Paris, France - September 12, 2000

Online Review
at Le Trabendo
By Maryse Laloux


Note : Ride and Hard-on for Jesus were originally planned for the show but weren’t sung.
Courtney’s improvisation, Zia’s a capella cute little song, Pete International Airport, Cool as Kim Deal, Get Off, TV Theme Song, This could Be the Last Time, White Gold & Creep Out were all extras !

God, I had read excellent reviews of the Dandy Warhols gig and how cool these guys were but Gee! Is there a cooler band on earth !

I arrived to the venue an hour and a half before the doors opened. There were already 5 or 6 people there including Cui² who soon recognized me in my Blur T-shirt. [Hi Cui²!] We chatted away with the people standing next to us to the rhythmical sound of the tomtoms beaten a few meters above us. Shortly afterwards, Courtney came out of the building. As soon as he opened the door, I went “Hey ! Courtney ! How are you ?” He answered he had just been taking a nap and God, he looked completely out-of-it ! Was he in need of some fresh air ? Oh, God, he really looked like it. I chatted a few minutes with him. I told him I was on this mailing list and asked if he ever read the messages posted here. He answered that he never uses the Internet. So I explained that some people from this mailing list had been wondering what he had done to his hair and presumed he must have cut it himself to which he replied “Yeah, I always cut my hair myself !” Then I ventured asking “Hey ! Courtney ! Have you ever thought of having packages on sale including the gig ticket, a condom and a spliff ?” And he replied that was a cool idea and I must say he seemed quite intrigued with the idea of the condom. Ha Ha Ha ! He stayed there for 10 or 15 minutes, chatting and signing autographs (with my pen) and finally got into a taxi.

Brent came out a few minutes after Courtney, all smiles. God, that guy looks really good too ! Nice eyes, I swear ! I must have said sth like “Feeling good ? Ready for the show ? Have you had fun in Paris ?” and the like. He stayed there 5 or 10 minutes, signing autographs and chatting with anyone interested in talking with him. Then an English guy came to me and said “Hey ! Maryse ! I’m Stephen !” And I went “Oh Stephen ! Please to see ya…Oh sorry, I’ll be with you in a minute…” Peter and Zia were now coming out of the venue too and I had to take a pic ! and the three of them walked away with members of their crew to a restaurant near by, Stephen included I’m afraid.

I was the first person to enter the venue. Cool place ! Small stage (8 meters long, 5 meter wide, less than a meter high) and all their gear waiting on it, no photographers’ pit, no security men, an arc-shaped balcony at the back. Cool ! Of course I went straight to the front of the stage and stood right in front of Courtney’s microphone. I put my camera on the stage and waited a good hour for the show to begin, chatting away with the Duran Duran fans standing next to me.

When Courtney got to the mike (just a mere meter from me), God, he looked so fucking wasted ! He got me worried for a second. How would he handle it ? Well, he actually did quite well though the beginning of the show was a bit weak, principally due to technical problems with Zia’s keyboards, which led the band to stop both Mohammed and Bohemian Like You half-way through and sing both songs all over again. Then I think Courtney broke a string during Shaking. This succession of glitches probably induced the cool frontman to ask, very nonchalantly : “What do you guys want to hear now ?” Someone suggested “Heroine is so passé” and they played a fucking rocking Junkie.

Half –way through the gig, Courtney suggested we all had a drink and a cigarette. So they sat on the stage with 2 or 3 members of the audience, and drank and smoked. Eventually Zia stood up and came to the mike and explained she would do her own little number. She sang a capella about the daisy tattoo she has on the second toe on her left foot. So cute and funny ! After this 5-minute break, they resumed their singing which was even better than before. They did an excellent interpretation of the Rolling Stones’ The Last Time and sang White Gold about which Courtney explained it was about cocaine and “fucked-up” Texas. Of course, by the end of the show, both Courtney and beautiful smiling Zia were topless. They finished off with an kick-ass rendition of fast-driving rave-up with the Dandy Warhols 16 minutes. God ! Peter and Courtney were so amazing on that one !

At the end of the show, I made a sign to Courtney. He kindly bent down to me and I gave him a thank you kiss. J

After the show, Peter came back on stage, wearing a slim-cut black T-shirt, hair done. He came right to me and the few people who were still standing there. He explained that the Paris gig had been the last one of a long tour, that they were gonna take 2 weeks off and then tour the States and that they were hoping (fingers crossed) to come back to Europe next Spring. Next Spring ! God, that would be cool ! After he had signed my setlist I gave him a good-night kiss and went to Courtney who was busy chatting away and signing autographs to the left of the stage. I chatted some more with him, “Hey, you’re just soooo damn cool ! ‘As Cool As Kim Deal’ should be retitled ‘As Cool As Courtney Taylor-Taylor’” I said and he replied “Oh someone else would have to write that !” Come on you all songwriters ! Any inspiration ? A French boy asked Courtney if he could give him a kiss and they kissed on both cheeks, you know as we French people do to greet one another. A long-haired blonde girl who had been dancing topless right in front of the stage for most of the show invited him & mates over to her place. Courtney inquired “Is your place big enough for us all , the crew & … “ Oh well, I decided there were just too many people around him and went to Zia. She looked so cool with her hairscarf . A guy I was with asked Zia if he could give her a kiss and she went “No, sorry, girls only !” And I went “Oh, Good !” and give her a kiss and a big friendly hug.

When I left the place topless Courtney was still standing there, chatting away with everyone ! God ! What a cool guy he is ! The Duran Duran fan standing next to me has just e-mailed me to let me know that the 4 Dandys then headed to the bar and chatted away and drank with the rest of the audience who stayed there. God ! Is there a cooler band on earth !

I eventually also got to speak to Stephen from EMI London who I only knew from cyberspace, so meeting him there was really neat.

In brief : excellent & fucking cool show, chatted with the 4 of them, got autographs from the 4 of them, drank out of Courtney’s water bottle and gave a kiss to Courtney, Peter & Zia. Whooo !

Maryse (Two's A Crowd)
Copyright by Maryse Laloux