Rain Or Shine : Iron & Wine & The Swell Season

While typically in Los Angeles, the words "rain or shine" on a ticket means nothing - last night the thought of it raining while seeing a show at The Greek had me wondering, do I go? The parking is questionable with the stacked lots - that when you go there, there is no leaving before the show ends. So not knowing if the day's light rain would continue through the night....I was taking a risk to go sit under the stars to be held captive by the car lot. It may have been cold, but thanks to my hat and my down coat, I was cozy listening to the sweet songs by Iron & Wine & songs from the Motion Picture "Once" by The Swell Season. The audience was already rambunctious as Iron & Wine started their set. Yelling their "I love You's" and other inaudible yet distracting nonsense. Sam Beam, the lead singer of Iron & Wine was trying to be kind in his responses and telling of stories to the audience....but the crowd just got crazier through the night.


Somehow this guy was confused what show he was going to - must have thought it was Elvis night at The Greek. I hope he has recovered.

When Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova walked on stage - I couldn't help but ask myself, does Marketa really have a child and she is back with her husband? Did Glen find his girlfriend and have success in London? It's hard to separate my vision of them from their characters in "Once".The crowd was yelling things to the band - but it was distracting and continued to interrupt the stories of the songs that Glen tried to tell. It was their time to shine. The last time they had been in Los Angeles was when the movie was up for an Academy Award and they told of the tales and people they encountered on that journey. They thanked their friends that gave them shelter during the month of their stay, and then invited Richard Sherman on stage to perform a song he wrote in the 60's for Mary Poppins - Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious . In a coincidence of timing, Anne Hathaway performed a skit of the song on SNL - http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/mary-poppins/727503/ . It was quite a show with members of Glen's other band, The Frames, performing with The Swell Season.
For a band who only had one album, the show was long, but like a sweet lullaby.
Set list: Into the Mystic (Van Morrison cover) / Falling Slowly / The Moon / When Your Minds Made Up / This Low / I Have Loved You Wrong / Say It to Me Now / Astral Weeks (Van Morrison cover) / Back Broke / Happiness / Maybe I Was Born to Hold You in These Arms / Low Rising / Lies (with ‘Once’ director and former Frame John Carney on bass)

Encore: The Hill / If You Want Me / The Blue Shoes (solo by violinist Colm MacConIomaire) / Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (with songwriter Richard Sherman on piano and vocals) / Out on the Weekend (Neil Young cover, with Sam Beam of Iron & Wine on vocals) / Fitzcarraldo / People Get Ready