tonight's (or should I say last night's) show was the best (so far on this tour)!
and what is more (brace yourselves for jumping with joy, all of you who weren't here):
this show was being recorded, by a professional team with several video cameras (one at each lateral end of the stage, another camera sliding back and forth along the front of the stage, and yet another one looming in the air above the audience).
now I only wonder when and where this will be broadcast (or otherwise released). it was not a partial recording (of just a few songs) because the cameras continued operating throughout the show (including some sliding shoots of the audience during breaks between songs - so we shall expect to be seen, some of us who were here).
so what else was remarkable about this show? not the setlist, which was exactly the same as before.
but Polly presented a sartorial surprise.
I was so expecting her to walk onstage attired in the white dress that I didn't notice the fact that she walked second in line (after Mick, or was it John). first came a man in black (or dark) clothing, then another figure attired in black, thereafter the third and then I expected to see Polly... but instead came a fourth person wearing very dark clothes, and this made me think: what? where is Polly? and who is that fourth band member? - it was only a moment later (as Polly walked out of the darkness and came up to the microphone) that I became aware that she was wearing an outfit she hadn't worn previously on the tour (but actually wore at the first TV appearance, back in April - was it in April?)
anyway this became an unexpected feast for appreciative eyes, in addition to the audio component of the concert (which is obviously what matters the most).
the musical performance itself was even better than before, at least this is how I experienced it. other fans (who've been to all the shows so far) expressed the opinion (while waiting outside the doors) that so far every show has been better than the previous one. so if this pattern continues... we shall find reason for increasing delight as the year progresses.
another thing that made this show more endearing was the fact that two mistakes occurred during the encore. first at the start of Angelene, when Polly explained that she forgot to retune her guitar, therefore stopped playing to do this. then again at the beginning of Silence, when there seemed to be a lack of co-ordination between Polly and the band, wherefore they stopped the music in order to begin again.
audience enthusiasm was about as overwhelming as the night before, but again the cheering and clapping at the end failed to ellicit a second encore.
now and then some song requests were shouted, though not quite as many as the night before. and at one point a male voice hollered: "Polly Jean, I am married, but I can always divorce!" that's a token of true devotion, I would say. though I always was in favor of allowing polygamy - or should I say Polly-gamy?