It was really hot but not as hot as it had been in Florence where I had spent the previous week. It seems the further inland you go the hotter it gets! At least in Lucca the narrow streets make for them to be mainly shaded so walking around this beautiful small town is an absolute pleasure. It is a small town too (at least inside it's wall) and one can easily explore it on foot and if tired stop off at one of the many quaint ice cream parlours or cafes. I walked around half expecting to see band members but no luck. I found a small record shop actually located in Piazza Napoleone which was full off MK stuff and laid out on the cash desk was old LP's and all the CD's in the MK catalogue. You'd never guess he was playing here tonight would you!
The show itself I thought may start late as people were still coming in near show time but it started on time. People didn't stop coming in until about the end of the 2nd song but they were all pretty nice and tried to keep low so as not to obscure our view (I was in front row) and the stage was high anyway.
When STP was not played I gave a wee cheer to myself. A bit fed up with it to be honest now and never thought I would hear myself say that because it is a great song! Very nice Coyote but no PW which was strange as during soundcheck in the afternoon a technician tested a few bits from it so I thought it was guaranteed. R&J was nice too and I was thinking Marks voice sounds good tonight considering it's been sounding worse of late. A good if not great Sultans followed with a small mistake I think in the middle solo but I'll need to hear it again to make sure. As has been said before Speedway was great - the highlight for me. Perhaps the best I've ever heard, well that's what I thought at the time but you know how you get carried away with the moment. TR was nothing special, quite short final solo as usual these days. BIA was very nice and SFA must have been the best ever because it actually retained my attention for its entirety! The band went off stage one more time and the fabulous Italian audience began their yell, coaxing the band back on for Piper, Mark playing a great version with the white towel on his lap.
A big thank-you from myself to all the lovely people of Tuscany, in particular Florence and Lucca who made my all too brief stay there fabulous and for making a great concert even better!
