A Band, a Singer, and a Writer

I capped off my birthday week – hey, why not, right? – with a weekend of concertgoing.

First, on Saturday, I caught Rufus Wainwright at The Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater. The singer gave props to Florida for going blue on Election Day, and although he pledged his support of gay marriage he expressed it is so not his desire to get gay-married. Ever.

More importantly, he delivered an intimate performance of hits both old and new. He played the piano and the guitar in a most mesmerizing fashion, shared a Shakespeare poem to preview a little bit of a show he’s mounting set to premiere in Berlin next spring, and even imagined what it would be like to keep a place in Miami Beach. The scenario involved Gloria Estefan, calling to ask what he was up to, and Cuban pork sandwiches, natch.

Anyway, it was really nice to listen to Wainwright sing some of my all-time faves, “Complainte de la Butte” and “Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk.” This is him doing one of my new faves, “Sanssouci.”

Then, yesterday, I ventured up to Fort Lauderdale to see Coldplay rock the BankAtlantic Center. I’ve been to that venue only a handful of times, but this was the first time I saw it come alive. That’s a testament to the power of Coldplay.

This was my third time seeing the band play, so I knew I was in for quite a treat. At first I was blown away by the confidence of their “Viva La Vida Tour” set list, but then again, no.

This is a band that can afford to pop its cork right off the bat with hits like “Clocks” and “In My Place” and “Speed of Sound” – that’s just how massive a repertoire from which they can choose they have. People loved that and stayed enthused throughout the entire show, enjoying oldies but goodies and every bit of the new.

One of the best qualities Coldplay have is they don’t just command their stage, especially Chris Martin – they make the entire venue their domain. It’s not like every band out there to leave its stage to run to the opposite corner of an arena to play a fan favorite (“The Scientist”) in the thick of its audience. Obvs, Coldplay are not every band out there.

And for that, I’m looking forward to my fourth Coldplay concert.

Photo: JohnnyBeBlogging.blogspot.com.