Jean Michel Jarre live in Athens June 2010

I had wanted to see Jean Michel Jarre in concert ever since the late 80's. Having seen on television excerpts from his concerts in Houston, Lyon and other cities with the incredible - at least for that era - laser shows and the musical instruments that he had created, I decided that this was an experience I would like to have! And I was actually ready to do that since I was in London when he announced that he would organize similar concerts at the Docklands. Of course, the English, being as usual spoilsports set several obstacles concerning safety reasons and what have you and so the concerts were postponed only to take place later marred by the worst kind of English weather as well as reduced ticket numbers. As a result, I couldn't make it.  However, back in 2010 I got my chance to make up for it. Seeing as the concert was taking place at an indoor venue (as was the whole of that year's tour), I was doubtful as to whether he could reproduce all those special effects. I needn't have worried! He performed a bit of everything. Including the musical instrument with the laser beams which played a different note depending on which beam he was touching. He even treated us to some 3D effects... and he played the theremin as well!

The theremin is one of the first electronic instrument invented almost a century ago by a soviet scientist.

One funny thing that happened was when I realized that the two people sitting next to me were talking about their visit to Busch Gardens, the amusement park I was working at back in 2000 in the USA. All in all, this was a night to remember, and what was more important was that the venue was full. And keep this in mind: for those that listen to synth-pop, Jean Michel Jarre (together with our very own Vangelis) is their classical music! 

SETLIST:
01. Oxygène 2
02. Magnetic Fields 1
03. Équinoxe 7
04. Équinoxe 5
05. Troisième Rendez-Vous
06. Magnetic Fields 2
07. Souvenirs Of China
08. Oxygène 5
09. Variation 3
10. Theremin Memories
11. Équinoxe 4
12. Statistics Adagio
13. Révolution Industrielle 2
14. Deuxième Rendez-Vous
15. Quatrième Rendez-Vous
16. Chronologie 6
17. Chronologie 2
18. Oxygène 4
19. Oxygène 12
20. Calypso 3

 

Bob Dylan live in Athens May 2010

 

On the 29th of May 2010, Bob Dylan played at Terra Vibe.  Ever since this concert was announced there were many quibbles expressed as to what we were about to see and whether it was going to be worth it. Let me explain: My brother is much older than me. His friends grew up in the seventies listening to Dylan (and that particular Dylan was the sixties one with peace, love and blowin' in the wind). When he came here for a concert (back in 1989 I think), they rushed to see him and were in for a nasty surprise when he came on stage (at Lycabettus theatre I think), stared at the floor during the whole gig, performed all the songs on the setlist, and finally left without saying a simple "thank you". Well, what can I say, his performance at Live Aid in 1985 should have given them a hint.

Now, let's get back to the present. My first impressions at Terra Vibe were that he was in a good mood (more than usual, anyway) and that his band was exceptionally good.

  There were still complaints from others, though. Several people said that his voice was not up to his usual standard, that he butchered his songs and that it would be a good idea to give it all up and retire. Well, first of all, I think that he's not the first artist who plays different versions of his songs when performing live. On the other hand, his voice may indeed not be up to scratch anymore, but at least I'll be able to say that I have seen Bob Dylan live. Having said all that, you can decide for yourselves while watching the video for "Lay Lady Lay" from that night (No title or details have been provided on the video since he is known to have hired some people who search for videos of his on YouTube and when they find them, they take them down).

All those things aside, it was indeed a memorable night, partly due to the plastic bottle filled with Grant's whisky that was doing the rounds, but also because that day was the birthday of a friend and we celebrated it at Terra Vibe. Having no cake handy, we stuck a candle on a hot dog bought from one of the festival canteens for him to blow. Oh, and those frozen Margueritas that were sold at Terra Vibe back then were amazing!
All in all, I don't regret attending that concert, since because of it friends gathered from all four corners of Greece...

SETLIST:
01. Rainy Day Women # 12 & 35
02. Lay, Lady, Lay
03. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
04. Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again
05. Just Like A Woman
06. Honest With Me
07. Desolation Row
08. Ballad Of Hollis Brown
09. Rollin' And Tumblin'
10. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
11. Highway 61 Revisited
12. Workingman's Blues #2
13. Thunder On The Mountain
14. Ballad Of A Thin Man
15. Like A Rolling Stone
16. All Along The Watchtower