Billy Corgan 2019-11-04

From SPCodex, The Smashing Pumpkins wiki
Revision as of 19:44, 1 December 2020 by DavidB (talk | contribs) (→‎Notes)
November 4, 2019 – Los Angeles, CA, US
Live performance by Billy Corgan
United States 2019 tour
DateNovember 4, 2019
VenueLodge Room
Coordinates34°6′33″N 118°11′40″W
LocationLos Angeles, CA, US
PersonnelBilly Corgan, Linda Strawberry, Meena Ysanne

Setlist

Set one

  1. "Hard Times
  2. "To Scatter One's Own
  3. "Faithless Darlin'
  4. "Apologia
  5. "Cri de Coeur
  6. "Buffalo Boys
  7. "Dancehall
  8. "Anon(live debut)
  9. "The Spaniards
  10. "Processional
  11. "Half-Life of an Autodidact
  12. "Archer
  13. "Little Maggie" [traditional] (live debut)

Set two

  1. "Wound
  2. "Thirty-Three
  3. "Spaceboy
  4. "Violet Rays
  5. "Endless Summer
  6. "Tonight, Tonight
  7. "Every Time the Sun Comes Up" [Sharon Van Etten(live debut)
  8. "Another Bridge to Burn" [Little Jimmy Dickens(live debut)
  9. "Hangin' On" [Waylon Jennings(live debut)
  10. "Daphne Descends(final performance)
  11. "Happy Birthday to You" [Patty Hill / Mildred J. Hill] (to Pamela) 
  12. "Travels
  13. "Disarm

Encore

  1. "Black Lung
  2. "Cast a Stone
  3. "Silvery Sometimes (Ghosts)

Notes

  • First performance of "Anon"
  • "Buffalo Boys", "Dancehall" and "The Spaniards" with Meena Ysanne on violin
  • "Dancehall" with Linda Strawberry on backing vocals

Banter

Hard Times
To Scatter One’s Own
Faithless Darlin’
BC: Thank you, thank you very much. (hoarse) Thank you, mom.
Apologia
BC: (coughs). I have to apologize, it’s all the smoke in the air or whatever. Or whatever is in the air. (sniffs) Right? Something’s in the air. I just come up - I just come from a cold land of death so I’m not used to this.
Cri de Coeur
BC: Alright.
Buffalo Boys (with Meena Ysanne)
Dancehall (with Linda Strawberry & Meena Ysanne)
BC: Miss Linda Strawberry. ... (a couple of woo’s in the crowd) It’s not the wooing at the beginning, it’s the wooing at the end...one worries about. How’s everybody? ‘Preciate it. I love Los Angeles. When I was watchin’ CHIPs, I was like, “That’s where I wanna go, man.” And I fuckin’ did it too. I came here and I conquered. I’m still conquering.
Guy in crowd: Tickle that ivory!
BC: Yeah, heh.
Anon (piano)
BC: So those were all new songs from the Cotillions album. That’s out November 22nd so I hope you’ll listen. And if you don’t, you can write me later, like ten years later, and tell me how great it was and you’re so sorry that you missed it. ‘Cause I get those DMs every day.
The Spaniards (piano) (with Meena Ysanne)
BC: Thank you, I appreciate that.
Processional
Half-Life of an Autodidact
BC: (sound like he knocked something over) Motherfucker [unintelligible word]. Excuse my French. (coughing fit)
Archer
BC: So we re (coughs) - we’ve reached the end of the first set. It was a journey. After this song, take a short 20 minute break. Play some...songs more. Heh, we were joking in the car today and somebody said something about “rat in a cage 2" and I was like “What a great song title.” I think I’m gonna write that song. You know, you go into the airport, (whispers) “Aren’t you the rat in the cage guy?” “Yeah, I fuckin’ am.”
Little Maggie
[set break]
Wound
BC: Thank you.
Thirty-three
BC: Thank you. Before the show, when I was soundchecking, some of my friends were here and I’d play a song and my friend would go “I really like that one” and I’d go “Yeah, I didn’t write that one.” Which is true, I was playing some covers and then I played another one and she goes “I really like that one” and I go “I didn’t write that one either.” So, at least I wrote these. Back when young William.... These are orange too, huh? No, you know what, they turned orange, it’s so weird, that shit. It’s very hot. (audience starts talking) Um, no (clears throat), just because I’m chatty doesn’t mean I’m nice, I’m sorry. Don’t get it all confused, you know. You would think uh, parenthood would chill me out but no, I’m still just a mean person. Heh heh heh.
Spaceboy
BC: Still having a good time?
Guy in crowd: Love the guitar!
BC: Oh yeah, Linda painted these, this is great. And since you managed to brought up the guitar, we’re actually gonna give these guitars away. We’re gonna do some kind of contest.
Lady in crowd: She did a great job.
BC: She did such a great job I don’t wanna give ‘em away.
Lady in crowd: She’s amazing.
BC: Heh heh heh, yes she is.
Violet Rays
BC: Alright! This song’s from a band that Jimmy and I had about 2001 to two thousand. Which I later found out was also the name of a Belgian Spam. So this is the song by the band Belgian Spam.
Endless Summer (piano)
BC: Thank you. Thank you, thank you. I wish you’d all been there when I wrote ‘em. For the encouragement. But then, you know, in the modern world, people would try to take your publishing. That’s an insider musician.... I once had an unnamed band member claim publishing on an album, um, that they didn’t write anything for and I said “But if you didn’t write anything, why would you ask for publishing?” Which, if you don’t know, publishing is like who wrote the song and you get a percentage. So in most cases of our songs, it’s a hundred percent my song. And this person said, “Well, who knows what you picked out of the air?” I said, “When you were tuning?” (imitates two musical notes) “Yeah, fuck yeah, that’s it!” Heh heh heh. So be careful if you make some noise tonight, I might adapt it and not give you credit. Some sort of body function melange. I mean, the people who sang on Brick in the Wall, the choir, the kids choir, they later came back and sued Pink Floyd. It’s true. So uh...how did I go down this detour? I dedicate this song to you for being with me tonight, I appreciate your support.
Tonight, Tonight
BC: Like to play for you now a trio of songs that I really like. I didn’t write them. Yes. Gonna try not to fuck this up.
Every Time the Sun Comes Up
BC: Now in our kitchen at home, we have a jukebox. 1953 jukebox. It’s filled only with country music from the ‘50s and the ‘60s. Mostly mono because it only plays mono. And so my son has gotten used to these songs and he started requesting them...which is awesome. And um, it often strikes me listening to this music because I don’t often and I’m vociferous in my feelings about the music business, what it does to artists. To me, it’s antithetical, mostly to what makes us good at what we do. Turns us into things we aren’t so it’s fantastic to hear these artists and sort of wonder if they knew the world that was coming. Heh heh, heh, the world that would follow them. So what I love when I play these songs is I think about these people, they traveled these highways, these great highways in our country, and sang for people just like you and poured their heart out when it wasn’t so simple and couldn’t Google it, you know. It was word of mouth, it was reputation, it was puttin’ in, you know, hundreds of nights a year.
Another Bridge to Burn
Hangin’ On
BC: Anyone want this?
Daphne Descends
BC: Thank you so much, thank you. It’s a real pleasure to play for you, thank you so much. ‘Course every experience in life is singular but when you play in a band on and off for 30 years, there’s certain things that emerge. Sort of a consistency in what people wanna know, you know? Like, “What was it like to be on The Simpsons?” Number one question probably up there with “How’d you get the band name?” But um, one question you get a lot is like “Hey man, how’s it feel up there?” Usually after a Pumpkins show. I’m like, “You know, I don’t know how to answer the question because....” Of course they want, like, “It was amazing!” and it’s like, no, it’s not like that. It’s like in the course of an hour in this Shiny show, three hours and fifteen minutes, you feel a lot of things, you know. You feel angry, you feel crazy, you feel like you’re king of the world, then you feel like you can’t do your job. All at the same time sometimes. So when I say it’s a real pleasure to play for you, it’s a real pleasure, you’ve given me a life of where I can do something like this and I so appreciate you. I don’t have many - I don’t have many regrets because as Jimmy Chamberlin once said to me, “You know, your life goes where it goes and you wouldn’t understand it or appreciate it if you hadn’t gone where you’d gone. You know, you can’t go back in time and change a bunch of decisions” and I think that’s a really beautiful way to put it. Yeah, um, heh heh, sorry. I’m trying not to say something silly about Jimmy. Um...
Guy in crowd: Drummers suck.
BC: Heh heh.
Lady in crowd: There was a lot of love on stage at the last tour.
BC: Thank you.
Lady: We saw it.
BC: We’ll talk about it later, baby. Heh heh. But um, to finish the thought, if I had one regret with this...whatever all this is, it’s that I didn’t show the appreciation that I had when I was a younger man so I can only tell you again and again how the level of appreciation I have now is immense, it’s humbling. Like, for example as a parent, you know, when I used to look at empty seats when I was 29, I’d say “Why why why?” Now I look and I see people with children, people bringing children and I think “God, the effort that it takes ‘cause fuckin’ carseat, you know?” Just the fuckin’ carseat. Could someone free me from the.... I mean, we used - when I was a kid, we used to ride in the back fuckin’ window.
Lady in crowd: Now it’s like one parent comes and the other one stays with the kids. (multiple people in the crowd shush her)
BC: It’s okay, it’s okay. It’s okay. So yeah, it’s like “Free me from the carseat, oh my god.” So I understand, I can only say I understand the effort that it takes for you to get here. In Pam’s case, it’s a birthday. Pam, stand up, take a bow, happy birthday Pam.
Happy Birthday (Billy sings and crowd joins in)
BC: So yeah, I appreciate where you come from, close or far, I really do. Okay, and here’s a perfect song about traveling: Travels.
Travels (piano)
BC: So a few things. One, we’ve reached the end of the show, thank you. (scattered aw’s and boos from the crowd) I have immense appreciation but not that. But I should point out that the last song was actually written here in Los Angeles. And uh, I love to sing it here, it takes me right back. ‘Cause I was coming down with a vicious flu that lasted a month and I felt really tired, I’d been working with the band on what became songs for the Shiny Volume 1 album, hopefully. And I was staying with someone - a friend - and I was literally passing out, like you know when you’re right there passing out and out of nowhere, the lyric or something and then suddenly I’m holding a guitar and the song just coming out, like, and I’m feeling the worst. So I end up writing this song like, laying on the couch, like literally laying down and writing the song ‘cause I felt so horrible. And then, you know, the other part - the other component was, because I got sick, the friend threw me out. Yeah, she was fine. Cost the friendship everything, you know. So yeah, fuck ‘em. So I hope you enjoyed the show. If you’re coming tomorrow, I’ll try to play some different songs.
Disarm (piano)
[encore break]
Black Lung
BC: See, there’s a song, I did write that and it was written after the Cotillions album was done. Played it a few times in Europe and I go “Fuck that song.” And yet, it just won’t let me go, right? Like a bad relationship.
Cast a Stone
BC: Alright, we’re at the end. I made it. I’m not much for crowd participation, always strikes me as a bit cheesy, right? But I’m asking for it. Who’s up for crowd participation? I don’t see all the hands raised. There you go! I don’t see some. Some hipster shit back there, I don’t know.
Silvery Sometimes (abandoned after 8 seconds)
BC: So we’ll have a cue. What should be the cue? Kind of a....? When I do that, you gotta sing. Now you get a little bit of insight here into my working process with the band. In our world, you say something, you only have to say it once, right? So if you fuck up, that’s on you, that’s not on me. So here’s your magical numbers to remember: two, two and four, that’s all you need to know. Just two, two and four, not to sing it, just here’s your mathematical arrangement, okay, here we go.
Silvery Sometimes (abandoned after 2 seconds)
BC: And then if you fuck up, you fuck up, you’re gonna get the look. Which is somethin’ kinda like.... And I asked a musician who I’m in good terms with - they had brought up the look - and I said “What’s it like to get the look?” And they said “It’s like you look at me and you think, ‘How in a million years could you ever play that fucking note?’” So, you been warned.
Silvery Sometimes (abandoned after audience sings one line of chorus)
(BC a few seconds into song: And thank you again, beautiful night, thank you so much.)
BC: And then you get the look. See, I fucked up. But you fucked up too ‘cause you didn’t get the look. And not this look but you did get this look. Let’s try it again.
Silvery Sometimes
(BC about 10 seconds in: One time I was being interviewed by some poncy journalist and he goes “Can you speak to your reputation as a tyrant?” And I said “Who said I’m a tyrant?” He goes, “Well, everyone knows.” And I said, “Cite the source.”)