Simon at the House of Blues and his new CD EP "Ages"

[Wdbedzyk@aol.com]

I realize this is a bit late and although some people have already posted 
reviews of the show, I will still add my observations. It is easy to get 
caught up in the current Who hysteria (and rightly so), but Simon has always 
been an
outstanding performer that has written some great songs. Fortunately, he is 
playing a couple of shows in early July, the first being last Sunday at the 
House of Blues in Cambridge (Boston).

Well, for those of you unfortunate folks that missed this first show, you 
missed another great performance. As stated on his website, he has taken an 
opportunity to revamp his setlist and revitalize the show. To this extent, 
Simon played about one half the show electric and the other half acoustic 
(but of course his heart and soul were put into this show as they are into 
every one of his shows). This worked very well as did the new setlist. He 
added a couple cover songs (London Calling (!!) by The Clash as well as 
Daughter by Pearl Jam),  played some prearranged requests and older material 
and played a nice selection of his very new material. I was quite impressed 
with the setlist (see below) and how some of the songs sounded. For example, 
First Time and Save Me From Me were meant to be played electric. The two 
cover songs were perfect choices. Sweet Sound was simply fantastic. Anyway, 
to the best of my recollection, the setlist was (* = electric):

London Calling*, Mr. Sunday*, First Time* (a great new song), Company*, No 
More Never*, Ages, Shine Your Light, Comeback, (a short intermission), 
Highness*, Somewhere Out There*, Medicine*, Save Me From Me*, Soul Searching,
Experience, Until Tomorrow, Time The Healer, Daughter, When She Sleeps*, 
Goodbye Everything*, Our Time, Scaffolding, Sweet Sound, Girl in NY and 
Ecstacy Heaven

Another bonus Sunday night was the availability of the new CD EP "Ages". This 
contains some of Simon's best music he has ever produced. The tracks are all 
studio recordings that include: "Ages", "Experience", "Soul Searching", "First
Time" and, by popular request, "Comeback". Stripped down demo versions of the 
first three songs are available on Bare Assets/Bare Bodies and these full 
band versions are well treated. Having now heard the CD, I can understand all 
the raves from Pete and others that had previously heard it. "First Time" is 
available here for the first time (what a great rocking song) and is simply 
outstanding. Overall, the sound quality on the CD is GREAT! You can tell a 
lot of effort went into the production of the CD. Although the CD does not 
list credits, it sounds as if Simon did most of the mastering himself.

Attendance was pretty strong for a Sunday night show over a holiday weekend, 
although I did expect to see more familiar faces. It was nice, however, 
seeing folks that I have known for many years now and meeting people that I 
have only corresponded with via email. It was also nice to meet Simon's 
family; wife Janie and their two younger children were at the show (all of 
whom are very sweet). Ben, by the way, did not make the trip.

So, if you did miss this show, fear not. You have another chance to see Simon 
perform his revamped setlist this Saturday, July 8th at the Bitter End in New 
York City (147 Bleeker Street in the Village). This is an extremely intimate 
venue, so it is best to get there early, but definitely get there. You WILL 
be impressed with the show!! Plus, if you have specific song requests for the 
show, send them to StirMusic@aol.com and there is a chance that they will be 
incorporated into the performance.

Finally, you can get the new CD "Ages" at the show, which as I stated above, 
contains some of the best Simon music EVER!! And, if you cannot make it to 
the show, the CD should soon be available on the website.

I hope to see you Saturday!

-Bill