Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs Live At Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Atlanta, GA
There are many great reasons to stay in and around the Atlanta area, but for me, one of the best things is the number of fantastic musical artists that pass through here every year. That combined with a climate that allows for many of those concerts to be of the outdoor variety makes for a very nice life for the music lover.
Over the weekend my wife Penny and I had the opportunity to attend the live show of one of our favorite musicians, at least one that we can both agree on for once. Our musical tastes differ greatly, but Ray LaMontagne, with a voice that can soothe the soul, is one that bridges that gap beautifully.
Now, before I talk about the performance, please understand that this is not going to be like your standard concert review. Instead, I’d like to share a couple of experiences from the night that will add a more personal touch to the whole piece, I hope you don’t mind.
Let me start by taking a little bit of a shot at Ticketmaster; we had decided to buy tickets in advance, but the seats available on the TM website were not that great and the fees were astronomical ($112.50 for 2 tix stuck somewhere near the back). Deciding to take a bit of a gamble, we headed down to the venue and after a quick deal at the box office, received 2 tickets in the second row for a grand total of $120. Perhaps it’s just me, but that seems like a little bit of gouging on the part of the Ticketmaster folks.
The outdoor setting of the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater is wonderful, and after picking up a pair of $12 beers, Penny and I settled in for the opening act, The Secret Sisters, a twentysomething duo from Alabama who charmed the sparse crowd of early arrivals with an acoustic set of originals alongside some old country numbers. These girls proved they could sing, especially when they belted out an old Patsy Cline number in perfect harmony.
During the break, we headed to the t-shirt tent where Penny picked out a reasonably priced tour shirt, while I was informed that the sizes didn’t go as large as 2X. Either Ray has a super slim following, or I have to cut back on my beer intake; deciding the former was the case, we found a rival beer vendor selling their wares for only $10 a pop.
Next up was Brandi Carlile, and after a brief argument about her age, which I won after Penny realized she was thinking about Belinda Carlisle of the Go-Go’s fame, we were thoroughly entertained by Miss Carlile who put on a rocking good show that really got the crowd warmed up in a big way. You could really tell that she and her band have played together for a while and they seemed to feed off the energy from the crowd; we would definitely go see her again as a headliner, as her set finished just as it seemed to be gaining real steam.
At this point the venue was packed and security had been beefed up along the front of the stage, a move we thought rather odd for an artist whose musical style is laid back and folksy. One of the security ladies was the absolute double of Jane Lynch’s character from Glee, which set Penny and I off on a bit of a giggling jag. Our little row of seats seemed to be made up of people who couldn’t decide whether to stay or go, and we were up and down more often than the stock market, a move that did not fill me with joy.
Penny placated me by getting the next round of beers in, and then it was time for the show. Ray LaMontagne has always been known as a bit of an awkwardly shy soul, and that was reflected in the set-up of the stage, with his microphone stand off to one side and facing more towards the band than the audience. That oddity was forgotten the moment he opened his mouth and let loose the opening line to Burn, quickly followed by For The Summer. It was at this point that an obnoxiously drunk fellow in our row started screaming, “You have a beautiful heart Ray,” which led to a rather dapper dressed gentleman in the front row threatening to haul him out by the neck. Security stepped in as madness ensued around us, while on stage, Ray sung the one song I had been really hoping he would play, which was Beg, Steal, or Borrow. Things calmed down after that, although the drunk chap did make several more glorious appearances, and the rest of the show went off without incident.
It was a brilliant night under the stars, sitting snuggled up to my beautiful wife, both of us carried away by the timbre and tone of Mr. LaMontagne’s voice.
The show ended with a blistering rendition of Henry Nearly Killed Me, which had people on their feet dancing to the beat, and then Ray returned for a solo acoustic encore that finished the evening off perfectly.
It truly was one of the best shows I have attended in quite some time, and for those of you who are not familiar with Ray LaMontagne, may I suggest that you take a moment to get to know him.
John Watson splits his time between work that pays the bills, and writing which is his true love. As a Scotsman living in the deep south, he is forced to write in order to be understood. John currently resides in the Atlanta area with wife, Penny, a regional chef. You can read more of his work by visiting his blog at TheInkedWriter.com
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