Close Encounters of the MLE Kind

Wow. Where do I start. Each Lucky show I havve seen, I think it can't get any better, and each time I am wrong.

Well after an incredible Chicago experience, I realized I had to have more, so I got back to back SuperME tickets for Austin shows, and flew into town to see the shows. Wow, I am so glad I did.

They let us outside at about 6:35, and I was first in line with TXGirl, who was seeing Melissa for the first time!! There were no travel package people last night, so me and TXGirl were the first 2 to the stage, and we stood just a bit left from the center (talk about an incredible spot to see your first MLE concert from!). Of course that's where I am going to be, since I had to get a great view of Philip!!

To my left were a couple of really cool women I met in line, who I spent a bunch of time before the show trying to convince that Philip will blow them away, and let them forget about John Shanks!

Luckily it looked like the weather was going to hold, with rain not expected until after midnight. I gotta say the rain wouldn't have been that bad of a thing, it was so so so humid outside. It was one of those nights where you sweat from just standing there, and believe me we were all sweating! One thing that made the waiting and sweating nice was that Philip was out on stage when we got out there and he saw me right away and said hey. So he remembered me!!! Of course, how many male stalkers could he possibly have at MLE concerts?!?!

Melissa came out at about 8:15, opened with If you Want To, then went right into Your Little Secret and Secret Agent. She made a couple comments about the heat, and said that she would be feeling it too! She also said something about this is better than it was when she did an outdoor show in Austin in August when it was 200 degrees!

I did bring a couple of signs with me again and after Angels Will Fall I showed her my first sign. It had a couple of song options/requests, and I wanted to plant those in her mind before she got to the solo request song. I remembered that it was Brad's birthday in Chicago, and she did a song for him that night, but my birthday is in January so I had to make do. Anyway, here is what my sign said:

It's My B-Day (in 269 days) :-)
Please play either
"Enough of Me" and/or
"You Used To Love To Dance"
Thanks, Gino

She read the sign and said, today's your birthday?? And I shook my head no and pointed to the in 269 days part and she laughed! She came over to me, and I told her that "Enough of Me" is my favorite song from Breakdown. She said, "Really?" and of course I said yea!! Then a bunch of other people told them it was their birthday and she said wow it's birthday night. Then she talked a little about how it is almost her birthday and she is getting older.

Philip was his usual awesome self, and of course Kenny was going nuts on the drums as usual. Philip kicked ass as usual and he was doing his usual making eye contact and funny faces with people! I spent a lot of time watch Kenny last night too! He really is incredible, and I didn't realize it until last night but he makes faces at and kinda communicates with people in the front too! It's hard to know where to look during a Melissa concert!!

So after Tuesday Morning, Melissa walked back in front of me again, and I help up my same request sign. Then I told her that she should do 2 solo songs and she said, that she would do 2 solo songs if I could find the person smoking (this weird brand of cigarettes, the name of which I can't remember) and make them stop! She said they really stink and that she could smell them even though we were outside. Then a woman from the other side of the audience handed her pack of those cigarettes up to Melissa and Melissa gave her a pick in return! Melissa opened the box and smelled the cigarettes and was grossed out!

Then a woman from our side handed her another box like that, and Melissa went and got her a pick too. I think she was just glad these women couldn't smoke them anymore! LOL After she got the second box of cigarettes and smelled them and they stunk, she looks down at me and says, "Gino, smell these", and handed me the cigarettes. I smelled them, and boy was she right they really stink! I made a nasty face when I smelled them, and she said, "See!" and I handed her the cigarettes back.

In case you missed it, she called me by my name. Melissa knows my name!!!! I don't know how long she will remember it, but when she called me by my name I thought I was going to die! Of course I have an advantage, being a guy I sort of stick out a bit in the crowd.

Anyway, she talks a little more then walks over to the other side of the stage, looks back at me and says I am going to do your other song, and then she started to introduce YUTLTD, talking about losing loves and missing old lovers. She did a kick ass job with that song as usual, since that is the second time in 5 shows this tour she has done the song for me (well for me and Ron in Chicago!)

After she finished the song, she heard me yell, "Do two requests!". I just meant any other request, but she thought I was yelling for her to do my other song, so she asks me if I was coming the next night. I told her I was and she said she would do it for me tomorrow (which is now today!). I can't wait until tonight, I love Enough of Me so much, and she is going to do it just for me!! I am too excited.

Then she sat down at the piano to do MMITD. By this point she (and everyone else too) was drenched in sweat. her shirt was soaked and clinging to her, and she made a comment about it being a bad hair night. One of the women in front agreed, and Melissa said that it was so humid that everyone with straight hair had curly hair that night and everyone with curly hair had straight hair! I took my Lucky hat off and held it up, and she says, "Except Gino, who has a hat!" OMG she said my name again! I know how gay I sound, but you don't even know how cool that is that she is learning my name!!!

I know that I am forgetting a lot, I don't write things down during the show, but anyway flashing ahead to Bring Me Some Water...

I met the Dutchies at the Chicago show, and they do their card thing (first showing her the queen of hearts when she starts the song, then flipping the cards into the air during the first chorus). They told me about the card thing and told me it was ok if I tried doing it sometime, and they said yes they want it to spread. So at the start of Bring me Some Water, I held a deck of cards up showing her the Queen of hearts. She smiled and said, "Now you know that is an important job and is a big responsibility". I smiled and got nervous that I would screw it up. Sure enough, we got to the point and I tried my hardest to fling/flip the cards good, but it didn't work that good. My first show doing it was a little rough, mainly a big clump of cards going straight up.

I guess I need to practice at home, the Dutchies were so good at it, I didn't realize it wasn't that easy!

Philip of course did his kick ass blues type solo during I'm The Only One. Then right at the beginning of the encore, Giant, I help up my other sign. My other sign was a plea for her to add a Missouri date to her Super Club Tour. She saw it, and she said to me, we'll talk about that later! Giant was great, and during the part where she touches everyone's hands she held onto mine forever, I almost think she was using my hand to keep her balance as she reached way out into the crowd.

Final highlight for me was after Melissa left, and the band played a little more, then they finished up. Philip walked over to me grabbed my hand and thanked me. Of course I got a huge kick out of that, but then one of the women I met on my left side pointed out that the guitar pick he was trying to give me fell onto the stage! I didn't even realize he was trying to give me a pick! I am so glad that she pointed that out, I thanked her a ton, and I hope to hear from them soon! I told them I am on on the board a lot, so PM me you 2!! I had a blast hanging out with you 2 and TXGirl! TXGirl, are you addicted yet? Ready to start selling everything you own to see more shows???

Well, here is the set list from last night. Like I said, I didn't write anything down, so it is probably somewhat out of order, but I am pretty sure all of the songs are there:

IF YOU WANT TO
YOUR LITTLE SECRET
SECRET AGENT
MY LOVER
LUCKY
ANGELS WILL FALL
IF I WANTED TO
I WANT TO COME OVER
BREATHE
I WANT TO BE IN LOVE
COME TO MY WINDOW
SILENT LEGACY
SCARECROW
TUESDAY MORNING
YOU USED TO LOVE TO DANCE (MY REQUEST!!)
MEET ME IN THE DARK
THIS MOMENT
KISS ME
BRING ME SOME WATER
I'M THE ONLY ONE
LIKE THE WAY I DO

GIANT

Only 12 and a half hours until Austin: Night Two!

- Gino