07.06.12 Chris Botti @ Smith Center - Las Vegas, NV

Smith Center - Reynolds Hall

Aside from the intimacy of seeing Chris Botti at the Blue Note, this may have been the best Botti show I've seen, sans orchestra. Granted, I haven't seen as many shows as some but I've seen my fair share. 

Botti in the audience

The Smith Center is beautiful at worst. I'm a venue brat at the MGM Grand Garden Arena so I have a fine eye for event management. Their staff was amazing and gives me ideas on how to improve the arena. Granted, they've prob only got 50 employees and I have over 300+ but given the way they took care of me, I learned a great lesson. Great lesson. Only they know what I mean when I say a sincere, "Thank you."

On stage at Smith Center

Botti is a ridiculously great performer. Yes, he's a genius at the trumpet, grammy nominee, sought-after entertainer, blah blah blah - but what makes him a great 'performer' is his relationship with his audience. He's warm, familiar, funny, kind and giving. Like the perfect boyfriend. And beyond that is what he does to his audience. His temperament makes the rest of us want to make friends with our seat-mates. I have no idea how this happens but it does. At my first 2 shows I was so vain as to think it was me who made this happen; the people sitting next to me wanted to talk to me because I was so charming. It wasn't until 4-6 shows later that I realized it was him who made this environment happen. I'm just an average schmo. Botti makes the camaraderie. That's a talent. The naive me would say he doesn't even know he does this but he's a marketing machine. He knows. Otherwise he wouldn't be as successful as he is. Smart man. Smart tour manager. Smart agent. 

Backstage @ Smith Center 

I could babble on an on about his great performance, the set list and the amazing ensemble but - been there, done that. What made this show extraordinary was the sound and the atmosphere of the Smith Center. I will never pay for a Botti show anywhere else in Vegas unless he's playing the Smith. No disrespect to my colleagues at Station Casinos but you simply cannot beat an orchestra hall. Cannot.

He's so accessible

On a personal note, I had an amazing time. Botti's tour manager Jeremy was nice enough to give me a quickie tour of the place before the show and do a quick M&G with his artist. I put my foot in my mouth (shocker, I know) by saying to him something like, "Go kick some ass tonight!" I don't think Botti appreciated my vulgarity given the fact there were other people in the room, including a little old lady, but he was a good sport. 

I sat next to an amazing couple who couldn't say enough about Botti. "I told my grandson I was going to see Chris Botti. He was like, 'who'?" He wanted to bring him to the show to let him hear a different genre of music but it wasn't to be… this time. They were prob 55-ish, successful, articulate, adorable, unpretentious & fun. I love meeting people like this. It's not often you see this calibre of concert-goer at, say, Deadmau5.

Back to the show… there were some regular faves like The Very Thought of You (with 'the snaps'), Hallelujah, The Look of Love & My Funny Valentine & Nessun Dorma but he also had some of his new stuff from the album Impressions. As many times as I've seen Botti, I never bore of him. It's like peeps following the Grateful Dead or Dave Matthews or 311 - only we bathe & don't smoke pot. It's not necessarily Botti himself; it's the sound & feeling that comes out of his horn and the relationship he creates with his audience. My friends all call "bullshit" when I say this because, let's face it, the guy's gorgeous, that's why scores of girls drag their boyfriends to see this "jazz dude." But beauty eventually fades and you come back to the talent; you come back to the sound. This is why Botti keeps selling out venues across the world. When he's 70, ok, maybe girls won't swoon but he'll have some fucking great stories to tell! (Actually, I still swoon @ Tony Bennett so… maybe? Christ, I named my dog after him - Bennett, not Botti.)

Caroline Campbell & me

After the show I was fortunate enough to get a pic with Caroline Campbell, violinist extraordinaire. Normally I loathe beautiful, blond, thin, talented girls like this but she's so kind and warm, I couldn't help but adore her. Yeah, I'm a jealous, superficial, prejudiced idiot. I admit it. I wish I looked like her and had her talent. But I love being proved wrong. She was not only lovely but put up with my antics. Again, class act. My only contribution is hopefully I can be the butt of a joke they talk about on the road; I deserve it. 

The bow

I know there are only like 5 people who read my blog (especially since I took down all of my posts about the Grand Garden Arena shows) but if you do and haven't seen Chris Botti - go. GO. GO! His ticket prices are affordable, he puts on a truly unforgettable performance and some of his songs will bring you to tears, not in a sappy way but in an I-never-thought-I'd-be-moved-by-music kind of way.

And a very sincere, special thank you to Jeremy - you know why. Love you kid.