16 Years Ago Today

16 years ago today I headed to the Township Auditorium to see a band I had only been listening to for a 4 or 5 month period. I had no expectations. I entered the venue with only a sense of wonder about the evening. Up to this point I had only heard a handful of tapes including Sacremento 3-22-93, Lawnboy, and the newly acquired Hoist.

I remember being able to stand and hold my arms out and still not touch anyone. It didn't seem to be very crowded, yet I still felt like I was part of something bigger. It's a difficult thing to describe. The one feeling I keep going back to was amazement. I realized that night I had found something I didn't even know I was looking for.

I was lucky enough to get a recording of the show that very evening, which blew me away. That started my collecting years, but more importantly, it allowed me to relive those moments right away. I could go right back to the tape and verify that my mind had, in fact, been blown.

Since then, shows have come and gone. I have made new friends, traveled to new places, met my wife (a story for another anniversary), and now have a son with show stats of his own. I, like everyone else, witnessed the downward spiral into Coventry, and the subsequent rebirth of that thing we all love so much.

With all that behind me I will walk into my first show 2010 again with a sense of awe and wonder...and no expectations.

Friday, 04/22/1994  Township Auditorium, Columbia, SC

Set 1: Llama, Horn, Uncle Pen, Punch You In the Eye, Sample in a Jar, All Things Reconsidered, Nellie Kane, The Divided Sky, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, David Bowie

Set 2: Suzy Greenberg, Julius, Reba, Tweezer, Lifeboy, Runaway Jim, Hold Your Head Up > I Wanna Be Like You > Hold Your Head Up, The Squirming Coil

Encore: Piano Duet[1] Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home?[2]

[1] Dr. Jack McConnell on piano.
[2] Dr. Jack McConnell on piano and lead vocals.
Notes: The encore featured Page’s father, Dr. Jack McConnell, on piano and lead vocals.

4-22-94 Full Show Mp3s - Mediafire / Megaupload