(Well, this edition is a bit later than usual. Between writing the "IRS Chronicles" and East Coast business travel, my candle has been burning at both ends.)

This was show number seven for Ron and myself since the 9/98 House of Blues performance. It had been some time since I was at this venue, but I had fond memories of it as another intimate venue. I think this shot that Ron took conveys the idea:

Ahhhh….., the benefits of a nice, intimate venue!!!!!! Almost as good as the front of the stage at Harry O’s!

There were two warm-up bands, Phaedrus and Bionic Blimp. We had such excellent seats again, up against the right side of the stage, I had a short conversation with the bass player of each of these bands while they were setting up. I also thoroughly enjoyed being about six feet away from the drum set (the close proximity reminded me of the 11/8/98 Harry O’s show). There’s just something about the live sound of a snare that is usually compressed away in most recordings.

The warm-ups were pretty good with Phaedrus performing a wide range of material (they call it "lizard rock") that spanned from reggae to southern rock to a cover of Stray Cat Strut, which engaged the audience quite well. Ron says they kind of reminded him of the Alman Brothers band with a little funk thrown in. Bionic Blimp reminded me of the B-52’s with a female vocalist on keyboards, male vocalist/lead guitarist, bass, and drums.

This show was also interesting in that we got to meet several of the people who were at the Santa Barbara Coach House show on 2/5/99. This included "Tazz", who has supplied photos to Rob’s site on numerous occasions, and her friends. I recognized her as the first person in line at the 2/5/99 Santa Barbara show. (They also informed me that my zealous Santa Barbara dance partner, Deanna, was there that night as well.)

As usual, the place went nuts when Berlin took the stage. They opened with Masquerade. This song has had a little intro added to it recently, that coincides with Berlin taking the stage, prior to breaking into the (dare I say, recently infamous?) signature synthesized bass intro, which always lights up the audience. After this song, I could hear my Santa Barbara dance partner seated four rows of tables away from mine yelling, "TEEEERRRII!"

Touch came next. (I tried to get the official playlist from Tazz earlier, but my e-mail was NFG (that is, "not functionally good") for so long, it got bounced permanently.) Much of the rest of the set was similar to previous performances with the exception of two new songs. (See 2/5/99 Santa Barbara Coach House review for a scanned playlist)

At the risk of sounding like a broken record (stuck CD is probably more appropriate these days), this was another killer show. Two new songs were added to the set, Soul Sister and Turn You On. This time, these replaced Gabriel and Courage performed in many of the earlier shows. Actually, Tazz commented that Turn You On was performed at Canes in San Diego. (I was en route on business travel, so I didn’t make this show…there was also another reason that made missing this show a major bummer for myself and Ron!)

Soul Sister is another one of those ballads that I found very affecting. I believe Ron got this next shot during this song. The focus is out a little, but I believe it captures the stage presence in Terri’s penetrating, empathic delivery, against which no defense exists (for me, anyway; but I like it like that).

I got this next close-up shot when Terri came over to our side of the stage:

Terri was just powering it out during No More Words in the next shot (this was probably another one of those moments where her direct vocal was louder than the PA version near the stage).

Ron got what I believe are some of the best photos that he has taken. (I shot with some 1600 this time and got a few reasonable shots but was generally disappointed…you were right, Tazz).

This next one is another one of Ron’s shots that really captures the emotional intensity of her delivery on something like You Don’t Know. I was scanning the April 99 issue of "Stereophile" and noticed an interview with Jimmy Scott. Below the lead picture was a caption that said, "Warning, this man’s voice will tear your heart out." The sincerity and overall emotional intensity in Terri’s delivery immediately came to mind when I read this, except that the range of emotions experienced during a Berlin concert runs the whole gamut. I was thinking that a warning to avoid direct eye contact when Terri sings songs like You Don’t Know may be appropriate for those seeking to avoid captivation of their hearts. (As you may have guessed by now, I am pleased to be a lost cause, being totally captivated by this very special performer and her band since the 9/98 House of Blues show.)

A few more of Ron’s shots follow in the same vein:

This next one of Ron’s was taken during The Metro:

Terri and Charlotte also performed For All Tomorrow’s Lies with just Scott on synthesizer. The sparse arrangement really highlighted the excellent vocals. Scott was clearly into the piece as well.

I got the next two during some of those interactive moments that can be so special:

Terri made some comments regarding the fact that some of her current subject matter for new songs relates to a biological peak most of us experience at some point in life. Turn You On is a new song that stemmed from such material. It reminded me of early Berlin in that it has more of a techno sound to it with synth accents that were pretty unique. I took this next shot during this song:

(Not too hard to imagine that this song and the stage presence that went along with it could be quite effective, eh?)

During an extended version of Tell Me Why (I’m really getting to like this one), Terri cruised out into the audience and makes a full circle:

While in the audience, she made a few personal comments regarding how one needs to lose things sometimes to appreciate them. Also, what can sometimes be perceived to be bad or terrible events really serve to set up the next higher level of good events.

Ron took this next shot during Sex, (I’m A…). Like I have mentioned in other "editions", one never really knows what is going to happen during this song. This time, Terri ended up doing somersaults in between Dallan’s legs.

Ron caught this one of Scott singing the "SSSSSex……." backing vocal, and you can just barely make out Charlotte’s head peaking over the synth:

In general, we had difficulty getting shots of the rest of the band from our positions. The best I could get of Scott was this one with Dallan to his left (I was basically right below Scott against the stage):

We never really got a shot of Roger, but Ron did get a shot of the drum set during between bands (I guess its better than nothing):

:

Ron got a killer shot of Dallan singing lead on Never Let Me Down with Terri backing him up:

We also scanned in Dallan’s guiter pick (courtesy of Tazz).

We had a great conversation with Terri’s special someone and another opportunity to get backstage after the show. We gave Terri copies of the latest "Chronicles" and 8 x 10’s of some of the past photos. This time we actually had the presence of mind to ask for a photo with Terri. She graciously accommodated our request.

The one-on-one attention Terri provided Ron and myself is beyond words! All that on-stage presence, sincerity, warmth, etc., is even more incredible when it is focused on one person. (I have come to the conclusion that Terri must be a Goddess because it sure felt like a religious experience again!) After seven shows I am more in awe of her than ever! We have been truly fortunate to have had this experience.

We also had an opportunity to meet Charlotte, which was cool, and some of the rest of the Berlin organization.

After the show, I flagged down Scott in the parking lot to let him know what a great job he did with Terri and Charlotte on the ABC 7 Morning Show. (It was kind of like an "unplugged" version of Take My Breath Away, with basically unprocessed vocals and just synth. I thought the performance was outstanding, reminding me of some of the more sparse arrangements that showcase Terri’s vocal abilities on For All Tomorrow’s Lies and Courage).

We also had an opportunity for Ron to take a few group shot’s. Left to right is me, Tazz, Larry and (I’m about to be shot for not remembering her name, but I’m so late with this issue I am just going to have to risk it! Sorry…)

Until the next edition (4/3/99 HOB show),

The Unofficial Knights of the Berlin Roundtable, SoCal Chapter, bid you adieu.

Paul K., with much photo contribution from Ron B.

P.S. I also want to thank Rob again for all he does with The Berlin Page.