A review of the Elliott Smith Project at Champoeg State Park, Oregon
Elliott Smith, Sonic Youth, Built to Spill, & BECK
September 14, 1997
by Olympiagurrl
It was a very sunny Friday after a week of steady rain. The
concert had been moved to Champoeg State Park as opposed to Estacada
Timber Bowl and it was the perfect set-up for a concert, in the middle of
the forest. The security guards would not allow my 35mm camera in, which
pissed me off, but such is life. This show had become such an event in my
mind since Elliott had cancelled and then signed back on a few days before
the concert. My friends and I sat down with a great view of the stage,
and just as we were starting to get comfortable, three people walked out
on stage. My friend Dave started squeeling "It's Elliott, It's
Elliott..."so we ran down to the stage as fast as we could.
I was a little surprised that he was the first act, when in my opinion he should
have been headlining the show or at least playing before or after Sonic
Youth. There were no introductions. The Elliott Smith Project opened
with a song that was unfamiliar to me but of course it was beautiful. The
band showed a great kind of chemistry with the looks they gave each other.
They were all having fun. The drummer, a lady whose name I have
forgotten, wearing a red dress, looked very at home behind the drum set
and shot Elliott some awkward grins, as if she were doing it for the very
first time. What struck me the most was how modest they all seemed to be.
Especially Elliott. People were screaming to know what the name of the
band was, and all Elliott would do was smile and lean into the microphone
and mutter "uh...sorry, we don't know that one."
The second song they played was Alameda, one of my personal faves, one that
I had been using as some kind of mantra for an hour before, and then they
just went and played it. Most of the songs were from Either/Or until the
band walked off stage and Elliott came on with an acoustic guitar and
shared some great acoustic numbers from his first two albums.
One of the best songs he played was Southern Belle. It was surprisingly
hot that day, and Elliott kept
complaining about how hot it was as he sipped his Budweiser. Some lady
screamed that he should just take his shirt off. He paused, and then
grinned and said that, sorry, but he just wasn't that kind of man. In
between songs an adventuresome bee sailed past Elliott and he had to duck
(amazing what stands out in the memory from a concert!!).
People had been requesting Say Yes, the final ballad from Either/Or all day (including
myself) and that was how he ended the set. After the show, I was still in
quite a daze. It was the first time I had seen Elliott live, after about
three years of missing his low-key performances at little coffee shops and
over-21 bars. I suddenly remembered that I was going to make a guided
attempt to meet good ol' Elliott and talk to him, and give him a color
copy of a psychedelic watercolor I had done. I bothered the security
guards at the backstage entrance for quite a while, but they still would
not allow me to go hunt him down and give him a little present. I finally
convinced one of them to take the picture and give it to Elliott. The
only really important thing was that he got it. Reluctantly I went back
to my seat and watched Built to Spill play. During their performance, my
good friend Dave leaned over and pointed towards a guy down at the edge of
the crowd with dirty black hair, sunglasses and an Adam Ant shirt on. It
was, of course, Mr. Elliott Smith, so we had to go down and talk to him.
I went up to him and introduced myself and shook his hand, asked him if he
had gotten my painting, he said he had and he really liked it, and then I
told him he was a great inspiration. Someone behind me called out his
name and started talking to him and he looked back at me and smiled. His
breath reaked of alcohol, and he had quite a warm presence through his
shades. I think he has seen a lot in his life and has the incredible
ability to transfer experience into art, the highest truth in creativity.
I have strange feelings sometimes about him, because I think he is
travelling the path of one of the greatest musicians of our time.
This recent tour could propel him into a sea of popularity. His last album is
so radio-friendly it almost scares me. Pop music has the ability to turn
the whole world on, as the Beatles discovered in the late 60s. Is it any
surprise that while recording Either/Or Elliott was listening to Magical
Mystery Tour by the Beatles repeatedly? I think great things are in-store
for this man and I think he is sharing a piece of every one of us with any
who care to listen.
(c) 1997 olympiagurrl