Rain, Rain, Rain Down On Me
Last night was surreal. It was a night of many firsts. The first time in at least a decade that I've purchased lawn seats for a DMB show. The first time, ever, that I've been evacuated from a venue due to severe lightening. And the first time in seventeen years that I heard "Granny" live. Actually, it was also the first time I've ever heard "Granny" full- band, as the only other time I witnessed my all-time- favorite song was during a Dave and Tim show. Also, it was the first time that "Granny" has been played in Charlotte since 1996! 19-90-freaking-six!!
Okay, I'm breathing, and here's what happened. So, there I was, on the lawn, with my husband, waiting for the band to play, when we noticed some lightening and rain. "No problem," we said to ourselves, as the rain became more of a downpour. We only started to worry when an announcer came onstage and asked for everyone's attention. And then required that everyone with lawn seats evacuate to their cars! This was not a possibility, since our car was parked exceptionally far away, and I'm pretty sure I saw some cats and dogs falling from the sky at that point. So, we did what most people did. Huddled under tiny, little roofs, awnings, or unusually tall people.
And then the rumors started. From the way the announcer spoke, it sounded like he said that the concert would go on without the lawn participants. People thought that they heard the band playing, although hearing anything through the rain was virtually impossible. A funny commentary on the digital age, we all tried, in vain, to get our phones to work so that we could check dmbalmanac to see if the set started. Still, even squished between too many soaked fans, I just knew that Dave and the boys would never do us that way.
I don't even know what time it was when the concert started, but, luckily, my husband and I had decided, on a whim, to get back on the lawn a few minutes prior. It was still pouring, but the lightening seemed to have passed, so we made the best of what was around. And suddenly, the band appeared! I said, "They better start with JTR after all that," and they did give us a tease! And then, four songs in, amidst the pouring rain, those first few notes of "Granny" fell upon me like a lightening bolt. The good kind, not the kind that strikes you dead. And at that moment, I thanked God that we hadn't given up earlier.
The rest of the set was fantastic. I got the very real feeling that the band was treating us even a little better, if that's possible, for our hardiness. "41," "Crazy Easy," "Long Black Veil," "Kit Kat Jam," and of course the "Two Step-Ants-Halloween," closer were all out of this world. The set was changed up a little due to the delay, but somehow DMB was able to make the rain disappear like doubts. By the end of the night, just a few clouds scattered the sky. Only the memories, the magic, and the mud remained. But if not for the mud, I might have wondered if it ever happened at all.
Hayley Bauman, Psy.D.