Radiohead covers Neil Young!

[Strider]

I've been super busy lately, which is why it is only now I'm posting about

these Radiohead shows from a couple weeks ago...but oh well, better late

than never.

Like Led Zeppelin, Radiohead plays some of their most awesome concerts

whenever they play Los Angeles.

Recently, they played the Hollywood Bowl for two sold out nights as their

American "In Rainbows" tour came to an end in California. I was lucky

enough to go both nights, August 24 and 25; had great seats both nights.

The first night was great...this tour they've been playing all of In Rainbows,

with the rest of the set filled out with nuggets from their back catalog. Like the

Black Crowes, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, they change the set list

nightly, which rewards the concert goer who sees them more than once.

The first night we got some gems like "Exit Music", "Street Spirit", "Paranoid

Android" and "Dollars and Cents"(with an incredible light show).

But as great as the first night was, the second night was OFF THE CHARTS!

Not only did we get three classics from "The Bends": "Fake Plastic Trees", "The

Bends" and !"Planet Telex"!(which they hadn't played since the legendary 1998

Universal Amphitheatre show), we got "Karma Police" and "No Surprises"(with

its classic line, 'Bring down the government/they don't speak for us'), and one

of the best songs from Thom Yorke's solo record, "Cymbal Rush"...but the great

delight of the the night came just after "Faust Arp", which Thom and Jonny play

on acoustic guitars, when after the song they went into "Tell Me Why", from Neil

Young's "After the Gold Rush" album. I think I levitated out of my seat, haha!

Unlike previous stops on this tour, where they just played partial versions, this

was a complete version of the song.

And this isn't the first time Radiohead has covered Neil...they've done "After the

Gold rush" and "Cinnamon Girl" in the past.

Here's a youtube clip of Radiohead's Tell Me Why @ the Hollywood Bowl 8/25/08:

These two Bowl concerts just further cemented Radiohead's place among the finest

live bands around today...they are in my top 3 easily.

The sound was impeccable both nights...and the light show was unique and

extraordinary(first night was helped by the fact I took acid with a friend at the

show)...at times it seemed the band was underwater or trapped inside walls of

flame..."National Anthem", "Dollars & Cents", and "Planet Telex" especially had

wicked light shows. Not since the prime of Pink Floyd has a band paid such attention

to detail regarding sound and light as Radiohead does now.

And when the band played a song like "Pyramid Song"(with Jonny bowing his

guitar) or "Reckoner", it was hard not to be moved to tears the way Thom's

beautiful voice would strike your soul. If you saw the band on this tour, you know

what I mean...it is not for nothing that Gnarls Barkley is already doing a cover

of "Reckoner" on their tour this year; it is a great song and a great showcase

for anyone who has a good voice.

As for the dolts who still think Coldplay, Muse and their ilk are in Radiohead's

class, Radiohead left them in the dust long ago, and this tour shows again how

they are mere pretenders...hell, Coldplay et al are still aping the Radiohead of The

Bends/OK Computer, and that was more than 10 years ago.

Comparing Coldplay's LA Forum show this summer to Radiohead's shows is a

mismatch; it's like comparing Kiss to Led Zeppelin.

Here are the setlists for both Radiohead shows @ Hollywood Bowl:

(songs in boldface are setlist changes)

Sunday, August 24, 2008

1. 15 Step

2. There There

3. Morning Bell

4. All I Need

5. Pyramid Song

6. Nude

7. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

8. The Gloaming

9. The National Anthem

10. Wolf at the Door

11. Faust Arp

12. Exit Music (for a Film)

13. Jigsaw Falling Into Place

14. Idioteque

15. Climbing Up the Walls

16. Bodysnatchers

17. How to Disappear Completely

Encore 1:

18. Videotape

19. Paranoid Android

20. Dollars & Cents

21. Street Spirit

22. Reckoner

Encore 2:

23. House of Cards

24. Lucky

25. Everything In Its Right Place

Monday, August 25, 2008

1. Reckoner

2. Optimistic

3. There There

4. 15 Steps

5. All I need

6. Pyramid Song

7. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

8. The Gloaming

9. Videotape

10. Talk Show Host

11. Faust Arp

12. Tell Me Why (Neil Young cover)

13. No Surprises

14. Jigsaw Falling Into Place

15. The Bends

16. National Anthem

17. Nude

18. Bodysnatchers

ENCORE 1:

19. House of Cards

20. Planet Telex

21. Go Slowly

22. Fake Plastic Trees

23. True Love Waits Intro/Everything In Its Right Place

ENCORE 2:

24. Cymbal Rush

25. Karma Police

26. Idioteque

[kirchzep27]

In words it sounded weird, but considering the voices, it could work ofcourse.

[metal box]

Ah man, I was SO CLOSE to flying out to California with some friends for the Chula Vista show on the 29th, but money work and school got in the way.

Radiohead deserve all of our respect. They be amazin'.