BoDeans
2006.11.18 Prairie Center for the Arts • Schaumburg, IL

Sam Llanas, Kurt Neumann, Bukka Allen

Saturday November 18, 2006
Prairie Center for the Arts - Schaumburg, IL

After another leisurely day in Schaumburg, we finally made our way into the theater, found our seats, smiled when we saw the grand piano on stage and just got the feeling that it was going to be one more unbelievable show. As it turned out, I would say Sat. was the best of the three nights by far. The crowd was very attentive, there couldn't have been a bad seat in the house and we had Mr. Bukka Allen on a grand piano. How very sweet it was! Not to mention the guys seemed very comfortable and very happy to be up there on stage. The whole evening had such an intimate setting that you couldn't help but appreciate the beauty of every song and to really experience the power of their voices.

The guys came on just after 8:00, and greeted everyone with smiles and waves. A fan right away yelled out that it was good to see them in Schaumburg, Sam replied "Is that where we are?" And then Kurt went on to describe the kind of show we were in for. A nice quiet, intimate show with the three of them.

With that said, here is the show in a semi-condensed form:
1. Only Love - no foot stomps but the song was absolutely beautiful. It's just as wonderful performed like this as it is performed TFA.
2. Jenny Rae - again they stumped me with what song they were going into. The fun, bluesy rhythm made me believe it was Good Work, but as soon as they started singing I had to go and scribble that out of my notebook. The BoDiva next to me provided sound effects to my scribbling. :) The song had such a bluesy feel to it, you couldn't help but absolutely love it! Somebody made a note in my little red notebook that Kurt almost mixed up the lyrics, but I missed it so I couldn't even tell you which lyrics!
3. Going Home - As they were getting ready to play (Sam was switching guitars), Kurt was softly saying into the mic "Tell them the story....tell them the story....tell them....tell them!" Sam just smiled back at him as he went into the Robbie Robertson story for the third night in a row. Bukka though had moved back to the grand piano and oh my gosh....it was so beautiful. It was such a full, rich sound layered with Kurt and Sam's voices and guitars. It really can't get any better than that.
4. Idaho - Manhattan Montana story again. Although this time Kurt added that the locals elbowed up to the guys and asked them what they thought of their local women. Kurt continued with a "you can keep them" comment. The song was sounding fabulous once again. Bukka was absolutely on fire. That accordion was definitely something to get lost in. And the "startin' at the world" part at the end was by far the best of the three nights....which raises the bar higher than I ever imagined! Especially when Sam held on to the last of "at the world".
5. First Time - Sam said that "this next song is pretty self explanatory. It's called "First Time" people giggle "Not that first time" :) Even though we were expecting it, Kurt's high harmony on "falling from my baby's eyes" was enough to take our breath away once again. It was so soft....so smooth...absolutely incredible.
6. Far Far Away From My Heart - Sam said that he wrote most of this song in the bathroom. And that it wasn't the best of nights. About finding yourself going down a certain path in life and how it's sometimes a painful path to be traveling down. The emotion in the song was so raw, you couldn't help but feel the pain and loneliness in the song and lyrics.
7. Trying To Get To You - so bluesy, so much soul, so much fun. Sam's voice makes me weak in the knees every single time he comes in on that second verse. And absolute treat to hear live. Especially three nights in a row!
8. Brand New - love how all those layers of music interweave with each other. You go from one guitar to the other and follow the sounds of the accordion not to mention their voices. Just like I've said many times about so many of the songs, you really do get completely lost in it all.
9. Angels - At first Kurt starts playing these scales on his guitar. We're thinking, ok, he's just goofing off or something. Took a minute or so and Sam joins in doing the same scales. Then Bukka does the same on the grand piano. It sounded unbelievable but we still had no idea what they were doing! And then Kurt starts singing Angels and they proceed to blow us all away by the most incredible version of Angels I've ever heard. And all based off of these scales. As Sam said afterwards "thats the first time we've EVER played it like THAT. Made it up this afternoon....a minuet or something" No matter what it was by far one of the highlights of the evening. Even the weekend.
10. True Devotion - Sam's voice was in perfect form. He sure has a way to convey the emotion in a song by just using his voice, especially in a song like this.
11. Good Work - loved it. Absolutely loved it. Bukka again was amazing on his accordion. He was all weekend. I believe he was on his way to stealing the whole show!
12. Runaway - No introduction other than "this is one from L&H&S&D." But the song was beautiful with the added piano. Kurt's slightly drawn out harmony at the very end give me the chills everytime. It's just a little bit different than how he sings it in a full band show. But adds a completely different effect to the song.
13. Fadeaway - Kurt began by telling us again that this was one of the very first BoDean's song's he ever wrote. And that he thinks he was living at Sam's brother's place at the time. Along with feeling a little in between things at the time. He said he didn't have a place to stay then and would sort of drift from the rehearsal space to who's ever place he could stay at for a while. The acoustic guitars on this was great, they really bring the song to life and as an audience, we just get to come along for the ride.
14. Me Again - and all composure is lost. Literally breathtaking. I don't think there is anyway to improve on a version like that. Sam's voice was perfect, Kurt's harmony was supurb. Put them together and there's no denying they were pulling on every single one of our heart strings. In all honestly, words really don't describe the beauty of this song.
15. Makes U - Kurt dedicated this to his youngest who had her birthday last week. The song just seems so sincere and so heart felt. You can't help but love a song like that. Not to mention Sam whispering "beautiful, beautiful" rather than the usual loud "Belissimo" is enough to take my breath away once again. And then, to top it all off, at the very very end, Kurt was singing the very last line "if it makes u......" which normally cuts off there. but instead he waited a second or two and whispered "happy" at the very end of the song. I can honestly say that all the BoDiva's jaws dropped at that moment.
16. Forever Young - once again the song was absolutely perfect. Such a treat to hear during this run of shows and I hope they continue to pull out classics like that in upcoming shows as well.
17. Naked - wow, by far the best version of Naked I think I've ever heard. The only thing I could write in my little red notebook was "Now THAT is Naked". And of course the crowd who were patiently (and sometimes not so patiently) waiting for this one seemed to love it as well.
18. Good Things - Even played acoustically, this one can rock!
- encore-
19. Paradise - Amazing. With one guitar, one accordion and two voices this was absolutely perfect.
20. Still The Night - Kurt once again told the story of how he was writing this song and that Sam stole it from him before returning and saying "he had a great idea for a song" and that Kurt "had a part to sing in it". The crowd seemed amused by that story and were quick to get into singing their parts. After one particularly loud "oh-oh....oh" Kurt threw a quiet "Hell Yeah!" out there. That of course, made all of the BoDiva's night! :) At the very end as they were about to walk off, Sam yelled out into the mic "Giddyup!" in reply to the fan who had yelled it at them a three or four times throughout the show. There's no denying this was an unbelievable evening and of course we can't wait to do it all again!