Sean Lennon peered nervously into the audience at his Liverpool gig last night. Two numbers in, it was time to talk.
"Um, well, hello," he ventured.
The response was warm & welcoming. Someone should have told him about playing this city, as the audience raucously, yet approvingly, gave him the sort of reception that most acts dream about.
Prior to the gig was a double security check for the crowd as they filed in, one outside the venue, the other just inside the doors. Normally, there's a cursory look on the door from the door staff which suffices.
My brother quipped to me, "Just tell them you've got a copy of "Catcher In The Rye" in your coat pocket."
As we approached the second frisking I said to the guy on the door, "By the way, my name's Mark Chapman."
He stared at me. It was clear that irony wasn't the best tactic.
"No photography, folks!", he finally barked to those behind me.
Everyone with camera phones suddenly looked shifty.
I have to admit that I'm not familiar with Sean Lennon's back catalogue. However, he played with a poise & assurance which belied the nerves he must have been feeling over this gig, for obvious reasons.
With shoulder-length hair & beard which resembled his father circa 68, & a jacket & tie recalling the early Beatle look, his appearance was a hybrid.
The tracks from his new album, "Friendly Fire", were greeted enthusiastically. Stylistically, most of the numbers he played owed just a little to his father's influence. However, it was clear that he wanted to be judged on his own merits.
"Dead Meat", the current single from the album, was performed acoustically, & was all the more effective for that.
His accent is pure Manhattan, yet his vocals do evoke Lennon Snr. on the "White Album". So it was no surprise when he apologised, "I hear what you say, but I can't understand it!", as the appreciative calls from the crowd grew.
References to his father were brief, but he did admit to feeling hesitant about the gig "seeing as my dad grew up here."
What was notable was his proficiency on guitar; he's a better guitarist than his father. Just as significant, & hearteningly so, was that no-one in the audience called out for any of his father's songs. Given the symbolism of this gig, that said everything about the audience's musical maturity.

THE SUGARCUBES REUNITE FOR ONE NIGHT
Bjork's original band THE SUGARCUBES played a one-off benefit show Friday in their native Iceland. The gig commemorated the 20th anniversary of their debut single, "Birthday."

Saw this on my Rolling Stone daily email:


I'll have to go see if there's a recording on this somewhere. Loved THE SUGARCUBES and most of what Bjork has done solo.

I like Bjork. She's a little strange but her music is pretty good. That swan outfit she was wearing once was very strange.