Leipzig to Oberhausen July 9, 2008

In the breakfast room of the hostel they are playing a Euro-Pop cover of Neil Young’s “I Am A Child” and I rather like it. A little hung over, I dig in to the coffee and breakfast meats. Outside for a smoke I talk to another Neil Young fan from Berlin. Martin and Bettina arrive to pick me up and we are off to Oberhausen.

It is a fairly long drive and we get to know each other quite a bit better along the way. I enjoy listening to Randy Bachman and hearing the band Midnight Choir for the first time. There is no direct route, so Bettina is navigating from the back seat. We stop for coffee at a rustic place with cool décor, and Bettina gets some of her favorite wursts that are a specialty of the region. The hours go by quickly and I enjoy the company of Martin and Bettina thoroughly.

Oberhausen Gallery

We only make one wrong turn, but recover quickly, and they drop me off at tonight’s place of lodging, In Hostel Veritas. The charming brick building is only about 1 kilometer from the venue, and we will meet before the show at a brewpub nearby. The hostel is very nice, I have a room all to myself with a big bed, and I quickly get myself and my gear ready for the show.

I am the first to arrive at the designated meeting place, Brauhaus Zeche Jacobi. Oberhausen is famous for its gigantic mall, and the Brauhaus is one of dozens of restaurants there beside the König-Pilsener Arena. The landscape is artificial, but it is very convenient for meeting before and after the show.

I meet a British rustie named Steve King and exchange email addresses. Heike and Stefan from Hamburg arrive (I met them last March in London and loved them immediately). Heike’s brother Volker is with them, and her childhood friend Carolina. Soon we are more than a dozen, as Thor and Ragnar arrive, Kalle and Sabrina, Kristov and his friend, and Martin and Bettina. Joost and Roel from Holland, old pals from the International Rustfest, also join us. I congratulate Roel on his recent marriage and make a minor faux pas. We dine and drink and make merry before the show.

Kalle tells me about his plans to attend the Sziget festival on an island in Budapest. He is planning to go there by canoe from Germany, but… he is not finished building the canoe. His girlfriend says it is almost ready, and Kalle just shakes his head. He has a lot of work ahead of him, as this festival is only one month away. What an adventure they will have!

I walk over to the arena with Heike, Stefan, Volker and Carolina. Having waited in line and been in the front the night before, I am comfortable with taking it easy towards the back tonight. We buy shirts and beers, and stake out some seats in the stands at the back of the arena, even though we have standing/floor tickets. The Hives are the support act, and they are leagues ahead of last night’s opening band. I kind of enjoy their antics.

From the moment he comes on stage, I can tell tonight is going to be different. Neil’s energy is through the roof even on the opening song, Love and Only Love. Hey Hey, My My has the crowd roaring with approval. But nothing could prepare me for the jaw-dropping third song: Time Fades Away. From the opening lines, “14 Junkies, too weak to work” I cannot believe what is happening. This song has not been played in well over 30 years, and the album of the same title has never been released on CD. I am sure people will wish I would have captured this on video, but the camera is in my bag, and I can only dance and watch and be amazed.

The rest of the show continues with high intensity. Fuckin’ Up is perfect for me, given that I almost lost my phones and missed my train today. I tape Get Back To The Country and rock out to the extended version of No Hidden Path. The encore is once again A Day In the Life, and it is even better than yesterday.

Get Back To The Country - Neil Young - Oberhausen - July 9, 2008

When the concert ends, I step outside into the pouring rain. I head back to the Brauhaus to meet the rusties, but it is closed, and we collect at the adjacent Irish pub. Everyone is stunned and excited about the performance of Time Fades Away, and the place is packed with Neil Young fans. At someone’s suggestion I try the hard cider, and it goes down maybe a little too easily.

I get to meet some of the Italian rusties I have heard about, Giorgio, Giovanni and others. Uli and his wife Claudia are there, they remember me from last year’s Rustfest in Stuttgart, and it is nice to have a chance to say hello to them. Martin and Bettina bid me farewell and I thank them for the ride and the companionship. Hopefully I will see them again next year in Stuttgart, or soon after if they can come to California for the Bridge School Benefit and IRF (International Rust Fest).

Members of the German Neil Young Fan Club (but not rusties as far as I know) exit en masse, and I admire their matching shirts. One of them offers to trade for my new Leonard Cohen shirt, and I hesitate. He then strips down to his undershirt and gives me the shirt off his back!

There had been some bad karaoke at first, but towards closing time start playing Neil on the stereo and we all sing along and dance around the room. Eventually they kick us out, but we have a backup plan!

         (Photo by Ragnar)

Thor and Ragnar have a room at the nearby Hotel Tryp, and the front desk clerk opens the bar for us. We had lost Kalle and Sabrina along the way – they are probably asleep in his bus. But Heike, Stefan, Volker and Carolina are here with us, and we meet a woman named Inez and a guy who works for Michelin Tire company. We keep that night clerk working until at least 5:00 am, when I decide to walk back over to the hostel to crash.

The sun is rising here, but it is evening in Seattle, so I call Jen as I walk back to In Hostel Veritas. She is at my apartment with our friends Kurt and Lisa. They had just dropped off my car for me, to be repaired at the garage near my home. It is nice to picture them at Harry’s Haven, and I tell her about the exciting performance of Time Fades Away.

 

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RE: Oberhausen rust fest memories

~ before the show congratulating Roel and asking him to give my regards to Mrs. *Groen* -oops. To my defense, Joost *was standing beside him and I *had smoked a bit of 'groen' right before that

~ reuniting with Heike and Stefan from Hamburg. Heike brought a handmade Neil Young bag for Jen, made by an artist she knows, out of recycled truck and bicycle tires. She has a Chrome Dreams bag for Neil too. Hope she gets to give it to him at one of the other venues this summer! Also really enjoyed Heike's brother Volker & childhood friend Carolina. What a great first show for *her*

~ Singing and dancing along to NY on stereo in the Irish pub with Ragnar! Plus Thor and all the others, the last hour until closing time.

~ outside the pub meeting a dozen people wearing the same T-shirt of the German Neil Young Fan Club. When I said I was from Seattle and that I admired the shirt, one gentleman offered to trade for the new Leonard Cohen shirt I was wearing. I looked at him and kinda hesitated. He said something like 'awww' and just took the shirt off his back and gave it to me, then zipped his jacket up over his undershirt, said good night, and walked off into the night.

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