December 30-31, 1998: How I Spent My New Year's Eve

Sacramento, CA and Reno, NV
Memorial Auditorium and Reno Hilton

Steve Augeri and me after the San Francisco show Dec 29.

Okay folks, I'm sure you're all just dying to know how my New Year's Eve went. Well, you're gonna have to wait a minute, because I have TWO DAYS worth of stuff to tell ya! LOL!

December 30 -- this was the Sacramento show. I left home at 3:00 which would have given me plenty of time to get to Sacramento to meet up with Debbie S. and others for dinner at 6:00. Well, I forgot to grab the directions, so had to turn around and go back to my apartment (thank goodness I was only a few blocks away when I realized this.) Then I had to go drop off my rent check and get gas. Next thing I know I'm running about 20 minutes later than I had planned. So naturally, this is when I get stuck in traffic and it takes me an hour and a half to get TO the Bay Bridge (about a 15 mile drive). By the time I'm across the bridge it's 5:45 -- when I was supposed to be in Sacramento! I finally arrived in Sac at 7:00 -- highly stressed from the traffic and trying to read my map in the dark. Got to the Hard Rock and met up with Debbie and Katherine and the others. Had a glass of wine to settle my nerves and gobbled some Buffalo wings for dinner (I've been eating miserably lately!)

We head over to the show where we've got about 12th row seats over on the far aisle (Neal's side, again.) When we walk in we see signs that say the show is being filmed! Okay, so my mission in life now is to get a copy of that film. If the show wasn't sold out, it was pretty darn close. Loud raucous crowd. Another amazing show.

I spent the night at Debbie's and the next day we trek on up to Reno. After Debbie drops me off at my hotel, I catch a quick nap while listening to one of the local radio stations doing a "Best Albums Ever" countdown. Escape came up around number 20, naturally, this was just as I was leaving my room because Debbie's husband was picking me up.

When I got to the Hilton, I immediately ran into Kevin, which was quite fortunate since we'd forgotten to make plans to meet up and I had his ticket! (D'oh!) We grabbed some dinner (the first actual meal I'd had in days) and started to the pavilion around 9:15 or so.

We met up with Debbie and her kids and went inside about 9:45. Third row, seat 3. Oh yeah. Saved the best for last. Awesome seats. We wound up sitting right behind the couple from San Jose that I had met in Grand Rapids! Perfect -- they'd be standing so I could too! Plus I could tell them to move right or left if I was trying to take a picture!

The show started around 10:15 and was just awesome. At one point I look over at Debbie, who is sitting a row in front of me and a few seats over, and her daughter has a VIP badge on! Cool for her!

Towards the end of the show, the aisle started getting crowded with people coming up to the stage (security had been clearing the aisles pretty well up to that point) which made my view a bit more obscured. So naturally I went into the aisle and finally wound up standing on a chair for the last 20 minutes of the show. (I never do stuff like that!) They finished the main set about 11:55 and instead of going off-stage as they normally do, they stayed on stage and asked what time it was. After they determined that there were 5 more minutes until midnight, they launched into "Can't Tame the Lion," which I hadn't heard since Detroit/Grand Rapids! When that ended, the various wives/girlfriends/kids came on stage with glasses of champagne. We did the countdown thang, balloons dropped, confetti spilled. They played "Auld Lang Syne" and everyone sang along. They finished up with "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Faithfully" -- bringing some of the road crew up on stage at the end for a round of applause for them too.

After the show Debbie managed to sweet talk the security guy
to let all of us backstage with her and her daughter (who had the VIP pass).
I got my picture with Jonathan finally.

We hung around the casino for a while later and kept seeing various folks around -- Neal's step-dad Les came by a few times. Saw Neal talking with his mom and Les a little later and as we were leaving, saw Jonathan carrying his daughter over his shoulder to the elevator to (presumably) put her to bed. (There is a part of me that finds it very scary that I actually know what the family members of my favorite band look like!)

It's been an incredible few days. Well worth this flu I've gotten! LOL! (Heck, I'm actually feeling a WHOLE lot better right now!)

Set Lists:

SACRAMENTO:

Separate Ways
Girl Can't Help It
Lights
Of a Lifetime/Jon solo
Who's Crying Now
I'll Be Alright Without You
Open Arms
Love Theme from Spartacus
Fillmore Boogie
Just the Same Way
Anytime
Escape
Wheel in the Sky
Be Good to Yourself
Any Way You Want It
Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'

Encore:

Don't Stop Believin'
Faithfully
Ask the Lonely

RENO:

Separate Ways
Only the Young
Stone In Love
Remember Me
Girl Can't Help It
Lights
Of a Lifetime/Jon solo
Who's Crying Now
I'll Be Alright Without You
Open Arms
Love Theme from Spartacus
Filmore Boogie
Just the Same Way
Anytime
Escape
Wheel in the Sky
Be Good to Yourself
Any Way You Want It
Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'
Can't Tame the Lion
Auld Lang Syne

Don't Stop Believin'
Faithfully