Joe Cocker - Live at the Garden

On July 18, 2009, Joe Cocker, who turned 65 in May, concluded his 2009 concert tour at the Botanic Garden in Memphis, TN with the song, "Long As I Can See The Light." Before bidding a final farewell and exiting the stage, he stated, "Memphis, Tennessee. Keep on rockin'! And we'll be back." I am blessed to have been a member of this audience and to have witnessed a Rock and Roll Legend perform live on stage. Below, I will share my experience.

I arrived at the Memphis Botanic Garden—though everyone I know refers to it as the Memphis Botanical Garden—a little before 6:00, and noticed a fairly long line already. (Gates were scheduled to open at 6:30.) So, after finding a parking space, I took my place in line and waited, like a bull, ready to charge through the gate. Within 20 minutes or so, the line had more than doubled. I was glad I had arrived early, because this, for the most part, was a general admission event. Finally, a few minutes after 6:30, the gates opened and the front of the line began to move. People, all around, gathered up their coolers, lawn chairs, picnic baskets, etc. and readied for the march forward. "Have your tickets out, ready to be scanned," an event worker stated. "Scanned?" I thought. And sure enough, the ticket takers—or should that now be changed to ticket inspectors?—had electronic scanners, which read the code on the ticket. I guess the days of bringing home a ripped ticket as a souvenir are in the past. Now, the ticket stays whole, and looks as though you skipped the event entirely. But alas, after being scanned, the ticket was handed back, and I began my journey across the massive lawn. On my way, I noticed a few huge screens, which would, later, display live footage of the concert, aiding the people who were too far away from the stage. I noticed people swarming all over the lawn like insects, as I became ever so closer to my destination—the closest location to the stage as possible. The area closest to the stage was made up of reserved tables, which apparently were mainly for members of the Botanic Gardens. But just outside this area, began the general admission section, which made up the rest of the lawn. I found a place almost center stage and right against the rail, which divided the table and general admission area. It was here, where I eventually saw Joe Cocker give an exceptional performance, which marks a day in my life I will never forget.

After waiting, I guess, more than an hour and a half—though it actually seemed to go by fairly fast—the opening events began. A couple of D.J.'s from WRVR The River and the co-directors of the Memphis Botanical Gardens walked on stage and welcomed the crowd and thanked the sponsors of the event. Following them, at 8:30, the opening band took the stage and began playing. After the first song, the singer introduced himself as Marc Broussard. After performing a couple more songs, frankly, I was ready for them to leave. My main problem was, in fact, the singer. He did try his best, and he seemed to perform from the heart. But, unfortunately, he didn't have the right voice that was needed for the blues music the band was playing. On the other hand, the band itself was really good. I just grew tired of the singer, who during the middle of the band's final song, broke out into few verses of "Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin, then continued with his own song. This was surprising, but dull. If he thinks he is the next Robert Plant, well... I'll just say, Robert Plant is one of the greatest singers ever. And I feel this guy is not even one of the best marginal singers ever. Of course, some people enjoyed his performance. And that's great. I'm just not one of them.

Enter: The Roadies, who cleared the stage of Marc Broussard's equipment.

A couple minutes after 9:30, Joe Cocker's band took their places on the stage, waving to a cheering audience. Seconds later, the Legend himself took center stage and went right into performing "Hitchcock Railway." There's no way that my words can do justice to the rest of Joe's performance. So I will just summarize. First off, he performed his well-known classics, including: "Feelin' Alright," "The Letter," "When The Night Comes," "You Are So Beautiful," among others. At the end of each song, Joe would jump into the air and pounce down just as the final drum was hit and the final chord on the guitar was struck. It was easy to tell how much he still enjoys performing. I have to say, too, he is still just as great of a singer as he has ever been, if not better. (And I'm leaning toward better!) My favorite song of the night was his performance of an extended version of "With A Little Help From My Friends." The two women backup singers were great as well. They really made this song come alive and stir the soul. After this song, the stage went dark. The crowd cheered and chanted "Joe. Joe. Joe..." After a couple minutes, the lights flashed on, piercing away the darkness of the night, and Joe began singing: "Delta Lady." From here on, the songs didn't stop. They just merged, seamlessly, together until the end of "Cry Me A River." Here, most of the band members waved to the audience and left the stage. Joe left the stage as well, again causing the audience to cheer and shout his name. One final time, Joe, once again, came back on stage and performed the last song of the night: "Long As I Can See The Light."

As I was leaving, an old and pleasant looking man behind me said, "I wonder if it is over?" Someone stated, "Yeah. It's over, because they are taking down the equipment. It was a great show, though." The man gently replied, as I was moving past, "Yes. I loved it." That statement coming from this guy—though, I don't know why—almost brought tears to my eyes. I loved it too. And somehow, in knowing that this elderly man loved it, and that this concert meant a lot to him, transformed a great and memorable night into an absolutely unprecedented and unforgettable experience.

Joe, if you do indeed come back, I will without a doubt be there to see you!