The Community Theatre at Mayo Center for the Performing Arts

Morristown, NJ

October 18, 2008

Review By: Jim

I am writing this without reading other reviews of the show. It is very long but it was my first show:

This a review (more of a diary) from someone who had never seen Patty before Saturday in Morristown. I have wanted to see her for a long time. I knew that it would be special. I knew mostly from what people post here, but also from what I have seen on her live videos. I have a friend from myspace and youtube that has never seen her, but was equally as excited .Sarah came from California and I came from CT. I was nervous the day before and the day of the show. Don't ask me why. I guess I felt like I could be disappointed. I still felt like something could go wrong. I shared this with Sarah and she was feeling similarly. But she begged me not to bring it up, because it could jinx us. I agreed not to. I am a bit superstitious too. We went down to the venue to get a picture of the marquee. Sarah wanted to take pictures of the changing colors of the foliage. I take the beauty of this time of year for granted where I am from. It is spectacular. I did soak it in on my 2 1/2 hour drive down from Connecticut.

We went to the side of the building to take a picture of a maple on the property next door to the theatre. While taking pictures Sarah asked me "What's that sound?" I said "Oh my God, it's the sound check!!" They were playing "Halfway Down" with no vocals. We knew it was real at that point. We knew we were finally going to see her!

We had third row seats, a little right of center. We got there right as Marcia Ramirez was starting. I am glad we didn't miss that. I knew her songs and a little about her from her myspace page. She was wonderful.. a perfect warm-up for Patty. Her voice is pure and strong. Her songs were soulful and real. I loved that she told the stories behind the songs and gave us a peek into the world of Nashville songwriting. She was well received by the crowd and got a warm, enthusiastic applause as she left the stage. It was well deserved. She assured us Patty would be out soon.

About 20 minutes later, the band took the stage and launched into "Blame It on Your Heart" Then Patty walked out, smiled and waved, took the mic and unleashed her magic. It felt like a dream to me. I was afraid I was going to pass out, but I held it together. I couldn't believe it, finally I am seeing her live! I tried taking pictures, but couldn't figure it out. I didn't care because I wanted to soak it in. I looked at Sarah she was mesmerized. This was her idol. This was the woman she admired more than anyone. My admiration was a little different. I used to think I could sing. I was in a band once and could carry a tune. But there is a reason I was in the audience. I am not that good. She is amazing. She has always had a pure voice, but somehow now it is more refined. I believed she was the best before Saturday. She did not disappoint me. Of course she is beautiful, but her beauty goes to the core of her soul. I could feel it. I was in complete awe.

At the same time she was interacting with crowd like we were her friends at a big party. It was like she opened the door to her home and invited us all in. She answered hecklers. People were barking out requests. Late in the show someone requested "Free Bird" jokingly and she thought they said "Reba." Patty if you read this I can assure you, as good as Reba is, nobody was thinking about Reba Saturday. She talked about Aretha Franklin and how much she admired her. It's ironic that one night they had the Queen of Soul, the next night they had the Queen of Mountain Soul. I wonder if Aretha knows that. She explained a lot about the songs she chose and the writers she used. She praised her band as much as she could. They deserved it. They were tight and professional, yet you could see they were enjoying themselves immensely. Patty was having so much fun. She set the tone and we helped her along.

I am not a drunk, but I have to admit sometimes after two bourbons, I listen to Crazy Arms and it brings tears to my eyes. Her voice and the steel guitar of Pete Finney. Wow. I felt it so deeply. Only Patty can do that me. Saturday I was stone cold sober and it did the same thing. When she needed to be serious, she was. She was feeling the pain while she sang that and I felt it with her. I can hear it in her records, but I was seeing it too on Saturday. Everybody has something that makes them sad. It doesn't matter how good you feel. She draws it out of you and makes you feel it. Then she went deeper into the pain with Sleepless Nights, Color of the Blues and That's All It Took. It is a wonderful gift she has. She can make feeling pain and sorrow beautiful. She makes it okay to feel it. That four song string of Sleepless Nights songs really got me.

Don't get me wrong, I was moved by the whole show. I have seen many acts in my 43 years, but I have never experienced anything quite like this show. Patty is absolutely amazing! I didn't think I could love her more than I did before, but incredibly I do. There are no words to describe it. With the help of Mike D. we were able to meet Marcia after the show. She was so kind and gracious. She told us if we waited around by the bus, we might get to meet Patty. This was one of our goals. I never wanted to seem like a stalker. So, it made me happy to see others already there. It was nice chatting with these people. There was an older couple from Brooklyn, NY. A mother and daughter from New Jersey, Mike D. from my state. My friend Sarah from California, and many others.

The bassist, Jimmy Johnson, came out and came over to us. Me, being the cynic that I am, thought he was coming out to deliver the bad news. Patty wouldn't be coming out. But he came out to tell us how much he, Patty and the other band members appreciated us coming to see them... Especially in such tough financial times. It was very special for him to deliver that message. All I could think was that yes, It has been tough for me, but you gave us something special that we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. I will. I know it. You can't put a price on that. I wanted to express this to Patty.

Then Patty came outside. Again, it was like a dream for me. She was smiling and friendly and patient and more beautiful in real life than in any of her pictures. When it was our turn, I took the pictures of Sarah and Patty and I screwed them up three times before I gave the camera to someone else. Patty just kept smiling. Sarah said everything she wanted to, but I blew it. I can't even remember what I said. I know that I took on her accent, which I do sometimes with customers from Kentucky sometimes without knowing it. Mostly because it is so charming and sweet. I told her I was from Connecticut, which probably confused her, but she remained kind and sweet. I got my picture with her. I think I will cut me out of it. But, I didn't get to tell her how much it meant to me that she shared her special gift with us. That is my only regret that night. That is what she did that night so selflessly.

Thank you Patty! I hope you read this!