If Adam’s recent tweet is any indication, it looks like fans are in for a “spooktacular” time tonight. So put on your best Glampire costume and join the Glamily at the 102.9 NOW FM Texas Tango at the Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie. Ghoul and goblin capacity is 6,300. Other devilish performers include Alanis Morissette, Gavin DeGraw, Phillip Phillips and Forever the Sickest Kids.
The first act is scheduled to take the stage at 6:00 PM CDT. Adam is to be on at 8:25 PM CDT with a 40 minute set but according to their website…”Set times subject to change without prior notice”. They better not shorten his set or they will have to deal with the wrath of some very upset and blood-thirsty Glampires!
See the World Clock link below for the bewitching hour in your area.
World Clock: Adam Lambert Texas Tango
Twitter list: https://twitter.com/GeralynK/texastangotwatters
Recorded Dinner: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/26533546
Set List: Kickin’ In, Shady, Trespassing, WWFM, IIHY, NCOE
Photos: All Texas Fang-Tango Images by Dan’niel McKnight
Meet & Greet with Adam Lambert at Texas Tango
Adam Lambert at Texas Tango
Interview:
Videos:
“Kickin’ In” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
“Shady” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
“Shady” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – LindsayInTheSky1
“Trespassing” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
“Trespassing” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – LindsayInTheSky1
“Trespassing – Partial” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – TXsunshine001
“WWFM” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
“WWFM” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – TXsunshine001
“IIHY” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
“IIHY/NCOE” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – LindsayInTheSky1
“NCOE” Grand Prairie, TX 10/29/12 – Glambert3256
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Feelya, turquoisewaters – we just want everyone to see him as we do. More and more do – particularly outside the USA. But even Adam recognizes he’s not for everybody – I found it hard to take at first, but as long as he’s happy and making money, have relaxed quite a bit.
I loved the costume last night. He wore it well!
My two cents worth on the costume: I loved it but wonder if it wouldn’t have been better for him to do it at an Adam concert as opposed to a radio or multi-bill concert. We are very sensitive about the radio concerts as opportunities to draw in new fans and anything that covers up his lovliness is less than the best.
If he has to wear a costume (and let’s face it, he simply can’t not wear one at this time of year) then imho he should try something universally appealing to a broad audience with Johnny Depp-like overtones of undeniable gorgeousness.
He would look awesome in a “Charlie & the Chocolate Factory” costume.
This person has 4 not bad quality, up close vids.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtmW0o5eqEM&feature=autoplay&list=UUAp5SE3m1GYOdwXOmgzQtfA&playnext=2
All the way through every song he’s signalling to the sound guys……
You ain’t kidding, HKfan….about the signaling.
In regards to Adam being late or stuck in traffic. I live in Manhattan Beach Calif. If it were my responsibility to get someone to downtown Los Angeles, I would know what time to leave to get there on time. I would obviously know the route and traffic conditions at that time of day and plan accordingly to arrive early. Whose responsibility was that? If he had many Meet and Greets you get there even earlier. Transportation and Meet and Greets should never impact a concert people have paid money to see, and are anxiously waiting to se Adam perform for 40 minutes. I am still disappointed when I think of how some of these things could have been avoided. Flew to Texas for 24 minutes of Adam. This is my second post about this concert. I will now let it go.
Love Adam but not Texas Tango.
glitterpatti…I love your honesty!
The other day hubby and I were returning from babysitting twin grandkids in South Miami (a 45-min drive from our home) on I-75. We came upon a terrible accident 10 mins after it happened, but were stuck in traffic for 2 hrs and 20 minutes as we were between exits, and the median strip has a ditch in it, so impossible to make u-turns.
On twitter they said there was a terrible accident in Texas that day, and many people were late. Kind of hard to anticipate a possible hours-long delay on an expressway. So, I give Adam the benefit of the doubt here. He has never demonstrated any irresponsibility where his concerts are concerned that I know of.
Regarding his costume, he was giving clear indications on Twitter that he would probably be wearing one. And given his personality, it would be one of his own making (as he gleefully expressed in the radio station interview) and not a creation by the wardrobe designers at PLL. He strutted out on that stage exuberantly showing it off – it’s something he loves and it differentiates him from most other artists. I love that about him, and was not in the least surprised. His voice was magnificent, going by the videos.
I was pondering going to this concert, but decided that a 40-minute set wasn’t enough to fly from Florida. Instead, planning to go to San Francisco, where up to now there will be only two co-headliners, Ryan Tedder’s band, and Adam. But I’m monitoring even that one, so could change my mind.
Just sayin’…….
glitterpatti – I too appreciate your honesty and totally understand your frustration, especially since you flew from California to the show, but perhaps it will help to know that apparently there was a horrible (I think fatal) accident that impacted the roads approaching the venue, so Adam and crew, as well as many fans, were stuck in a gridlock that could not have been anticipated in advance.
The accident in question was at the major intersection leading to the venue. Many firetrucks, ambulances and police were there. We luckily approached from a direction where we were able to make a right turn and continue to the venue without delay, however anyone coming from the opposite direction would have probably had a very long delay. It was also during rush hour so that adds greatly to the traffic.
glitterpatti your disappointment is understandable especially after making such a long trip and wanting to share Adam with your friend. I am interested in your friend’s opinion on the concert, and would they be willing to go see him again at some point?
Thank you for the information about why Adam was late. As for my friend attending other concerts, I think I will be able to convince her. We chose this one because of health issues. We thought sooner the better. If I was positive there was more time , I would have waited for a full Adam concert in California.
Hahaha! http://cdn.c.photoshelter.com/img-get/I0000NXsAcdOAKcM/s/860/860/DSC00399.jpg
Gallery of photos from Texas Tango
http://capturedimages.photoshelter.com/gallery/Texas-Fang-Tango-Photog-Favs/G0000zWDhnEx7ZBs/
Hey guys! Thanks for linking my pics here and all the kind words. I am working on a recap of my meeting Tommy, Ashley and Adam. What a night for me. Adam didn’t arrive at the show until about three minutes after my friend did. BOTH sides of the freeway were completely blocked. The meet and greets ( which I had tried to win, but didn’t) seemed to go by very fast. I met so many new glamberts and had a blast, sound issues and all. Just two quotes from my little recount…Heidi, my drummer friend, and I were talking to TJR through the fence after the show. Heidi said, “You’re a very good guitarist.” He said, “NOT TONIGHT!” And later, when Adam was signing my arm and trying to correct the “D” had drawn I said, “I love how you are such a perfectionist. And like tonight. Turn up the guitar! Turn down the drums, turn down…” And he said, “GIRL, I was just trying to hear!”
Oh, lordy. I got “Girled” buy Adam Lambert. Ha ha ha…
Some of this exchange was caught on video by one of the youngest glamberts I’ve met, Jacob. He and his Mom hung out by the fences with us, even after we had left. Heidi and I were exhausted and left. But I lost my keys and came back, and the fans were helping me look…and out walked Adam. He said, “Oh, I’m so sorry! If I had known you guys were waiting out here so long I would’ve come out sooner.”
I was talking to him through the fence. I said, “Don’t you feel like a monkey in a cage?”
And in a few minutes, he said, “This is weird! Open the gate.” To the policeman.
So he came out.
More later. This is just a teaser. Actually, I’m still in a kind of shock and awe state, even now. Other stuff (like life) going on, but hopefully I’ll get my little tale finished tomorrow, and also edit the short video of Adam taking the Apollo bracelet and also of him signing my arm.
Thanks, guys, for being so kind.
So, technical difficulties aside, costumes, short set…all the extracurricular activites made this one of my favorite shows ever.
Oooh, Paulanation, you got “girled” !!!!! Love it! Can’t wait for more!!
Paula, I’m soooo glad you met all of them. Soon I’ll come visit you to see the pictures in person!
Looking forward to the rest of your recap.
Oh Paulanation, I was so excited to see the pix of you and Adam and to read part one of your recap. And you had a real conversation with both him and Tommy, musician to musician. Can’t wait to read the rest. I have fond memories of our weekend in “beautiful” Stevenage with cher, riskylady and meips. lol
Sorry about your experience glitterpatti but there must have been a very good reason for such bad traffic. No worries. Adam will be around for a while. 24 minutes is still better than none for most of us here.
And way to go Paulagirl! So happy for you!!
Thanks so much! Sweetie pie. I got very lucky.
mieps—-you better come see me, girl! I miss our talks, and I will even eat a donut with you!
rs—I miss you, too! THANKS for responding with such love. I enjoyed our psychology talks so much. I hope to see you guys sometime soon!
CHER-you rock. Your happiness for me is always magnified for our fellow glamberts. ONe of the best things about our bond. Oh, and I’m glad you’re sending DVD’s to our friend in Finland. Anytime you want, you can send ’em my way, too. Hope all is well!
milwlovesadam—I did get “Girled!” Actually twice. There is more coming. After England, I got sick like most of the family. Now, I’ve got a sore throat-so the recap is handwritten. I’ve just got to type it and I want a clear head. And I want to clean up the vid so you can see and hear it better. Talk about luck! To have somebody filming Adam signing my arm. Geez. I’m still in heaven and messed up, but in a good way. I am so honored to be included in this group of Adam lovers. A great part of my life for which I am always grateful.
cwmThank you for including all those links and speaking so highly of me. I’m so glad we got to meet! I remember each and every one of your precious faces. Unless of course, I’m thinking of someone else! ha ha…I don’t want to use real names because I think that’s not part of the rules here. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts and including me. Love to all.
I wish I was going to Napa. There is just never enough, is there????
Okay, I’ve got the recap typed up. The vids aren’t done yet. Can I post a 13 page Word doc here? I’ll try. I Got Girled By Adam Lambert
(in which I meet Tommy in a cage, run into a slightly inebriated Ashley, and get ‘tagged’ by Adam)
Everybody is different on different days. High or low. Quiet or loud. These are my impressions of these people and my reactions on 10/29/2012.
First off, it’s really hard to write about a surreal experience. Because when I meet somebody like Tommy or Adam that I admire so much, almost (?) to the point of obsession, those endorphins kick in and it’s like entering another dimension.
Perhaps a higher state of consciousness.
Or maybe it’s just called “Star Struck.”
Whatever it is, I have vivid memories of my sensations and visuals. Normally, I’m a verbal person. I am a writer, after all. But it’s like I’m so into the moment my communication skills falter or fall far away into the background. What I remember most are images and physical sensations.
They are seared into my memory and I hope they stay there. The deepest parts, anyway. Memories always fade away.
Here’s a random cycle of such impressions. Tommy’s stage make-up was flawless, even just seeing him through the fence. He’d wiped off his black lipstick and taken out his fangs. You could see the natural color of his lips and they looked very pink. His eyes are amazingly soft when he looks at you. Now, I’m sure he can be an asshole like the rest of us, but there were moments it was like looking into the eyes of a somewhat slightly timid doe. You can’t help but feel like he’s fragile, and the five of us(yes-5! at first, plus 2 Gavin DeGraw fans, who sadly never got to see Gavin) treated him that way. I remember mostly just the way he’d sort of laugh and everybody kept trying to find things for him to sign, just to keep him there. These are just the impressions-as Bowie sings in “Ashes to Ashes” sordid details following.
More impressions of Tommy’s demeanor. He took the time to look at each of us a lot, making good eye contact and really listening to whatever silly things we could say and touching our fingers through his “cage.” I swear, it was so odd, it really felt to me like I was looking at some beautiful alien exhibit behind a protective barrier. He spoke to each of us in quiet, short sentences and smiled a lot, not showing his teeth. Seems to me like he fiddled with his famous hair once or twice, pushing it out of his face and glancing down at the pavement, and then leaning on the fence with his fingers laced through it when he was talking to someone and really looking at them. There was a quiet intensity I didn’t expect.
OKAY, now to the logistics to the best of my memory. And remember, memories are not always correct, like you’ll see later with my video of Adam.
The backstage area was fenced off with a police guard in a gate box, as usual. You weren’t getting in there, sister. There was a great looking burgundy and black tour bus, which I knew wasn’t theirs because they had flown in. Earlier I had said, “They’ll most likely be in white vans.” Bands usually are. And, true to form, they were. Four of them, for band and crew.
There were two doors at the back of Verizon Theatre, with a concrete porch, which were not even the “performers” entrance. Cement steps going down both sides of it.
Roadies kept coming out. We were pleading, “Please ask Tommy to come out! Please! There’s only five of us!” This happened a couple of times.
And then Tommy appears on the porch, still in his long black stage coat and waves. Checking out the size of the crowd, maybe? We were all saying his name and waving and otherwise begging for his attention. He waved again and went back in. So much excitement surrounding this little exhibition. I think he’d been off the stage maybe 30 minutes, if that.
And people kept saying, he’ll come back, he’ll come back.
And in about five minutes he did. Without his stage coat, wearing a zip up hoodie and carrying a brown bottle. Looked like a beer to me. Later, Heidi says it was a wine bottle. See? Impressions vary.
I remember him walking toward us and saying hi just like we were all buds. I was struck by how narrow his hips looked in those jeans, like…man. He really is kind of tiny.
Like I haven’t watched hours of YouTube or seen him perform at least eight times onstage.
Anyway, all of us fans were protective and conscious of each other, making sure we all had our polite and orderly turn. I remember Michelle (a girl I had met on Tommy’s facebook page. She has long dark hair with the lower half a bright pink-she’s maybe in her late twenties-her Mom was with her, staying out of the way. Probably just there in case she fainted). She asked him, “Do you remember me asking you about going to Haunted Houses on facebook? When you come to Dallas?” And he answered with a gracious sort of, “Um. I think so.” She was wanting him to go with her. I remember another very nice lady (I wish I knew her name! I found out from the video that she’s the one who took that great pic with me and Adam) telling him how she’d been trying to meet him for eleven shows, and he was saying, “Aw, that’s so sweet.” And she’s the one who got all the touching started, by saying ,”Can I touch your hand?”
His hands are so soft and warm.
Then, it was kind of like the gentlest football lineup you’ve ever seen! You know, when the players run down the line, hitting each other on the hands? Ha…a few more people had showed up by then. Maybe ten of us. My friend Heidi (who is a great drummer and admirer of musicians) said two things I remember. The first of which, was, “Can I touch your guitar hand?” He made a face and everybody laughed because it was just a strange way of saying it. He reached through with his left hand, and mostly she got his thumb and the top of his hand. Guitarists are particular about their left hands.
Now, we asked for him to sign things. True to my form, I was just watching him interact. He seemed pleased, signing stuff like tickets through the fence with Sharpies the peeps provided. (I usually carry them-but oh no, not tonight.) I said , “You must feel like a some kind of monkey in a cage.”
And he sort of grinned and nodded and made some sort of reference to Friday the Thirteenth? I’m pretty sure he said something about “Pinhead” from the Hellraiser movies. I might have said that, hell, I don’t know. I guess it was in reference to being locked up.
Heidi had nothing to sign, and didn’t want him to just sign her ticket. So I gave her my Trespassing cover, somewhat chagrined.
In one of my lower pockets of my leather jacket, I had this organdy bag filled with a quartz crystal pendant and a tree of life made with precious stones which I was going to suggest he might give to Ashley, since she likes jewelry. For him, I had this 14k gold little purple telecaster guitar pin I’ve had since the eighties. A bit Prince…but still. I forgot all about that.
In one of my top pockets, I was looking for my ticket and found this much folded up copy of one of the facebook comments of mine that he’s answered. He’s commented or answered me eight times, and I don’t even know why it was in my pocket. Not even one of my favorites. I think I’d been planning to show Heidi the last few times I’d seen her since we don’t live in the same city. But, I asked him, “Will you sign one of your facebook posts for me?” He said, “Which one is it?” I had to look. “Oh, it’s the one about the bass envelope filter.” (I sometimes post on his page-mostly geeky guitar questions.) He said, “Oh. Sure.” Like he remembered. It’d be cool if he did. Doubt it, though. And then he scrawled on it through the gap in the fence, you know, where the two poles meet. That’s when he said, “Stand close to the fence.” And that’s when Heidi took the pic of us posing.
Now, if you stand on one side of a fence and somebody else stands on the other, it looks like you have a gigantic head and are some kind of freak. But, the best thing is, the way he was touching my hand through the fence and the look in his eyes. I have cropped out my foolish head for the aforementioned reasons. Note exhibit A.
We probably all wished he’d come out, but the feeling was so tentative, I certainly didn’t think to ask him if he would. He probably wouldn’t have anyway. Maybe it just didn’t occur to him, either.
One of the Glamberts wanted him to sign a shirt. He tried through the fence, and said, “This isn’t going to work. Hey, come down here under the gate.”
We all followed like a pack of polite puppies.
He squatted and signed her shirt on the pavement.
I suddenly remembered I’d bought a TP poster in the lobby! See? I was barely in my body. I’m sure the fact that I’d only had four hours of sleep the night before and hadn’t eaten anything except an Almond Snickers in 12 hours had nothing to do with it. Or my shenanigans since 3 that afternoon trying to meet Tommy had nothing to do with it, either. That’s another story, filled with strange adventure. But not for here.
Anyway, I asked him to sign my poster and of course we had to borrow a pen. The lovely Glambert let him borrow it. I said, “It’s not the right color. So you can sign on his face.”
He looked up at me through that shock of greenish blonde hair and said, all fake indignant, “I’m not going to sign on his face.” And he studied the poster, and then got a wicked little giggle. He said, “I’ll give him a goatee.” I said, “Perfect!”
Exhibit B.
Now we’re all huddled by the gate and he got up and still touched us through the fence. It was so weird! I know I touched his hand at least three times, sort of memorizing it. Another Glambert said, “Will you sign my hand?” See how desperate we were for him to stay?
He said , “Sure!”
And then he signed about four hands, including mine. I think he found this amusing. And no, I didn’t get this tattooed. Maybe if it had been anywhere but the top of my hand…that would have hurt and looked maybe too strange, even for me.
That’s when Heidi said, “You’re a very good guitarist.”
He sort of rolled his eyes and said, “Not tonight!”
You all know the story about the sound and the short set. I said, “Yeah, but there was no sound check!”
For a musician (imagine Adam not pleased) that is stressful enough.
Tommy said, “Yeah, I couldn’t hear anything up there.”
I said, “I would love to play guitar with you some time. Lay down some blues and funk.”
And he looked a bit confused again, to me, like maybe he hadn’t heard me correctly. He said, “That’s what I do.”
And I said, “I know, you do it very well.”
Somebody asked him where they were going next, and he said, “South Africa.”
And I said, “Don’t forget to take your passport to Bali this time.”
And he said, “I know! That was awful!”
“I bet that was scary.” And he gave me that look of “God yes.” All wide eyes. There were so many questions I could have asked him then, about that experience, like ‘What did you do? Did you end up deported? Go to jail?’
I’m afraid I was slayed by those brown eyes into silence.
And then a little more show of teeth on his part, and then more people came up, and more, and he felt of my fingers through the fence again and said, “I’ve got to go.” and there were “thank yous”all around, from him, too. He kept waving and smiling at us and high tailed it back inside.
Later, we found out he was signing some out in the lobby. Sure, a better pic probably would’ve come out in the lobby because of the lighting and no damn fence, but probably more commotion, too. I like to tell myself that.
But I was only mildly pissed off, because he’d come out just for us, hadn’t he? He must have stayed out there at least ten minutes.
And probably by the time he hit the lobby he’d have had more time to drink, so maybe he would’ve have been more relaxed. He didn’t even have his red cup out back, damn it! But I think we got to see a tiny bit more of the real him, the him he shows to people who aren’t his friends.
And all that hand touching was just…great, but so odd to me. I can’t explain it. Like that picture shows. Here’s what it symbolizes to me:
“A desire to reach out to the fans, share the specific love that exits in that situation and a need for a barrier between the artist and the world.”
I think I understand that, because I’m that way still, and was even worse when I was in a touring band. Maybe I’m just projecting? I don’t know. I can be “on” in public and talk and put on a good face. But it’s so tiring. In my old band, I’ve signed autographs and posed for pictures and it is one bizarre feeling, I can tell you. We were never on THIS kind of level, but even as big fishes in little ponds we had our share of stalkers and people who think they know you, when they really don’t.
A lot more was said between Tommy and all of us. I just don’t remember it and that’s a shame. I’m glad I recorded some of my recollections the next day! I wish I’d done it that night. Because playing it back I heard stuff I’d already forgotten. Who knows what else I’d forgotten? Probably a lot, because playing it back, I was like, oh, yeah! I remember that.
Oh, well.
But I remember his essence. So, me and my new friends, Amy and her eleven year old son, Jacob, and the other sweetheart, hung out. I fell back on the grass, just happy to have FINALLY met Tommy. Peeps who know me are sick of hearing about my near misses (such as at Winstar, where he was presumably coming back to look for me. Another story. For later.)
I was so relieved and just looked up at the stars and the full moon and felt peaceful and happy.
The Tommy fans, except for the one (damn-I wish I knew her name-she was great. I’ll call her PicLady) left. PicLady was telling us about how she’d been trying eleven times, trying to meet Adam.
I really did not think he’d come out this way, and if he did, that it would be hours later. And probably he’d use that more secretive door, the performers entrance, which was on the other side of the vans.
But Heidi (who has a chronic illness and was exhausted) and I stayed with them because they practically begged us to stay. Amy was really super nice, all pink haired and I really hit it off with Jacob. In fact, now I remember that they had asked before all this happened if they could follow us! I said sure! Who knows if they’ll come out, but it would probably be back here if they do.
On a side note, Jacob is one of those bright kids that’s slightly different. Oozing intelligence. We talked about lots of stuff and joked around about nearly everything. We hit it off.
It was cold and he was getting tired and laid down on the concrete. I said, “Hey. That’s a great idea.”
Exhibit C.
This is where I presumably lost my keys.
Anyway, the temp kept dropping, the fatigue settled in. Heidi and I reluctantly decided to leave.
And just as we rounded the corner, well, there was Tommy, with maybe one of the radio station ladies. I’d seen two of them dressed all sleekly in black, with blond hair. I didn’t see a station tag. My first thought was that it was his girlfriend of the night. But of course, I wasn’t looking at her long. And the stage manager guy with the hat promptly said in his business voice, “We’ve got to go. We’re in a hurry.”
I lamely said, “Off to party?” (STUPID.)
Tommy said, “Well, we’re not sure where we’re going yet.”
I think I said (according to my recording of the event) “Well, thank you for your time. Be safe and have a good time!”
And before I could get any lamer and make them think I actually wanted to go with them (which I sure as hell didn’t after the day I’d had and I don’t go where I’m not invited anyway. If he’d said, “Come on!” well I don’t have to tell you what I would’ve done.) I said, “I’m so sorry to bother you, but once is not enough. The fence was in the way. Can we just get a couple of pictures?”
He nodded and posed and I know he’s used to it but I felt rude and embarrassed for interrupting them. Especially toward the woman, I don’t know why. I have no idea who she was.
I handed the camera toward her, and she seemed rather overwhelmed and Hat Guy just took it, all in a huff, it seemed to me. The flash wasn’t even turned on the damn camera. My fault I’m sure. Pics came out crappy. This is the best I could salvage. I actually did get a hug from Tommy, his arm around my waist and mine over his shoulder but the guy snapped the picture just as we were leaning together, so it looks like we’re barely touching. And the lighting! Crap! I look like Bugs Bunny or something, the way the street lamp hit my teeth and completely shadowed our faces in a weird way.
Exhibit D.
So we said our byes again, and off they headed through the parking lot at a good clip. We didn’t even watch them go. He had given us enough…he was all “fanned out” you could tell. Not mean in any way at all, just ready to go.
Whew.
Since Heidi had come separately, we headed for my car so I could drive her across the parking lot. We could see Tommy and his gang walking so fast! I bet he didn’t want to be recognized or stopped again.
But then…
Here comes Ashley out that side door, so we head back up that way because she looked distressed. She was barely dressed, in those tights and high heels and her ripped up shirt. “Have you seen my friends? They left me! Did you see which direction they were going?”
Aww. We rushed up to assist a band member in distress! I said, “They went that way.
“Did you see where they were going?”
“No, but they were in a hurry. So…”
I obviously assumed she meant the group we’d just seen and I’d wager that I’m correct. She looked sad and then I realized she was a bit tipsy. I could smell something in her Redbull, but since I don’t drink, I couldn’t tell you what it was. Now, some women pull off slightly tipsy very well. She did. She was adorable and very huggy and wanted to pose with us.
I guess she forgot about chasing Tommy for a moment!
I asked her, “I hope you guys get paid when you’re not playing.”
She said, “Well, it’s not so much that when we’re not playing…”
I think she meant they get some kind of salary. Again, curiosity overrides tact.
She then came up and stood between us, saying, “I could so see us being in a band together.” I then told her I was a guitarist and Heidi was a drummer and we had been in a band together. Ashley said, “Oh, wow, maybe we were in a band together in a past life?” She had one arm around each of us. “Or maybe we will be in a future one?”
I said, “Can we get a picture?”
“Oh, sure!”
So Heidi took the camera and I posed with Ashley. Four pics of me and her. And I was able to recognize…”Hey. The flash isn’t on!” Shit.
I got one good one with the light, but I look crazy tired. Which I was.
Then, she posed with Heidi and hid her Redbull behind her back. “Wait. I’m not advertising Redbull.” Laughs.
And I said as they posed, “All sultry now.” And it came out great. I told Ashley, “Hey, you look like that Girl with The Dragon Tattoo.” She said she’d never read it or seen the movie. I said, “Well, you look hot. Do you want me to tweet it to you?”
She said, “Yeah, of course.” Liar. I know she didn’t care, but still. A pretty little liar.
And she wanted to see how each one came out. With each of us. Practically flirting. Okay, I was flirting. But she was having fun and receptive to it. Blame it on the alcohol!
All the while her friends had to be getting further and further away.
See, I’d met her at Winstar and I’d never expected to be nervous around her but I was. Now, though, because of that I was not star struck in this case, as I had been at Winstar. FLASHBACK In the casino, right after sound check, I’d stopped her and we’d chatted. She’d picked up my necklaces and I told her my mom gave the bronze feather to me and she showed me her purple quartz necklace that her mother had given to her. I offered her one of my bracelets, a big gaudy rhinestone thing, and I could read her face. I said, “Too much bling.” And she made a cute face, saying, “Yeah. I like bling. But…” I remember laughing and saying, “Yeah, but this is too much bling for you.”
And I couldn’t even get my camera to work that night. But I got her autograph then.
So this time…I wasn’t nervous at all.
I, at some point, showed her the same feather necklace of mine that she’d admired at Winstar, and she said, “Oh. yeah!” Like she really remembered. Of course I forgot about the trinkets in my pocket.
And I said, “Adam finally said your name in Arizona.” I tried to say it and I got pretty darn close to correct.
She got all animated and said, “Yeah, but he STILL said it wrong.” She pronounced it.
I said, “Yeah, yeah with a soft G.” I said it right. “You tweeted me the phonetic pronunciation.”
And she explained it was Armenian by marriage, but she was single now. And I told her the rest, that her name had been Beauchamp and she was French and Puerto Rican. She seemed pleased ( and not scared!) that I remembered!
And then asked us to help look for her friends again. So we walked with her out into the parking lot, knowing it was pointless but doing it anyway, and pointing again in the general direction. Chatting about I don’t know what. She said, “Well. They could be anywhere by now. I guess I better go back in.”
Since I was wearing my leather, I felt tough. I said, “Do you want an escort?” Actually, I didn’t want her to fall down in those sixteen inch (exaggerating!) heels, but she said she could make it. We watched her walking to make sure she was okay. She had her arms crossed because she was cold and we decided she could make it back by herself. Walking steady!
Probably steadier than we were, by then.
We were so tired! And so we headed for my car, which was nearby.
THEN. Bane of all banes, I could not find my keys. I’m always losing them. I started flipping out. Dumped my purse on the hood, emptied all my many zippered pockets.
Heidi was more than exhausted and decided to wait there (which she would blame me for later! It was her idea!). I told her to watch my stuff. She told me to take my camera and my dictation recorder because “that’s important.” I have notes for the book I’m writing on there. So I jammed those in my pocket, went searching where we’d talked to Tommy and Ashley. Nowhere.
Those damn computerized keys. I didn’t know what I was going to do.
I decided to go back to the grass where I’d been laying down.
I got there and said, “Oh, you guys are still here!” And I explained and all those sweethearts helped me look at the ground where Jacob and I had been lying down, and then out popped Adam with his loud voice, out from where Tommy had appeared and surprised us. He said, “Oh, I’m so sorry! If I’d known you guys were out here I would’ve come out a long time ago.”
Well. Keys were forgotten.
He came up to the fence, in his top hat and huge round glasses. Just exuding kindness and happiness and talking to us through the fence.
Where did I get my courage? I’d talked to him for like two seconds in March at one of those meet and greets with Kevin. Maybe if Tommy had been there I could have spoken more coherently to him. Having met Ashley at Winstar, I didn’t have trouble talking to her, either. And Adam here…I felt rushed, but I COULD FORM WORDS.
I went up to him in that gap between the sections of the fence and just started talking about being at Hammersmith.
Blurry exhibit…
And took my chance, because I knew I wouldn’t have another one. “I did get to see two shows at the Apollo. Two of the greatest nights of my life.”
He smiled that close lipped smile. “They were great, weren’t they?” I thought he meant Brian and Roger. I was going to include him in that and say, well, you were great, too! But I felt the Apollo bracelets in one of my other pockets.
I took them out and he saw them and said, “Oh, what is this? I didn’t see these.”
I showed him through the fence. “We had these specially made. (Marilyn! Yay!) I was going to see if you would like one.”
And he said, “Oh, I would love one. I was going to ask if I could have one.”
This was not working through the fence. Anyway, somebody else asked him something. I said, my line again about, “Don’t you feel like a monkey in a cage?”
And he made that serious face. “Yeah, this is weird back here!” He marched to the policeman. “Could you please open the gate?”
And out he came, in a great mood, huggy and chatty, signing things. But when he headed back to me, I swear I almost fell over. That’s when I held out the bracelets, which I think is why he was heading toward me.
See video exhibit E.
He was wearing the bracelet wrong side out on his right wrist.
(I didn’t even know there were videos until days later! Amy had run up to my car after it was all over, asking for my email. I had pens…was so wrung out couldn’t even find one. I even have business cards and forgot all about them! Somehow, bless her, she remembered my email address. I spelled it out for her three times. And I almost erased the email she sent me because it went to my junk mail! How lucky am I? So many thanks to my new found Glamberts, Amy and Jacob. Mu-wah.)
I won’t repeat it, you can hear what was said on the video. If you can’t, I’ll transcribe it for you in another section. This one is long enough!
I did not even hear him say this about Queen! “I’m sure there’s lots more to come. We just need to be patient.” And that precious laugh and he looked at me. He was actually giving me an opportunity for more communication but I was too busy being worried about getting this pic.
Exhibit F
And I interrupted him. Damnit! There were at least twenty people milling around, and I felt the pressure. I think I was overwhelmed.
I took a few random photos. Again, like with Tommy, I didn’t even think to vid any on my new camera. The vids had turned out so crappy from the show, anyway, with distorted sound. All that accomplished was to suck up too much battery life, as it turns out, and that was a shame.
I hovered by pretty closely, who can blame me. You can hear me directing Amy and Jacob to step closer, to get that shirt signed. It was for her eight year old daughter. I was taking care of them as much as I could. They were shy and we had bonded and I wanted to make sure they got what they came for.
You never know how long Adam will stay, right? You never know.
So, exhibit G.
Short version. He is talking to a few other Glamberts, and there are a few moments of backs turned, unintelligible conversation from where I was standing. He’s being so damn cute and either really caring where these two cute girls sat or pretending very well, with that sweet little pucker on his lips. Giving them his complete attention.
He ignored his minder twice, who was saying, “We need to go.”
Adam seemed to be having fun. One of the girls said, “Wow, you’ve lost so much weight.”
And he put his hand on his hip and jutted it out and said, “No, it’s just learning how to wear the right pants!”
And then there’s more when he’s leaving. Jacob didn’t film it when Adam was on the doorway steps and I yelled, “I hope you like your bracelet!” And he said, “I love it!” And “Bye!” And “Thanks guys!” Waved and disappeared.
Wow.
Okay, this is out of order but I’m too tired to go back and edit.
Heidi had come back right at the end, and got all pissed. My battery had already died, but somehow I eked out two more shots. I told him, “This is my drummer.” So she got one with him, one as she was walking away. So she was lucky to get that. Still pissed she’d missed most of it. Understandable. I would have been just as livid.
She was saying, “I wish you could’ve called me! But I had your phone! Damnit!” And it was her idea to wait, which she later tried to say was mine. Geez. All over a man we don’t even know.
We got over it in a few days!
Now it was key search time again, amid all the elation of meeting AFL.
Still no keys.
I said, “Thanks anyway, guys, for all your help. I’ll have to call somebody.”
So Heidi and I went back around the corner, and there the keys lay! In the grass! In plain sight!
Hallelujah.
We got in the car and the clock said, “11:11.”
I said, “Well. That means it was perfect.”
As perfect as it can be. Because you ALWAYS think you could have said something better, been less of a geek, been funnier, done better. Said LESS. You always do.
I said again to Heidi, “Whatever happened. It was perfect.”
And the next day, my first thought was “Why didn’t I…”
Just beating myself up in my head.
And I had an epiphany. I realized it was the same kind of feeling I have when I’m revising a scene in my book, only without the self hate.
In a book you change some action, you make the dialogue better, you make it more clever, more relevant.
And I realized, “You can’t write a perfect scene. You can’t write a perfect life.”
You can improve a scene in a story, but you can’t do anything about a scene in your life. It just happens…boom boom boom. You do the best you can.
And I understood I have to stop trying to analyze and “if only” such a once in a lifetime experience to death and just be happy it happened. And some of it was even on video! I’m still floored by that.
I’ve struggled with it some, that “wish I’d done better” crap, but not as much as I have before.
I sit back and think how lucky I was to have had this chance.
Oh, yeah. One more thing.
When he was signing my arm….
My perspective was closer and from the side.
The precious video doesn’t show any of it from my angle, of course.
I was maybe four feet from him most of the time, when he was actively hugging and engaging with his other fans.
When he was signing my arm, his head was down. I watched his face so intently. Could see his acne scars that only make him that much more human and beautiful. When he was pulling my arm closer and you could see where Tommy had signed my hand, I said, “Of course you know who did that.” Adam said softly and quickly, “He is a very nice man.” You can’t hear that on the video.
And I wanted to tell him how beautiful I thought the signature was. I was speechless. I wouldn’t have had his normal scrawl tattooed at all. (I don’t think. It was a spur of the moment thing. I wasn’t looking for a tattoo!) But this swirly thing is a work of art. It looked like an exotic ivy or something. Seriously. For a moment I am not even sure I was breathing because I thought it was so beautiful, the signature itself and the way he moved that pen, in graceful loops. And most of all just standing that close to him, especially as he ran his finger over my other tattoo and really gave me his attention for that short span of time.
I remember how I was telling him, when he went back to correct the “d” of his name on my arm, “You are such a perfectionist. Always, turn this up, turn that down, I can’t hear the guitar.” I didn’t mean it like that night, I meant all the time. Like with his drawing of his name. And how hard it must be for him but how great for us! But he said, “Girl, I was just trying to hear!”
Miscommunication. But still. I got “Girled” by Adam Lambert.
And at the end, again, I realize I have a poster! I kept forgetting. You can kind of hear me saying, “Oh, for God sakes Adam, I hate to ask you to sign this…” I wanted to say but it’d be stupider not to, and hey, Tommy gave you a goatee…but that’s when he says that stuff about my shoes.
I said, “No boots, baby.”
Ha ha.
And that’s when he leaves amidst waves of “Thank you!” and “Bye, Adam!” and “Be careful.” And he tells us to drive safe.
I don’t think you could ever meet a nicer man. A nicer genius.
I am honored to be marked for life.
Well, none of the pics or videos showed up in my rambling recap. Somebody must tell me how to get those links here. All the “Exhibit” marks are where photos or videos go. So you didn’t get the whole story…but most of it. The video is pretty cool. I still need permission from Amy to post it on YouTube. I’ll probably just do that and you can see it from there. Also, perhaps I’ll make a collage of my photos and set it to one of those Vineyard versions of Broken English or Chokehold. My two favorite songs of his. I can rip the audio off Ovationimpacts vids. I think they have the cleanest audio. Let me know if you guys want me to do this. I DID NOT get sick after England, like so many of us did. But I did get sick after this concert. yuck. My back is aching. My head and throat. I’ve got to go lie down. But let me know what you think and realize it’s in its roughest form and incomplete. But I thought by the time I had it edited and all the pics and videos cleaned up nobody would care anymore! Love to all, Paula
OMG paulanation what a detailed long recap, thanks! I have to read it better later, I am in a hurry now, but what a treat you got
Congrats!
Holey Moley paulanation, what a awesome re-cap!!! Such a diligent effort, to capture as many details as you could possibly remember. I understand what you mean, by in a different surreal dimension.
It’s a time warp of sort, and trying to recall every nuance doesn’t do it justice. It is in your soul, and the feeling of it remains.
Looking forward to the video sometime, in the near future!
paulanation Thank you, thank you! I have only seen Adam once in concert and may never again, but your recap made me feel like I was right there with you! Thank you again!
Thank you to ALL who read my long rambling recount! I hesitated about putting it on here. I will post a video link, and putting some pics in a montage to start it, so you can see what the EXHIBIT parts refer to. Thanks again for your kind words. I hope it’s not too much!
Paulanation…Amazing recap. I felt like I was you!!
paulanation It’s Never too much. More is more!!!
Just a huge THANK YOU for posting your epic encounter’s.
OMG … paulagirl !!! … What recaps!!!!
Enjoyed them tremulously.
Thank you very much for taking time writing and sharing.
What a fine writer you are!!!
Loved your recap, paulanation – and, yes, agree with all the others – never too much. A million thanks.
Paulanation AAAAmmmmmAAAAzing Recap. Thank you so much for taking the time to put down so much detail for us. Lucky Lucky you.
Just fantastic. Thank you so much, girllll!
LOL Paulanation! Quite the magnum opus but I really caught your excitement and can’t think of a single word you should leave out.
Can’t help wondering what Ms. Traub would make of Adam’s decision to have security open the gate so that he could chat with his fans properly.
<
Well it isn’t everyday, that Adam takes a fan down the rabbit hole. Well on second thought, I am totally wrong.
I’m down the hole everyday!!!
By now, Ms. Traub must feel like she had her nose rubbed in the poo!
Ha. Who the heck is Ms. Traub? I’m so clueless. And those of you who read that magnum opus, again, thank you for all those kind words. I hope it brightened your days in some way. And I’m glad I had someone to share it with!
That was one heck of a recap Paulanation!! Dayum girlllll! Must have taken you days to write!
http://pacific-punch.com/celebrity-101-a-week-of-music-and-a-reminder-to-celebs/
Re: Lindsay Taub, a blogger..it’s on the Nov thread. She wrote this article and it set the glamtsunami on her case..deservedly…some comments from Adam’s fans were never even posted…some were a bit harsh on her which always starts the Adam fan criticism but you know we protect our boy like fierce mamas.. then she defended herself in a comment but in that statement she contradicted herself. Adam was on his own time. They were both attending another performer’s concert. He wasn’t rude to her. He told her to find him later after the concert. She took offense at that. And she sure got her criticism in spades. Her publication even issued a statement standing behind her.
A couple other music bloggers wrote articles criticizing her. Here”s one below:
http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlla/adam-lambert-wiltern-theatre-joss-stone-lindsay-taub-pacific-punch_b74831
After the second blogger article defended Adam and his fans, she just posted this statement but it comes off as self serving and feeling sorry for her entitled self.
http://pacific-punch.com/response-to-adam-lambert-fans/
Oh paulanation! What a beautiful story and wonderful recap! I knew when I saw those pictures of you on twitter that you would have an awesome story to tell!! It was so great to meet you in London, and I know what a tremendous fan you are of both Adam and Tommy, so I’m thrilled for you that have had this amazing experience!
This statement of yours really touched me. As you may know, I met Adam in the Phoenix airport after the Phoenix show a couple of weeks ago (if you haven’t read it, see the Phoenix show thread for my recap!). I was incredibly lucky and it was a truly wonderful experience, but afterwards I found myself wishing I had said this and that to Adam, just to make the encounter a little bit more complete. But like you say, real life happens boom boom boom, and you do the best you can in the moment, and you can’t re-write it later. And maybe we shouldn’t even try to re-write it, but just focus on how grateful we are for the experience, instead of second-guessing what we did or did not say or do. (In my imagination, though, I have replayed my scene with Adam and added in the bits that I wish I had said to him about how much I respect and am grateful to him, and that has helped me feel more complete about it.)
But YOU had your wits about you enough to give him a Queenbert bracelet! How awesome is that! I was wearing two of my Queenbert bracelets at the time that I met Adam, but I didn’t even think to show them to him or give him one. I’m so excited that he has one now – thanks to you!! (Yay tchrsd and all other London peeps! Adam has one of our Queenbert bracelets, just like us!)
I just love your story, paulanation and how you wrote it, and I love hearing how happy Adam was to engage with you and your new-found friends, and I love hearing the details of what he said to you. And you got “Girl’ed”! Fantastic!!
By the way, I agree with you about your impressions of Tommy. I met him after both the Portland and San Francisco GNT shows, and he is very doe-eyed and tiny and sweet, and he seems very happy to engage with the fans. When I had my picture taken with him, he just snuggled right up to me and laid his head against my shoulder (I’m quite a bit taller than him)! So affectionate and cute! It took me aback. And after our chat by the buses, he even came up to our car as we were driving out of the parking lot near the buses, stuck his head in through the driver-side window, and said goodbye to all 5 of us in the car and thanked us for coming. Such a sweetheart. So I’m not surprised that he stayed out with you for so long and that he did the whole hand-touchy thing through the fence with you. I think he’s a touchy-feely kind of guy.
Your recount of Ashley is really wonderful too. She seems very real, warm, and down-to-earth.
Knowing that you are such an avid and skilled musician, it must be such a thrill to have met these people you admire so much. You had real, personal, extended interactions with Adam, Tommy, and Ashley, and that’s simply awesome! Huge congratulations to you on your good fortune! Yay!!
One more thing…
Ok, I am hanging onto this statement! THIS IS GOLD, GIRL!!
paulanation, I finally got time to read your recap. It was great, so detailed, thank you so much for using your writing skills to share it with us
! How can you remember every tiny moment like that? I think I would miss half of it…
I still remember seeing Tommy and Sauli one meter away in the upstairs lobby in the Hammersmith concert. They were just hanging around there. It was such a surprise, that I couldn’t do anything, thought maybe it’s inappropriate to go to them, I just tried to have an intense look without getting caught. But I was such a new fan then, just learning how to be a fan
Wiser next time if it comes… And you are so right, we can’t plan real life and our behavior too much. Enjoy your experience and safe return to the reality!
Hey paulanation! Just want to say congrats to that awesome experience. Thank you for sharing in detail, and describing your emotions throughout your report. It made it very real and relatable.
paulanation, I really enjoyed your detailed recap of your night. What an amazing experience for you, and thank you for reliving it for us!
All your comments move me so much. I tried to remember everything I could, and I have tried and been mostly successful in NOT wishing I’d said different things. THIS IS GREAT NEWS! I found another source of the video of our meeting. As you can probably tell by my, ahem, detailed account, I like to do things right. I am making a 2 camera edit of this encounter and cleaning up the audio so we can hear our Darling Adam better, and it was rather dark. So I’m working on correcting the visuals, too. I am very exicted by this. I can’t even work on my book until I get this done.
BUT…I’m still sick with this crud and can’t even get much done. I will let you know the link when it’s finished…I’m hoping this week. I promise you, it’ll be worth the wait. There’s lots of Adam. I wish I’d thought of filming TJR and Ashley and Adam. I’m surprised I remembered to get some pics. They will be included in the montage at the beginning of the vid, which also features the videographers I feel so blessed to have met and who have let me use their precious footage.
Thanks to all of you for sharing your stories, and if I helped in any way or if you enjoyed it that makes me feel so good.
Any time any of us meet these great musicians and human beings it makes me feel so warm and fuzzy.
I’ve got lots of reading to catch up to on ALL.
And thanks for filling me on the whole TRAUB debacle. If I’d just SEEN him at another’s performance I would have been thrilled. He does have his own life.
And riding on the plane with him…how cool is that?? Love to you all. Back to bed or the couch for me.
You know, every time I think of Adam’s presence and look at my tattoo, I smile.
A lot like when I think of you guys, too. Thanks for sharing this lovely passion with me.
Paulanation wishing you a belated birthday. My home internet was down for 24 hrs and came back a couple hours ago. Didn’t forget. Technology let me down. Sorry you’re still sick but hope you enjoyed your special day. I’ll get to the dvds in a few days. Have houseguests coming tomorrow for 4 days so will be busy with work and them but I won’t forget.
Thx, Cher! It’ll be a wonderful birthday present for me, no matter what day you can send it!
And I worked on the video taken that night by two filmographers. Just NOW got the audio synced. There’s so much noise, tho. I don’t know how much I can clean it up. It’s still so precious. Will post in the next few days.
Love to you all!
Hey, paulanation, wow, your powers of recollection and observation are just magnificent. Have you thought of journalism? I think you would be good! Great writing too, the kind that puts one right in the story. Loved it! Now, I am eagerly waiting for pics and video. Hope you feel better soon, being sick is just such a drag! Big hug, BB!
Here’s the link. If it’ll work- it’s called 10-29-12 Meeting Adam Lambert After Texas Tango Videos. NOT as grand as I would like. Wanted a two camera edit…but the sound! It was crazy loud. And rather dark. I tried to do what I could to smoothe it all out. I am just glad it exists! There was more when he was behind the fence! I never even think to video a thing. I’m too just…wow. In the moment. And I hate the way I sound! Like everybody else, I guess. That Texas accent.