York review

I guess the best place to start is at the beginning. Due to bad weather, the pre-show meeting for AOLers didn't happen. :-( So, my wife and I went to the venue, and the first person we saw, right at the front of the stage, in dead center, was our very own Dana. Standing next to her was Jacob. Unfortunately, I didn't see anyone else till intermission. Then I saw Henry (ex-AOLer; we miss you Henry), then the show began.

York was General Admission, which for us shorter people is a real drag. Although I couldn't see much, what I heard was fantastic. I figured since I wasn't going to get close to the front, I'd hang back a bit, and enjoy the music from the best auditory vantage point, the soundboard. Wow! Hush is a great opener, but the next song, Fireball, was a more accurate indicator of what the rest of the night would be like. Raw power and musical excellence is probably the best way to describe it. The set list was similar to the other shows, except now DP had dropped SIFLS. :-(

No One Came was my favorite song of the nite, and the mix of new and old worked really well. The solos were incredible, and during one song, IG broke into a bit of scat that looked as fun as it sounded!

After the show, however, is where the real fun began. I met the rest of the AOLers, and was even able to meet SM and RG backstage. Both were very gracious with autographs and handshakes. The best part, though, was running into the rest of the band at the hotel, and especially talking with IG about my daughter Anya. The father in him came out when I showed him a picture of her (wearing a DP t-shirt, of course), and it was a very nice, but brief, conversation.

Then, it was off to the bar to hang with the AOLers. IG, IP, and SM also showed up, but everyone was cool, and gave them their distance. Later, while taking a picture of the AOL group, IG asked if he could join in! "Of course, Ian, PLEASE!"

Overall, a great evening. Everyone I met was wonderful, and like Doren said a few posts back, the AOL DP fans are the greatest!

Joel Hammerman

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