What a weekend...!
I thought I would share my Peter Frampton and Doobie Brothers experience with you fine folks. ;) So, without further ado...
Me, Jonny and Yvonner pre-concert night!
Usually I don't write about my concert-going adventures due to overwhelming laziness, but last night's shenaningans absolutely NEED to be documented in the form of an all-important (and historically accurate) LiveJournal entry. ;)
Last night I took Vonner (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
vonner4) to go see Peter Frampton and the Doobie Brothers in concert at the Ironstone Vineyards in Murphy, Caifornia for her 23rd birthday. Last year we both went to see Peter Frampton in concert in Stockton at the Bob Hope Theater in honor of her 22nd, so we figured we'd keep the tradition alive. ;)
Anyhoo!
First thing's first - we simply HAD to get gussied up to see The Framp. One cannot be in his presence looking like an asshat, as that would be an insult to His Frampness. So get gussied up we did!
Cheeky monkeys, take one!
Squinty McSquintsalot and Squintmaster T.
Bueno! Off to total FRAMPTION and DOOBIFICATION!
So, before Vonner made her way to my house to join me in the Epic Trek to Murphy's, I utilized the ever-useful Google Maps feature to figure out the quickest route to our ultimate destination. Little did I know, however, the route we were going to take was going to be ridiculously windy and perilous, with plenty of opportunities to get up close and personal with , gigantic rocks and ditches. Booo curvy roads, booo!
Oh, to top it off, all these little highways were composed of two (rather narrow) lanes. All along them there were tiny backwater towns and ragtag churches interspersed at random intervals in the middle of BFN. Seriously, you could HEAR the banjo music eminating from these houses and smell the opossum stew... Yikes. Way to go Kelly, that's what you get for NOT taking Highway 99. Bzuhhh!
Oh well, it was all in the good name of Peter Frampton and the Doobie Brothers! Tally ho!
But oh, the Epic Trek to Ironstone Vineyards didn't end there at the backwater BFN roads.
As I mentioned above, I had Google Maps map out the quickest route to the vineyard. Apparently I was TOO AWESOME to take the regular peon directions from the Ironstone Vineyards website, you see. Wellsir, it turns out the Six Mile Road (actual name) we took to get to the vineyard was about 1 mile of paved road, and 5 miles of JAGGED TERRAIN.
Okay, maybe it wasn't the sort of jagged terrain they use as a backdrop for Hummer advetisements, but a straight up dutsy arse dirt road with a cornucopia of potholes, rocks, hills, dips and obstables highly unsuited to the wheels of a Honda Civic. The BEST part about this section of road was that there was little to no signs of civilization, and our cell phones didn't get any reception. So, if the Honda had eaten it, we pretty much would've been gonners. Eaten alive by coyotes and opossums, we would've been.
Luckily, Hondas are pretty versatile little cars, so after about 20 minutes on this tedious road, Ironstone Vineyards appeared on the horizon! ;) Suffice to say, we were relieved to see other cars and people once again!
So we made our way to the parking lot, sorted our purses, wallets, other items, and hoofed it to the vineyard entrance to wait in line for the concert.
Vonner is totally pumped.
After about 15 minutes, we were ushured into the amphitheater and to our seats in Section B, Row 5.
They were AMAZING seats.
Basically, we would just about be able to see up Peter Frampton's nose.
A satisfied customer.
Some jerk with a big head.
We were seated at about 6:45, so we had a little under a half an hour to wait for the show to start.
Or so we thought...
Basically, we were under the impression that the concert was slated to start at 7:30. Instead, a charming bloke named Matt Moon opened for Peter Frampton and the Doobie Brothers. The guy sort of sounded like Jason Mraz of "The Remedy" fame with sort of a Dave Matthews folksy flair. His music and guitar playing skills were solid, and we appreciated them, but it was FAR too laid back for the rocking out Vonner and I planned to do once Peter Frampton took the stage half an hour later.
And take the strage The Framp did, welcomed by thunderous applause and zealous cheering from the peanut gallery!
Needless to say, Vonner and I were absolutley THRILLED to see Peter again! We both agreed that he is one of the only wee English musicians that could be by himself on the stage with only his guitar and OWN the audience without even trying. He was THAT cool. I tried to document his guitar godliness once or twice with my camera, but I was too far away to get a steady shot and couldn't figure out how to switch to my night settings. Sadface!
Apparently, my dreams of becoming a rock photographer end here.
Fortunately, however, I was able to figure out how to film a quick movie with my camera, which turned out to capture more than just The Framp. ;)
I didn't know this at the time, but about 11 seconds in, when Peter moves to his talk box, Vonner, in usual Vonner fashion, yells out, "OH THAT'S SO AWESOME! I DIDN'T KNOW THAT'S HOW IT WORKED! AHHHAH!!!"
Pretty much, that was the tone for the entire night. Capturing that moment absolutely made the Epic Trek and seats to the show worth their weight in gold. ;)
Continuing on, if I tried to type out just how amazing the rest of Peter Frampton's set was, I'd be writing an entire novel here. Suffice to say, it kicked 10 types of arse, and Vonner and I will be more than happy to tell you the details if you see us in person. Ask us why Peter Frampton "cracks himself up", or about the party in room 420. ;)
His Frampness rocked our faces off, basically.
And after a brief interlude and stage change, it was time for some DOOBIFICATION!
Dual drum sets and a quick rearranging of instruments...
Now, I've always enjoyed the Doobie Brothers' music. "Black Water" happens to be one of my favorite songs of all time. I have to admit though, I didn't think they were going to rock nearly as hard as Peter Frampton...
But boy howdy, fellas, was I ever wrong... To compare The Framp to the Doobie Brothers is like comparing apples to oranges, since they absolutely held their own in rockitude when they took the stage!
They gave 110% to each song they played, and they were amazing to watch and dance to. Seriously, Vonner and I had never seen such limber older men leaping and jumping and bending and swaying around on stage so much! There was seriously no other explanation for their enthusiam and gusto other than crack. Superhuman, genetically-enhanced, crack.
Whatever the explanation, we were absolutely thrilled to hear "Listen To The Music", "China Grove" and "Black Water" live... Just ask Vonner, I practically flew across the amphitheater and hollered when the opening chords to "Black Water" started. ;) Way too much excitement in one night. It was a trip! Both of us were singing, dancing, hollering and generally being obnoxious, rowdy concert going kids amongst the older generation. I'm sure on some level they appreciated our enthusiam, though. ;)
But alas, all good things must come to an end. The Doobie Brothers wrapped up their set, and the crowd headed on out. After the venue cleared, Vonner and I took the opportunity to take a post DOOBIFICATION shot.
High on good music.
You can't see it, but we tried to capture the stage and mess left behind by the concert goers in the background. It didn't work, but hey, we tried. ;)
Annnd... There a small epic tale having to do with the way we got home, including more preilous curvy roads, one long arse road back into Stockon, hanging out with the hoodrats at In n' Out at 1:30AM on March Lane, and the seven chins debacle... But that's a tale for another day. ;)
The end!
