Andy and I were blessed to witness one of the best shows of the year at the rather stiff Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto. Making their second visit in as many years (we'll forgive them for the 11 year absence before that) Manchester's James gave us another stellar show. It began with a half acoustic version of Sit Down as Tim and Larry entered the theatre from the back of the room, drawing our attention away from the empty stage, only to hear the band break in half way through as Tim and Larry joined the rest of James on a now full stage.
The night overflowed with highlights including a sic version of Jam J from the Wah Wah album. That one totally caught me off guard. The only disappointment was the exclusion of anything from the Millionaires album (my personal favorite) which i quickly pointed out to Tim Booth in a chat we had after the show.
During said conversation with Mr. Booth, I asked him what the deal is with Downstairs (an amazing b-side from the Millionaires sessions). To my surprise, he had no idea what song i was speaking of. He apologized softly but was simply stumped even after i sang a snippet of the chorus for him. Much to his credit, the rest of the band also seemed a little hazy on the song, though Saul Davies gave a rather colourful description of those sessions, which may explain why the song has faded into a self-imposed haze. It's too bad really because Downstairs is probably the most rockin' song the band ever recorded.
Credit to old Jizzoey (aka Andy) for working the after party. Great job mate.
