March 25, 2017
I apologize for the delay since I should have wrote this
last weekend. I’m trying to write a blog
entry once a week. Once a week. That is all.
Yet, even the single entry can get tangled in other demands. Writing is a discipline. Either I have it or I get distracted or lost
in other habits. Anyway, here is my review
of the Tibet House concert on March 16th…as always thank you for
reading it.
I was in Pennsylvania on business and yet I had tickets to
see the show at Carnegie Hall. When I
bought the single seat – a few weeks back – I bought the most expensive - in
the orchestra. I knew I had to write down the event my book since I would
forget. I had made plans with a client
to visit the company and yet, even with the date marked down, I still
forgot. But, I was not going to miss
this event. The lineup was incredible,
Iggy Pop, New Order, Alabama Shakes, Patty Smith, Laurie Anderson, and others
and of course the esteemed composer Philip Glass. It was a benefit concert for the Tibet House
and yet it was also a celebration of Philip Glass.
After driving a few hours up the NJ Turnpike, I drove up to
the George Washington and drove down the West side of Manhattan. It was dusk.
The lights on the bridge were faint as well as the dim lights from the multitudes
of apartments and offices rectangled in the steep skyscrapers. I made it to the parking garage and walked
three blocks to Carnegie Hall. I ate
dinner at a rest stop in New Jersey. I was not sure, how much time I would have
before the show started. I had time. Bought a t-shirt, found my seat and was
impressed with the expansive white room, the gold and the high ceiling as well
as the sparse stage. I was there with
enough time. I could have sat down and
ate.
The seats in the hall were cramped. They were built for another epoch. I was pulled into the conversation from a
couple who sat in front of me. Eventually,
it was time for a bathroom break. It was
already ten minutes after the show was scheduled to begin. Maybe it begins at 8? Go ahead and take a piss. I decided to get up
and make my way out from the middle of the aisle where I sat. I made my way to the bathroom. I heard applause as I stood there. I was late.
I couldn’t go anywhere. I stood
there. Quick rinse in the sink and a swift jog back to my door where I was…stopped. You can’t go in. The monks are chanting. The doors were closed. The usher walked away and I tried to sneak
in. Nope. There was another usher on the other side
keeping people like me out and away from receiving a blessing. Eventually, the doors were opened and I was
back in my cramped seat.
Most of the night had shouts to resist Trump and the shared
dismay that we have Donald J as our president.
Laurie Anderson was the first act and performed a beautiful piece on her
late husband, Lou Reed who I saw perform at another Tibet House benefit
concert. Alabama Shakes could have
performed the whole show since they brought the house down. I was there to see them and Iggy Pop who
performed with New Order and heard a rendition of Joy Division’s She’s Lost
Control. Ben Harper performed and
introduced his daughter who sang with him.
The theme of family was evident.
Philip Glass’ son played, Patty Smith’ daughter and son played as
well. Patty Smith closed the night with
a Bob Dylan song and final was, People have the power!
I was not sure what
to expect driving back. The city streets
were narrow since there was a snow storm just a couple of days before. It took me two hours or so to get back. I climbed into the bed leaving the fabled city
so many miles away.
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