Rowdy Ladies & Live Music

Yesterday I was in Charleston, WV. Kate, our dog (O.Henry), and I jumped in the Saturn and drove down to her folks house for a dinner with the family and then out to the Clay Center for the taping of NPR's Mountain Stage Radio Show, a live music radio show that brings in quality musicians. Headlining the show was the amazing Indigo Girls who played a short set but managed to give the crowd both Closer to Fine and Galileo, 2 of their biggest hits. But like most concerts the headliners don't go on 1st.

Much to my delight the series of performers that led up to the Indigo Girls were great. Two Singer/Songwriters, a Banjo genius, and Jill Hennessy, a former star of Crossing Jordan and Law & Order, who is a gifted singer, played their hearts out but sadly they were not the only ones seeking to contribute to the live taping of this show. About 10 rows back from where I sat 5 or so ladies who seemingly either had too much to drink pre-show or hadn't been in public since the days of the Wild West parked themselves and proceeded to be loud, inappropriate, and tried to converse/comment on everything the musicians said. They were horrible. The folks sitting behind us commented that they were sitting right in front of these ladies and had to move because they couldn't hear the music. Everybody was getting frustrated and to put it bluntly homicidal. The breaking point came when the aforementioned Jill Hennessey took the stage. Hennessey, a former improv actress, responded to just about everything she could hear from these rowdy ladies and took it all in stride. For the entire set Hennessey took what these ladies decided to share with everybody but for her final song Hennessey selected a song about her father and her relationship that was very meaningful to her personally. The title of the song was Save Me, and in the .5 seconds of silence that hung in the air before the song was to start the loudest and by far the most obnoxious of the ladies mockingly cried out "Save Me, Saaaaaaaave Meeeeee." Hennessey looked as though she was hurt.

The story ends with the ladies being taken into the lobby of the Clay Center's Cultural Center and being escorted out. The crowd was relieved and left to enjoy the Indigo Girl's upcoming set. Yet, as the 400+ folks who gathered there that day congregated in the lobby the rowdy ladies was the only thing people were talking about. General consensus was people were left wondering: Why would anyone do something like that?

Why do people to stupid stuff like that? Were they drunk? Is that an excuse? Folks generally hold themselves together in public and while concerts are notorious for human stupidity I am truthfully not too surprised. There is always a reason for the way people act. Craving attention? Live radio show, beaming every sound out to thousands of radio stations nationwide. Perfect venue for those who must be validated. But I have to be honest, I am just like those ladies.

I am the guy who likes to be the last one to stop clapping. I am almost always the last clap you hear. Why do I do it? Control, attention, desire to be noticed? Perhaps, but like those ladies I had a subversive something to add. I recognize the unnecessary in my actions almost universally after the fact but it always seems like a good idea during the concert. Humanity wants something out of everything - wants a piece of whatever is awesome - and to get it we often insert ourselves into the mix at the expense of others. Thankfully in those moments, like today will hopefully be for those rowdy ladies, we recognize the mistakes we have made, the ways that we have taken from others so that we might benefit ourselves, and we can make amends.

So...
Mountain State, I am sorry. You were awesome and I wanted a little piece for myself.