One wouldn’t expect to see great bands at a trade show, but give IPW credit, the signature US Travel trade event each year never fails to impress. Each year, one or more of the luncheons features a performance from a great American band, and sometimes someone will even pop up at an evening event. This year in San Antonio, the close to 5,000 delegates (yes, it’s a big lunch) were treated to Counting Crows.
Over the years at IPW (formerly Pow Wow), I’ve personally seen the likes of Foreigner, Dierks Bentley, Rob Thomas, Earth, Wind and Fire, Jose Feliciano, Donny & Marie (she got stuck in an elevator at Caesars Palace and was late), One Republic, the B52s, Blue Man Group, and many others, including Canadian faves The Barenaked Naked Ladies (even meeting them backstage in Orlando).
It should also be mentioned that the annual NYC luncheon at IPW always has a musical component, presenting a compilation of hit Broadway performances featuring the original performers flown in for the event.
At any rate, here’s Counting Crows, one of the best of the IPW flock, who of course played their biggest hit “Mr. Jones” in San Antonio, but do it here at somewhere called the Codfish Hollow Barn in Iowa.
And here’s counting the days until next year in Los Angeles.
Lyrics
Sha, la, la, la, la, la, la
Mmm
Uh huh
I was down at the New Amsterdam
Staring at this yellow-haired girl
Mr Jones strikes up a conversation
With a black-haired flamenco dancer
You know, she dances while his father plays guitar
She’s suddenly beautiful
We all want something beautiful
Man, I wish I was beautiful
So come dance the silence down through the morning
Sha la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Yeah
Uh huh
Yeah
Cut up, Maria!
Show me some of that Spanish dancin’
Pass me a bottle, Mr Jones
Believe in me
Help me believe in anything
‘Cause I want to be someone who believes
Yeah
Mr Jones and me
Tell each other fairy tales
And we stare at the beautiful women
She’s looking at you
Ah, no, no, she’s looking at me
Smilin’ in the bright lights
Coming through in stereo
When everybody loves you
You can never be lonely
Well, I’m gonna paint my picture
Paint myself in blue and red and black and gray
All of the beautiful colours are very, very meaningful
Yeah, well, you know gray is my favorite colour
I felt so symbolic yesterday
If I knew Picasso
I would buy myself a gray guitar and play
Mr Jones and me
Look into the future
Yeah, we stare at the beautiful women
She’s looking at you
I don’t think so
She’s looking at me
Standing in the spotlight
I bought myself a gray guitar
When everybody loves me
I will never be lonely
I will never be lonely
Said I’m never gonna be
Lonely
I wanna be a lion
Yeah, everybody wants to pass as cats
We all wanna be big, big stars
Yeah, but we got different reasons for that
Believe in me
‘Cause I don’t believe in anything
And I wanna be someone to believe, to believe, to believe
Yeah!
Mr Jones and me
Stumbling through the Barrio
Yeah, we stare at the beautiful women
She’s perfect for you
Man, there’s got to be somebody for me
I wanna be Bob Dylan
Mr Jones wishes he was someone just a little more funky
When everybody love you
Oh! Son, that’s just about as funky as you can be
Mr Jones and me
Starin’ at the video
When I look at the television, I wanna see me
Staring right back at me
We all wanna be big stars
But we don’t know why, and we don’t know how
But when everybody loves me
I’m wanna be just about as happy as I can be
Mr Jones and me
We’re gonna be big stars