I See Hawks In L.A. at Cabin Creek Crystals, 8-1-24 Concert Review

I See Hawks In L.A. playing "Still Want You"

The Hawks are back! It was announced online a few weeks ago that in August I See Hawks In L.A. would begin performing under that band name again (recent shows have been billed as Rob Waller & Friends), and it turns out we did not have to wait much into August for that to happen. Yesterday evening the musicians played their first gig as I See Hawks In L.A. since the passing of Paul Lacques in January. And they chose the perfect spot and moment for it: on the beach on Jerry Garcia’s birthday as the sun was going down. I mean, seriously, what better setting could anyone have devised? There is a courtyard outside the crystal shop where concerts had been held in the past, but this time it was decided to set up at the edge of the pedestrian walkway known as Ocean Front Walk. The band was on one side, and the chairs set up on the other, which meant that passersby would be passing right in front of the stage, between the band and the audience. Ordinarily I would have expected that to be incredibly distracting and annoying, but somehow it wasn’t at all. The Hawks, with their special magic, somehow included all those people, however briefly, in the fun. Also fitting for this band, they made no big deal out of the fact that this was their first show back as the Hawks. In fact, they made no deal of it at all. Rather, as always, it was all about the music.

"If I Move"

They opened the first set, just after 6 p.m., with “Raised By Hippies,” a nice way to kick off the Jerry Garcia birthday show. And if you’re wondering, I’ll just tell you now, no, the band did not play “I Fell In Love With The Grateful Dead” last night. Talk about defying expectations. By the way, Dan Wistrom, who had not been at the recent Long Beach Rob Waller & Friends show, was back on pedal steel and electric guitar for this Venice Beach show. He started the night off on pedal steel for that first song, delivering some nice work. Rob then mentioned that it was good to see some old friends at the show, as well as some new friends as they speed by on electric bicycles. Dan switched to electric guitar for “White Cross,” delivering an excellent lead, and then was back on pedal steel for “Poour Me” and “If I Move.”  There was such a good, joyous vibe to the music. And yeah, that’s not unusual for this band, but the setting seemed to make everything even more special.

"Open Door"

“Ohio” was a lot of fun last night, as always. I’m hoping that song will find a place on the next album. “I was poisoned by the California dream/I was hooked on my vanity project, but now I’m clean.” Many of us living in Los Angeles have considered leaving, going back to wherever it is we’re from. But then again, anywhere this band plays feels like “Sweet home” for the duration of the show. That was followed by “Highway Down,” long one of my favorites of the band’s material. It had a particularly good feel about it at this show. Paul Marshall then sang lead on “Drinkers Hall Of Fame.” “Here’s a fun song that also happens to be on the set list,” he joked during the song’s introduction. This was another highlight of the first set, and it was delightfully playful. Dan delivered some great stuff on pedal steel. And at one point near the end of the song, a foot race passed between the stage and the audience. A strange and beautiful evening. “Open Door” followed, with Victoria Jacobs on lead vocals. I was so happy to hear this song at the Long Beach show, and it was great hearing it again last night.

“I’ve been meaning to get to the beach,” Rob Waller said after “Open Door.” “It’s really nice.” Indeed! It’s ridiculous that I don’t get to the beach more often, particularly as the proximity to the ocean is one of the reasons I like living here. The band then played “California Country,” which featured a good lead by Dan on electric guitar. After that song a woman was walking by with her dog, and Rob addressed her directly, telling her he’d like to do a song for her dog. And they went into “A Dog Can Break Your Heart Too,” a song I haven’t heard the band play very often, but one that features their wonderful harmonies. The woman stayed for the song (so did her dog), and afterward it sounded like she said her dog was named Mini Cooper, but I might have misheard her. It didn’t matter because right then the band launched into “Humboldt,” and I was suddenly too busy dancing to care about the dog’s identity. They delivered a good jam, featuring some really nice work on bass. Dan had the freedom to get wild on guitar toward the end. The set ended at 7:04 p.m.

"Hope Against Hope"

Three of the four musicians were back on stage approximately twenty minutes later, and at 7:30 Dan joined them. Rob joked that Dan had to go buy some weed, and the band then played “Hope Against Hope,” a sweet, beautiful way to open the set as the sky was turning to darker pinks and greys. “I always like to play that one outside at sunset,” Rob said afterward. They followed that with “Carbon Dated Love.” Then Victoria asked, “Do you guys want to hear a story?” Several people in the audience shouted out, “Yeah!” They had a pretty good idea what song it was they were cheering for, the always-enjoyable “My Parka Saved Me.” I’m not sure how they managed it, but this song was even more fun than usual. Rob told the audience afterward, “It was a true story from her life.” But Victoria wasn’t entirely paying attention to him, for she had turned around to view the sky. She exclaimed, “Look at that sunset.” Again, it was a special night.

"Hippie On The Road"

“Hippie On The Road” had a whole lot of energy, and at the end Rob said that bit about all of us being hippies on the road, then amended it to “hippies on the boardwalk,” and added “Even you, sir” to someone passing by. Again, the evening had that kind of joy. And all those who were around became a part of the location, and so a part of the concert, whether they realized it or not. The sky became even more magnificent during “Live And Never Learn,” staircases of red descending from the clouds behind the band. Whether related to the spectacular sky or not, this was a particularly good rendition of “Live And Never Learn.” That was followed by a beautiful rendition of “Know Just What To Do,” with Dan delivering some nice work on pedal steel.

“They’re closing up the weed shop,” Rob noted, as he looked off toward a nearby store, though I’m sure that by then anyone in the audience who wanted to get a little high had already attained some sort of cruising altitude. The band then went into Paul Marshall’s “Truth Is You Lied,” which was featured in the movie Grace Of My Heart (if you haven’t seen that movie, you should check it out), and was such a treat to hear last night. It’s a song I love, and I don’t hear it often enough. They followed that with “Me And Paul,” a Willie Nelson song played in tribute to Paul Lacques. In the song’s introduction, Rob mentioned that he had hoped Willie would perform it the night before. I think several folks in the audience had been at the Hollywood Bowl the previous night for the John Mellencamp/Bob Dylan/Willie Nelson show. (By the way, Bob Dylan delivered a really touching rendition of the Grateful Dead’s “Stella Blue” at that show.) “Me And Paul” was followed by yet another treat, “Still Want You,” which was a total delight. It’s another favorite of mine. They then wrapped up the set with “Good And Foolish Times,” which felt perfect. “Didn’t we have some good times/Some good and foolish times.” That was intended as the last song of the night, but the audience wanted one more, and the band obliged, sending everyone off into the night with a beautiful rendition of “Grapevine.” The show ended at 8:28 p.m.

Set List

Set I

1. Raised By Hippies
2. White Cross
3. Poour Me
4. If I Move
5. Ohio
6. Highway Down
7. Drinkers Hall Of Fame
8. Open Door
9. California Country
10. A Dog Can Break Your Heart Too
11. Humboldt

Set II

1. Hope Against Hope
2. Carbon Dated Love
3. My Parka Saved Me
4. Hippie On The Road
5. Live And Never Learn
6. Know Just What To Do
7. Truth Is You Lied
8. Me And Paul
9. Still Want You
10. Good And Foolish Times

Encore

1. Grapevine

Here are a few more photos from the show:

"Ohio"

 

"Drinkers Hall Of Fame"

"Carbon Dated Love"

"My Parka Saved Me"

"Hippie On The Road"

"Live And Never Learn"