I must confess that I have struggled greatly with how to preface this particular page -- in part, I believe, simply because the benefit of hindsight allows me to still hear the echoes of the show which followed one night later, the artistic triumph it represented for Michael -- and the pure, unfettered joy it brought all of us who have previously been privileged to realize the heights to which his talent can truly soar.   As a result, I think I'm merely anxious to "get on with" sharing in fuller detail every aspect of that second performance.  Beyond that, though, I also feel strongly conflicted by the dilemma of fearing I may wax too warm in praising this predecessor of it -- or worse, unfairly dismiss a show nonetheless well deserving its own just due.  After all, when weighing the two together, it can't be argued this first effort pales in comparison.  Still, as the saying goes, it was certainly "nothing to sneeze at".  

With that in mind, I've at last concluded I might serve this show and its creator best, not to mention capture its essence most accurately, by simply describing it exactly as it unfolded -- at least from my "insane" perspective!  That said, I hereby present...

Michael McDermott
at...

5-14-06

As the above photo implies, Michael started off the night at the piano -- with a longtime guitar staple, re-envisioned by him for a January 2001 webcast as a vehicle for keyboards..."Getting Off The Dime"... 

"Do you ever feel the forces that you have to work against
Fight you all along the way from both sides of a crooked fence?"

Remaining at the piano, Michael next informed the audience he had recently finished a new record -- which might indicate to some that a selection from it was about to follow.  True to his spirit of predictable unpredictability, however, he went on to point out, "This song won't be on it...so, I figured I'd bore you with it..."

Actually, while I don't think any audience members were bored in the least with "Motel Bed" (a.k.a. "Molly Mockingbird), it seems Michael himself...

...may have increasingly become so as the song progressed...

Hey, I've heard of falling asleep on the job, but never quite like this before!  

Ooops....maybe I shouldn't have said that -- he looks kinda mad...

Actually, he was more likely thinking ahead to his next song, and the uneasy contemplations of finding oneself a "Long Way From Heaven"...

"Wandering streets of rain and light,
I'm not feeling like myself tonight.."

Indeed, not feeling quite himself as a performer at first this evening,  he seemed to find more familiar ground as the set moved on.  And, becoming a bit more talkative, Michael shared the fact he was dedicating the next song to a musician he had once come to The Bitter End to see play Sunday nights, Gordon Gaines...which, interestingly, drew eager applause from someone in attendance who had likewise enjoyed this artist.  Noting he hoped Gaines "is still around here", Michael then attempted to begin his next song, only to encounter a bit of unexpected technical difficulty -- covered with his usual humor, as he asked in mock incredulity, "Gordon, why are you doin' this to me?!?"  Rather, it might be argued the circumstance was merely further evidence of another "Wall [he] Must Climb"...

Of course, check out this shot I can only believe somehow represents a bit of X-Ray vision into an artist's psyche and you'll see for yourself just how much there is to overcome!!!  (Hmm...or are all these apparently crossed wires merely the result of last month's harmonica-microphone shock treatments?!?!)

Whatever the case, the set from there on out did become a bit more "electric", one might say...i.e. Michael's passion and improvisation increased considerably as he not only indeed made "Wall" seem like a new discovery, but delivered, too, a heartfelt version of "Hand of the Hunter" (well, after a few more difficulties that resulted in an amusing outburst of "Dammit!" followed by a slightly sheepish, "Sorry, guys").  

"Stiletto the sounds, and the lights all a flashing,
Do you bow to the one that you're serving?
Are you free, from the  hand of the hunter?"

Still, there was surely nothing sheepish about the confident manner in which Michael segued without interruption into "#49" -- a very old song made completely new via a last verse that included the musical juxtaposition of a louder segment followed by hushed, reverent intonations regarding the lady who "stood with grace and liberty, all by herself out in the sea"... A beautiful and fitting tribute to the city in which he was playing on this Mother's Day Sunday night.

Offering a bit of humor once again, Michael then told the audience that he was staying at The Chelsea Hotel -- his first time ever lodging at this New York "institution" -- yes, one that has over the years housed many an "artist insane"...and perhaps many folks who were simply crazy.  As noted in both my post regarding this show on "The Pauper's Sky" and Michael's subsequent myspace blog, he recognized the possibility of the latter by wondering aloud whether the stains in his room were wine or blood, adding that if any DNA experts were in attendance on this occasion, he'd like to find out.  Again, as I mentioned in my post, however, I think he probably got more sleep by remaining ignorant...then again, when one considers the photos of him sleeping at the piano earlier in the show...maybe not!

Be that as it may, this complexity of intro led into a much simpler composition...my personal favorite of the new songs I've heard recently -- "Mess of Things"... 

"Trouble with trouble is that it sometimes sticks,
It plays tricks with the mind while it gets its kicks..."

And, following this came a most appropriate example of just how such a "Mess" might in fact be spawned...or rather, the manner in which many messes (and songs lamenting them, such as "Can't Sleep Tonight") have indeed been created over the years -- the misguided action, and consequences, of dealing with a relationship gone bad by trying to "Drink You Off My Mind"...

Of course, you only need to study Michael's convincing portrayal of a drunk near the song's conclusion to get a pretty clear idea that this probably isn't the solution he himself believes offers the most comfort...

"I've had three too many, my head's ringing like a bell,
Boys, point me to heaven, 'cause this must be hell..."

But, I'm forced to here add, It's likewise never comforting to know the conclusion of a McDermott show is approaching.  Unfortunately, with the very next song this particular night of music was too soon about to end.  In the spirit of truly saving the best for last, however, Michael proved he was by no means "locked in a slumber" as my earlier joking comments might suggest.  Finding his greatest level of intensity of the evening -- and the most I'd had the privilege to personally witness in over a year -- he closed out the set with a positively riveting version of "Bourbon Blue"...

...as evidenced by the rapt attention with which fellow great talent Brian Fitzpatrick, his fiancee Melissa and I were all "captured by [his] spirit" during its performance...

And, after the show I managed to capture "the emergence of the form" surrounding that spirit for a photo to commemorate this most interesting occasion...

...interesting in part because no one present yet knew it indeed preceded "the form [he would] soon be" -- or rather, the "return to form" Michael himself later characterized his performance the very next night at The Living Room...a page on which stellar experience will follow shortly.

In the meantime...

As always, 

Thank You, Michael!

And, again,

Please come back soon!!!