Tonight I enjoyed a rare treat- Spinal Tap Unwigged & Unplugged at the Paramount Theatre in Oakland. I've been a fan of the mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap since I first saw it my freshman year in college- so much a fan that I can recite every memorable line and song lyric from the film.
So you can bet I was thrilled to see Christoper Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer (Nigel Tufnel, David St. Hubbins, and Derek Smalls, respectively) rock out my favorite tunes from Spinal Tap and A Mighty Wind, all unplugged and unique adaptations. The unplugged versions of their songs showcased just how talented these guys are as musicians, while their harmonizing vocals stood out even more in the absence of screaming electric guitars.
What made the evening even more special was that my friends- John and Lou's- dad, who grew up with Harry Shearer, managed to swing backstage passes. Going backstage truly was like a scene from the film- we were ushered into a holding area where a spacey woman with an English accent distractedly shook our hands and introduced herself:
"It's quite full back there yet, we'll take you back in a second... okay, we can take you now."
She summoned us forward into a narrow, crowded room, where Guest, McKean, and Shearer were milling around. The actor who played Viv Savage was also there- I overheard he lives in San Francisco.
We hovered awkwardly at the back of the room until the crowd cleared a little, and shuffled over to Harry Shearer. John and Lou's dad chatted with Shearer and we all introduced ourselves and grinned and shook hands. I tried to take a picture with my cell phone, but predictably the memory was full. We were suddenly interrupted by a tall man in a sequin-trimmed suit, who extended a hand out to Shearer, at which point he turned to all of us and said, "Thank you so much for coming." It was our cue that our visit had come to a close.
Notably missing from the VIP room backstage: hors d'oeuvres in the form of pimento-less olives and cold cuts with oversized bread, hard alcohol, cocaine, women in tight, shiny pants, wafting cigarette smoke.
On our way out, we actually got lost backstage trying to find the lobby. It was a very Hello Cleveland moment and a perfect ending to our evening.
My friend Matt, me, and the Gorenfelds
in front of the Paramount Theatre
in front of the Paramount Theatre
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