Because of the weird time
delays and whatnot, the musicians couldn’t actually play together, as they
would normally do. But the show began with a video that the four musicians had
created in which they do perform together, though still from their separate
homes. The song chosen was Jon Svetkey’s “Reeling Down A Road,” the title track
from The Loomers’ 2010 release. A perfect choice, really, as the song is all
about the early days when these guys played together, and its lyrics contain
references to several of the songs they performed back at that time. They just
had to update the first line from “Was it
twenty years ago” to “Was it thirty
years ago.” It was a cool way to
introduce the show, set the right tone, and get us all excited. And the
photograph that Jon mentions in this song is one he actually later showed the
online audience.
Jon Svetkey said, “I drew the short straw and I get to play
first,” and got the show going with a relatively new song (well, new, in
the grand scheme of things), “Matchbox Car,” a sweet song that I love more each
time I hear it. “Grandpa says, this little
black car looks exactly like the Packard I was driving when I married your
grandma.” Brian Doser followed that with “Waiting For The Moon,” a beautiful
song that he wrote in Kerrville, Texas. “I
find that I write best when I’m alone somewhere,” he said in the song’s
introduction, then mentioned that he now has four children and is never alone
anymore. I love the line “She gives all
my troubles a name.” It was Jim Infantino’s turn next, and he chose “Hate
Street,” an excellent choice for these troubled days, and a good reminder to
not allow hate to determine our path. “I
can’t go the way I used to/I’ve got to find a kinder way.” “It’s good to hear you guys singing,”
Ellis Paul said afterward. “It feels like
I’m in a time machine of sorts.” That led to them talking a bit about their
history, about how they all met, mentioning WERS, the Nameless and the Old
Vienna. The Old Vienna is where I first saw these guys play back in 1989, both
as a group and individually. It was a great venue. Ellis then played “Rose
Tattoo,” a wonderful song in which he sings, “If I ever lost you/I’d be lost too.” I think we all know that
feeling. And we certainly all need to hear someone sing to us, “Hey, I’ve got your back.”
Up until this point, when one
of them was singing, the others weren’t visible. But at Jim’s request, Matt
Smith changed the screen so we could see all four at the same time, to make the
experience more in line with how the shows were. An excellent decision, for –
at least from my perspective – this is when the concert started to feel right.
And in that spirit, Jon said, “I figure I’ll
go back in time right now, into the time machine, and play one from the Old
Vienna days.” The song he chose was “Dead End Streets,” a song I always
love hearing. When he plays this one in person, there is a moment when the
entire crowd stomps their feet three times, and it was kind of fun to imagine
that all across the country people were stomping their feet in their homes.
After that song, when each of the musicians was in his own quadrant of the
screen, Ellis joked that it was like The
Brady Bunch, and they all pretended to look at each other like in that
program’s credit sequence. And that sort of goofing around was always a part of
their concerts, and so helped make this online experience closer to what we all
remember. Brian then said he was going to reach back pretty far for his next
song. At first he teased that he’d play “Early Sunday Morning,” which was my
favorite of his from the very early days, and then “Beacon Hill.” But what he
chose was just as much a surprise, and just as welcome – “The Ballad Of Joe And
Naz.” I hadn’t heard this song in a long time, and it was a treat to see him
play it. Jim talked a bit about how they each inspired the others to write, and
that he also got the same sort of inspiration from David Wilcox, which led to the
writing of “Can’t Fall Down.” This is a song Jim has been playing sometimes on
his “Solo In Isolation” Saturday concerts, and it is one I am always excited to
hear. Ellis followed that with “Hurricane Angel,” an excellent song about
Hurricane Katrina, one he played on keyboard. Before starting it, he mentioned
that he missed those early days of End Construction. “That was honestly the best period of my life as an artist, that first
three or four years.”
Jon began the show’s final
round with a new song, “Some Kind Of Kindness.” “This is kind of where my head is at these days,” he said during the
introduction. It was fantastic to hear a new song, and this song is likely in
line with where a lot of people are these days. “I need some kind of kindness/It’s easy to find/It’s not complicated/It
comes in all sizes/It’s a hand to hold onto/When you’re falling over/It’s a pat
on the back/It’s a squeeze of a shoulder.” At the end he sings, “I need kindness, especially now.”
Indeed. Brian then surprised me by playing a snippet of a new song and
dedicating it my brother and me, knowing that both of us are always happy to
hear something new. The song, titled “Fireflies,” includes these lines: “Fireflies, fireflies/I’m still only ten in
my backyard when I close my eyes.” Wonderful. Brian then played a classic, “I’m
Sorry (That I’m Not Sorry),” a staple of the End Construction shows back in the
day. In the verse about his parents, the line “as I kicked them down the stairs” became “as I escorted them kindly down the stairs.” He also mentioned that
the cop verse is a true story, it took place in Winthrop, Massachusetts. It was
odd not hearing Jon’s touches during this song, though we could see him playing
them in his quadrant. And then, just to prove why it can’t be done, Brian has
the other guys unmute their microphones and sing along on the chorus at the
end. It was perfect. It started to rain at Jim’s place, and it was audible to
all who were watching the show. Jim then played “Red Motorcycle,” though in the
introduction he said it was called “Googly Eyeballs.” Has he renamed it?
Anyway, it’s a sweet and delightful song, and the lines that stand out most for
me are “Oh you ran up and kissed me/Oh
you couldn’t resist me/Oh you said that you missed me.” The rain was really
coming down at that point. Ellis then concluded the show with “You’ll Never Be
This Young Again,” a song from his latest release, The Storyteller’s Suitcase. First he told the others, “There’s a little of your DNA in everything I
do.” It’s a song about not giving up on dreams, no matter what your age is,
and is a song that has been in my head a lot in recent days and weeks and
months.
The show began with a
pre-recorded performance of “Reeling Down A Road,” and it concluded with a
pre-recorded performance of Jim’s “Everybody Gets The Blues,” a song they’d
often play at the end of their shows back in the day. This version featured
Ellis on keys. I don’t recall him playing keyboard on this one before, though
my memory isn’t always perfect. It was a wonderful and gentle rendition, a
perfect way of wrapping up the show. It concluded at 9:45 p.m. eastern time.
Though, actually, that wasn’t really the end of the night, for they set up a
Zoom call afterward to talk about old times and tell anecdotes and catch up on
what’s happening in their lives. It was a lot of fun, and went on for more than
two hours. What a fantastic night.
Set List
- Matchbox Car
- Waiting For The Moon
- Hate Street
- Rose Tattoo
- Dead End Streets
- The Ballad Of Joe And Naz
- Can’t Come Down
- Hurricane Angel
- Some Kind Of Kindness
- Fireflies
- I’m Sorry (That I’m Not Sorry)
- Red Motorcycle
- You’ll Never Be This Young Again
