7 posts tagged “posse-cat dolls”

It’s always bittersweet when the last day of tour arrives, but the last show of the tour is even more poignant when it’s your final show. There are no other shows. There are no other opportunities to try and see just one more performance, hear one more great song, see one more rarity that you can brag about. We all return to our little corners of the world, parting ways sadly, with only our memories to hold on to.

The last show of tour for me is always emotional. I’ve also seen the end of a tour before, and felt the tug of the heart at things truly being done. But this tour was something different; this tour is the end of a long era, and marks the beginning of a very different future. There will never be a tour as expansive as this again. The Dolls, a concept once mocked by many who later became beloved, are gone, save our personal amusements (like pipforpresident08.com). We’ve seen the last of Isabel, Pip, Clyde and Santa. We’ve likely seen the last of certain songs that resurfaced this tour only because of the Dolls and how they allowed Tori to separate her emotions from songs so that her personal issues would no longer stop them from being performed. As several of us have agreed on, there will never be the ‘Hang Ten Honey’ outro/freak out in Waitress again. She’s Your Cocaine and Raspberry Swirl are likely going back into the musical closet to be neglected and forgotten alongside Way Down and Datura and Zero Point (a broken promise I’m sure many will be bitter about is Tori’s failure to deliver either of the latter two).

I’ve been a part of Tori history, and my heart is breaking. I knew the final show would get to me; hell, Pretty Good Year and Tear In Your Hand had me tearing up in Anaheim. But even I wasn’t prepared for precisely how emotional I became last night...   I figured for the last show that a glass of wine was mandatory. Ashley had champagne, and we settled into our seats (decent view, if not as close as we would have liked), and it first hit me then: this was it. There was no more tour after this show. It was the end of the line. As Tori hit the stage as Isabel, I decided to throw myself into the show as completely as possible, dancing in my seat and standing, mouthing along to each song and often closing my eyes and feeling the sounds vibrating off the walls around me.

Isabel's fourth song was Scarlet’s Walk, and I immediately knew we were getting a split doll show again. I figured it to be Santa or Clyde coming next. Scarlet’s Walk was the first song of many to send tears streaming down my cheeks; lyrics like “What do you plan to do with all your stories….?/I will follow her on her path….” just gutted me. The boys jammed as Isabel departed the stage, and for a few minutes, it felt like a slowed down Bouncing Off Clouds, which would indicate Clyde. But then, the lights went purple, and the music slowed… and I held my breath. “No way….” I thought to myself. But then, the tech emerged and set up the extra microphone that only one doll uses, and I had a fit of glee. PIP! Pip for the win! Such an awesome and pleasant surprise! Pip roared through Cruel, screaming about smegma and cocksuckers and being her wonderful obscene self. The pit area went nuts,. Standing for her whole set and dancing in a frenzy/ I wish I could have been down there with them. As I’d hoped, she did Fat Slut into Smokey Joe this time instead of Teenage Hustling, which was awesome. Smokey Joe in particular was very haunting and intense. From there, Heart of Gold happened again; I have to say that as much as I loathe the studio version, the live version is enjoyable. I think the Pip attitude and character make it work for me.

And then came Waitress, and I felt a lump in my throat, remembering John saying that this tour was probably the last of ‘Hang Ten Honey’. I rocked out, sang along, headbanged and danced in my seat. I went all out, then rose to my feet and danced for the last time to the Professional Widow jam. If there’s anything I’d always wanted at a Tori show, it was the ability to dance and shake my ass to fast songs, and this tour has been great for it. The bulk of the audience rose and danced for Big Wheel, and as much fun as I had clapping and dancing, I again felt a twinge of sadness; this was the last Big Wheel. Big Wheel has been a highlight of this tour for me, and I really can’t get enough of it. After Cornflake Girl (the last air piano opportunity), Tori brought out a song I’d been dying to hear this tour: Bells For Her. It was so emotional, and the tears just came pouring out. Every song that can normally touch me was just that much more charged.

Solo time brought Silent All These Years (and I kept crying); as much as I love it, I was sad to hear that she bailed on Gold Dust for it, since I absolutely fell in love with Gold Dust this past year. Then again, I may have crumbled completely if she’d played it. Cooling was next, as I’d predicted; Tori loves to close a tour with Cooling. She became incredibly emotional towards the end, with her voice actually cracking and breaking at the end. It was the best I’ve heard the song ever, hands down, and but one more example of how in this tour, the passion of the performances had come back with intensity to spare.

A familiar intro began, and my heart leapt into my throat: Amber Waves. God how I’d hoped for that song this tour. I was a weeping mess, and I’m not embarrassed to admit it. Again, I’d have to say it was the best I’ve heard the song live. I was beginning to think I’d never stop crying, but Tori thankfully brought some reprieve by busting out Talula, which is fun and upbeat. I’m so glad I was there to see this version, because it’s seriously the best band Talula ever.

Code Red… I’ve always been affected by the “Do this last one, and I’ll grow me some wine/Leave them troubled boys all behind” line, taking it as almost Tori’s goodbye to us and tour. Last night, it was even more moving in that context. For the last time, I grabbed onto Ashley and we rushed towards the stage; security stopped us from leaving the orchestra and rushing the pit, but oh well! We got to stand in the aisles and I danced and rocked out to Precious Things, and clapped happily as Bouncing Off Clouds came next. Again, I felt a tear in my eye; this was the end of the bouncing of the cloud dance. It really was ending. By the time Hey Jupiter began in the second encore, I was a wreck, with the sadness peaking as Tori belted out the “I know he isn’t you” at the end. I was a mess, and I wasn’t the only one. Suze and I had a good hug and a cry; John and I had a good hug outside the venue too.

Tori…. Thank you for the best tour in years.

SETLIST – LOS ANGELES 12/16/07

Isabel

Yo George
In The Springtime Of His Voodoo
Tombigbee
Scarlet’s Walk

Pip

Cruel
Heart Of Gold
Fat Slut
Smokey Joe
Waitress

Tori

Big Wheel
Cornflake Girl
Bells For Her

Silent All These Years
Cooling

Amber Waves
Talula
Code Red

Precious Things
Bouncing Off Clouds

Hey Jupiter

*excerpted from journal*

Despite the mass of people ahead of us, we ended up in the second/third row off to the side near the stage. I am so, so glad we were that close to witness the awesome of this show. Oh my GOD. Pip emerged and I thought I was going to keel over and die of joy. Pip was in top form, making masturbation gestures, cussing up a storm as usual, and being the awesome of all awesome. But then, something weird happened: she did Waitress fourth in her set. Waitress is normally the closer of a 7 song set. I knew what was going to happen: another two doll show. Half of me was sad to get only half the Pip, but when Santa emerged to rock out and do She’s Your Cocaine and Raspberry Swirl as part of her mini-set, I decided it was an incredible combo, and definitely worth sacrificing Pip time. The GA venue meant we had the ability to dance all night, and I definitely rocked out and danced...

Tori then changed again for her main set, which was shortened but solid all the way through. Big Wheel was delicious of course, and after Cornflake Girl, Tori broke out Liquid Diamonds (LOVE) and then went straight into solo time. First up: Carbon. My second favourite song. It was stunning and very charged; it gave me chills and brought me to tears. Take Me With You followed on its heels and was even more gorgeous than Toronto. The band arrived once more and launched into Pretty Good Year, which moved both Ashley and I; it’s such a ‘goodbye’ sort of song and for me at least, the fact tour is so close to ending was just… so real. Recovery time arrived in the form of Hotel and Code Red, which were both rocking out. I’m shocked with how often she’s done it this tour that this was my first time hearing Hotel this tour. SO good. The first encore was an echo of Santa Barbara: Precious Things and Tear In Your Hand, which also choked me up, especially since Tori herself seemed so emotional as she sang, “Maybe it’s time to wave goodbye now” and waved to us. Encore two however… The band returned and began jamming what was very obviously the intro to Talula, which had Ashley and I in fits of glee. But then, Tori didn’t return. She was taking hella long, and it was strange. And then… Tori outdid the shock of the first two-doll combo in San Diego:

Tori returned as Pip for the second encore.

WTF!?!? The lighting darkened and the band slowed down to a ethereal trippy beat and I recognized the song immediately: Suede!! OMG! I don’t think I’ve heard it since my very first show in 1999! I’ve always seen Suede as an ideal Pip song too, so it was just so incredible. Tori didn’t quite keep character as Pip departed and concluded the show; Pip normally flips the audience off and leaves, but instead she kind of bowed and nodded to the audience. It very much felt like Pip was saying goodbye for the tour. Hopefully, she pops out tomorrow, but I won’t hold my breath. Then again, after tonight, I really don’t know what to expect anymore!!

Half of me is trying to be an optimist – one more show! – but half of me is sad now – only one more show! – so it’s a strange feeling. I definitely think tonight’s show was one of the absolute best of the tour, and one of the best I’ve ever seen of Tori’s, period.

SETLIST – ANAHEIM 12/15/07

Pip

Cruel
Teenage Hustling
Heart of Gold
Waitress

Santa

Body and Soul
She’s Your Cocaine
You Can Bring Your Dog
Raspberry Swirl

Tori

Big Wheel
Cornflake Girl
Liquid Diamonds

Carbon
Take Me With You

Pretty Good Year
Hotel
Code Red

Precious Things
Tear In Your Hand

Suede (as Pip)

*excerpted from journal*

We decided that if we were to do any meet and greet on this trip, it ought to be Santa Barbara, so into the car we loaded our belongings – or rather, the incredibly helpful valet parking crew at the Hilton loaded the car – and we set off along the 101. Only Tori fans will immediately know why we dorked out and threw in Scarlet’s Walk for our road music, so allow me to explain for the non-Tori folk: in the song A Sorta Fairytale, track 2 on Scarlet’s Walk, Tori mentions travelling north along the 101. It seriously felt like we were retracing the path that inspired the song, with the beautiful views and the scent of ocean along the way. It was a fairytale, really.

Driving directions again proved super-easy to follow; I’m starting to love California roadtripping. We parked our car in a garage in Santa Barbara near the venue and wandered out onto the street. The area is very nice, and reminded me of Charleston, SC, with its early hours of closure, obviously wealthy area, and the unique and beautiful buildings everywhere. We located the venue, found one other person waiting, and settled in at the spot we found most logical for a meet and greet. Over the day, the crowd grew, and we spent time chatting with many people, including the lovely Alexa.

At one point, a homeless man wandered by and asked us what/who we were waiting for. After initially saying we were waiting for George Bush, we told the truth, which prompted him to repeatedly call Tori `Torrid Anus`. He then sat down on a nearby curb, ate cold chili from a can and dropped it all over himself, then munched some crackers before departing with his bicycle o`belongings (it was dragging this cart with garbage bags of things inside).

The meet and greet was cancelled, which kinda blew because we could have explored the beaches or shops had we known.

...What made it cooler was the show starting at 9pm here meant that in Toronto, it was my birthday, making the show kind of my birthday show. And what a show! No two doll combo, as we mused about after San Diego’s shocker, but it was a show filled with energy, debuts and songs I really wanted to hear.

Clyde opened our show, and the entire venue stayed on their feet for Bouncing Off Clouds. Tori should seriously play BOC at every show; it’s just way too much fun, like Big Wheel (which I’m glad she does do every night). Little Amsterdam was awesome tonight, as was Rattlesnakes – perhaps the best I’ve ever heard it, and that song tends to follow me around. Juarez was also tasty tonight. But the best awaited us in the main Tori set.

From Big Wheel, Tori broke into Parasol, my favourite song off the lacklustre album The Beekeeper, and one I’d never heard live. I’d heard bootlegs from the ’05 tour and found the song too slow live, but this version was the one I wanted to hear. The next song was a fantastic surprise: Spark. My favourite song. I cried again; it was a really good version, emotional, with key parts belted so perfectly. I’d passed a letter through Smitty earlier today and in it, I’d thanked Tori for honouring my Spark request in Toronto and commented that I felt this tour’s version was the best she’s ever done; I’m guessing she read it before the show. Lust was the only low of the show for me, and even that sounded better than it has on past tours. Black-Dove was a song high on my list of wants and I’m so glad her damn corset didn’t choke her into skipping the song this time!!

The solo section was intense; it began with Tori mentioning how she’s trying to honour as many requests as possible before the tour ends and “if your request doesn’t happen… too fucking bad!” Hilarious. From there, she launched into an intense improv that began with “She buried her soul today” and described the loss of a grandmother and a family standing together and burying her ‘wrapped in her songs’. It almost felt like its own song, which is one of the many reasons Tori awes me; the things she comes up with spontaneously can be incredible at times. She then launched into Alamo, which is a b-side she seldom plays. A heartbreaking version of it, this was. She then moved into Toast, another song from The Beekeeper I really love, but had to stop after a few lines because of tuning issues. Cue another improv song about having problems with her EQ and how she has a great sound guy but she’s driving him nuts because she’s “such an antfucker” about her songs. It wrapped with her declaring how when she was young, she did her own EQ and she’d find her own way to handle the venue’s sound. Toast was gorgeous, and felt very fitting given how close to the end we are.

How do you top amazing solo songs? You throw out two highly anticipated songs: Past The Mission (awesome!) and Talula, which was so incredible that it’s tied with my long-beloved Wallingford ’01 version as the best Talula ever. And of course Tori waited for a non-bootlegged show. Of course!!

Code Red has become more intense since I saw it in Toronto, and I am loving it. LOVE. Precious is of course full of win, and Tear In Your Hand was particularly poignant to me because soon, it really will be ‘time to wave goodbye now’. This tour really feels monumental, historical in the context of Tori’s career; even Tori commented that this has been the most incredible experience for her as a performer. Several of us have said it, and I’ll echo it here: LA finishing is going to bring me to tears. That last show is going to be amazing and break my heart all at once.

SETLIST – SANTA BARBARA 12/13/07

Clyde

Bouncing Off Clouds
Little Earthquakes
Juarez
Rattlesnakes
Little Amsterdam
Beauty of Speed

Tori

Big Wheel
Parasol
Spark
Cornflake Girl
Lust
Black-Dove (January)

Improv> ‘buried her today’
Alamo
Toast *screw up*
Improv> ‘Need my EQ’
Toast

Past The Mission
Talula
Code Red

Precious Things
Tear In Your Hand

*excerpted from journal*

The show opened with Santa, which was fine by me;  I was very eager to hear Raspberry Swirl.  Tori strutted and sassed about the stage as Santa, beginning with Body and Soul and continuing with She's Your Cocaine (YUM), Hoochie Woman (YAY!  Tori dished out Mojitos and rubbed alcohol on her body as well as flicking it at the front row) and Raspberry Swirl (OMFGYAY!).  We got up to dance for Swirl.  In my excitement for Swirl, it didn't quite click with me that it was awfully early in Santa's set for Swirl... And then, Tori left the stage as the band continued to jam the ending.  "That was the shortest Santa set ever!" Ashley commented.  Suze looked back to us and mouthed, "Where did she go?!"  I shrugged.  Ashley mused aloud about there being two dolls, and to our complete surprise, that's exactly what happened!  Tori returned as Isabel to the sounds of the intro to Yo George, and did a mini-Isabel set of Yo George, Mountain, Tombigbee and Scarlet's Walk.  I was disappointed to not hear Almost Rosey, but the two doll combo alone was worth it.

Costume change #2.  Tori returned and launched into Big Wheel as per the norm, only to introduce the band and launch into Cornflake Girl.  WTF?  Where's the second song that comes before CFG?  Doughnut Song arrived, and I was thrilled to finally hear it this tour;  it was as gorgeous as I hoped for, although I'm sad she cut the "Something's just keeping you numb".  And then.... solo time?  Already?  This show was making me dizzy with confusion.  The solo section fell completely flat for me - Twinkle, which admittedly was better live this tour than in previous ones, and was preceded by a beautiful improv about 'remembering' someone from before, and Leather (ugh).  Your Cloud was lovely, but too mellow on the heels of a lacklustre solo section, but Virginia revived me.  Code Red started amazing... and then suddenly Tori stopped and threw two girls out of the show from the front row, angrily ranting about how those seats were "her seats" and "sitting in front is a privilege'.  Crazy!  The song restarted even more furiously.  Tori's been throwing security guards out of shows as well this tour - fiesty moody Tori is BACK! 

The encores were solid - Precious Things which is always a treat; Bliss, which rocked out with its bad self; Space Dog, which felt weird in the encores but was still fun to dance to; and the predictable Hey Jupiter, which was still worth it if only for the way Tori belted out the "I know he isn't you" at the end.   Overall, a satisfying show, but the middle kinda dropped off.  The setlist had Past The Mission in the encore instead of Bliss and Take Me With You as the sole solo song (which would have been infinitely better!).  The presence of Past The Mission was amusing;  if only she'd played it!

Tomorrow, it's the Santa Barbara show.  I suddenly have a strange feeling it's going to become a Pip/Clyde split, which makes me sad because I want a full Pip set in Anaheim damn it!  We're planning to hit the meet and greet tomorrow, and since Suze and Lesley are also without tickets for the show, we're going to try and get four together.  Ideally, it being my brother's birthday, we'll luck into an upgrade from Smitty (who gets mauled by a circle of vultures these days!  Holy shit!), but I'm just happy to be here and going.  I also want to get a full chat in with Ms Alexa.

But now, it's way past bedtime!!  I'll upload pictures tomorrow morning while getting ready.

SETLIST:  SAN DIEGO 12/12/07

SANTA
Body and Soul
She's Your Cocaine
Hoochie Woman
Raspberry Swirl

Swirl>Yo George Jam

ISABEL
Yo George
Mountain
Tombigbee
Scarlet's Walk

TORI
Big Wheel
Cornflake Girl
Doughnut Song

Improv
Twinkle
Leather

Your Cloud
Virginia
Code Red

Precious Things
Bliss

Space Dog
Hey Jupiter

*taken from a message board posting*

Okay, seriously... this fucking set blew my goddamn mind like whoa. HOLY shit!!!!!!!!!

The Black-Dove thing: She started Black-Dove, got to the first "you don't need a spaceship"-ish place then suddenly stopped and fucked up, then said, "Okay fuck, I have got to get rid of this corset! Guys, just play something? I'll be back" Then she left the stage for maybe 3 minutes and ditched the corset thing under her jumpsuit. The boys randomly jammed - it didn't remind me of anything specific - and she returned and said "I'm going to play one of my favourite songs off of Little Earthquakes" and went into Crucify. She later during the band intro thanked us for our patience and promised she'd make it up to us later.

Cocaine!!!! Holy FUCK. She skipped the "if you want me to....inside of you" part and she also skipped a line before "taking my easel and writing good checks" and ended up repeating ythe "taking my easel" line. But it was FUCKING AWESOME!!! *squee*

I'll do a more proper review later - right now I'm getting tanked with Oh So Quiet and Assless Pants in a posh hotel - but a few comments about this show....

I cried from Baker Baker through Spark. I know people roll their eyes at staples like Baker and COMT, but this tour... If you haven't gone to a show yet, do not knock anything in a set. I'm dead serious. I officially love COMT again. Tori is ON.

Carbon... was the best version I've seen since Grand Rapids 03. I DIED. SO good. I can't believe it. OMG. And Spark shortly on its heels? There's a reason my tattoo references Spark and Carbon. I cannot believe my luck. Seriously - I have NO complaints about any of my 3 shows. My biggest complaint is she didn't finish Black-Dove... But I got Cocaine, Carbon, Spark and Siren in this show, so seriously, I cannot be greedy. This is the best tour I've seen, by eons, by miles... And I NEED to see more shows.

Okay, back to wine and chatter. I am beyond overwhelmed. I'm so depressed that potentially this was my last show of the tour, because this is.... wow. HOLY FUCK. I wish I could have brought all of you there. This show was amazing. I was afraid after Toronto that Buffalo and Detroit could never live up, but man, I was wrong.

Setlist:  Tori Amos Detroit 10/27/07

Part I - Santa

Body and Soul
My Posse Can Do
She's Your Cocaine
Dragon
Secret Spell
You Can Bring Your Dog

Costume Change = Professional Widow Interlude

Part II - Tori

Big Wheel
A Sorta Fairytale
Black Dove
--Black Dove interrupted, costume change --
Crucify
Cornflake Girl
Honey
Siren

T & Bö

Baker Baker
Cloud on My Tongue
Carbon

Band Returns

Horses
Spark
Code Red

First Encore

Precious Things

Second Encore

Hey Jupiter

*taken from a message board posting*

I'll do a more thorough review tomorrow - I'm passing out now - but in brief, while this show was definitely more mellow than Toronto, it was still incredibly solid. The performances were very 'on'; T was hitting her high notes all over the place especially during HIMH. The show was ridiculously cloud/sky themed, but it was amusing.

Clyde is my second favourite doll so I'm shaking my head and laughing that I dodged the Santa bullet twice AND got my two dolls I wanted most. I'm a little bummed Roosterspur Bridge didn't happen - and while Upside Down did fit Clyde's character, I would have rather had it debut in the main Tori set so I could hear Roosterspur, which is one of my dearest friends right now. That said, best band Upside Down I've ever heard. YUM! Girl Disappearing was DIVINE! !

Tori fucked up the count in Big Wheel again at gimme 3, started laughing and said "Fuck fuck fuck!!" then jumped back into the MILF part. I can't wait to hear this one.

The improv before YC... Tori was asking what Matty had for dinner, because she had lentils and she heard he had something better, more carnivorous. She kept saying she needed to be on HIS feeding schedule and eating what he was eating, how she needed to get the beans out of her diet... So silly and fun.

The improv before COMT.... roughly... "Something strange happens when I try to head home. I get on the bus and I'm 44, and by the time I hit Philly I'm 18, and when I hit Washington, I have to try not to be 13." Very. very sad....

TTTS rocked! At the end, she stretched the "why do you take it boy?" into a huge extension about "you take it in the morning light, you take it in the afternoon, you take it whenever you can get it, if I'm dirty, why do you take it?"

Virginia is LOVE.

Concertina is actually relevant to me right now and the new arrangement has more flavour that SW era. I approve!

Honestly? I once again have NO complaints about this set. Not a one. Thoroughly enjoyed every single song. Cried for a few.  You know what it is? Songs that had become tired/played out like COMT were feeling that way to me because it felt like Tori was singing them in her sleep. Not so this tour. The passion's renewed in the deliveries, and they're becoming favourites again. I'm almost curious to get Leather now and see if I no longer hate it live. This may not have been a super-cool debut set or full of rockers, but the show was solid and enjoyable and wonderful IMO.

That said, I am kinda wistful to hear several songs in Detroit now and I doubt they'd all happen in one spot... Digital Ghost, Doughnut Song, Siren, Almost Rosey, Carbon... all yes please! I'm surprised I haven't heard Crucify because I actually WANT to hear it.

Setlist:  Tori Amos Buffalo 10/24/07

Part I Clyde

Bouncing Off Clouds
Little Earthquakes
Juarez
Upside Down
Beauty of Speed
Girl Disappearing

costume change = Pro Widow remix interlude

Part II - Tori

Big Wheel
Sugar
A Sorta Fairytale
Cornflake Girl
Your Cloud
Take to the Sky

T & Bö

Cloud On My Tongue
Here. in My Head

band returns

Virginia
Concertina
Code Red

First Encore

Precious Things
Taxi Ride

Second Encore

Hey Jupiter (Dakota)

*taken from initial posting on a forum*

OMFG. I'll start with this: if I could have only done one show on this tour, this would have been perfect. Utterly perfect. I have no complaints about the set at all. Tori was ON. She was in good spirits. This has been an incredible day... I need sleep badly, but I must review!

First off, meet and greet... The nicest, best, calmest one I've ever attended. It rained for most of the day but the venue was cool enough to let us chill in the lobby indoors and dry. They didn't mind me playing my iTunes on my laptop. Of the 30-35 people there by the time Tori came out, over half were first timers, which was really fun. Everyone was very gracious and happy to just be there.

Being clever, I did a recon at 1:30 around back near the buses. Inside one of them, we saw a set of hot leather sexy red boots and were like, "What doll wears those??!!" Ha! I asked venue security minding the stage door to tell Smitty where we were. Shortly after, one of our gang went to ask the box office if they knew anything and the venue manager copped a power trip and was like, "Something like that needs MY permission" and went off to find Smitty. Smitty came out about ten minutes after and said hi - super sweet to us. As he came out, we heard Tori over the walkie talkie say, "Are they standing out in the rain because they're going to be fucking pissed!" We all laughed, and Smitty replied, "No they're all warm and dry inside the lobby. We're going to do it in here I think." He then turned to us and said, "See how she looks out for you?" I'd somehow never gotten to chat with Smitty ever, so I went to say hi. Very nice. I like him.

For the meet and greet, they basically got out those metal poles with the stretchy elastic bands you can hook to the next pole and made a line queue barrier from the inner lobby doors to almost the doors to the outside and had us all step behind it. Everyone was super-jittery, me included! I always write Tori a letter
every tour - I never have the balls to say anything out loud, partially because of feeling watched by others but also because I get tongue-tied. But I decided this time, I needed to talk to her. My standard four page letter became two pages.

The meet and greet was awesome. Tori came out and was brought to the end with the small gap near the outer venue doors, and basically we all filed out one by one, got to take pictures and chat and get things signed, and were then ushered outside. Everyone got their time, and she spent over half an hour with us. Marci lent her camera to take a picture of me and Tori - finally, after all this time, a NICE picture with Tori. When my turn hit, she hugged me right away and said, "And how are you?" I told her I played hooky from work to come because she'd messed up - "my friend requested Spark for Toronto for me and you did it in Montreal!" I then pointed to Jared, and she looked, looked back at me and said, "Oh. Now that makes sense!" She wrote Spark down, asking, "But you're here tonight, right?"

I had her sign my Tori Stories booklet next to the Spark page, and proceeded to babble like an ass. It went something like this:

"You know, I always write you these huge letters, but this time, it's short because I actually wanted to tell you things in person. I wanted to say that I think your fans don't appreciate you sometimes. I think sometimes we all take you for granted, and you do so much, much more than you have to, and I wanted to thank you for that. I've been following you around for years, and your music has been such an inspiration and influence in my life for so long, and I'm grateful for that. I remember being in Wallingford in '01 and you did this lovely improv about Tash during Talula and I am so happy you have her, and so happy you have Mark, because you deserve that and it was special watching it all unfold. I know sometimes fans will say 'Oh why doesn't she do another Pele or another Earthquakes' but you know what? Fuck that. I'm glad you always grow and let the music evolve, and I think American Doll Posse is genius, and I think you really needed to hear that in person."

Tori got teary-eyed when I said the thing about her fans, and said "Thank you" very sweetly. When I got to the part about Tash she smiled, and she knew what I meant by Wallingford, and she got teary again at the end and said, "I am so glad you are here today."

The show itself... was fantastic. Best Toronto show I have ever seen and I would say right now it's in my top 3 shows ever of hers. She flubbed lyrics a lot, but she was in such a good mood, and she was very into the show. We requested Pip at the meet and greet and she said she'd see what she could do, but I was truly shocked when the band came out and it was most definitely NOT Body and Soul starting. Pip is INSANE. LOVE her. So amazing! I'd never seen Cruel live, I love Bliss, I love all Pip's songs... YUM. The number of 'fuck' uses was crazy!

Big Wheel is super-fun! I love it! Especially the call and answer MILF - Don't you forget!

Space Dog... One of my favourites. I cried. Yup. Beautiful with the 'Hold those tears' intro.

Spark... Once again, I was in disbelief. Suze looked over and said it, and I was like "No, I won't believe until she sings the first line!"... And then, she did, and I cried of course, because I'm a wuss. It was PERFECT. Just as I dreamed of it being. Tori was looking my way a lot and from events later, she could see us, so um WOW. AMAZING.

Cornflake Girl - We are starting a new dance. It is called the rabbit dance. Every time T sings 'rabbit', you make bunny ears on your head. T saw us and kept cracking up. Ha! She flubbed a line in the first verse and the first chorus she changed the peel out the watchword to "Just throw out these words!" So cute!

Liquid Diamonds - Just when I thought I could recover... BOOM. Tears. I love this song and it was so ON... the mic switches for this and Spark were so well-timed. Gorgeous version...

Glory of the 80s - I had a shit fit of glee. Glory has always been a highlight of Venus for me and it was the only TVAB song I'd never heard live that I WANTED to hear. Such a shock and SO good. Loved her voice on it.

Winter... You know, in the past I've gotten bored due to overkill, but not tonight. This trumped even the Baltimore '05 one where she kept saying 'dad' since he was at that show. Gorgeous, gorgeous vocals... I was a wreck. My dad's health is failing, so Winter is hitting me in a soft spot. During the piano bridge, some ass yelled out "I love you Tori!" Then another yelled "Jesus loves you too!" and then ANOTHER guy yelled, and okay, Tori was near tears at some parts prior to this, and just as I was about to yell "shut the fuck up", Tori simply leaned in, and quietly said, "Eat me." Cue wild appaluse of support from audience.

Horses!!! Yes, it was with the band, and creepy-ethereal like Plugged tour. Oh WOW. SO good.

ASF - Love it. Love it. Love it. Very on, very wistful sort of feel... you really felt the emotion in the 'didn't think we'd end up like this'.

Code Red - Is awesome. You knew this. WOWSA. Mini-freak at end.

Stage Rush! Whee!

Precious Things - IS AMAZING. It's fanfuckingtastic this tour.

BOC - Lesson one: It is now "Clow-hee-hows". Lesson two: there is a hand gesture now during the chorus that the regulars have adopted. 'Tis fun. Plus, I LOVE BOC.

Hey Jupiter - I knew the second encore was going to be short when this started. Dakota version of course. I will NEVER tire of Jupiter. People can bite me.

Seriously.... that show was so, so good. I can't imagine how Buffalo or Detroit will EVER beat that. Thank you Tori. Just... thank you.

Setlist:  Tori Amos Toronto 10/23/07

Part I - Pip

Cruel
Bliss
Fat Slut
Smokey Joe
Teenage Hustling
The Waitress

costume change = Pro Widow Remix interlude

Part II - Tori

Big Wheel
Space Dog
Spark
Cornflake Girl
Liquid Diamonds
Glory of the 80s

T & Bö

Take Me With You
Winter

band returns

Horses
A Sorta Fairytale
Code Red

First Encore

Precious Things
Bouncing Off Clouds

Second Encore

Hey Jupiter (Dakota Version)