John Sebastian singer, songwriter and the voice of the Loving Spoonful greeting fans at the State Theatre in Red Bluff, CA.
When people hear good music, it makes them homesick for something they never had, and never will have. E. W. Howe
There was a storm the night John Sebastian appeared at the State Theatre in Red Bluff, CA. It rained one day in February other than that it hadn’t here rained since January. After a blistering NorCal summer of 100+ degree temperatures, it was suddenly 60 F and we were freezing. My husband and I arrived half expecting them to say that John Sebastian had canceled. We had purchased online tickets and we (I) did think about staying home. I have no closed in shoes and the street around the theatre flooded. lol, Red Bluffians can handle 115 F, but rain…
John Sebastian’s voice seduces your senses. It caresses your ears. It is both elegant and earthy. It is like biting into fine chocolate complex, buttery, creamy smooth that melts in your mouth. Yes, I said it, chocolate. Did I expect the same voice at 72? No, I didn’t. My husband and I went from pleasantly surprised to amazed. Can’t speak for my husband, but his voice is still enchanting to me.
In the olden days, the most you could get at a Loving Spoonful or John Sebastian concert was a contact high. Now concert goers expect t-shirts, hats and CDs waiting for them in the lobby. Sebastian had CDs, but ran out. It was comical. The word rippled back through the crowd, over and over we heard, “What do you mean he is out of CDs? ” Several people, including us, were left roaming aimlessly around the lobby, money clutched in our hot little hands.
John Sebastian performed for an hour and a half, he took us on a trip. Beavis and Butthead into my head and said, “Heheh, trip.” What was I saying before they interrupted me? Sebastian took us through our history with his music. He is an impressive storyteller.
He was gentle with his description of how black people were treated during the Loving Spoonful’s toured with the Supremes. It was the 1960s. People were giving lip service to desegregation. The Loving Spoonful opened for the Supremes? My mind is still trying to reconcile the music. Two completely different kinds of songs. There were still radio stations that played “colored” music. I know that because I listened to one. The “tour” bus they were in was a converted school bus. Some of the arrangements for motel rooms didn’t work out when the owner found out about the colored folks on the bus on the bus. They would end up sleeping on the bus. Years later after a rehearsal, Diana Ross spotted him at a table and called out, “Didn’t I sleep with you on a bus in Arkansas.”
Bad celebrity experiences have curbed my enthusiasm for meeting them. In fact, I changed my decision to buy tickets a few times. Celebrities can have one persona on stage another in person. Gallagher is an ass. Gallagher was hateful a child! You could see the child’s eyes tearing. We have never watched another Gallagher special.
John Sebastian is exactly how we hoped he would be with fans, both kind and generous with his time. After the show, he autographed programs and posed for selfies. My selfie helped the pain of leaving without merchandise.
For photos of the concert check out the Red Bluff State Theatre on Facebook.
Howe quote from Brainy Quote.
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