The first time I saw Grant Lee Buffalo was opening for The Smashing Pumpkins in 1996. Section D Row E means nothing to anybody when the hall is empty and I'm dancing like a fool. The band played six songs and that was it. Some stupid kid cuts the set short by tossing something onstage. Grant Lee gets mad, I miss out on a 'Comes To Blows' or 'Happiness' or any other possible tune. The band that changed my life was so far away in the arena that night but still Paul Kimble noticed me for a split second and he knew I was there for them. I will forever remember that hint of a glance from him to me for the rest of my life. How can't I think that wasn't one of the best sets I will ever see? The original trio I would never see play together again let me down in of all places Hershey, PA a year before when some stupid band called Radiohead opened for R.E.M. instead of them. Pre-internet thinking, I thought I knew what was up. I missed them by a day? Rolling Stone magazine sucked with that sour tour info. I will always hate Thom Yorke's guts for that. 'Fake Plastic Trees' aside, that was the one and only time I had my dream band in front of me in Pittsburgh. The stuff that lives on in me and keeps me going to this day. Why do I try to hit every show in town? Why do I go early? Why do I get front row? Why am I show crazy? Friday, September 6, 1996.
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