Rewarded and Converted

There is a very good chance that my friend Paddy's influence on me is undervalued. Two years ago, she and I attended the Barenaked Ladies and Alanis Morissette concert at the Greek. It's no secret we were there for Alanis and had no regard either direction for the Ladies. By the end of their set, I wasn't just on my feet and dancing and screaming for more, I was head over feet in love. The next day, I ran out and bought the entire Barenaked Ladies catalogue. What can I say? I'm like that.

Back in 2000, Paddy and I were at Lillith Fair at the Rose Bowl. They announced a female country trio that neither of us were familiar with, so we decided to head to the beer stand at the back of the bowl. Our seats were in the 13th row towards the stage. The country girls started up with their fiddles and twang and just as we were hitting the back of the bowl, every single person in that venue was on their feet stompin', hollerin' and waving their hands in the air. I had never seen anything like it. Paddy and I forgot about the beer and ran back to our seats. We had just experienced the Dixie Chicks for the very first time (and if you read yesterday's blog, you know there was no looking back).

Which brings me to last night...

A few weeks ago, Paddy sent out an email to Erica, Clara, Jo and myself. One of their favorite singers, Jill Sobule was going to be playing at Largo in Hollywood. I had no idea who she was (and honestly am generally uninterested in going to shows of singers I've never heard of). But I replied without hesitation because I had missed my girls. I love those girls more than I ever let on and I really didn't care if we were going to see Gary Coleman read the phone book so long as I was with them.

We knoshed on some delicious sweet and tangy crusted chicken with mashed potatoes and Clara and I caught up (and by caught up, I mean, Clara sat there listening while I yammered on about a situation I am not ready to make nice on). Then Jill took the stage...

Again, I'm not usually good with newness. Not usually receptive to new people, new ideas, new changes. It's safe to say I like familiarity. But I guess that is also what makes it so electric when someone can come along and penetrate my stubborn exterior and make me want more. This was the case when Jill Sobule opened her mouth and allowed her brilliant thoughts, painful heartaches and often hilarious observations fly around the room in her Jewel-like voice, filling the air with song. You could feel her words dripping from the rafters long after the last note had left her body. having a good time with just her, she found a way to kick the evening up a notch and make me even happier.

After singing her 1995 hit I Kissed a Girl (which she declared, "it's time to sing "the hit and get it out of the way"), she invited up her new friend, SNL Alumni, Julia Sweeney for an impromptu performance. I love Julia Sweeney. I go to as many of her one woman performances as I can here in Los Angeles. I love her views on life and her ability to add levity to tragic situations and to laugh through the absurdity that is often life. She knocked it out of the park last night.

In between Jill's irreverent songs, Julia would share stories from her time on SNL to her Catholic upbringing in Spokane. In the background, Jill and her two piece band (a lead guitarist named Adam Levy and a hot stand up bass player that seriously stole Ricky Martin's facial features) played jazzy rifts as Julia took the audience on her own ride. It was such a simple concept, yet totally original and incredibly fulfilling (and quite the reward for saying yes without hesitation). Seriously delicious chicken, a table of some of my favorite people, and the birth of a new fandom, it was a good night.

This morning I have been filling my itunes with Jill Sobule tracks. I'm officially a convert. I highly recommend everyone do the same. Cinnamon Park (where she samples Chicago's Saturdays in the Park), Bitter and Under The Disco Ball are three of my faves. Also, you can download her smart and funny track (legally and for free) she wrote in response to Global Warming by clicking here. And for a much more eloquent review of last night, click here.

That about does it for now. Paddy, thanks again for opening my eyes to another star. Jill, if you've done one of your Blog Googles, thank you for a great night and I look forward to many more!