"You be Israel, I will be Palestine."
Edit...
Here it is, 3 weeks later. It was a great show. If you ever have a chance to go see a performance at McDougal United Church then I suggest that you go. Heck, why not check out the service on Sunday morning?
This was the second show I had been to at this particular venue. The first was Hayden, and we took baby Miles to that one. It was very cold out so Barbara and Miles got ushered to the front of the line while the rest of us waited in the cold. That was a good show. But this one outdid the last one, in my opinion.
It was a nice night. No bitter Hayden-type cold this time. Also, there was no opening band, which I really liked. Plaskett was touring without his rock band The Emergency. His new album seems more like a solo effort, so he brought along his back-up singers and his Dad, naturally. If I was touring and had a chance to bring along Dad I'd do it. And I hope Miles would do the same.
Anyways, it was a nice evening. Kind of like a sing-a-long, clap-clap fest, really. The crowd was into it from the beginning. If I remember right, the song True Patriot Love was the first song he did. Now, for me, after being out of country for a year, coming to a show and hearing a song about Canada and Patriot Love (Not the War kind of patriot love, but the nice hockey/beavers kind) I got a little misty in the eyes. It was a moment, that's for sure. Here's a link to the song performed at a different time, but it's also great.
During the intermission I was talking to a friend and he asked what I missed about living in Canada, or something to that extent, and I said that I missed stuff like this Joel Plaskett show. Being out in this city and being around all of these people is something that seems to restore some sort of dry roots inside my heart. The songs are the water and the neighbors, strangers, and friends sitting around me in the crowd are the soil. I can't really explain what the Sun is, but I can feel it.
Later on, Joel brought out his Dad and his back-up singers. They brought an acoustic, clangy sound to the stage, driven home by Joel's voice. It was a great time. A great 'welcome back to your homeland' show. Leonard Cohen and Joel Plaskett, all in the same month. Good times. La la la la la...
