Tuesday, July 8, 2014

And we're off....to Wallingford!!!

This was a bit of a steamy day with downpours to boot.  I was praying that there would be air conditioning in the theater...you never know.  We waited a few minutes for the doors to be opened to the public.  The line wasn't overly long.  We easily had our tickets scanned and proceeded into the "dome" which apparently used to be the old performance center.  There was little to no A/C in there.  Very warm.  



There was quite a lot to choose from as far as concessions are concerned.  Pretzels, hot dogs, all sorts of beverages, etc.  We skipped the concessions.  They get in the way of dancing.  Priorities.  We headed into the theater and gradually began to see many familiar faces.  It was good to chat and catch up.  We then learned that concert footage was being filmed that night for Daryl's new DIY channel show (Daryl's Restoration Over-Hall) which premiers on July 19th.  We also found out photos were being shot throughout the performance for a special tour book meant for the upcoming European tour.  Exciting stuff!!  Needless to say there were TV cameras everywhere.  They didn't obstruct the view of the stage at all.  Cameras were allowed...no flash and no video, however.  Score!  Maybe these pics would come out a bit better than Boston!

We were quite lucky in Wallingford as we were treated to the Philly-Soul stylings of Mutlu Onaral!  He is a born and bred Philadelphian who has been featured on Live From Daryl's House twice in it's 7 year run.  Mutlu's songs are full of sweet rhythms and the occasional amusing lyric.  He was enjoyed by all.  Mutlu was kind enough to meet fans after his set at the merch table to sign autographs and take pictures.  

The Hall & Oates show was amazing (as always). It was a bit of a bummer that there really weren't any people dancing until the encores for the most part.  It seemed to be an older crowd (which I have no problem with)...maybe that was the reason.  I was completely blown away by Shane Theriot's solo during Sara Smile.  Man, he can play!  Such a great bluesy sound coming from that instrument.  I'm not kidding when I say that it really moved me.  He is the perfect addition to the band.  Shaking it up just enough.  Speaking of shaking...check out Daryl moving & grooving!


The setlist was more or less the same as Boston the night before.  I thought I had been able to
secure a setlist from this show...but apparently not as I can't locate it anywhere!  Oh, well!  Does anyone remember what they played?  Anyhow, at the final encore we were lucky enough to snap my most favorite Hall & Oates picture ever.  What a great feeling to witness this.  I seriously has goosebumps!


After the show we met with some fans near the merch table.  Eliot Lewis came out to sign a few CDs and take pictures with fans.  He was met with a great response!  It was cool to see that people were so excited to meet him.  

Overall, a great experience was had for our first visit to the Oakdale Theater.  We began our 2 1/2 hour journey home and began to get even more excited for our next road trip which was a week away.  Atlantic City here we come!!

Here are some more pictures from the show!