Crowded House, Mountain Winery, Pt.4

So there we sit, exhaling the last gasps of stress from the ordeal of our long road, our triumphs and reversals, the hard decisions made, costs paid and efforts expended just to get to see a rock show. And we made it in time! And it's just about perfect.

Twilight is waning as we look out from the mountaintop amphitheater, the scattered clouds oddly bright above a twinkling valley. The night air is clear and the stars are coming out. The band takes the stage.

They open with "There Goes God." I'm losing my mind, necessarily. Crowded House had been my favorite band at the point when they called it quits in '96. So when they announced the reunion...I was hopeful, but doubtful. Was this going to expand their legacy, or tarnish it? Will they really be Crowded House? I was hopeful enough to get tix for successive nights, but I had some serious worry as well. What if they "ain't got it no more"? Plus, the night hadn't exactly gone so well so far. It would look like just my luck for them to show up and bring the suck. So when they come out all cocky and scornful and plant that slinky, arabesque guitar riff smack in the middle of my forehead - and they clearly DO STILL GOT IT - I'm just ecstatic, goofy with relief. With joy - it was like having an old friend move back into your life! But the person I'm with, she's never seen this band. Vaguely familiar with their "hit." Doesn't know 'em otherwise. Will she like it?

I chance a sideways glance to appraise her reaction: she's got as wide a smile as I have! Both our smiles widen. "It's good!", she says, her eyes lit up - possibly surprised that it's good, but with definitely no doubt about it.

I had forgotten the feeling you get when you introduce a good friend whose opinion you respect to something you love, and she loves it too. It must be something like the feeling a Christian evangelist gets, when they spread that Good News. Wow, what a great feeling! That must be why they do it! As the band hits the refrain of "There Goes God", she laughs out loud for the first time (it is a pretty funny refrain). From there on, the rest of the show is golden.

Five songs in, "Fall At Your Feet" hits like a magic spell; the moon is coming out round and golden from behind the trees, and Neil has us howling at it! At the end of the song, he actually instructs us to turn around and sing at the moon - an impromptu singalong of the "finger of blame..." bridge, with the crowd's attempts at the falsetto "I fallllllllll" high note providing the howl. Yet I have to admit to myself, the crowd is in pretty good voice! I know I am. I have what I like to characterize as an inimitable Neil Finn impression.

And the show continues. Number after number...brilliant. I'm impressed by how well the material from the new album is coming across - and how heavily they're leaning on it (by the end of the night they will have played six songs off the new album). Normally this is not a good sign, since most of the crowd for a reunion show is there to hear the oldies. But they are nailing these tracks, and totally rearranging my opinion of the album for me. My prior 1-listen opinion was, "nice." Now, sitting here hearing the same songs go over, my opinion has been upgraded to "NIIIIIIICE!!" The new songs are positively throttling me with gorgeousness (particularly "Silent House" and "People Are Like Suns," but everything is great, really). And I keep checking to my left for my friend's reaction - a reality check, just to make sure I haven't completely lost my objectivity. But it's no good: because we both have.

By the time "Something So Strong" starts, ("Hey! I know this one!") she's actually singing along a little bit! And she is a person who does not sing (dunno why, she's got a lovely enough voice). It might be the wine. We're not driving home, so we decided to try a couple different bottles of "red," and by now we're deep in the merlot (which I liked a little better than the syrah). And after a knockout rendition, they leave the stage to huge applause...

...and return quickly enough, to kick off a stellar 6-song encore! "Locked Out" rocks out. "She Called Up" hearkens back almost to Neil's days in Split Enz (and am I the only one to notice Neil starts out the song singing a snippet from the Klaxons' "Golden Skans"?...as Nick swings his glowstick in true nu-rave form!). "Weather With You" - wow. They had to play this. Beautiful in this setting, under the stars with the chiming of the guitar part and the glorious harmonies. It sounds like the whole crowd is singing!

I'm singing the Tim harmony part. Because Tim wasn't able to make it.

And then, "Fingers of Love." I have never heard it sound so great, almost threatening in its sexiness. Ooo, goosepimples, goosepimples. And then, "She Goes On" - and I'm crying! Sad, sad, sad song.

During the final number, "Four Seasons In One Day", the much-threatened curfew kicks in, and the power is abruptly cut. But flouting the venue's affluent neighbors, Neil forges on - inciting the crowd into a long singalong finale of "Four Seasons" that tacks on a quick run-through of the coda to "Better Be Home Soon" for good measure!

And then we're running to catch a cab, and I'm wondering how tomorrow's show can possibly top all this.