David Byrne in Ann Arbor ~ Review & Setlist...

David Byrne's tour, Songs of David Byrne & Brian Eno, rolled into Ann Arbor last night for an unforgettable night at the Michigan Theater. The performance started as David strolled onto the stage (no opening band), dressed in all white, to explain the adjusted stage set up. With no fanfare or pretense, he talked about the positioning of the band and how the setlist was pre-determined or "Chef's choice" as he called it.

As Strange Overtones got things started, there was a sense that the crowd was preparing for quite a night. As David Byrne performed, so many thoughts raced through my head...his amazing contribution to music, his work with Talking Heads, his appreciation for true creativity, his endurance, his one-of-a-kind lyrics, his unique movements on stage. All of these parts mix to make an amazing whole that is the genius of the man.

The percussion section set the tone and the rhythm that took over the theater. Although the crowd was initially seated (cuz that is what you do in a beautiful theater!) people were feeling the need to get up and move. Something about David Byrne's beats & vocals puts smiles on faces and a tap in the toes...and the "Feel Good" attitude includes the band, the back up singers and the dancers. That's right...I said dancers! Not exactly sure how to explain the dancing...modern, improvisational...but that isn't important. I decided they were there to remind me that David Byrne's music begs for movement, reflection & a sense of humor. All the while, David seemed to be intensely aware of his surroundings making deliberate eye contact as he gyrated, shook and popped his body. At one point, as he flapped his arms, I actually imagined that he would slowly lift off the stage like a bird taking flight.

As he introduced One Fine Day, he vaguely noted that day may be coming, alluding to the current Presidential race (Go Obama!). Each song was punctuated by a drawn out thunderous applause (that the band seemed to enjoy), but Houses in Motion truly showcased the power of this ensemble..singers, musicians, dancers. With the crowd completely captivated, it only took a hip shake by David during Cross-eyed & Painless to get everyone up on their feet for the remainder of the show.

As was expected, some old favorites turned out to be quite the crowd pleasers...Once in a Lifetime, Life During Wartime, Take Me to the River (1st encore), Burning Down the House (2nd encore...which did exactly that!...note: he introduced Burning Down the House as a song that Tom Jones made famous). The evening ended with the title track from Byrne's new album, Everything That Happens Will Happen Today...and it definitely did. Everything that happened was phenomenal!...and oh yeah, got to meet one of my personal musical heroes...a big deal for me - probably why I look freaked.

Posted a small set of photos here on flickr.