Wow, what a night...

After leaving work at a healthy 3:30 in the afternoon, I decided to head down to Manhattan Square Park somewhat early, so I could catch up with old friends, etc. I've lived in Rochester my whole life, and of course I've never been to this park, which it turns out is a wonderful tribute to concrete. Kind of a huge stone ampitheatre set amongst the businesses of downtown Rochester. It looked like it could rain on Thursday morning, but the clouds broke and the sun was shining; it was a little too hot but the breeze was nice.

As soon as I arrived, I saw Zay and Katie (Fruhead1). They were already staking their claim near the stage. Shortly thereafter, Charlie, Colin, and Brett (whom I'd met at Syracuse in April) showed up and we hung out and chatted about recent shows. WCMF, the local classic rock station, was sponsoring this first of many Thursday night concerts, and had a van out by the entrance. They managed to snag the fru-four for a couple interviews and a quick rendition of the classic Spiderman.

I talked to Trevor a bit before the show, and it turns out this was his last show with the band. He's going to be doing the sound for 'The Waltons', so Lazlo will be taking over for a bit; I'm not sure if they're getting someone different on a permanent basis or not. Marcus wasn't present (hopefully recooperating after his wrist incident), but Jude was there, stamping cards and selling shirts, and always greeting people with a smile.

My parents and a friend of my mom's decided to see their first fru-show, so I visited with them for a bit (they didn't want to sit very close to the stage). Mike and Kelly SantaLucia arrived with kids in tow, followed by Laurie and Heather soon thereafter.

The opening act, Honeyrider, went on stage later than the anticipated start time of 5:30 (what a surprise, a show didn't start on time). I think they went on around six. To be honest, I was too busy talking to everyone that I really didn't hear their music. It was OK, I guess, from what I heard.

Moxy came on stage at a little past seven and played a pretty good length set (105 minutes or so). The crowd was extremely receptive to them, as they always are. A lot of impromptu bits, including The Who and Rush teases, and various jokes about Canada (with musical accompaniment).

Afterwards, all of us chatted with the guys for quite a while. Murray's birthday is coming up (6/29), so he received quite a few gifts from adoring fans. Mike gave me the first draft of the Fruvous crossword puzzle, which should be debuting fairly soon. Jian wants to start the buzz about the puzzle at some of the upcoming shows before it finally hits the public.

Hi's to everyone else I saw at the show (forgive if I forget): Zac, Kevin Burg, Andrea, Lara, Lindsay, Misha (fellow taper), Sam Park, Mike Scialdone, and others.

Afterwards, Laurie, Heather, Mike & Kelly & Family went to Perkin's for some much needed food. They all headed home at about one in the morning and I headed down the street to my comfy bed. :-)

Once again, thanks to everyone for making this such a fun show. I had a blast! I'll have to admit, previous Rochester shows have sometimes left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, but last night was great. See you all soon!

From Freetime magazine (6/18/97, pg. 10):

Manhattan Square Park, June 26

Before being signed by Warner Music Canada, quasi-acappella group Moxy Fruvous had reached "gold" (50,000) units in Canada with its six-song eponymous indie cassette release and had opened for the like of Bryan Adams and Bob Dylan.

In 1993, the Toronto groups's debut album Bargainville, went platinum in Canada while the band toured sold-out theaters across Canada and garnered a Juno nomiation for Group of the Year. They followed this with non-stop touring throughout the U.S. and Europe allowing Moxy to hone their skills and develop a fanatical fan following who are known internationally as the "Fruheads."

In 1995, the band released their second album, Wood, a more intimate and personal record and have just put out their third full-length record, You Will Go To The Moon. The experimental sounds of Moxy Fruvous combines "gansta banjo hip-hop", "accordion love songs", "Persian epics" and "solid pop songs" into one cohesive package.

• The guys on stage
  Thanks to Sarah Newhouse for these:
• The guys on stage again
• Dave before the show
• The guys on stage yet again!

• Chatter
  • Jian, commenting on the crowd's applause: It's too quiet... Still quiet...
  • Murray: Now it's just reserved.
  • Jian: Hello Rochester! One and a half hours of unadulterated fun.
• B.J. Don't Cry
  • "now on the scene, it's genesis"
  • "hooka and a brush"
  • Mike uses his megaphone for the "Now on the street..." section.

• Video Bargainville
• Chatter
  • Jian, looking at the crowd: What a vision of loveliness!
  • Some musical teases of The Who follow, including an extended tease of a Who song (not sure of the title).
• River Valley
• Chatter
  • Jian thanks WCMF for presenting them there. He also thanks WBER, which evokes a much better crowd response.
• Get in the Car
• Chatter
  • Jian: It's nice to play outdoors during the day. We can see you!
  • Jian redoes the drum beat from GitC so he can show off some audience members who were grooving during that song.
  • Dave: Get them some Rice-A-Roni.
  • Mike sings: Said the back of the crowd to the front of the crowd, do you see what I see? (to the familiar x-mas tune). This was directed at people who were sitting behind the stage. (a kind of 'in-the-round' thing happening). The musical tease continues.
  • Jian follows with a political version of the same song. "Will you soon annex me?"
  • Murray: We are the four horseman of the annexation.
  • Jian: We want Rochester to take over Canada. And we name it the Dominion of Rochester. And you'll finally be able to say things like, "I don't know, that's a five hour flight to the other side of Rochester."
  • Murray: You'll be the second largest nation in the world, but you'll be a city too.
  • Dave: And everyone gets a free ski pass in advance.
  • Murray: You got fishing and timber up there. And you'll be protected by Mounties.
• Your New Boyfriend
• Chatter
  • Murray and Jian have a small "quibble" over the title of the next song.
  • The crowd cheers.
  • Jian: Oh, sure, Murray gets all the support.
  • Murray: They're cheering for my shirt.
  • Mike: That shirt makes me want to play backgammon.
  • Jian: Do you know where backgammon is from?
  • Jian invites the first audience member who has empirical evidence to come up to the stage and tell where backgammon is from.
  • Mike: The prize is ketchup. Who doesn't love ketchup?
  • Jian and Murray discuss what would be valid evidence for the winner to present.
  • Mike pretends to be an archaeologist uncovering a backgammon die during a dig.
• Horseshoes
• Chatter
  • Murray: This next song involves that great American pasttime, working.
  • Jian thanks the people behind them "who are getting a good shot of our asses tonight".
  • The guys talk about the nearby Canopy's restaurant.
• I Love My Boss
  • "They go real heavy on the sauce...Cream Ale!" (referring to Genessee beer)
  • "Who knows what Oswego will be bringing?"
• Chatter
  • Murray and Jian discuss individualism and collectivism during the next song.
  • Bytor makes a return appearance. (from April's Buffalo show)
  • Jian: Does Bytor make a noise?
  • Murray: Only if you run him over.
  • Mike: And there's pudding inside!
  • Jian shakes Bytor to make the noise.
  • Murray: Sometimes you have to draw the lines pretty damn firm! And this song is about that activity.
• Kick in the Ass
• Chatter
  • Jian: Are there any hopeless romantics in the crowd? They're sort of cynical too. You should read 'Love in the time of cholera (sp?)' by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, then you'll really be hopeless.
  • Dave: You don't want to catch any diseases off the cover of the book, though.
• Fly
• Chatter
  • Jian thanks the crowd for coming in spite of Rush playing at Darien Lake the same night.
  • Murray: 1/3 of the crowd is leaving.
  • Dave sings a tease of 'Closer to the Heart'.
  • Jian: We shouldn't make fun of Rush.
  • Murray: Rush is 1/3 of Canada's GNP.
  • Murray: This is a song about a trip you can take if you want to change your appearance.
• The Incredible Medicine Show
• Darlington Darling
  • Dave leads into the song with "Scotland the Brave" on the accordion.
  • Jian: "On the accordion, the star of the new MTV network, Jenny McCarthy!"
  • Jian points out some dancers grooving on a high outcropping in the park.
  • "half a mile from the groovy towers"
• Chatter
  • Murray: As the sun sets on another day in Rochester, so does the sun figuratively set on a decade. It is a time to reflect.
  • Mike: To genuflect.
• Stuck in the 90's
  • "your lackey...Sounds like more George Pataki"
• Chatter
  • Jian talks about the new album, and how it's getting a push in America, and how the next song is getting a lot of radio play.
• Michigan Militia
• Chatter
  • Murray: Time to eat your greens.
• Johnny Saucep'n
• Chatter
  • Jian comments on how they're having fun watching the people dancing in various places in the park.
  • Jian introduces Mike as Mr. Science.
  • Mike explains that the big girder structure in the park was an attempt at building the Eiffel Tower.
• King of Spain
  • "Here comes the story about a guy who tonight for your entertainment pleasure will do the first ever Fruvous member doing a stage dive!"
  • "There's a thing overhead...Oh, behave!"
  • "Now the Sabres call me up..."
  • Before the epilogue, Dave gets the audience to yell "King" en masse.
  • Mike: It's like the macarena, but 17 times better.
  • A tease of Matilda follows.
• Green Eggs & Ham
  • During "Not the Beatles": There's three things that are sacred. The Beatles. William Shatner. Elvis Costello.
  • Dave: You're forgetting about Pierre Burton, who also wore a girdle on Canadian TV. He's the man.

• Love Potion #9 Medley
  • Jian, during the drum intro, thanks the crowd, WCMF, WBER, WMAX, and plugs the July 10 Buffalo show.
  • Ohio, Stayin' Alive, Jungle Boogie riff, Who Will Save Your Soul?, Love Shack, "I'm heartbroken, she's outspoken...", You Oughtta Know, "Would she go down on Meredith Brooks, that bitch!"
  • "There are two women here who make my heart go boom. Their names are Wendy and Judith Koom (sp?)"

• Spiderman (with instruments)
• Chatter
  • Jian: It's time for a brand new one. Can we play you a new one? It's kind of new one that feels like an old one.
  • Mike: It came to us while we were using the Ouija board one night.
• Billie Jean Medley

• Chatter
  • Jian thanks Honeyrider for opening for them. Jian asks the crowd to sing along for the final song.
• The Drinking Song

Some other tidbits from the performance include:

• Feel free to help contribute to this section!