Dave Matthews Band New York City 11/13/2010

Usually every year we go up to NYC for our winter Christmas trip and as this year we actually both have jobs our schedules were a little different.  We decided that this weekend in November would be a good time to go as we were off for Veteran's day and could make it a long weekend, it also just so happened that the Dave Matthews Band was in town and that my wife had never been to Madison Square Garden....I got her tickets for her B-day.  Our first day in our favorite city was spent in the park walking around enjoying the foliage as most of the trees down here are just starting to change but in NYC they were a little past peak season, the park was beautiful.  That evening keeping with the new and winter christmas trip, we went to see the Rockette's at Radio City as my wife had never been there either and it had to do with Christmas.  What can you say about the Rockette's...the history, precision, dedication and amazement of the whole production a true NYC favorite.  The next day we met with my wife's family and spent the day at Battery Park, the WTC site, and had lunch at the South Street Seaport on a beautiful 65 degree day in NYC in November.  This was all building up to the big evening at MSG. 
The opener was the John Butler Trio and if you dont know them, they are well worth checking out, some of the most amazing acoustic guitar you can hear.  Before DMB ever came out the crowd was rocking, NYC was loud and rauchous unlike any concert I have ever been too including SPAC in 2009.  For the first few songs it was apparent that Dave's voice was suffering and he asked the crowd to sing for him.  Unbelievable energy and sound ripped through the crowd as fans sang and shouted all the words to "Funny the Way it Is", "Pig", "Dancing Nancies", and "Don't Drink the Water" with the band mixing up the solos and riffs in between and Carter leading some vocals...true improvistation and just great to be a part and so freaking loud.  Somewhere at the end of "Don't Drink the Water" Dave got real hyper and animated and all of a sudden his voice was back.  He did a histerical improv on "Christmas Song" as he started and said "this just got too religious" and went into a full freestyle over gays and straights and seriousness and judegement and then right back into "Christmas Song", crazy and again improvisational.  The energy was through the roof for the next few and then Vusi came out.  I had seen Vusi in 2006 at SPAC and was immediately thrilled that he was coming out again.  He freaking rocked MSG, they danced and had fun, there is a video below of the great performance.  Keeping the energy through the roof with the next few it felt that this concert just kept going.  They played both my wife and ours songs back to back in "Crush" and "Best of What's Around" which was just the cherry on the top.  Best "Two Step" I have ever heard which led to the encore at 11:40pm.  Then "Sister" for his sister who was there and a killer "Last Stop" to close the night a little after 12pm.  Amazing night of music and easily one of my favorite shows I have seen or heard of all time, in the greatest city in the whole wide world.  After two great shows on this tour, I cannot imagine what waits for us next weekend in Charlottesville for the last two shows until 2012 but it cannot be more amazing than this.

Saturday  Nov 13 2010
Madison Square Garden

#41 *
Say Goodbye *
Funny The Way It Is *
Pig *
Write A Song *
Dancing Nancies *
Still Water 
Don’t Drink the Water *
(Christmas Song) +
Improv +
Christmas Song +
The Song That Jane Likes *
Crush *
Best of Whats Around *
Rhyme And Reason *
Black Jack *
Everyday *~
Time Bomb *
You and Me *
Two Step *

__________________

Sister Ä
Last Stop *

Show Notes:
* Jeff Coffin
+ Dave, Carter and Tim
~ Vusi Mahlasela
Ä Dave, Carter, Rashawn and Tim