I’d already bought tickets to see The National as a birthday present for my son, but because this was his actual birthday I felt the occasion deserved a little extra celebration. When I spotted some reasonably priced tickets for The Ultimate Rock Experience, I decided it would make a decent father-and-son night out.
The seats may have been cheap, but the view certainly wasn’t. One of the pleasant surprises of many venues is that the difference between expensive and affordable seats isn’t always as dramatic as people imagine. We found ourselves with an excellent vantage point and settled in for an evening of classic rock favourites.
Tribute and celebration shows live or die by their ability to recreate the excitement of the original material, and thankfully this production understood exactly what the audience wanted. The musicians were excellent, the songs were familiar and the crowd were more than willing to sing along whenever the opportunity presented itself.
My son’s review was somewhat more selective.
When I asked him what he thought afterwards, he informed me that he had enjoyed the show but found the female singer a bit annoying. I decided not to press him for a more detailed critique. Music journalism is clearly not in his future.
Despite that reservation, we both had a good laugh and enjoyed the evening. It was exactly the sort of uncomplicated fun that makes live music such a reliable choice for birthdays.
What neither of us expected was the entertainment that awaited us after the concert.
While making our way home, I got chatting to a bloke from Glasgow who seemed unusually enthusiastic, animated and determined to share his thoughts on just about everything. My son quickly concluded that the man was drunk and becoming increasingly annoying.
As the conversation continued, however, it became apparent that alcohol wasn’t really the issue.
When I later explained to my son that the guy had taken acid, a great deal suddenly made sense.
To be fair, it also explained why the conversation had wandered through so many unexpected directions in such a short space of time.
The evening still had one final surprise in store.
After all these years of feeding him, transporting him to gigs and generally carrying out my parental duties, my son decided to take me for a meal at a Turkish restaurant afterwards. I wasn’t expecting that at all and have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I was so surprised that for a brief moment I wondered if perhaps I had accidentally wandered into an alternative universe.
The food was excellent, the company was good and it provided a fitting end to a birthday celebration that had already delivered plenty of memorable moments.
Looking back, this was one of those evenings where the concert itself was only part of the story. There was the birthday, the unexpected post-gig encounter, the Turkish meal and the reminder that your children eventually become adults who occasionally buy you dinner.
Wonders really will never cease.
The videos and photographs below capture some of the evening, although sadly they don’t include the philosophical observations of the gentleman from Glasgow. Perhaps that’s for the best.
The Photos
Cheers!
Donate
