Consider this a tape-delayed liveblog of the Jen & Sam Acoustic Jamboree Friday Night. The Big Top is situated nicely enough that the VIP booth has access to a power outlet, which aids this a great deal. Anyways, I thought it'd be fun to capture some of the witty stage banter that goes on during anything Jen & Sam are involved in. Let's see who gets in more trouble for this ... me for posting it, or Jen & Sam for saying the following:
7:00 … promised start time … no Samifer
7:30 … same as above, only we're now around the usual Ringwald start time
7:45 … same as above
7:50 … finally!
7:52 … sound check, witty stage banter, less-than-witty stage banter. At long last - a song!!!
First set
First song – title I forget … I’m assuming it went flawlessly for now
Jen starts drinking … more sound check
“And She Was� – Talking Heads …
Sam offers music lessons to Jen … futile
“Your Love� – The Outfield … what the hell is Sam singing? This get explained later ... and the effect, repeated. Still ... WTF?
“You may love the Ringwalds, but WE don’t love the Ringwalds� ~ Jen
“What does this sound like?� {plays kazoo backward} ~ Jen
“It’ll be fine, just have a drink.� ~ Jen
“Beast of Burden� – The Rolling Stones … first non-Ringwalds song for the night. Guitar needs tuning one verse in … second take … song lacks too much Jennifer to qualify as entertaining.
“title I forget� – Violent Femmes … kinda sucks done acoustically
“Walk Like an Egyptian� – The Bangles … Sam sings again – and shouldn’t – ever. Too many screwups by Sam (non-singing, that is) to count.
“Me and Julio� – Paul Simon … kazoo time
“It’s the End of the World� – R.E.M. … much discussion on how “Cool Rider� isn’t a good acoustic song. Yet somehow this is?
“Keep Your Hands to Yourself� – Georgia Satellites … ably karaoked by Frank
Second set
Sam vamps with the mic while guitar being tuned
“Strong Enough� - Sheryl Crow … for one song only, “James & Jen.� Nicely done.
“All of Me� - Willie Nelson(?) … with kazoo???
“Stop banging it into the mic, ya drunk.� ~ Sam (directed at Jen)
“Any Way You Want It� – Journey … and with that, the drunks at the bar wake up!
“Play some Skynard.� ~ random fan
“Oh, that’s original.� ~ Jen
(after a request for “Thriller�) “Sir, look, you see a singer, a kazoo, and an acoustic guitar … and you want to hear ‘Thriller’?�
“Get your own band.� ~ Jen
“Where the Streets Have No Names� – U2 …
“Come On Eileen� – Dexy’s Midnight Runners … the chorus only. It's recommended afterward, by Jen, that they only play the ending to all of the songs from this point on. It's rather clear that ADD kicks in at this point.
“Do I have to be up here for this one?� ~ Jen
“Yeah.� ~ Sam
“Oh.� ~ a very disappointed Jen
“The Gambler� – Kenny Rogers … like I said – a VERY disappointed Jen.
“… so you can suck and blow.� ~ Jen … seriously, it doesn’t matter WHAT context
“Sweet Child of Mine� – Guns & Roses … because blowing the electric version just isn’t enough? Actually, this wasn't bad. Jen still has to flex her vocal chords to pull this off and that wakes up a few folks in the place. The guitar relies more on chords than the hook, so somehow, this one works acoustically. Maybe The Ringwalds should do this one unplugged.
“Are you all ready to hear some Johnny Cash? This is one I learned a long time ago when I played in an all-originals band, The Davenports.� ~ Sam
“Davenport� – Johnny Cash … apparently only played by all-originals bands.
“The V.D. Blues� – Sam Ringwald … a true story, I'm guessing.
“Respect� – Erasure … finally, Jen returns to the stage.
“You Can’t Always Get What You Want� – The Rolling Stones … about five seconds of it
“Paul Revere� - … five seconds of which seems like an eternity
“I think I have an unusually loud snap (*snaps*)� ~ Jen
“Thank you … and f*ck you.� ~ Sam (directed at audience)
“I hate all of you.� ~ Jen (directed at ... possibly the world)
“Girls Just Wanna Have Fun� – Cyndi Lauper … the reason Jen hates everyone. And yet, the kazoo solo kinda sorta works. This was supposed to be the last song, but demands for an encore overwhelm the duo. They decide to make peace with the surly crowd by performing one more song.
“Blue Skies� – Willie Nelson … Jen gives up about 30 seconds in.
“Well Jen, ya sure did f*ck us.� ~ Sam
“Add it Up� – Violent Femmes … Jen gives up about 60 seconds in.
“Wild Horses� – The Rolling Stones/Gram Parsons …not bad, actually. I'm biased since it's one of my favorite Stones tunes.
So there ya go ... that's about typical of what you get from either the Ringwalds, Jen & Sam's Acoustic Jamboree, or merely Jen & Sam after a few drinks at the bar. Next Ringwald date is July 14th at the Continental Club. Come and see how much crap I get for posting some of this.
