August 11 - Let It Rain

I discovered Dream Syndicate somewhat by chance. I was working at Radio Ung, and the Steve Wynn debut album, Kerosene Man, was one of the albums peddled by Sonet, which was the record company most desperate to get their music to as many people as possible, so they sent us pretty much every album they released or distributed in Norway. I had listened to the album a couple of times, so when I had a chance to see him live at Skansen on December 23 (referred to as "little Christmas eve" in Norway - and of great significance, as that is the evening we decorate our trees so they are ready for our Christmas celebration on Christmas Eve), 1989, I went without hesitation. I believe I was going with two good friends: Vegard and Leif Roger.

A couple of things stood out about the gig even before it started: It was just Steve Wynn with his acoustic guitar. That is very demanding of any artist - but he really pulled it off. And the venue, Skansen, was both the venue for my first concert ever (TNT in 1985) and the place where my parents met for the first time. The details surrounding their first meeting are a little sketchy to me, but they've been together ever since, so it was indeed the start of something pretty darn good (they will have been married for 45 years on September 11 - quite impressive).

That evening in 1989 proved to be a perfect way to start the holiday. He delivered the goods - both songs from his first solo album (Under the Weather and Kerosene Man were standouts) and songs from his time in Dream Syndicate (the two I specifically remember are The Medicine Show and Boston), which at that time had come to its end just the year before. I really liked Dream Syndicate, but it was difficult to find their music, so when I found Tell Me When It's Over: The Best of Dream Syndicate 1982 - 1988 at a record store sometime in the early 90s (it was at Innova at the Moholt Center, I think), I was ecstatic. While it had both of the aforementioned songs - and yes, I almost wore the cd out listening to both of them - it also had surprises, and one of them was the Eric Clapton song Let It Rain, culled from his first solo album. I have since listened to Clapton's version as well, but I have to admit that I really prefer the energy that Dream Syndicate brings to it. You can always look up the Clapton version, but here it is with Dream Syndicate from the album Out Of The Grey from 1986.