adventures in roseland

the missed flight

I'm at denver international airport about to catch a 7:00am flight to new york to see liz phair in concert later in the evening. I pass through the security checkpoint, and this female guard decides to do a random check on my bag. no big deal. I travel light so it shouldn't take long. she empties my bag and somehow manages to keep me held up until 3:30 in the afternoon. when I realize that I have missed my flight, I become absolutely livid and start swearing at her furiously. then I wake up, relieved when I realize that the concert is still days away...

finally...  new york

thursday, october 8, 1998
new york city, ny
roseland

after dreaming twice that morning that I'd missed my alarm, I make the 7:00am flight with no problem. after dinner, we get to roseland around 7:30pm to find a line that stretches around the block, and I quickly learn that this is the will-call line (note to self: NEVER order tickets for will-call pickup again). ok, having read reviews of previous shows, I know that it will begin with a slideshow which should kill at least 10-15 minutes. at 8:10, I'm starting to panic, but eventually the line moves, and it is around 8:20 when we finally get to the will-call booth. when I get the tickets, I let out a big "woohoo!"

the club is packed, and we end up standing at the rear of the crowd. I'm wishing we'd arrived an hour earlier so we could stand by the stage. ah well. the slideshow goes on until just before 9:00, and then liz comes on, and the crowd goes wild... she is wearing a red long-sleeved top with black frilly trim (like a boa) and a long black skirt. although the sound comes across poorly at times, the show is awesome. unlike her appearance on leno the week before, liz is clearly much more at ease on stage tonight.

roseland 10/8 setlist

after her performance ends, everyone pretty much leaves. I am tempted to get a whitechocolatespaceegg t-shirt, but it is really plain and doesn't seem worth the $20. unfortunately, I have no idea where I'd even go to find liz after the show so we simply take off. while we're shopping at the virgin megastore, my brother senses that I don't really wanna be there. I mention that I was hoping to catch liz after the show, and he tells me to go so I scurry back to the club...

roseland revisited

so I'm back at roseland and decide I want a t-shirt after all cuz I want something to remember the evening by. oops, too late as they have closed the t-shirt booth for the night. damn! I walk back outside and watch them lock all but one of the main doors. most of the club staff are already starting to leave for the night, but no one is standing at the door to prevent people from re-entering. this girl asks to get the liz phair promo poster in the glass case, but no one can open it for her. people are still walking out, and I find out there is a VIP party still going on. can't figure out for the life of me how I'm gonna get in though.

dejected, I sit around some more and watch this guy tell a friend he can get him into the private party, and they both go inside. so lucky! eventually, I'm thinking, "what the hell, gotta give it a try. worst thing that can happen is I get asked to leave." so I walk inside, and this cop who is just hanging around walks towards me. I'm pretty sure he's gonna ask me to leave, but he just passes me by (whew!). I spot the entrance to the mezzanine, and there are two guys manning the door as well as a sign which says you need a pass to get in. I walk up to one of the guys and casually ask him how one gets up there (duh!), and he says you need a pass and asks if I have one. of course, all I have is my regular ticket which I present to him pathetically. it is obviously not a mezzanine pass. he motions to the door and says, "ah, go on ahead." aaaiiieeee!!! my heart racing, I ascend the stairs excitedly, and at first, I see just a bunch of people standing around. I feel out of place, like I don't belong cuz it's supposed to be a private party, right? then I catch a glimpse of liz chatting with some people, and I start getting butterflies in my stomach.

she is wearing the pinkish sleeveless dress she had changed into prior to the encore and looks absolutely lovely. winona ryder (!) emerges from the crowd wearing this black cap with earflaps, presumably to disguise her appearance somewhat, but there is no mistaking her for anyone else (having never seen her before in person, I can't help thinking "she is so tiny!"). she tells liz what a great show she put on and gives her a hug, and liz says, "you are SO cute!" which I find hilarious. winona slips out, and some guys meet liz next and get their pictures taken with her, and I'm kicking myself for not bringing my disposable camera. then the couple in front of me chats with liz for a while and gets her to autograph a CD cover.

finally, liz gets around to me, and I introduce myself and shake her hand and mention that I'd flown in from denver that day to see her play, and she says, "well, I hope you aren't jetlagged!" and I'm like, "not at all! I was so hyper to see you this whole week..." she is incredibly sweet, and it is amazing to be chatting so casually with her. I ask her to autograph my CDs, which she is happy to do, and I overhear this guy standing nearby, "aw, man! why didn't I think of that?"  =p  then someone else grabs her attention, and I traipse away from roseland as giddy as a kid on christmas morning. even the dirty, smelly streets cannot mar this moment...  =)