Chrissie is Only Happy When it Rains

Shirley Manson last night performed with Chrissie Hynde in the USA. Shirley is reported to have sung “Talk of the Town” which of course formed part of Garbage’s 1998 single Special. They then performed one other Pretenders song before launching into Only Happy When it Rains. This isn’t the first time the duo have sung the track live. They first appear onstage together performing the track at Wembley Arena (England, UK) in 1999. Reports are still sketchy and there will be a full update on Monday (Hopefully with download). In the mean time you can read what forum member GarbageOtaku had to say about the event.

“I just got back from Atlantic City. The show was, in my opinion, phenomenal. Basically, it was just one long kick-ass concert with a few breaks for equipment breakdown/setup. I’ve heard when they air the show, it includes interview bits, but none of that took place at tonights performance. I don’t recall all the details of the show, so I’ll just relate the parts that included our girl Shirl. The rest I’ll skim over.

Incubus opened with a couple of songs before Chrissie joined them on stage to perform “Drive” (Incubus’ big hit). Then there was a break to reset some of the equipment.

Then the Pretenders came out and Chrissie introduced Shirley and called her onto the stage. Shirley was visibly nervous. It seemed Chrissie expected her to say something, but Shirley just said something like, “Let’s just get on with it, so I can loosen up and relax.”

They went into “Talk of the Town”. It was amazing. Shirley must have been working on her vocals these past months, because this was her first song out of the box, and she was spot on. I mean they nailed that song. What a beautiful duet.

Then they did another Pretenders song with which I wasn’t familiar. Also excellent. I just wish I’d known the song beforehand so I could really appreciate it.

Then they paused between songs, and they congratulated themselves on sounding so good, explaining that they’d been up ’til 2 am the night before in Chrissie’s hotel room. I think they said they were up all night drinking tea. That’s hardcore rock-n-roll, right there ;)

Also, at some point in there, Shirley appeared a bit flustered and commented on the craziness of performing with her own idol. Chrissie egged her on a bit, saying “Shirley Manson, this is your life.”

Then Chrissie mentioned how excited she was to have the opportunity to play the next song with Shirley. Much to my delight, they launched into OHWIR. They traded off verses, and Shirley would sing the main “Pour your misery down” and Chrissie picked up the background “Pour your misery” vocals, the way it’s heard on the album. Absolutely cool as hell. Chrissie messed up a bit at the end, but they had a laugh over it. Not unlike your average Garbage show.

Next the Kings of Leon played with the Pretenders, and then Iggy Pop. Mixed in there, the Pretenders also played a ton of stuff by themselves. It was all an excellent performance. A lot to enjoy, even for not being familiar with most of what I was hearing.

For the finale, everyone came onstage and they performed “Middle of the Road”. That was an absolute blast! Chrissie at her mic, flanked on either side by Shirley and Iggy, and the three of them surrounded by what seemed like countless men with guitars. They traded off verses and shared the chorus. Shirley got to do the counting bit, getting up in Chrissie’s face while Chrissie wailed on guitar.

In short, it was well worth the price of admission. Definitely more than I’d expected. I can’t wait to see it again on TV, and I hope they don’t cut out the cool interactions between songs. It was a bit of a unique experience, watching Shirley perform with Chrissie. I was more excited for her than I was for myself. Go Shirl! ;)”

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