I saw Glen Phillips last night at a great little venue here in Athens, Hendershot's Coffee. Some of you may remember Glen from his work with a group named " Toad the Wet Sprocket". The rest of you are probably saying " Toad,.....what?!"
Hendershot's is an intimate venue with great atmosphere and the staff always does a fantastic job with the sound.
Jonathan Kingham opened for him, accompanied by Ryan Shea Smith on keyboards. They did swap between guitar and keyboards, and they were both excellent on either.
Jonathan has a great stage presence and quickly establishes a relationship with the audience. I have to think that the intimacy of the venue has a lot to do with that.
He has a good solo career but has been touring with Glen Philliips and Toad for quite a while. His solo work is definitely worth checking out.
Glen Phillips voice is still strong and clear and he immediately formed a bond with the audience. The songlist was a mix of Toad material and his solo work. It's clear that these musicians are used to working together and have a lot of fun doing so.
As an aside, Glen is a leftie who plays right handed. Just thought I'd mention that since there was another thread recently.
There were CD's available afterward and all three performers spent a lot of time signing autographs and talking with the folks who stuck around.
It was a great experience and I'd encourage folks to catch one of his shows if you can. The tour dates are here;
http://www.glenphillips.com/#Tour
Thanks to Glen, Jonathan and Ryan for a fantastic evening!