gets
sick (it was supposed to be in October), and now they are shooting for next
year when the Dead and Starship are free. He also said that another Airplane
tour may also occur, if he can get Jorma to agree. He said Grace and Marty want
to do it.

This solo Wooden Ships tour was just something to polish new songs that they
hope to put on a new album. Atlantic records and 2 other companies may sign
Starship soon for a CD. Tim told me that until they put out a CD, that many
clubs and theaters won't book the band.

While everyone gathered around Paul, I got 10 minutes alone with Tim. I told
him that I really *loved* the new Starship and I felt bad that only
40 people came to see them tonight. I also told him that the publicity for
this tour and other Starship tours was minimal and resulted in the small crowd.
He agreed. He told me that Dennis McNally is now the Starship publicist, it
was previously done by Paul's girlfrind/wife. Tim and I got along real well,
as I went over the shows I had seen him in (Airplane, Wooden Ships, Starship).
I gave hime my business card (AT&T) and he gave me his. I mentioned that I had
soundboards from the summer tour and he said he didn't hane any tapes at all.
(I think I'll send hime some.) He also asked me to call their agents and
complain about the lack of publicity these 3 shows (Phila, Wetlands, D.C. on
Sunday).  Tim also told me that when he was with the Airplane tour, he turned
down a Who tour thinking the Airplane was going to take off. He explained to me
why the JA came apart again. The music industry sucks sometimes.

In meantime, we somehow drifted backstage. Here it was 30 minutes after the
show had ended and we were all now backstage chattering and doing things that
normally occur backstage. It was like a dream for me. Hanging with Paul,
reviewing old shows from the 70s I saw him in, talking about the music industry
to Tim, and I just realized that today (11/7) was my kid's 3rd birthday and I 
had a long 90 minute drive home from a place I had never came home from. 
We were there for a whole hour and I was getting tired.

Suddenly, Paul's words came into my head " "Show Me the way to go home, 
I'm tired and I want to go to bed. I had a little drink about an hour ago and 
it went straight to my head......". I knew I had to leave if I was going to
stay awake. The band was leaving anyway, we closed the bar.

All in all, it was a pleasant evening. I'm typing this on 4 hours sleep and
still flashbacking to that backstage moment. It wasn't a dream, I have their
autographs and Tim's card to prove it. The funniest thing was that Paul 
remembered me from past meetings. I'll never forget last night. Starship is
coming back to the East in Feb-March for a quick tour, hopefully they will have
come out with a CD by then. Paul told me he had 4 new songs in the works. Go
see this tour (tonight at the Wetlands in NYC, tommorrow in D.C.). You will
have a good time. I did.


Dave
Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead