Back in the day, I was an extreme concert goer. I have seen probably 80 or so shows, but with lots of repeats. Grateful Dead times three, Indigo Girls at least eight times, and Dave Matthews Band at least 21, 897 times. Since our move to Utah, the subsequent birthing of two children has put a serious dent in my concert going.

Anyway, last night, I saw one of my perennial favs, Ben Folds, for at least the fifth time. He always plays a great show, and he is among the best at interacting with the audience. Not to mention that he can make the piano sing like no one else.

All while dropping the f-bomb. A lot, and with style.

This would be about the time that the Mormon lovebirds next to me would stop swaying long enough so that the very young husband could cover his very young wife’s ears so that the sounds of swearing would not cross the blood-brain barrier.

If you know Ben Fold’s music, you know that the ear covering happened pretty often.

Concerts have changed quite a bit in the past few years. Some I attribute to Utah (no more smoky halls). But some can only be the change of times. The passing of the torch, yadda yadda yadda.

Its only that that can explain the fact that there are no more raised lighters during a particularly poignant moment. Nope, look around and all you will see is a mass of lit cell phones swaying back and forth in the dark.

I have no idea of Lynard Skynard tours anymore or if they’re actually still living but what would they think of a stadium full of lit LCD screens waving at them during Freebird?