Sacramento, CA - October 18, 2006

Sacramento is my Hibbing , where I grew up, so it is always nice to have Bob play here and I can recruit my friends. This time however, was especially memorable. My younger brother, who turned me on to Bob, and I and two friends are regulars when in Sacramento, but this time I brought two others who have never seen Bob: my best friend and my 77yr old Mother. I was reluctant to bring her as I thought I might have to escort her to a 30 minute bathroom break during "Hard Rain" or something, but fortunately, she stayed in her seat the whole time. We had terrific seats, my friend and I in the13 th row center, my brother and my Mom two rows in front so I could keep an eye on her. She had her ear plugs in nice and snug during Kings of Leon, but took them out for Bob. The venue was a pleasant surprise as they curtained off the upper balcony to give it a smaller feel. Bob started off strong with Maggies > Tom Thumbs > High Water. No holding back there. Other strong highlights were Ramona, Hollis Brown, and the debut of Nettie Moore. My brother described his sound as "swampy". I was pleased that Bob put into retirement for this tour what I call his Frank Sinatra lounge style approach. He stayed behind the piano the entire night. The crowd was considerate as they would stand for a few minutes at a time, then sit for the majority of the songs, which I was happy about so my Mom (who sat the whole time) could see. So watching my Mom enjoy Bob was something I will never forget. She loved it. During "When the Deal Goes Down", she turned to my brother and said "What song is this, it's beautiful". On numerous occasions, saw her rockin' in her seats while tapping her hands on her lap. She talked about the show for days after, still does. She bought three Dylan shirts on the way out. When I asked her about her feelings of Bob's stage presence, she said "He's all business" (probably due to the fact that he didn't address the audience at all). She loved the band, its professionalism, the way they dress, etc. I asked her if she would like to go on tour one day and without hesitation, said "yes". When talking with her friends the following morning, she said, "Now I understand why my boys go see Him all the time". My brother and I realize we have more in common musically with my Mom than we do with most our friends. Once again, thanks Bob, for doing things that you probably have no idea you are doing.
Review Location: 
Arco Arena, Sacramento, CA
Review Date: 
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Review Author: 
Jim Fox