Early birthday present from my hubby- tickets to the Steve Vai concert at the House of Blues. That day, it seemed that everything conspired against us as we tried to get a babysitter lined up and get back home in time to make it there. Shannon was coming with us, and I was trying to make it back home from Mom's, while Lucas was wrapping up a long work day and getting home. By the time I made it back, I had about a half hour to get ready for the evening of a lifetime. I managed to pull it together in 24 minutes (personal record- woo-hoo!)
We arrived at HOB and ate at the Crossroads Restaurant there (how appropriate!- does anyone remember that 80s movie that Steve Vai was in, as the devil's protégée?) Long story short, our bill had to be a certain amount in order to 'cut the line' for the show, so Shan treated us to drinks and we happily sipped as we stood in a much smaller version of a line, separate from the main one, which trailed around the building. It was misting and foggy outside, and finally when we got in it was good to get out of the chill. We took some pix before we got in to document the feeling of cheer despite the gloom:
We looked super-happy in this shot- and had no idea how much more awesome the night was going to get! But I digress...
We got in, and Shannon showed us "how its done" as she led the way and made a beeline for the front stage area. Mission accomplished! We had a bit of a wait, but we were indoors and had no complaints. The place filled up fast. Everything was at a mellow but excited hum. At exactly 9:00 p.m. (kudos to the band for starting right on time!), the music kicked off, the instruments sounded and in a cloud of smoke, Steve Vai descended upon us in his dragon print pants and flowing black shirt, silver necklace gleaming, guitar shrieking in the night. It was just the start of pure AWESOMENESS!!! (is that a word? it is now!). Exhibit A:
For the next few hours, the Man-Myth-Legend serenaded us, and it was the experience of a lifetime! His backup band (String Theory) was rock solid, and they all brought their own unique personalities to the mix. It was amazing how everyone melded together so seamlessly, and created a sound that was out of this world. And to be front stage to see it all right smack in front of us- its pretty indescribable. I joked before the show that Shannon would be able to collect the man's sweat- ironically we were "that close" :) He made eye contact with me and Shannon and at one point, stopped directly in front of us and dropped into a bow, grabbing the strings of his guitar in his mouth smiling around them. We both fumbled for our cameras but missed the Kodak moment (dammit!!!) but there were so many others that more than made up for it. He and the band went through many classics- "Rescue Me or Bury Me", "Tender Surrender", and a few new ones off of the latest album. He told us that we were going to build a church of our own, which kicked off the anthem "Building the Church". It was incredible! There were so many special effects throughout the show, including the set where Steve Vai came out wearing a space age costume and helmet, with lasers shooting off of his fingertips as he played yet another guitar in a lineup of awesome instruments:
Halfway through the show, he introduced us to each member of his band, and each did a solo act. The bass player was kick ass; the backup guitarist mellow & lyrical; the drummer slaughtered his drums, and at one point came out with some kind of crazy contraption that about knocked my eyeballs out, for the backup percussion on "Rescue Me or Bury Me":
The show, on a scale of 1 to 10, was a 15. Steve Vai and his backup band took us through one amazing song after another. He was truly the Guitar God, sounding as good in person as on a clear, perfectly recorded cd. He rocked it every single moment of the show, "talking" to his guitar, flashing big smiles and throwing himself into the performance.
Towards the end of the show, he announced there would be two more songs, then informed the audience that he would be showing us how easy it is to write a song, and that he would need volunteers. Shannon immediately shot her arm in the air and waved and "ooh ohhh"-ed all over the place. An obnoxious guy who managed to worm his way between us halfway through the show, attempted to get Steve Vai's attention and override my friend's attempt to be picked. Steve Vai looked out, picked a couple of people from the other end of the stage, then zoomed in on Shannon and the jackass between us. He pointed our way. The guy asked, "Me?!" all full of hopeful excitement, and his hopes got shot down as Steve answered, "Not you, the girl." Direct hit! As Shan jumped up and down in joy, Steve Vai added, "Oh, you can bring your friend." OMG!!!! He meant me!!! I tried to duck down and make myself invisible and shook my head, and he said, "Come on, it will be fun!" Well, you don't say no to a legend, so I gathered my shrinking nerves and made my way to the stage, feeling as though I had walked into someone else's crazy dream. Shannon and I were both helped onstage by some of the security- meaning, in my case, I was picked up like a sack of potatoes and slung up there! I couldn't even begin to look at the huge audience in front of me, awash in blue lights. Once Shan was up there with me, Steve beckoned us over and I made my way on legs that felt like absolute Jello. Our Rock Hero surprised us both...because he ended up being the kindest and most down-to-earth person I've ever met, who also happened to be famous. As in, world famous. Guitar prodigy. Rock God of all Time. In a nice guy suit. He called us over and then asked our names. Then he told us we would help him one at a time "write a song", and that he would start with...you guessed it...ME. I almost passed out. He told me, "I've been watching you and you've been smiling the entire show. I can't tell you how good that makes me feel!" I couldn't tell him how good it felt that he even noticed, in the ocean of people smiling and waving and enjoying the show. Later, my husband joked that I was smiling so big, and looking so blissfully happy, that he could picture my brain blowing up in a cartoon mushroom cloud behind my head. This is the shot of my infamous"smiley face" as I was face to face with my all-time favorite musician:
I was up first to "help" write the song, and Steve Vai held my hand because he knew I was so terrified to be up there that I would race away at the first chance I got. I was struggling with the paralyzing fear of being in front of hundreds of people.... and the thrill of being able to talk to one of my favorite musicians ever. Then I was panic stricken that my earplugs would fall out (the one time I remembered to wear them to a show!) I calmed down long enough to hear Steve say he needed me to help give the drummer a beat. He handed me the mike, I picked it up, opened my mouth...and drew a complete blank. He helped me and said, "You can make anything a beat...what's your full name?" I was so nervous I had to stop and think, maiden name or married? LOL- I told him "Jamie Lynne Patterson". He said it sounded like music and then as the drummer pounded out the rhythm, Steve Vai chanted my name- "Jamie Lynne Patterson, Jamie Lynne Patterson." I was completely dumfounded. It was totally surreal! Then it was Shannon's turn, to help the bass player come up with a rhythm. He warned her to keep a distance from the bassist because he can "get a woman pregnant by standing next to her"! She had absolutely no problem sauntering up to Steve and singing, "ChickaBOWwow!!" He laughed and said, "Shannon, you're a very bad girl." OMG- surreal!! Steve Vai was calling Shannon a "very bad girl". As she came back to stand by me, I told her, "This is a dream! This is NOT happening!" and then, "Shannon, I don't think I'm drunk enough to be up here!!" The guy who had been called up was next, and he was drunk and completely blown away to be on stage with his idol, bless his heart. He high-fived me, and ran up to help the guitarist figure out a rhythm. Then he came back and played imaginary drums, haha. Last was the lady that Steve called up, a friend from his college days at the Berkley School of Performing Arts. He asked her if she knew his wife's secret fantasy, and then whispered it to her. Then he told the rest of us, his wife's fantasy was to sit on his amp while he played "Bad Horsie"...with his seven string guitar. The audience roared. It was insane! Then everyone was finished and they put the song together. As they played it, he chanted my name again as though they were lyrics to the song! I could've died happy, lol. And the entire time all this was going on, Lucas was in the front row taking pix and documenting the entire experience! Otherwise I would've sworn that Shannon and I had the same crazy dream and there was NO WAY in this world it could've happened!
When they were finished, Steve Vai pointed to some chairs on stage at the side, and offered to let us stay up so we could hear the last song. Dreamland again!!! So we got to sit onstage and hear the best, last song played that evening- the anthem "For the Love of God". The drunk guy took our pic together and me and Shan sat there in complete disbelief that we were onstage listening to everything as special guests. The bass player looked over at me and shot me a big smile from time to time. The music was incredible. The final haunting notes of the song seemed to reach out and echo from one end of the room to the other. It was perfect. Then as everyone clapped and hooted, Steve came back to us and said, "Come out and take a bow!" It just got more and more unbelievable! We walked back out (at this point my legs went from Jello to water) and we all put our arms around each other, and took the final bow. Best. Night. EVER!!!!!
