The John Hiatt Message Forum

[GaryK]

Sep 26, 2011 - GaryK
Letter to Fairfield Theater Company regarding the concert
Dear Director,

I was disappointed at John Hiatt’s brief performance at the Klein Auditorium this past Saturday. His musical and writing talent is unmatched, and his backup band, the Combo, are fantastic musicians. The songs played almost brought me to tears with their lyrics and music. However, the set was unusually short and unusually timed. I was surprised that Mr. Hiatt performed first, and almost missed a portion of his set planning to arrive after the opening act was well into their set. Although both acts were considered “co-headliners”, Mr. Hiatt is far better known and he and his group are far better performers than the other act.

Mr. Hiatt performed for about 50 minutes before his final encore ( a little less than an hour total) and performed fewer songs than I saw on set lists on his web page. Other concert reviews mention 2-hour performances. I think this showed a lack of respect for the local fans, the city and FTC. I have always been and will always be a fan, and I would pay to see him again. I can’t during this tour because local shows are either sold out or on days when I am on call at work.

I think Mr. Hiatt and the Combo should perform a free concert for the people of Bridgeport to repay us for leaving us in such haste, and dashing our expectations. Please pass this onto him and please let me know your opinions.

Sincerely,

GaryK
Member FTC

[numpsey]

Last yeear when I saw him with Los Lobos, it was the same. I felt very jilted. If he does come to Albuquerque this tour along with Big Head I will have reservations about buying tickets(which is a very hard thing to do). I guess I am selfish and want the full two hours+ of just Mr Hiatt and his band and people that are there for his music.

[onceisnotenough]

This is exactly why during a previous forum survey on who should open shows for John and the band I was emphatic about NO OPENING ACTS. His set list possibilities are near endless. He could fill a four or more hour show himself. In fact John, how about as a fund raiser, an auction(s) for a fan(s) to develop set lists? Though never disappointed, I walk away from every show wishing he had done this one and that one. If I could choose.....
Your favorite charity would be a grateful beneficiary. What ya say John? Great idea, right fans?[/b]

[GaryK]

I should have titled this thread: "Damn this town-he left"

[OneEyedNiagraFallsMan]

For a "typical" JH concert, yours was really a short duration performance. Last year, at the Sandia Resort and Casino in Albuquerque, NM, he played for a very short time because he was not the featured act. Los Lobos was the featured act. And, after taking a brief break from the tour prior to that concert, he and the Combo were either rusty or retooling their lineup of musical arrangements and were not in top form at Sandia. All of this seemed highly unusual since John really cares about delivering value for dollar to his fans. I attended 5 concerts last year and only the Sandia concert was short and thus disappointing. The Combo is a wonderful group (although I have not heard them play without Patrick O'Hearn, the basist). They are capable of delivering magnificent performances, as long as they are playing indoors and the acoustical geometry of the venue is good. All I can say is... you got rooked. Sorry.

[feeling again]

I don't believe the performer has any say in how long the set will be. I think, especially when opening or co-headlining, the time slot is allotted by the venue/promoter, so the performer must comply. Expecting a free or for charity return concert is unfair to the performer.
I felt the same way when John toured with Lyle Lovitt, Ron Ely & Guy Clark.....I would've much preferred a couple hours with John solo.
He's playing many small venues on the current tour, I just saw him in an old movie theatre that had no more than 600-700 seats.....the sound & the set were fabulous....2+ hours of great music....the way it should be.

[thundergirl]

Still waiting for this tour to hit the west coast, but my 2¢ worth is that any opportunity to see John should not be taken for granted. With the economy these days, the record labels are co-billing to cut costs and maximize profits. They usually alternate who is the opener and who is the "headliner" from night to night, no matter which name you think is bigger.
Don't assume! If John isn't the opener, you only sit through less than an hour of someone you don't want to see. If you choose to miss the opener, you risk missing John.
Big Head Todd is a huge name although a different fan base than Hiatt's. The last west coast performance with John was co-billed with Lyle. I love Lyle, and lucky for us, they shared the stage because the sold out crowd was heavily loaded with Lovett fans. The songwriter circle that John does with Joe Ely, Guy Clark and Lyle Lovett is another example of the equality of sharing the stage and it increases the odds of the show selling out by appealing to the different fan bases. The days of seeing John in small intimate solo performance venues are over. Well almost......Big Daddy (bless his soul) and I saw John in a venue with 30 people a couple years ago in Petaluma, CA. We were so close, we could kick him. He only played for 35 minutes, but it was FREE! (a radio station/record label promotion).
In any event, don't diss the openers. You could be missing something great. And go to every show on the tour, then you don't miss a thing :)
Love, TG

[GaryK]

We are giving our master songwriter/singer/guitarist/performer another chance. See you at Tarrytown Music Hall on Oct. 7

[GaryK]

We are giving our master songwriter-singer-guitarist-performer another chance. See you at Tarrytown Music Hall on Oct. 7

[GaryK]

We are giving our master another chance. See you in Tarrytown, NY on Oct 7