Standing in line to get my tickets which were on hold for me in WILL CALL the anticipation was immeasurable. I look at the lady and excitedly I give her my confirmation number. After a tiny skirmish of sorts with her not giving me the tickets because I didn't have the credit card they were charged on (what the ----?) I took a step back and looked up at the beautiful GM PLACE building -- a tear forms in my eye -- what was I to do?

Then, out of the corner of my eye like an Angel shining down from the HEAVENS a light glints in my eye. A big, big man calls me over... to make a long story short, a hundred fifty dollars later I'm sitting 7th row holding a beer and gleefully awaiting the one they call Harry to slap me in the face with his music... and I was not disappointed... Lights dim, I'm as Giddy as a school girl.

The Ned Goold Trio open with a half hour of some great music... oddly (or sadly) I was more blown away by the amazing bass playing by Ben Wolfe... Wow. Slap my butt and call me Rosie, he was wild. Like a little monster ripping through those strings like it was nobody's business -- I was in awe

A slight15 minute break to clean up and relax then the band enters and we have Harry. Regretably I had no paper to keep track of the play list but I will do my best to give a list of what songs he did play -- hopefully someone else out there made one.

Harry had a broken thumb. He later explained that it was due to him and the band pretending they were basketball players. Then as he laughed two or three other band members held up their injuries. This did not put a damper on the 2 and 1/2 hours of music he assaulted us with (I mean that in a good way).

Harry didn't leave the stage once. He went on and on and just when you thought he was going to get tired he threw another song at us. Some of the songs he chose were...

• How Do Y'all Know
• On the Street Where You Live
• We Are In Love
• Charade
• I Could Write A Book
• Cry Me a River
• Nowhere With Love
• Time After Time
• It Had To Be You
• The Cave Song (he hadn't released yet)
• Come By Me
• The Still of the Night

  ENCORE

• Mind on the Matter

Harry played a solo on the drums as well as on his piano... Ben Wolfe did this bass solo that was inspiring. He even pulled out his Bow and played with that. Ignorantly I asked myself "Who is this guy? and Where can I hear more?'

Harry and his sometimes biting always funny sense of humour went on to tell a story about talk shows and how people always drink that "horrible" water with their arm high in the air -- "You'll never catch me doing that!" He spoke of how he thought Vancouver was full of beautiful people and he and the band were too ugly to fit in. He also said he'd been to Vancouver to film a movie and before he told us what movie it was he stopped -- drifted off and said, "It sucked, it really sucked".

He mad fun of all the people who were getting up in the middle of the songs and leaving and said "It's not a show unless someone leaves" and had them shine the spot on them as they left. A woman in the front row waved to him and when he waved back he said "Who the hell are you?" (jokingly of course).

He danced a bit, and I think the big highlight of the show was that he had (on the trip from Edmonton to Vancouver) arranged a new song, "The Still of the Night" and we were the first to hear this.

Being that I was unable to sheck out his Star Turtle tour I was happy he supplied us with two from that album. I love all his stuff but there is something about the raw energy in that album I like to throw on at parties and shake my groove thing.

He went on to say that most people either like his jazz stuff or his New Orleans stuff not usually both and he didn't mind as much.

Teasing us at the end he kept saying "one more song, just one more" and then playing one more then another and finally when I thought it was over he gave us "Come By Me".

When it was over he left us giving a standing ovation until everyone came back on for a blast of "Mind on the Matter" one of my favourites from Star Turtle. He called everyone to come and get close to the stage and dance and he was a wildman. I think I must have been officially dead for half the evening my heart stopped from all the excitement (in fact I only have use of half my limbs now).

What a ride -- Harry if you're listening come up to Prince George, BC. I'll give you a dollar (American) and you can use my bike to get around. How's that for a deal? Huh.

His opening act, a trio featuring a bass player, tenor sax player, and drummer, was great, but I'm not sure if they did such a great job of warming the crowd up. True, I think we were all pretty warm already (getting to see Harry live? What can compare!), but their energy was rather low-- at least, the sax player was. We all started screaming when the lights dimmed and I think were kind of disappointed that it wasn't Harry.. I don't think he even needed a warm-up act! However, the trio played very well together, and the sax player had great style and got around his horn very nicely. By the time their set was over, I was absolutely dying of anticipation! Finally, the band came out after the stage was cleared, and the first piece Harry sang was "We Are In Love." What a perfect opening!

After a couple numbers, Harry stopped for a bit and talked to the audience. He made fun of the people leaving ("so NOW they decide they don't like jazz.. 'man, this sucks, I'm leaving'") and had the spotlight guide them up the stairs to the exits, and went on to talk about Vancouverites being too beautiful. He explained his injury (broken thumb-- basketball casualty) and bantered a bit before carrying on with more of his material. I was particularly pleased that he chose to play at least a couple pieces from "Star Turtle" ("How Do Y'all Know" and "Mind on the Matter", which was his encore!), after stating that people either liked his funk and not his standards, and vice versa. He told us that, even if he goes off on a funk tangent or starts to dabble in rock, it doesn't mean he's abandoned his roots: the New Orleans-style jazz, or any of the big-band stuff he writes. He didn't understand why people didn't get that. What struck me during the time that Harry took to talk to the audience was his incredible charisma and stage presence. He always knew something funny to say or do, and had a story to tell. Actually, in the middle of one of his stories, some woman yelled, "I LOVE YOU, HARRY" (no, it wasn't me... she beat me to it) and instead of reacting like the typical performer would ("oh, I love you too!"), he said, "Hold on baby, you're interrupting my story! Jeez!" and went on with what he was saying. He also had great chemistry with his band. You could tell right away that he really liked them, and likewise. Harry would sometimes burst out laughing at something silly one of the band members was doing, and they would slap each other on the back after an amazing solo (a.k.a. EVERY solo), etc. At one point, Harry let his bass player go off on an extended solo at the end of the piece, and he wanted his bow. He stood there plucking until someone from backstage brought him the bow-- and he ended his solo, with Harry cracking up in the background. That's another thing: he didn't follow his music all the time. Sometimes, he'd let someone take an extended solo or he would somehow modulate into another piece (he did that with a song in which he sang and played piano by himself-- and apologized for doing it after).. or he'd start dancing...

As an intro for one of his pieces, he began tapping his piano with his hands, got up, and made all sorts of different percussive sounds with his hands and feet, walking (dancing) around the piano until he sat down and began playing again. It was great! One of my friends with whom I went to the concert commented on his dancing skills (or lack thereof, according to him-- I think he's just jealous), but I think the way he moved communicated what the music was doing to him! I loved how he allowed himself to get that much into it. He wasn't just playing music, he was making music, if that's not too romantic a statement.

Yet another added bonus to the concert was when he brought out one of his trumpet players to sing "What a Wonderful World" in tribute to Louis Armstrong. He (I think his name is Leroy) has an amazing, unique sound (by that I'm describing his trumpet, although his voice was wonderful as well) and Harry even said he thought he should have the stage instead of him.. Being a trumpet player myself, I was thrilled to hear a trumpet feature like that as well as some mind-blowing trumpet solos sporadically throughout the evening. I was happiest, however, when Harry decided to do some serious soloing on piano, which I think he could've still done more of. He'd get totally into it: his foot would start tapping and eventually he'd have his legs going every which way and his head low over the keyboard.. Quite a sight to behold! I think I cheered loudest after those pieces.

Anyway, by the end of the concert my voice was hoarse, I was screaming so much-- and so was everyone else in the place! His band never seemed to get tired (even his lead trumpet player, who could somehow hit high Gs even at the very end of the performance!) and never once lost their groove. When Harry left the stage, I was certain he'd do an encore, because he couldn't just let us stand there screaming our lungs out, and I was right! His band filed back onstage, and he came on rather discreetly, sitting down at the kit. He began doing a drum solo and I was completely blown away at what this guy could do! He got around those drums just as well as the actual percussionist could, and his time was impeccable. After a while, he handed the sticks back to the drummer and made his way back to the piano, and started into "Mind on the Matter," a driving funk piece-- my absolute favorite off of "Star Turtle." Needless to say, I was positively loving every second of that encore! Not to mention the rest of the audience, who no doubt felt the same way as I did. Harry left us all wanting more, yet quite satisfied with what we'd received.