Concert Diaries ~ Chapter 27: Reading ... The Road Trip

About a month ago, someone I work with asked me if I'd like tickets to see Gavin DeGraw in Reading, Pennsylvania, about an hour and a half or so from me. Someone she knew had won them through a radio station and didn't want them.  I hadn't considered Reading because it was originally scheduled for April 1, was a work night and I already had tickets for several other dates that week.  But the concert had been rescheduled for May 10 because Gavin and the band opened for Billy Joel in Cleveland on that date.  Did I want the tickets?  Of course.  Last row is better than no row, right?

Through a series of events and amazing concert karma (which I may write about later), the tickets grew and multiplied until these two tickets became five and I wound up in the second row within arm's length of the stage.

Because this was a rescheduled show from the spring tour, Gavin's traveling companions on this tour (Rozzie Crane and Parachute) were unable to appear with him.  Several weeks before the show it was announced that Ryan Star, another New York singer/songwriter would be the opening act.  As it turned out, Ryan was also appearing in Wilmington, Delaware earlier that same day.  And that is how it happened that we--Sandy, Phyllis and I--set out around 8 in the morning for the Wilmington Flower Market on a hot day in May.   We would meet up with more Ryan Star fans in Delaware and even more Gavin fans in Reading.  

We found the flower market easily enough after a fun ride south.  Sandy is a huge fan of both Gavin and Ryan so she gave us a tutorial on Ryan's catalog (I had listened to his newest album and one other but didn't really know all the songs that well).  The flower market is a carnival, craft show and music festival all in one with locally grown flowers, shrubs and vegetables being sold at the same time.  We wandered into the vast food area and opted for sandwiches from the grilled cheese truck before picking a spot in the wide open space in front of the stage.  The crowd for the music was pretty sparse--it was early and the weather early on had been iffy--although it was now sunny and mostly clear.  But there were scattered pockets of people dotting the lawn--music lovers, fans of Ryan Star, curious people wandering about with tomato plants and hanging baskets and families with children.  The Wilimington Flower Market ... eclectic.  Fun.

I enjoyed the group that played ahead of Ryan Star.  You know me ... any band with different instrumentation always gets my attention. Local band Angelee, with guitar, cello, violin and percussion and pretty harmony on the vocals, played some original songs and covered some well-known tunes as well.

Ryan Star's energetic set was short; I'd have like to have heard more.  He played several songs from new his album, Angels and Animals and told some stories about the songs.  I always love hearing the artist's personal stories about how they came to write their songs; it gives you much better insight into what they are tying to communicate.  He played my favorite, Breathe, from the last album.  No backing band today ... just Ryan's very powerful voice and his guitar.  I was glad we'd made the trip.  After his set, Ryan hung around, signing CDs and taking pictures.  Another charming, generous artist, he joked with fans and spent quite a lot of time with everyone before disappearing to talk to the radio folks.

We wandered the grounds for a while indulging in gelato, looking at the crafts and perusing the plants before starting off on the second leg of the trip.  It was an easy ride to Reading and we arrived with plenty of time for dinner before the show.  Not knowing the area, a chain seemed like a safe bet so we pulled into Olive Garden and stayed for a while to kill time.  We still had a hour before the show and since it was a  seated venue, no need for long waits in line so we opted to wait in the bar next to the theater until it was time to go in.  We met up with Kristin there and were waiting for Tina and Frankie who were still en route.  Soon enough, however, they did arrive and we all found our seats, now somewhat scattered around the orchestra level.  Tina figures largely in my story of ticket karma (for another day).

This was the third converted movie palace I've been in recently.  It was a beautiful space--perfect for Gavin's show. Ryan played a little longer I think in his opening set for Gavin--much of the same setlist as we'd heard earlier in the day but the energy of the room gave his already energetic performance even more of a boost.  I would have loved to have heard those songs with his band behind him.  Ryan is a solid entertainer who obviously cares about his fans and leaves nothing behind on the stage.

There was the customary break between bands.  No second opener this time out so the next time the light dimmed, it was the now-familiar tension of the opening of the Make A Move tour--the last time we'd hear these particular chords and driving rhythm.  Band members taking their places--as it turned out, a bittersweet moment, which I wouldn't know until two weeks later.  And then, Gavin DeGraw.  I think I write here in an attempt to understand what it is about this particular artist, out of all the musical artists there are in the world, what it is about him that captures my attention in such a visceral way.  It's so personal and yet so many of us feel the same thing.

We were in sitting within touching distance of the huge speakers on the right side of the stage.  I could physically feel the music as it was amplified through them to the rest of the room.  Pounding and loud, I embraced the physicality of the experience and just let go.  I took far fewer pictures than usual and just enjoyed every note and nuance of each song--the setlist now memorized, I knew how this concert would unfold.

Even though they had played the Garden the previous night and surely must have been tired from the tour's fairly relentless schedule, the energy on the stage reflected what we've come to expect from Gavin and his band:  heart-stopping mix of thrills--both from the ballads and the hard-rocking numbers that find him covering the stage and seemingly reaching out individually to every person in the room.  Between the songs are the stories--I love hearing the laughter of the people who've not heard these before.  And even though I know what's coming next, he manages to put a slightly new spin on his biographical tales every time.

We didn't have the optimal sight lines even though we were so close.  I could barely see Ian O'Neill, the drummer as the piano was between us and the angle, and perhaps my short-statured-ness--didn't allow for a clear view.  I'm rather sorry about this now ... We heard this week that Ian has moved on and will no longer be drumming for Gavin.  It's a most unreal side effect of social media that you come to feel as though you really know someone and count them as a part of your life because you so often are aware of where they are and what they're doing, sometimes multiple times during a day.  It gives one a sense that you really know a person, when in reality, all you know is what bits they choose to reveal and perhaps, that's not even real.  However, with Ian, I think the bits he revealed were his truth and he seems like a genuinely nice and obviously gifted and talented person.  To say that fans are sad at this news would be an understatement.  I know we all wish every possible success for his future endeavors and know that the possibilities for him are bright and numerous.


There were so many fans at this show that I've come to know, mostly through Twitter but some through Facebook too.  It's the happiest of the side affects of being a member of a fandom--to instantly be able to connect with all sorts of people from literally everywhere and have instant common ground from which to build a relationship.  I was so happy to meet several of my friends in person for the first time and reconnect with many others.

As always, as the encore portion of the show drew closer, I had that feeling of wistfulness that signaled the end.  I always want more or to know that the next show would not be too far off.  And for me, it's not.  I'll be at the next Billy Joel concert in Madison Square Garden in June.  Gavin will be opening for him.  I won't be in the front row but I'll be in the room with two consummate piano men.  And that will be enough.


















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Ryan Star, Breathe, Santander Performing Arts Center, Reading







Gavin DeGraw, Rumor Has It/Every Little Bit - with some good footage of our much-loved drummer, Ian O'Neil and guitarist Billy Norris's solo.

Billy Norris

James Cruz