Nickel Creek in Hanford

 

Tracy and I went to Hanford (40 miles south of Fresno) on Friday night for one of the best concerts we've ever seen. Nickel Creek played for over two hours: Chris Thile on mandolin (gotta be one of the world's best), Sean Watkins on guitar (kinda looks like Frodo, but with killer chops), Sara Watkins on violin. Everyone sang and extra Mark (last name?) played string bass and even danced a jig. We're hooked for life (unfortunately this was their "Farewell (for now) Tour" - but Sara guaranteed they'd see us "down the road.")

The lighting was very low most of the concert but I grabbed a few video clips.

The Fox (12mb), The Fox - low res (3 mb)

Very quick clip of Anthony (3 mb), Anthony - low res (1 mb)

Can't remember the name of this song (12 mb), this song - low res (2 mb)

A few more photos (it was dark and I only had my small digital camera)

Comments

[Linda]

Oooo. I so badly wish I could've been there! They are amazing musicians. The bass player's name is Mark Schatz, and the song you can't remember is called Ode to a Butterfly. One of my favorite instrumentals they've done is called In the House of Tom Bombadil. We heard it live last summer after having listened to it on their first CD for years. They inserted the song Short People into the middle of it - I can only assume it had to do with hobbits being short - and it was both astounding (Tom Bombadil) and hilarious (Short People).

If you like Chris Thile's mandolin playing, he's got two very good CDs with another classically-trained mandolinist named Mike Marshall. The live one is my favorite. It's blue grass, jazz, and classical together, often rolled into the same piece. Fantastic!

Glad you had fun!

[John]

They are unforgettable. We saw them last summer, and then Thile with Edgar Meyer in January. It will make you want a mandolin...

[Tim]

John, almost the first thing I said as Tracy and I were driving home from the concert was, "I've got to get a mandolin. eBay?"

Linda, I hear Thile has a project in the works with Billy Hill as well. That ought to broaden his narrow interests!

[KimjustKim]

I found this link from a Clay Aiken board and after reading your blurb about him, I was thrilled to discover a blurb about my favorite band of all time: Nickel Creek! So glad you were able to experience them live and in concert. Their CDs are amazing treasures but they simply cannot compare to live performance; not just the amazing musicianship and the singing, but all the banter and whatnot. The band was here in Salt Lake City last week and I don't remember when I've enjoyed a concert so much. I was on the edge of my seat and giddy with musical happiness the entire time. I'm happy that you got to see them and that you're hooked (even though they're on hiatus for a while-WAH!).

I also recommend seeing Clay in concert if you get the chance. He's another amazing performer whose CDs can't hold a candle to "live and in person". Really knows how to put on a great show.

Very interesting blog name, by the way.