It seems as though Joshua Tillman, better known as indie-folk hero Father John Misty, had himself a memorable time on Saturday night when he joined Goose and fellow guest Trey Anastasio (Phish) during a lengthy performance at a sold-out Radio City Music Hall.
At Radio City, Father John Misty stepped in with Goose to lead the quintet on vocals through his 2012 track, “I’m Writing A Novel”. Later, for the show’s encore, he jumped in on percussion and shared vocal duties on a dance-rock reimagining of The Beatles‘ “Tomorrow Never Knows”.
Tillman was still riding high from his evening exploring the world of jam bands—and, it appeared, still wearing the same clothes—when he strode onstage for his headlining set at The Green River Festival at the Franklin County Fairgrounds in Greenfield, MA early Sunday evening. With just a microphone, an acoustic guitar, and some subtle piano accompaniment behind him—a far cry from the massive setup used by Goose—Father John Misty was quick to reference the wild night he had just experienced.
After the sort of macabre reflection on mortality that tends to arise in the double-digit hours of a long night-turned-early morning (“…and how with every breath, even this one at this very moment, we are all rushing into the open arms of death”) and the sort of appeal to the sound engineer that you’d likely never hear at a jam band show (“You can turn [my guitar] down 75%”), Tillman candidly confirmed his headfirst dive into the psychedelic experience.
“I’ve had one beer, one coffee. I did acid at a four-hour jam last night,” he mused. “So, I’m either gonna fall over or this is gonna be, uh, a real good one.”
He continued by partaking in another favorite jam band pastime: lightly ribbing the notion of being in a jam band. “I picked up some moves at this, uh, jam band concert last night,” he said as he strummed the intro of “I’m Writing A Novel” and pondered the different scene surrounding him that day. “So, I’m gonna play this chord for about twenty minutes.”
Watch Father John Misty open his Sunday set at The Green River Festival with “I’m Writing A Novel” the day after singing it with Goose at Radio City Music Hall below.
Father John Misty – “I’m Writing A Novel” – 6/26/22
[Video: BroughtUpright]
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