Couldn't Stand the Weather Tour

September 10, 1984: Clowes Memorial Hall, Indianapolis, IN
with Rods and Cones

(click to view full-size image)


Set List
Wham!
Testify
Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)
The Sky Is Crying
Mary Had a Little Lamb
Couldn't Stand the Weather
Cold Shot
Honey Bee
Tin Pan Alley
Pride and Joy
Little Wing
Third Stone from the Sun

First Encore
Instrumental
Chitlins con Carne
Stang's Swang
Rude Mood

Second Encore
Lenny

Audio Footage


Show Photographs
(click to view full-size images)


© ROBERT ALFORD


© RICK MYERS

Show Review
Vaughn exceptional at Clowes
by Jill Warren
The Indianapolis Star
September 11, 1984


Stevie Ray Vaughn [sic] was nothing short of mesmerizing in his 90-minute Indianapolis debut performance at Clowes Hall Monday night.

Backed by his exceptional Double Trouble band - Chris Layton on drums, Tommie [sic] Shannon on bass - Vaughn [sic] seemed to take great pleasure in overwhelming his audience with his awesome abilities.

Few white performers are so perfectly, and naturally, attuned to the blues as Vaughn, and his predominantly young, white audience was literally bowled over by his brilliance. He even makes simple children's songs like Mary Had a Little Lamb burst into sultry blues. The crowd of 2,127 cheered him along and frequently jumped to offer appreciative ovations.

Wearing a Jimi Hendrix T-shirt, a green beret pulled down low over a purple scarf knotted about his head, a cigarette dangling from his lips, Vaughn [sic] looked unlike most rockers you see today. But then again, he's really in a class unto himself these days; watching him gets the feeling that something very special and rare is happening.

Opening with the instrumental Scuttle Buttin', Vaughn [sic] wasted no time getting into a brilliant of Hendrix's classic Voodoo Chile (Slight Return), which is featured on his new album, Couldn't Stand the Weather.

Though he apologized for his voice - 'I can hardly sing with this sore throat but I'm doing my best,' he said - his emotional vocals added depth and texture to his music. He was superb on Tin Pan Alley, where he later got so carried away with his strumming that he apparently burned his finger tips.

Vaughn [sic] played about an hour before leaving the stage but was brought back by a terrific ovation to play four powerful instrumentals, including the jazzy Stang's Swang. He tried to leave again, but quickly turned around to please the crowd with Lenny, a beautiful instrumental written for his wife.

Rods 'N Cones, a Bloomington-based trio, opened the show with a very strong 40-minute set. The band - P.K. Lavengood on guitar, Russ Levitt on bass and Dave Merris on drums - had the audience bursting with applause and encouraging shouts, and even won a well-deserved ovation after a fine delivery of Hendrix's Red House.

The band played mostly original material, much of which emphasized Lavengood's exceptional guitar skills. Dedicating them to 'the masters,' he led the band through powerful covers of Hendrix's Purple Haze and Chuck Berry's Johnny B. Goode. Keep an eye out for Rods 'N Cones' next area engagement.

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