5 1/2 Weeks Tour
Concord, CA
September 19, 1999

Updated November 10, 1999

Check Out The Reviews And Set Lists Page

Tori performed in Concord, CA on September 19, 1999 at the Concord Pavilion during the Tori & Alanis Morissette 5 1/2 Weeks Tour.

Set List

God
Sugar
Past the Mission
Riot Poof
Hotel
Bliss
Leather (solo)
Landslide (solo)
Suede
Professional Widow
Graveyard
Tear in Your Hand
Waitress

Encore:
Precious Things

Reviews

From Richard Handal

September 19, 1999 - Richard called me on the phone after the show. He said the Waitress was especially long and demonstrative. Tori was on from 7:54PM until 9:08PM. It was a very solid, fun, enjoyable and strong show. "Riot Poof" and "Hotel" were really strong. The show kicked serious butt.

All Reviews Below Were Originally Posted On The Dent Forum

Special thanks to Laurie Daniels for her invaluable assitance in getting the reviews transferred to the Dent!

my friend kelly or k* just called me from concord. the meet and greet went INCREDIBLE. she was in good spirits and stayed for at least half an hour. they let the cars go first and then the people walking followed in a single file line. there were about 50 people there, but Tori talked to lots of people, she went on the sides of the baracades and everything. kelly gave her a faerie pot and Tori held her hand. hope everyone enjoys the concert! i cant wait until Bakersfield!!!!!!

The set list:
God
Sugar
Past the Mission
(a new song she didnt know, something about officers and water not me?) Hotel
Bliss
--- Secret Time--------
Leather
Landslide
--- Boys Come Back ------
Suede
Professional Widow
Graveyard- solo
Tear in Your Hand
Waitress (improv- i'm gonna go where she goes) --- Encore -----
Precious Things (lots of improv)

she introduced the band after sugar, and said 'if there are any homophobics out there, you are in the wrong fucking? place" she said someone on the lawn is gonna get pregnant tonite, and that she used to make out to landslide alot.

she wore her hair down, and sounds much like on the Plugged tour, except the new songs and all. she wore a long velvet baby doll dress with puffy sleeves.
the tvs had good close ups
lava lamps ruled

she seemed to be cramming as many songs as she could, just one after the other. she was in great spirits. mostly ewf attended, judging by the number of people standing during the show. the crowd was really good, and kelly said it was the 'greatest day of her life' i guess if i met tori, it will be mine as well.
toodles
Meggie

hey - i just saw the show. friggin' amazing! it was my first and hopefully not my last! i have like a whole written thing about the concert and the meet & greet at my website, http://altern.org/thom/ or at least will soon. i'm too lazy to post it here. hope everyone had a good time!

Magical!
My good friend/roommate, Larry, won the Alice 97.3 Amateur Beat Reporter contest, and got to interview Tori! It started out as a stressful Wed. night of thinking up 3 questions that would win him the chance to meet and speak with Tori. Little did he know that by 5pm the next day, he would be selected to ask Tori anything and everything he wanted. Plus front row tickets. We already had 3 tickets in a fairly decent spot, but front row, it was unbelievable. Especially it being my birthday, and Larry gave me the gift of sitting next to him as all this went on. He was a nervous wreck, as you can imagine, I was his silent support (along with his boyfriend Steve, who drove us to Concord, and our friend Arnel). We met Sterling from Alice (really cool), got to stand in a very cold prison-looking passageway as we met and had a polaroid take with Tori, then everyone else was shipped out, and Joel said, hey, if I'm cold, I know she is, and we got to go down into Tori's private area (very sweet). She calmed and assured Larry, who was near hyper-ventalation by this time, and the interview began. If you're in the Bay area, listen for bits and pieces of it on Alice. He asked her about her gay and lesbian following, and she told this really cute story about learning how to give a blow job by her gay male friends on a pickle, and how if teeth marks were found, she wouldn't get to have her rootbeer float. I think that's why the "If there's any homophobic people here, you're in the wrong fucking concert," comment was made during the show. Larry also asked for Landslide, and she did it. She had the best energy, and I'm just amazed that I was able to share that time with her.

The concert itself was beautifully charged, a lot of sparking energy. Setlist, once more

God
Sugar (Larry gave Tori a little container with cubes of sugar before the show, and she said "subtle hint here?")
Past the Mission
Hotel
Riot Proof
Bliss

Leather
Landslide

Suede
Graveyard
Tear In Your Hand
Professional Widow
Waitress
Precious Things

Bakersfield (my hometown, ackthugh), won't be as special as tonight (thankyou, Larry), but I do look forward to it.

~M.E.

Just wanted to add that Tori was dressed like one of the Velvets from Neil's 'Neverwhere!' It makes sense that she did 'Hotel'then, where there's a reference to the velvets. Incredible show. Her high notes were amazing. Everything was perfect!

can't wait for tomorrow's show teehee

------------------
~~Lisa

The setlist order is as RaenStorm (Meggie) posted it above. During the sound check she worked on Glory of the 80's for a very long time, but didn't play it. During the M&G the couple next to me had a copy of TVAB and I listened to Lust - amazing and beautiful! God was great as usual (much better than the UtP version - for anyone who hasn't heard it live).

This is the first time I've heard Sugar plugged, and I think I prefer the old solo version.

Past The Mission was really great - not one of my personal favorites though.

Riot Poof - I couldn't really understand what she was singing and musically it didn't excite me.

Hotel - WOW and, uh, WOW! and WOWOWOWOW

Bliss - I think everybody knows by now that this is even better live.

Leather - such a familiar and beautifully done little ditty. I love this song and don't ever want to know why.

Landslide - If Stevie ever re-records this song, this is the way she'll do it.

Suede - If you could hang sound art on a museum wall, this would be the greatest prize in the collection.

Pro Widow - Hate this song; loved this version.

Graveyard - This is so much more effective live; beautiful.

Tear In Your Hand - I like it better solo.

Waitress - I was at the show in Cincinnati, where it seemed this was shorter than here. In Cincinnati, it never occured to me that it was running long. This time it did, but I didn't care; it was great right through to the end.

Precious Things - I sometimes hear this in dreams. It's even better in concert.

well, i know the set lists have been sent in already, but i wanted to at least throw in my two cents -- i've been waiting and waiting for this show for weeks, p a t i e n t l y. *i* want to say how much *i* enjoyed the show now!

first off, the venue was pretty wonderful. i had been expecting it to be as big as shoreline (san jose), but the size of the pavilion is actually quite acceptable. we were kind of on the side, but we could see and hear everything fine.

tori sounds incredible. i've seen her every tour since UTP and i think every tour takes her closer to where she wants to be as an artist. i hear all the complaints about her not doing the "girl and her piano" thing anymore, but people -- come ON. do you see her perform NOW? she is SO in her element. she is SO tight with those guys. it's much more exciting (well, let's just say AS exciting to avoid fighting) to see this EXTREMELY tight band that has a lot of capabilities to improvise and alter its sound than hearing Just her and her piano. i mean, don't get me wrong, she's flawless on her own. i'll go see her any day by herself (and even hope that her next tour is as such), but the four of them tonight were HOT.

landslide was unreal. tear in your hand was WOW. waitress was breathtaking.

the story about the interview and the gay/lesbian questioning was interesting. have we heard anything else that could have prompted the "if you're homophobic, you came to the wrong fucking concert" comment? honestly it sounded a little weird -- like the first thing that we heard her say to the crowd. i mean, it really touched me (hearing her verbalize the already well-established support of the gay lesbian community) - quickly reminded me of how political she can be.

why did she have such a bleak set? alanis had a really cool backdrop - tori had like silver/foil sheets hanging. blaz!

anyway, besides the rather boring stage and not finding a single available guy to be my boyfriend (there Were a lot more straight people there than i had expected - no problems, just surprising) i had an AMAzING time. dario, myles, and angelo were my corageous cohorts this evening.

falling asleep here (apologies for any typos, irrelevence -- the contacts were taken out a little while ago), so i'll sign out now.

cheers,
graham
sockerstud@aol.com

Well here goes nothing..I was going to try and post a review asap after the show, but had to drive back to Oakland with my friend who attended the show with me tonight. I wont restate what others have already posted, but only add my impressions and a few other tid bits. MEET AND GREET--WAYYYY more than 50 people. The huge mob at the front of the barricade probably made up at least 75+ people. In addition, there were lines of people on each side of the barricade and security had to add another portion of the right end of the barricade to keep people from moving out of the area once Tori started walking down the side (part of the right side). Although I didnt meet Tori (yet again at a meet and greet) my friend and I both thought it was hella cool that security walked around the sides of the barricades and up in the middle to see if anyone had letters, cards and/or gifts to give to Tori. Hopefully, she got my letter although "Baron" didnt show up tonight as I had hoped and asked for That's ok though, with the type of "girls" which did show up, "Baron" wouldnt have been in the flow.

CONCERT-- An amazing setlist including highpoints of Sugar, Hotel, and definately Landslide. Before Tori began Landslide as the second of two "secret time" songs, she said "I used to make out to this song a long time ago..." I instantly assumed Angie was going to appear, because I know she has said something along those lines at other shows and then played Angie. But, within the next minute Tori added "But I say that to almost every song (that she use to make out to it)." So, Landslide was a nice surprise--VERY strong vocals and beautiful sound.

I am not sure, so Tori FANATICS-HARDCORES dont write this in stone...but the dress she had on resembled one that she wore on tv when she performed--or was it? I thought it looked like what she wore on Leno. Some one let me know......

Sugar had the "Sweet pussy boy" part and something about "shes a bitch" or "Let them know shes a bitch". Its hard to remember now.

During Graveyard Tori referred to "Shes gone but Iam alive....I know shes here but shes gone..." Something along those lines. But it was not part of the original and it seemed to be repeated. Since I havent heard it performed live before Tear In Your Hand--although Ive heard Tear performed several times--Iam not sure if she does the extended part in Graveyard all the time or not. Regardless, it was powerful and moving.

Riot Proof is indeed the song she did after Past the Mission. It could very well be that she did that on purpose right after her comment about homophobics, but it also flowed in nicely with what was being played directly before it with hardly any time in between songs--God, Sugar, Past the Mission, Riot Proof (then Hotel, Bliss before secret time).

Overall the show was unbelievable. I agree with who ever has already wrote that the crowd seemed favorably there for Tori. All around us were empty seats after Alanis started (section 201 DD). The huge screens were awesome and it was easy to see everything. People around us were totally polite and hardly talked at all while Tori played--expect for during Waitress when it does go on for what seems like forever (to a non EWF).

The concert was worth my time, money, and energy traveling from Oregon down to Cali. I can not wait until the Portland show on Oct 6th. She always plays amazing stuff there and loves the area (anyone who was at the Choirgirl tour knows this when she talked about the great weed and people found in Oregon.)

Glitter Girl--glad u liked the sporatic calls. They were during Past the Mission, Suede, and Tear...Couldnt leave you hanging until the 6th!!!

One more thing--Tori moved off the stage mighty fast after the encore with Precious Things. Anyone know why????

Good night all.....

There's something about this concert that really flowed. After God, she played Sugar, one of my favorites, but since it was the second song it was more relaxed that I think it would have been if it had been in the second portion of the show. Like she didn't really go into convulsions like I saw her do in the ftch tour. Past the Mission was nostalgic, and Hotel was amazing. Riot Proof was interesting, a lot of "oooooh"s and stuff, and Bliss was really good live. I felt like these songs were the most polished I've ever seen Tori, and it was a delightful "warm-up" for what was to come. Tori then played Leather, which she was just beaming al the way through, and I got the feeling that she really has fun with this song, mostly, maybe because it sounds like it's so much fun to play on the piano. Actually, the piano part to Landslide that she came up with is so beautiful and intricate, and she sang it so wonderfully, I think even the Alanis fans who sat throught the entire concert were impressed. After secret time, the slightly darker, more improvisational stuff started to show up, beginning with Suede, which I was fortunate enought to have fallen in love with after downloading it somewhere on the internet. Graveyard was expanded and was so beautiful and haunting at the same time. Graveyard led so perfectly into Tear In Your Hand, which actually sounded dated with the band, almost like it could have been from the 80s or something. That's not an insult, it is just neat how the different arrangement can change a song so completely. Professional Widow was intense, and really focused, more so than when I heard it on the ftch tour. Waitress has never been one of my favorite songs, but I do enjoy listening to Tori improvise. Precious Things is a treat every time.
About Alanis, I left my seat in the lower level to go sit with a friend on the lawn--so to the Alanis fans sitting next to me who must have thought I was dissing her by leaving after intermission--I saw the whole concert and froze my ass off in a sleeping bag. But I do have to say that while she was good in concert, she must have had instrument envy because she took out 2 guitars and a flute. I couldn't hear the guitars at all, even though they looked like they were plugged in/miked/whatever, and I'm sorry, but my 5th grade neice is better at flute than her. It was pitiful, really. But other than that (and her incessant meandering back and forth) I enjoyed her more than I thought.

One mess up--wanted to clarify....guess Hotel came BEFORE Riot Proof. Regardless, her playing the new song fit in nicely with the mood and tempos of what appeared before it.
Also, to comment on Tori's set (someone mentioned it looked plain and there were foil looking things hanging). I think that the set Alanis' stage crew set up included things that were under the foil looking stuff which hung during Tori's concert. I saw them pulling down part of the foil wrap from up high when they set up the floor and backdrop.

Well, considering that pretty much all the details have been mentioned, I'll just write down a little insight into my own experience with Tori's concert tonight.
In comparison to her Plugged '98 tour, I must say that I was surprised at how dark she was tonight! And it wasn't just the set, but her aura as well.....it wasn't till towards the end (Tear in Your Hand) that she seemed to come out of that....Even during Leather. But hey, at least she did the Groucho Marx impression for the "nice big fat cigar" lyric. Woo hoo! =)

Her vocal stylings and instrumental playing was STELLAR. The band and Tori played as one unit....as one instrument....as opposed to Alanis and her interaction with the band, which seemed to drown out Alanis for the most part. I loved what Tori did with Professional Widow, much better than the past bleak version of her and the organ. Another fave of mine was Landslide, towards the end of the song I was close to tears...I must of looked like an emotionally wrought dork! Bah, oh well.

And the vibe of the crowd!!!! It wasn't just an audience....it felt like a community. It wasn't like when she came to Berkeley in '95 (or was it '96?), when some of the people there had conversations all throughout the concert. During this concert, however, it was quite evident that the people gathered here were for the most part avid Tori fans. I remember sitting at my seat with my best bud, and watching a whole row clear out after Alanis finished her first song. Now *that's* something you don't see often.

There's one last thing I'd like to add. Since Tori and Alanis are on equal billing, wouldn't it be interesting (and appropriate) if they had done a duo at the end? Just a thought. I'm not sure what song would fit them both, however....hahahahaha

I saw Mr. Puppethead!! And no one else seemed to realize for a long time that it was Tori! Where were you people? She was totally hanging him out the window for a long time, he was flirting bad! We kept screaming out "HI MR. PUPPETHEAD!" and thank yous, we love you to Tori and stuff and he kept looking our way and dancing it was so cute! She was totally energized and amazing, it was an awesome concert, the Alanis fans were polite and nice and everyone was standing up the whole time where I was, Section 101. Alanis' pianist kicks serious ass, you guys missed out on an awesome solo if you left.

Meet and Greet:
4 words: Steve is an asshole. I meet Aaron and Julie (Hi guys!) and we drove in together, and like everyone else started running towards the barricades. Steve yelled to stop running, so everyone slowed to a fast walk, some still running including Aaron. So, Steve totally starts yelling just at him, and tells him to stop right there and go back to his car!! WTF?? Aaron just stood there and was like...uh..what? Steve was going off about listening to directions and was so pissed. I just grabbed Aarons hand and walked with him up there, and when Steve saw he came up to Aaron and went off at him again trying to get him to leave. We just begged real nice and Steve just gave up and left. Evil little man. Well, at least Joel is cool. I got to give her my present and have my Winter single signed, which was awesome. Her sunglasses were really cute. She recognized Aaron and gave him a big hug and said he looked radiant which made him so happy, so I was happy for him. Overall, an amazing concert experience but the meet and greet was way too big and not worth it at all for very many people. But, whatever. I'll see her again on the next tour and hopefully get to talk to her for real. *hugs*
Liane

The concert was great. I went to my first meet & greet (it was the first one I was able to go to) but did not get there until 2:00 (I think) so I obviously could not meet Tori. There were a whole lot of people there already. But I got to see her from the end of the barricade on the side. And all of the people were really nice, no one was pushing to get to the front, we all realized we would not meet Tori. I did not get to listen to the soundcheck because I had to go pick up my friend (an Alanis fan interested in Tori) to take her to the concert. But we had sixth row seats even though we bought our tickets last week, so I was happy because I have never been so close at a Tori concert. Everyone around me was generally polite (no loud singing along with Tori) EXCEPT some people (who are very tall) who would sway and make it very hard for me to see, and there were two women on my right who kept leaving and coming back, annoying the hell out of me. But then I found out they were videotaping the concert. So, if you are reading this (you were sitting in row FF, seats 115-116) and want to make up for annoying me, send me a copy of the tape!
Okay on to the concert:
God: very good live version
Sugar: pretty much the same as last year, I love this version Past the Mission: it was very good, I don't think it was much different from last year
Riot Poof: I loved it! But unfortunately I can't remember it very well now, but less than 24 hours until I can buy tvab! Hotel: I was very glad she played this, I really wanted her to play it last year at the concerts I went to, but she didn't Bliss: very good live, but not my favorite from tvab Leather: very good, but I was hoping she would play something I hadn't seen live yet
Landslide: YAY! I thought she was going to play Angie (which I love) because of the comment about making out to this song, but when she played this I was ecstatic (as was my friend). Very beautiful rendition. The only thing that could possible have made me happier (maybe) was Famous Blue Raincoat
Suede: This may be one of my favorites from tvab Professional Widow: Great version of tis song! I was pleasantly surprised, I thought I would like the original better Graveyard: I REALLY wanted her to play this so I was very happy and it was very beautiful
Tear In Your Hand: just like last year, very good Waitress: excellent, my friend was extremely impressed Precious Things: Great as always
I stayed for Alanis and she was okay (except she is AWFUL at playing the flute, even my friend who is an Alanis fan commented on this) I liked her backdrop. But the fans (Alanis fans) were incredibly annoying, screaming and singing along really terribly (many of them were incredibly drunk). And then we left slightly early hoping to avoid traffic, but my car died! I had left the lights on and had to wait forever for the towing guy to help me. So I am very tired, have lots of homework and school tomorrow, but had a very great day! If anyone booted this show, please let me know, I would love a copy. ~Kassie

hello. i can't explain my emotions after actually glimpsing tori in real life. it was an incredible, incredible experience. in fact, i had to take my shirt off in the car and was only in my bra and skirt for the entire 1 and 1/2 hour drive home. (i live in san jose). and my friend, roo, who was driving, eventually took her shirt off as well. if there are any modern day goddesses walking on earth amongst us, tori is one of them. to the winner of the alice interview thing, i am sooo jealous of you! you are incredibly lucky and so were your friends to be able to meet and chat with tori. i had goosebumps the entire time tori was on, and it wasn't from being cold. i think tori's next concert should involve only her and and a piano and it should be about 10 hours long. i felt so...i don't know. unsatisfied. i definitely needed more tori. well i'm listening to her here at home trying to fulfill myself. it's the next best thing, right? well i had fun and am looking forward to buying her 2 CD set which i hear is coming out soon. okay, bye everyone. love, nahareen

My first time seeing Tori live, my third time seeing Alanis (yeah so I'm probably a bigger Alanis fan, but I really enjoy them both... really, I do! ). And the Tori websites, this one in particular, are more informative about their respective artist. So I arrived at the venue around 5:30 (would of had to leave Chico way to early to make it there in time for meet & greets, and besides from the sounds of it we would of only gotten a glimpse of her). It was my first time at the Pavillion... it does have a more intimate feel than the shorline, but of course, this is the first time I've ever had tickets as close as i did (lower section as opposed to lawn). I was wearing my Alanis shirt from the Can't Not tour... On my way in I overheard someone snootly telling their companion "There's an Alanis fan!" (what, am I that frightening? I don't bite... really I don't). I wanted to buy a Tori shirt, but come on? 27 dollars??? I settled for a program instead, and frankly I'm disappointed that they weren't a combined program for the 5 1/2 weeks tour and instead were seperate for alanis and tori.
Noone has yet mentioned the opening band, Sci-Fi Lullaby, who I thought were quite good, though their sound was a little un-like Tori or Alanis they definatly got the crowds interest (where I was sitting anyway). OK they got >>MY<< intrest anyway.
So Tori's set was really something. First time seeing her, yay. I thought Landslide was amazing!!! She doesn't play that one often, does she? I liked her cute little comments about homophobia and someone getting lucky tonight on the lawn. The band seemed to really be overpowering Tori in the beginning of the set, but I haven't heard anyone else mention it so I guess it was just me. I kind of wish she'd do more numbers without the band... Don't get me wrong, some are great with them (Sugar, Bliss, God come to mind), but I think I would of liked to have heard more solo type stuff.
The seats emptied a little bit after Tori's set ended, but they seemed just as empty when Alanis started her set as when Tori started hers. Contrary to what I've been hearing has happened at other shows, people were still standing during Alanis, and it even seemed like there was more dancing. Poor Sci-Fi Lullaby-- noone was in their seats when they went on.
In case anyone is interested in the Alanis Playlist, I don't recall the specific order, but Baba, All I really Want, Sympathetic Character, Are You Still Mad, That I Would Be Good (more on this later), Hand In My Pocket, You Learn, Forgiven, So Pure (dedicated to people who can't dance... cute) You Oughta Know, and Uninvited were all played, with Thank U and Ironic for the encore. Sorry if I missed some, but it's 4:30 in the morning here Still and Princess Familiar were omitted :-(

Yeah, Alanis may not be a genius flute player, but at least she's trying. She didn't even know guitar before her last tour. Frankly she plays the flute better than I do, and I respect her for trying. I was moved to tears during That I Would Be Good, because it's such a wonderful song, and it's power is just intensified live. Actually I think the imperfectness of the flute actually relates to the song, but whatever, this isn't the place for analyzing Alanis.

I think next time (ok so there isn't going to BE a next time, but if Tori or Alanis decide to tour with another A-list artist again), they should keep it a secret who goes first and who goes second, and switch it every now and then. That way it's a surprise. My friend who I drove, is a bigger Tori fan, but was really impressed by Alanis's set (mostly due to her energy). If you want to leave early, whatever I guess it's your own money your spending, but it really makes you look stuck up. Oh but I feel the same way about the people purposely arriving late too, that looks just as bad.

Anyway, those are my random thoughts on tonight tossed together. It was the best concert I've ever seen-- really it was. It felt like two seperate shows in a way because they both had full sets and staging and lighting and everything, but it all meshed together so well. It was a real dream for someone like me who really enjoys both of these artists music. As for the rest of you... well phooey :P

- Green_Sky

I haven't seen the answer to the shoe question yet...She was wearing black granny-style leather boots that hugged her ankles perfectly. There are so many reviews already posted, i just have to say that i was lucky enough to be right at the barricade (i had 2nd row seats and they let us go up front) and i've never been so close! Caton laughed at me when i cried during Tear (it was really funny) and i swear i made Tori laugh during Waitress because i put on lip gloss -- i could be wrong but i'll humor myself!

It was phenomenal.

Hopefully i'll see some familiar faces in Irvine, i'll be there by myself on saturday.

Here is my two cents...
This is probably the only concert I will get to go to. I do not know how any other concert could top my experience yesterday. The meet and greet was so nerve racking for me, I couldn't eat all day. I got an okay position at the m n'g, she signed my little earthquakes insert and grabbed my hand. I started crying in the car on my way to lunch I was so overwhelmed.

I had 8th row seats but met Ursula who had no plans on staying put. We moved to empty seats in the 4th row right before the lights went down, but then she went to the front and I stayed in the 2nd row. I took pictures (no flash!) but we will have to wait to see how that goes. These concerts are never long enough, more more more!!!

I stayed for Alanis, me and my new friend Steve pretended to have actual front row seats when they started clearing it out before Alanis, but they never asked us. So I lucked out with front row center to my first Alanis experience. I caught a pear she threw out right before her encore. She is weird, but kinda cool.

Overall, I had the best damn day in so long. I may try to get down to LA, but who knows.

Oh, I have no sympathy for poor Aaron who got yelled, especially if he had met Tori before or got that hug from her. There was a sweet girl next to me bawling her eyes just trying to see or touch Tori. People need to stop hogging her attention.

Hope to see yall soon!

bambi

This concert was absolutely incredible for me, mostly because I had a second row seat (right next to danere--hello!). I was a little bit disappointed with it at first, because Tori's back would have been to me when she was on piano. However, when the lights went down, I went to the front with everyone else, and was RIGHT IN FRONT of Tori against the stage barricades. It was amazing.
The songs:

God- I knew she'd be opening with this, but it was still amazing to hear her singing it from backstage. Very well executed.

Sugar- This was amazing. She sang the "boy you're just a pussy" part, along with some adlib on the end about "I can't believe what you did to him", or something to that effect.

Tori said hi, and said something about "If there's any homophobes in the audience, you're at the wrong fucking concert," (which I appreciated, as I'd had some assholes in line behind me getting into the Pavilion talking shit about a boy with glitter on), and introduced the band.

Past the Mission- Not one of my favorites, but it was good. I think something went wrong with Steve's guitar or sound, as he went backstage at one point in the middle of the song, after seemingly getting permission from Tori.

Riot Poof- First time I'd heard this one. I know I liked it, but I'll need to hear the album version before I make a final judgement.

Hotel- The song I desperately wanted to hear on Plugged and never did. It was worth the wait.

Bliss- WOW. This song is good in the studio, and just amazing live. I highly recommend to anyone that hasn't heard it live to either get an MP3 or go to a concert...

Leather- She went right into secret time without saying anything about it. There was nothing new here, but it was fun.

Landslide- The absolute last song I expected to hear her play...there was a real poignancy to the "I'm gettin' older, too" line that I've never heard from Tori before...

Suede- This is a great song, but it brought the concert down a notch or so. It's a little bit too quiet and slow for the concert.

Professional Widow- "And now for my next number, I'd like to return to the classics"; a lot of fun.

Graveyard- Not only was it a great little break for the band to set up the rest of the show, but it was beautifully executed, with some improv in the lyrics. ("I know that she's gone/You tell me all the time")

Tear In Your Hand- I used to hate this song, but lately I'm liking it more than ever. Same version she played during Plugged, but still good.

Waitress- The chance for the band to jam, and for Tori to improv all she wanted ("But I believe she's the devil's bitch").

Precious Things- About the same version played for Plugged, and no surprise in it being the encore. Still amazing, though.

I forget where it was in the show, but she talked to the people on the lawn section behind the reserved seats, and said "Someone's going to get pregnant out there tonight".

If you're still reading this far, congratulations.

See you East Bay people at Rasputin (on Telegraph in Berkeley) tonight at midnight...

Let's see.. thoughts on Concord - Tori doesn't do bad shows - they all rate up in the great to transcendant - IMHO Concord didn't achieve transcendant, but it certainly had quite wonderful moments - my faves: sugar - one of my favorites - with the band, without the band - never get tired of it - a brilliant song. Past the mission was a wonderful surprise. Let me add that Tori LOOKED wonderful - wearing a dark green/black? velvet dress, not that i don't love her Tori-esque strange sense of fashion, but she just looked so lovely : ) lights were amazing - complaint: anyone else think her voice wasn't mixed clearly enough? maybe i was too close to the big speakers, but i thought it got a little lost in the mix... anyway - out of the new songs, Suede was the one that really hit me like a ton of bricks - goddes, can't wait to hear it on the album - i've fallen in love on first listen. Professional widow wins the award for longest time taken to figure out what song this is prize - not until she started singing... before that i thought it was something new... Graveyard and Tear in your Hand were my Tori live moments... always seems that she pulls out something that hits me hard... it's a painful/nice cathartic release... "maybe it's time to say good bye now..." oh... moment of realization... "god sometimes you just don't come thru" changed it's perspective in my head from God's failure to take care of things, to the thought that sometimes we can channel those god/ess powers through music/art/self expression/etc... and sometimes it doesn't happen.
as an adendum, i really wish she could have played more... it was over all too soon...
set list: (not in perfect order)
god - sugar - riot poof - past the mission - bliss - leather - landslide - professional widow - hotel - suede - graveyard - tear in your hand - waitress - Precious things.
rob

Tori came out in a beautiful velvet dress (green I think)with a little orange cord around her neck and boots. I kept thinking to myself, she is going to get so hot up there but as the evening continued, I realized why she was wearing such a snuggly outfit because I was freezing cold. I had to leave three songs into Alanis partly because I was cold and partly because I can't watch Alanis walking nervously around the stage seemingly ignoring her audience. I have seen her before live at the Gorge and she was great but this time, it was just unbearable. This show was well anticpated as I drove from Seattle, Washington alone to see it. On the whole, the show was fun and rocking but not the touching nor emotional show that I am used to. Given the large, sold out venue, I realized that touching and emotional probably wasn't the objective. I will have to continue to get used to the fact that the "girls" are getting "tarted up" as Tori says in the tour book with guitars, drums, and sound effects. Tori's usual touch is still very evident as she did bring me to tears with the surprise playing of Graveyard. The song is just so beautiful live and it really seemed impromptu being played between songs with the band. Suede and Hotel were really delicious to listen to live. I had been waiting for Hotel live since the Unplugged Preview Tour. I knew my wait was over when I could hear her playing it alone with Tear in Your Hand during the soundcheck. Another thing that I really liked was the three large screens. I had pretty good seats (front center of the first level up from the floor). Later, I realize that really was the optimal seat for me as everyone on the floor was standing up the whole time. I have a tendency to get a little panicky with I feel closed in by a bunch of bodies. Anyways, the screens made it possible for even the people way back on the lawn to see Tori's facial expressions and hands. It almost made me wish for screens at every show.
I missed the meet 'n' greet but heard from many fans that she did one around 2:30 that afternoon. I have met her twice and I really didn't feel like having to compete with people that go to every show and always seem to end up in the front. My feeling is that if you have met her once already that tour, you should back off or not even attend the meet 'n' greet so that others who haven't had the opportunity to meet and chat with her can.
I am looking forward to the Portland and Seattle shows that are coming soon. It looks like the tour merchandise will stay the same once Tori goes on her own. I don't think they will have the 5.5 weeks shirts available but all of the other shirts will stay the same as the shirt I purchased has the Tori-only dates listed. ~toodles~ lil'turtle

The dress was black velvet.
She had a piece of orange ribbon around her neck.

Thank You BoyStar, I was beginning to think I was color blind. It was the same dress she wore on Letterman last month. I like Riot Poof, but bummed we heard no Dough, CALS, Siren, Girl or Father lucifer. What's with the more constricted set lists this tour? The sound at Concord surpassed all expectations. Bakersfield - her voice was drowned out during Blood Roses. Centennial Gardens is not acoustically friendly in the sixth row.

hey all you Concord EWF!
well, this was my first show of this tour and my third all toll. it was also my first meet & greet. and i got to meet her, sort of. i asked for a photo, and she said, "well okay, but you'll be my last one" i was so overwhelmed to be standing in front of my inspiration, that i couldn't say much more. she was so lovely, if a little rushed and tired looking. the show was wonderful - highlights being Landslide, Hotel and Graveyard. yay! hi to our little motley crew that met up at Fisherman's Wharf the night before - you know who you are. thanks for making me feel so welcome and part of the EWF community. then on to Bakersfield....

Here's my rather lengthy report....the page down button will be most effective here! I just arrived back in Aus.... This was my first in a line of 5 shows (6 if you count the Leno show 1000 Oceans twice!!) travelling with buddies Jason (ArtyTurner), Taryn (lethargicats), Rebecca (roaringbravado), Sarah, Meagan (Meaganatrix), Lily (TigerLily), Jessica, and some other great folks we stumbled into along the way (including our most gracious host whilst in the Bay Area, Elizabeth once again, we all thank you deeply for your hospitality, and for letting us use all the hot water and eat all your food! J )

I was extremely jetlagged after 24 hours of travelling (from Brisbane, Australia) with virtually no sleep (too excited!), and the first thing I had to say to my greeting party of 5 at the arrival gate in San Francisco at 5:00pm on Saturday was '"I gotta go pee!!'". That aside, it was great to get acquainted, and we spent the remainder of the day checking out Fisherman's Wharf and sharing the excitement we were experiencing before the inevitable first show the following night! We continued this over bread bowls of Clam Chowder ('"Say Chowdaaa!'" private joke!), and I had to get up and move around for fear of dozing off and drowning in a bread-pool of soup thanks to Jessica for coming to the rescue!!

Anyways, the day of the show:

We arrived at the venue for the M&G at about 2-2:30pm, and by then they had started letting people gather at the barricades (they actually blocked off the entire venue until 2:15, so it was a bit of a fast walk/run for those who wanted a good spot everyone of course . Jason parked the car while the rest of us hurried to the barricade (but he was compensated by getting his Cornflake Girl LE single signed!!). It was only about 15 minutes before Tori appeared over the hill with Joel (from the back of the ampitheatre) in the golf cart, and the crowd somewhat went into a pushing frenzy. I soon learnt what people meant when they said that meet and greets weren't for the claustrophobic or the weak of stomach (especially when a metal bar is pushing in your gut). All in all, though, I thought the crowd behaved particularly well, and the security people were very charming and polite (especially when you compare them to the security at Irvine Meadows) and the sheer excitement of seeing Tori in the flesh for the very first time put me in a world of my own. It was about 10 minutes before she made her way round to where we were standing (Rebecca, Sarah and I), but within moments she was standing 2 feet away from me, and it didn't even connect with my brain to take a picture, but Bec took care of that and even got a photo with her. It was a great way to start our lil '"Vegas and Back'" tour, and very shortly after we found ourselves rushing to the nearest Walgreen's to get the photos developed. I managed to get some good over-head shots, and Tori looked great overall, an inspiring first impressionE..

Now to the show:

The security was frisking people at the entrance, but I know of a few whom managed to sneak some recording equipment and cameras into the venue. This show offered my best seat for the tour for me, second row pit (the wonders of the pre-sale, eh? J ). I got seated after snapping up some tour merchandise, as I didn't want to miss one piece of the action! It was about 10 mins before the opening act, Sci-Fi Lullaby, came on. I wasn't too impressed with this, the first time I had seen this band play, but my opinion changed gradually by the end of our tour, as I had gotten to learn the lyrics to some of their songs by the Irvine show!

During the break between the opener and Tori, I met up with friend Joel, who promised me a copy of the show (I'll be e-mailing ya!! J ), and fellow Dent'er BoyStar (sorryE.I can't remember your name!). It was about 30 mins before the lights went outE..

'"God sometimes you just don't come throughE..'"

Was the first sound to emerge from the cavernous walls of the Concord ampitheatre, from backstage, and I immediately leapt to my feet and rushed the stage (we were lucky cos only the first 3 or 4 rows were allowed to but that didn't stop some good on those who did ). And before I knew it I found myself at the front of the barricade, off to the left in direct line with her synth keyboard. The band soon appeared and began thrashing into God. It was a good 30 seconds before Tori appeared, and I couldn't believe how close I was when she did! She did this funky foot-on-piano stool dance with her back to the audience, and her hand behind her waving to the crowd.

After sugar, she introduced the band as usual, but made the remark just before resuming play:

'"If you're homophobic, this ain't the show for you'".

Which sent the majority of the crowd into a flurry of howls, claps, snarls and whistles. OTwas a cool moment. There was also the comment about folks getting pregnant on the lawn.

Past the Mission came next, not one of my favorites, but it really got to me this time: it's a bit of a blur, but it was around '"somehow only she knows'" (when it goes quiet) and Tori stared me right in the eyes for about 3 seconds (but it seemed like hours). I almost lost it completely, and held onto the rail for fear of legs buckling!!! I wasn't *completely* sure at the time that she was making eye contact with me, but it was soon confirmed the next day at the Bakersfield M&G (but that's another story all together!). I was OK though, after I wiped a tear from my eye, I got into the rest of the show

Professional Widow kicked ass no more than that it whipped some major bootie, I must say though, despite my previous comment about the show. And Blood Roses send chills up my spine when they kicked into the '"God knowsE.'" Part.

And then there was Waitress I'd never heard a live Plugged recording of this one before, so it was a major shock to me to see how Tori had reshaped it. I agree with most who say that the album version of this song doesn't do it justice, after you hear it live. I loved it, but I found it difficult to get into the remaining part after the '"hang ten'" bit, but it REALLY grew on me, and the remaining nights wished it would go on forever.

As this was my first Tori concert experience, I think I'll always remember it fondly. But truthfully, it lacked the energy of the other shows E.especially when compared to the Bakersfield show!

I rank this show as being my 5th favorite (out of 6 shows).

What's this? You've read the whole thing. Did your screen saver turn on? He he

i was quite disappointed by this show. the acoustics were really bad and the placement of the screens was worse. Tori sang well and the audience was nice and receiving. sad that she did not get to sing more. i loved landslide and sugar. she looked beautiful and seemed in good spirits. i guess i still cannot get over her singing in such a huge stadium. i'm afraid that it is hard to enjoy such a big crowd show when i feel tori needs more intimacy. on the other hand, i love the new CD.

Concord show..let's see. It was my FIRST ever Tori show, so naturally, I was psyched. I thought the setlist was really good-I felt embarassed cause I didn't know Riot Poof it was the only song I didn't know. Landslide was a wonderful surprise-it brought me to tears, as expected. Professional Widow was wonderful and Leather was even better. Tear In Your Hand wasn't a fav from LE, but after being played live, I got to like it. my two favs are: Hotel and Sugar...Hotel: wow!!! Good stuff. So, the sound was good, and even though I was short, I got to kind of stand on my chair but tori's piano was facing MY direction so that was extra special. So, those are my thoughts on the show. I would've preferred Hey Jupiter or Iieee to be thrown in, but the songs were way good.

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