Sprenzy Shopping Blog

Several years ago, I saw Annie Lennox open up for Sting and she sounded great. Last week, I went to another Annie concert at the Nob Hill Masonic Center in San Francisco, which is a relatively small auditorium (3,165 seats). I enjoyed Annie the first time I watched her perform, but I left this past show a bigger fan.

In a smaller venue, Annie was able to show off her quirky and fun personality. She definitely played up the “diva” role in a good way during her performance. Her vocals are still amazing. Annie performed songs from her Eurythmics days and her solo albums. And she also introduced tracks from her new album, Songs of Mass Destruction. It’s definitely worth picking up if you are Annie Lennox fan.

Check out the Masonic Center concert review from the San Francisco Chronicle. And here’s a video of Dark Road, the first single from Songs of Mass Destruction.

In the 90s, I was a huge Dave Matthews Band (DMB) fan. I belonged to the fan club, the Warehouse, and used to attend at least one concert each year. Then the group got too big and commercial and I stopped going to their concerts. Every time DMB visits the Bay Area, they perform at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View. I’ve attended multiple Dave Matthews Band shows at Shoreline, along with concerts by other artists and I refuse to ever go back!

I can’t stand the parking situation and the drunk/high kids yapping throughout the show. Call me old, but I’d rather listen to the music than socialize during a concert. Shoreline is bearable if you have reserved seats in the lower sections, but I prefer the Greek in Berkeley or the Paramount in Oakland for a concert.

Because of my dislike of Shoreline, the only time I plan on seeing Dave Matthews is when he plays small venues with Tim Reynolds. Unfortunately, ticket demand is extremely high for Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds acoustical shows. I haven’t been able to get tickets the last few times the duo played in the Bay Area. Back in 1997, I was fortunate to see Dave and Tim play at Centennial Hall in Tucson. That show was amazing and still is my favorite Dave Matthews concert I’ve ever attended.

Thankfully, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds recently released a new album, Live at Radio City. I haven’t listened to much DMB music over the last several years, so the CD is a nice re-introduction to Dave’s music. Dave and Tim are always amazing together and although this album isn’t quite as good as Live at Luther College, it’s still a very good CD with more recent DMB songs performed acoustically at Radio City Music Hall. A Live at Radio City DVD is also available with backstage footage.

Until DMB starts playing at a different venue in the Bay Area, I’m relegated to listening to my Dave Matthews Band music at home. Come on Dave, a show at the Greek Theater in Berkeley would be phenomenal!