Listen to audio

Run time: 02:33:16

Stream (help)

VBR M3U (Hi-Fi)
64Kbps M3U (Lo-Fi)

Play / Download (help)

(70 MB)64Kbps MP3 ZIP
(224 MB)VBR ZIP

Resources

The Small StarsThe Small Stars Live at The Back Porch Bar on 2008-06-14 (June 14, 2008)

Collection: : TheSmallStars
Band/Artist: The Small Stars
Date: June 14, 2008 (check for other copies)
Venue: The Back Porch Bar
Location: Port Aransas, TX

Source: Audience-Soundboard matrix; Audience recording: Core Sound High End Binaural microphones (DPA 4061) > Battery Box (Bass filter off) > iRiver iHP-120 (44.1 KHz, 16 bit wav files); Soundboard recording: Soundboard > RCA Out > M-Audio MicroTrack 2496 (44.1 KHz, 16 bit wav files)
Lineage: Edited with Sony Soundforge Audio Studio 9.0 and mixed with Sony Vegas Video Studio 6.0
Taped by: jas
Transferred by: jas
Keywords: Fastball; Zuniga; Port Aransas; vaudeville

Description

Set One:
01 Introducing Guy Fantasy
02 Everything's Keno In Reno
03 Two Girls Are Better Than One
04 True Hollywood Story
05 Boogie Stop Shuffle (Charles Mingus)
06 a little shopping music
07 Girl Trouble
08 we are selling cd's
09 That's What God Made Whiskey For
10 guest list
11 Nitty Gritty (Doug Sahm)
12 thank yous
13 Sweet Sweet Sweet
14 Vehicle (The Ides Of March)

Set Two:
01 Ooh Las Vegas (Gram Parsons) *
02 a small desert plant
03 Alcohol (The Kinks)
04 vices
05 Twenty-One
06 four bucks
07 Tequila (The Champs)
08 it's early yet
09 Otra Vez
10 Volver (Fernando Maldonado)
11 The Peanut Song (Luis Guerrero)
12 typical
13 Tijuana Dreams

Set Three:
01 We Love You
02 what do you do for a living
03 The No No Song (Hoyt Axton)
04 too hot
05 Let's Hit The Town
06 voice is pretty much gone
07 Bad Boy (The Jive Bombers)
08 second to last
09 Don't Keep 'Em Waiting
10 uno mas
11 Small Stars Theme

* Richard Steele - Lead Vocals

Individual Files

Write a review
Downloaded 1,314 timesReviews
Average Rating:

Reviewer: texasyesfan - - June 29, 2008
Subject: Fear and Loathing in Port Aransas
The Small Stars returned to the scene of their last crime, The Back Porch Bar in Port Aransas. It wasn't as hot and stifling as last August, but it was close. At least there was a breeze where we were sitting. The stage was another matter.

The boys were all there, of course, looking as dapper as ever, at least at the start. Did I mention it was hot and humid? By the end of the show Guy had lost his coat, his sunglasses and almost his shirt. Even the ever-cool Richard Steele had to take his coat off for the third set. Only the indefatigable Buddy Llamas managed to maintain not only his trademark coiffure, but his pristine white linen (or was it polyester?) suit.

I mentioned to Buddy Llamas before the show that they should start the show with "Keno In Reno" for old times' sake. "We should," he replied enigmatically. Much to my surprise, they did exactly that. Buddy Llamas opened the show by introducing "The host with the most from the West Coast, Mr. Excitement, Mr. Spinal Alignment, Guuuuuuuuuuuy Fantasy!" I hadn't heard that classic intro in god knows how long. It sent chills up my spine. In keeping with the old-school feel, "Keno In Reno" was followed, of course, by "Two Girls Are Better Than One." Crowd favorites "True Hollywood Story" and "Boogie Stop Shuffle" came next, and the patrons at The Back Porch Bar were loving it. The first set closed out in rocking fashion with "Sweet Sweet Sweet" and the seldom heard "Vehicle" by The Ides Of March.

After a much needed break, the band came back on to do a set of songs about alcohol, gambling and drugs. Typical Small Stars fare, that is. The highlight was a great rendition of The Kinks' "Alcohol" featuring Guy staggering around the stage and collapsing to the floor in a mock drunken stupor. Good times. Someone from the audience requested "Tequila" and offered to pay $4 for it. Guy accepted it, of course. Hey, $4 is $4.

By the third set, of course, all bets were off. Buddy Llamas started out by auctioning off the LAST Small Stars T-Shirt, ever. Guy took over as the T-shirt auction morphed into "We Love You." There was lots more banter from Guy Fantasy by this time, including impersonations of Elvis and Joel Osteen. He tried to end the show with "Don't Keep 'Em Waiting" but the crowd would have none of that, demanding one more song. The show ended, as it had started, with a return to The Small Stars roots, with "The Small Stars Theme," including, of course, all the hilarious band introductions. (By the way, I would totally vote for an Obama-Llamas ticket.)

As Guy said above, we all had a wonderful time. That should come as no surprise, as all Small Stars shows are lots of fun. But this one, of course, was special. To start with, we hadn't heard these guys in like 10 months. To be honest, I was a bit concerned about how they would sound after such a long time. I mean, in NBA Basketball, when a team has a four or five day layoff, they always come out cold and tentative. As it turned out, there was nothing to worry about. The Small Stars come out smoking right from the get-go. They were hot, and not just because of the sultry Gulf Coast summer weather. Admittedly, they were a bit rough around the edges, and did get a bit sloppier toward the end of the evening, but then we were all a bit sloppy by then.

It was a bittersweet end to the evening. It was wonderful to see the band again, and to once more get to hang out with Small Stars fans, old and new. On the other hand, there was a sense of finality to the show. We were all left wondering, will there be another one?

Notes

Guy Fantasy - Lead vocals, guitar
Buddy Llamas - Saxophone, guitar, vocals
Richard Steele - Guitar, vocals
Godfrey McCambridge - Bass, vocals
Brick Masterson - Drums
Red Rojas - Keyboards

This was the first Small Stars show since August 2007.