Columbus, Ohio March 1st

Thanks Angela, nice find!

I wonder if it was the same jerk who wouldn't let Nico bring his guitar into a show last year?

On Joe's show-stopping comments:  I really enjoyed the performance last night at the Newport.  As a guitar player myself, Joe's playing always keeps me smiling for the entire show.  I think this was my 4th JB show, and a favorite so far, partially due to the superior acoustics of the Newport Music Hall.   I was born and raised in Columbus and ever since I was old enough to cut grass for concert money, I have been going to the Newport to witness many a guitar god in action.  Actually, when I first started going there it was called the Agora and I’ve probably seen a hundred shows there.  In today’s landscape of metal box style arenas, you would think that the stage where U2 played their first American show and John Lee Hooker performed his last show before his death would be try to remain a cut above the rest, but I felt that last night, some of what made the Newport great, especially the ability of the fans to get into the show was sacrificed.

I was one of the folks lucky enough to sit right up front (after I was told to take my seat – this is a rock show, right?!), but I had friends there who were literally banished to the back of the room behind the sound booth because of the way the floor was divided up.  Let’s just say I was really happy that I paid the 15 dollars per ticket extra to get up there, but there was so much empty space along the walls off the main floor where people could have stood but were not allowed.  I realize that in many venues there are premium areas where better seats can warrant higher prices, but, let’s face it… It just doesn’t seem to work very well at the Newport.

If the folks at PromoWest want the Newport to remain “America’s Longest Continually Running Rock Club,” management should really be making an attempt to secure its reputation as THE LAST remaining oasis in Columbus’s otherwise sterile wasteland of soulless corporate venues.  But it seems the cold corporate hand, eternally seeking more control over us, the fun-loving music fans, the paying customers… you know, the cash cows, are now into screwing over the general admission ticket buyer and hiring angry goons to suck the soul out of our concert going experience to keep it as unemotional and uninvolved as possible.  I think THAT SUCKS, and I was happy to that he felt it too, and that it pissed him off enough to stop his performance and point it out.  THANKS.  I assume he was as surprised as I was by the way the room felt last night too.  Not because of the fans.  The fans were awesome.  It is the management that screwed up royally.  Not the Newport that we know and love.  Of course, I’m sure Joe probably mentioned it to the folks at Promowest already.  At least that 7 foot tall (former) security guy can tell his grandkids that Joe Bonamassa threatned to kick his a$$.