Fishbone - Belly Up, Solana Beach, California - March 14, 1997

I don’t think I know the proper date for this show – I certainly do not have the ticket. I looked on the web and according to a fan site the only date they played in San Diego in this timeframe was March 14, 1997. However, the also says they played at Soma which was definitely not where I saw them. I want to say we saw them on new years eve or new years day, but I don’t see any listing for that anywhere either.

In any case, we saw Fishbone at the Belly Up in Solana Beach sometime in early 1997. I always liked the Belly Up as a venue but for some reason this was the only show I ever saw there during the time I lived in San Diego. I don’t know if it was because they leaned towards older jazz types or because Solana Beach was just a bit too far out of town when there were so many good shows within easy reach. Solana Beach is a cool town actually, sort of a cleaned up respectable beach community with brand new facilities, a cool design community but with less snobbery than its nearby neighbors Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe. When I first moved to San Diego I did a short freelance stint in ad sales/writing there.

Fishbone is a really cool, very fun band to see live but not really one I have followed much. They have a great Ska/Reggae groove which makes for easy dancing (bouncing around really). Plus I always liked their logos and t-shirts.

They Might be Giants - 4th and B, San Diego, California - November 24, 1996

Interesting that I don't remember it this way, but evidently we saw the Fixx and They Might Be Giants back to back in November 1996. The tickets don't lie though!

I had to go back and double check my list of shows because I didn’t believe it. This was the last time I saw TMBG in concert – more than 10 years ago. Considering it was also the fifth time I am surprised I have not made it to another show since. I looked them up and they are now touring with a new album. Unfortunately they are not currently planning to come to London.

It is a fact of life that TMBG shows are always fun and this one was no different. I am not sure I have really followed their music much since about this time which explains why I haven’t seen them live. I think they were touring for Factory Showroom, which I don’t think I own. However, they played all the favorites and had the obligatory conga line. How can you not love a band that will start a conga line?

Since the late 90s TMBG has done many other cool things, expanding into theme songs for shows like Malcom in the Middle, the Simpsons and The Daily Show, collaborating with Dave Eggers and using the web to its full potential with online videos, podcasts and even ringtones. I just downloaded their new album from iTunes so I can catch up with them.

The Fixx - 4th and B, San Diego, California, November 23, 1996

I remember when we heard the Fixx were coming to San Diego we had quite a laugh about it. We imagined they would be crotchety old men on stage doing their funny hand motions from their 80s videos. When I looked them up on the web I discovered that not only are they still touring, more than 10 years after this concert, but they even have a myspace site.

Reach the Beach was one of the essential ‘new wave’ albums from my teens and certainly made an impression on me, although I am not sure I ever actually owned it. I might have copied it from someone. The Fixx were always one of those bands I listened to and liked on the radio or MTV but never really got my attention beyond that.

Again I don’t remember too much about the concert – but like most events at 4^th and B it was fun and we were able to get pretty close to the band. Always a decent way to spend an evening in San Diego.

The Cure - Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, Irvine, California - August 17, 1996

Here is another concert I don’t really remember all that well. I think this is the only concert I ever saw in Irvine, which is interesting since it was so close to San Diego. I guess most major acts did tend to come through San Diego though so I am not sure why the Cure skipped San Diego on this tour.

By this time Robert Smith was certainly getting older and larger. But I still remember having a good time and it being a nice, warm summer evening in Orange County.

Dead Can Dance - Spreckles Theatre, San Diego, California - August 10, 1996

I wish I could say I had great memories of Dead can Dance for the concert itself. Not that they are bad or were disappointing or anything. It is just that the evening started off with the press party for the San Diego Republican National Convention, and that was far more memorable than the concert.

I have two favorite stories from that night. But one of them is actually not mine, so I will stick with the one that is.

This party was probably the most decadent event I have ever been to in my entire life. It was, sorry to say, so appropriately republican. We took a bus down to the embarcadero, by the bay, where there were loads of food stalls with everything you could ever want – from Wolfgang Puck’s pizza to sushi to vodka shots, to fancy wine and sake. Everything was so disposable, and so expensive, thick plastic glasses and thick plastic plates with no reduce reuse recycle going on – people had an egg roll on their big plate then tossed it into a bin and went for another. It was also the first place I remember seeing those handy little clips to hold your drink attached to your plate, so you could have both hands free to eat. I lost the guilt of attending an event so not in my political stratosphere in about 15 minutes, after I realized that every bit of food I was consuming was costing their party money. Or the San Diego Union Tribune anyway. It was absolutely brilliant.

At the time I was quite enamored of my company – Invest Learning. We were changing the world, one student at a time, and I was enjoying climbing the job ladder at a company I really believed in. So I decided that I was going to suck it up and promote my little company that night, since all the major news networks were in town.

The first news celeb we saw was Andy Rooney. I had to look him up on the web because I can’t believe he is still alive (sorry Andy) but he is. He stumbled by us looking very worse for the wear before it was even close to dark. Then I spotted Peter Jennings.

I had a couple of drinks (vodka shots if I remember correctly) and subtly stalked Mr. Jennings for a bit. At one point he was getting some more food and some lady walked up to him and said, ‘Oh Mr. Jennings, can I please get a picture with you?’ and whipped out her disposable camera to capture the moment on film. I thought, wow, I can’t possibly look any dumber than that lady, so I stepped forward and introduced myself, proffering my business card.

I introduced myself and told him quickly a bit about my company, and while he was in town he should come and do a story on us. He looked at my card, pronounced my name correctly (something that almost never happens) and gave me a big smile. And, he had a gigantic piece of spinach in his teeth. I wanted to tell him he should use my card to get it out. But I just smiled, shook his hand and moved on.

To this day, I still call something in the teeth a PJ. Sorry Peter. Unlike Andy Rooney, you passed away a couple of years ago and I hope you are not watching me write this somewhere.

So after that, an electro, ambient gothic concert seems a bit anticlimactic, doesn’t it?

Voice of the Beehive - 4th and B, San Diego, California - August 2, 1996

I can’t think of Voice of the Beehive without thinking about my friend Ruth who I haven’t seen for at least ten years. I think I will always associate this band as well as John Waters’ Polyester with her. I wonder where she is now?

Anyway, I digress. Voice of the Beehive were a very fun little late 80s/90s band and we saw them at the 4^th and B. I don’t remember a whole lot about the show except thinking they looked quite a bit older than I imagined and that they reminded me of the B-52s. I remember having fun though and that it was a fun evening.

I did find them on the web and they even have a myspace site. They have an interesting history actually, the two sisters are from LA but formed the band in London. It might be phony, but I liked this little dialogue from their site.

Melissa: "Tracey, I'm sick of L.A. -- All this sun, sand and surf crap is getting me down."

Tracey: "And you can't find any decent cider 'round here!"

Melissa: "Right! Hey, I got an idea -- let's go to London!"

Tracey: "And live in squats in Bow with outdoor toilets."

Melissa: "And freeze our asses off."

Tracey: "...when it's not pissing down with rain."

Melissa: "And meet some cute guys."

Tracey: "And form a band."

Melissa: "And call it...?"

Tracey: "Voice of The..."

Melissa: "Grapefruit?"

Tracey: "No!...BEEHIVE!"