Deer Valley, UT (July 30, 1999)
Deer Valley Resort Amphitheatre


Just returned from the concert at Deer Valley, Utah. Do I even need to say that it was GREAT? Dan explained the fact that he was playing solo acoustic by saying he'd left the band at the airport playing canasta because their contracts prohibited them from playing above 7000 feet. The venue for the concert was a small, intimate stage on the "bunny" ski slope at the Deer Valley ski resort. It was really nice except that it rained for about two hours before and intermittently throughout the concert, so the crowd sat on pretty soggy ground.

Dan was in fine form. He wasn't as chatty at this concert as it seems he's been at others, probably because he knew he'd have to move things along to get everything in before the sound ordinance deadline of 10:00 p.m. He seems to have recovered fully from the cold he had earlier in the tour. (Although after spending an evening in the late summer cold and rain of this mountain setting, he may see his cold reappear.) He had to keep retuning his guitars and warming his hands between songs, though, because of the temps.

He said that playing a Christmas song in July didn't feel as weird at this concert as it had in California because it almost felt like winter. And, he said that sitting in the mountains looking at the bare ski slopes right in front of him made him "horny to ski."

I was close enough to the stage to be able to watch his incredible guitar work. He is absolutely amazing! My friends and I all enjoyed the instrumental pieces just as much as our old favorite vocals. Todos Santos, Eleanor Rigby and Full Moon Mansion were all great. He just rips when he plays Nexus, Part of the Plan and Road Beneath my Wheels.

I, like some of the other reviewers I've read, wished he would change the play list a little. Of course, he has to play his most well-known hits (Run for the Roses, Leader of the Band, etc.), but it would be great to hear something besides Make Love Stay, Part of the Plan and Auld Lang Syne. It was GREAT to hear him play Captured Angel, Forefathers (my personal favorite), and The Reach.

This was my fifth time seeing Dan in concert and, surprisingly enough, the first time I'd heard him play Longer. I was enthralled at his performance. Do you think we could convince him to record more current versions of his most popular songs? The recordings are great, but his voice and interpretations of them now is so different (and so awesome), I really wish he'd do an "update" or at least another live concert album.

Excellent evening. Another great performance. I just wish he would tour more often; he only makes it to Utah about every two years. Maybe we could set up a two- or three-day "Dan Fest" where he could have a solo acoustic concert one day and another with the band and do just about everything from Netherlands, Captured Angel, Wild Places, etc. I know, just a dream, but it would be AWESOME!

Marianne Paul


Hi Friends,
I am so glad to finally get to write out my feelings after the concert Friday night. Saturday was full of family things, and I just did not have the time. I feel like I am going to burst if I can't talk about this with someone!! You all know how I feel, I'm sure. The day went as follows- My friend Judi and I left our houses at 8:00 in the morning, and drove for about an hour, up the canyon to Deer Valley. It is a ski resort, and a newly chartered city adjacent to Park City, Utah. It is a beautiful resort, built and paid for by the Olympic skier, Stein Eriksen. The weather was typical for July in Utah, looking like a good day, highs expected in the mid 80's. A few clouds in the sky, but nothing threatening. When we arrived, there weren't any others there to see DF, just a few employees. I was determined to be on the front row, but by the look of things, we had some time.

We went shopping for a while and picked up some food from the grocery store (I know I am getting awfully detailed here, but I for one enjoy the detail from all of you folks, so I'll dish it out that way.) At noon we headed back up to Deer Valley, where there were 3 people in line. I think that was the most exciting part of the day besides the moment when DF came out onto stage. I knew that I would be able to be on the front row! I got so excited that I couldn't eat all day, and all of that food that I had just bought went to waste. Judi, who has never seen DF in concert, and who is a recent convert :), was able to eat, because she didn't know what she was in for! LOL! It began to rain a little, so we got out our chairs and took our positions there under the eaves of the lodge. It only rained for a minute or two, and then stopped. The sun came out, and it stayed very nice out until later. I called another friend who was thinking of coming the day before but had decided against it, and told her that I was going to be on the front row. She decided to come up. The few others that were there were just mediocre fans(who knows why they wanted to wait all day- one of them ended up going home just before the concert started!!! Whatever!).

We were not joined by any others until 4:00. Holy Cow! Is the whole state of Utah that unaware? This was REALLY hard for me to believe. At 4:00 only a few more people came. THEN.......it started to rain. It poured for about 2 hours! We, like I said, were under the eaves, so we were fine, but some of the latecomers were not so fortunate. They FINALLY opened the gates at 6:30, and let us in. I ran as fast as I could in my platform sandals, carrying all of my crap (funny sight, no doubt, but WHO CARES?!) I was able to stake myself out a place on the front row, over to one side. How cool! It is an outdoor venue, with the stage set up at the bottom of a ski run. The stage is covered. The grass was very wet because of the rain. There are no seats, it's just, (as we say here) "pull up a piece of grass and sit down", which is usually fine in late July, but not so this time! They allowed chairs that were 4" off the ground, and luckily we had some. One nice man in line with us, offered to go buy some umbrellas for us, and we took him up on it. It continued to drizzle and rain off and on. It was quite cold, and still overcast. I was cold, and felt bad for the performers. I play the piano, and I remember my Mom telling me to get going on my practicing the minute I walked in the door from school. If my hands were cold, they just didn't work. The opening act was Eliza Gilkyson. I don't want to be mean, and I probably should just leave this out, but I really did not like her stuff. She has a good voice, and plays the guitar well, but I didn't enjoy the lyrics to her songs at all. Most of the stuff sounded really primitive and animalistic to me. Not real elevated stuff. Enough about that. Not long after that, out came DF. I will do the ceremonial outfit description that seems to be required in these reviews. Black jacket, white shirt, jeans, and leather sandals. There you go, ladies! He really did look good, and he seemed happy, and ready to give it his best shot, despite the rain. I don't think he said quite as much as he did in other concerts, as far as I can tell, but it was really cold. I would guess somewhere in the 50's. The cold came in handy when he did the Christmas song, "The First Christmas Morn". By the time he had brought out the tree and the stocking, I was convinced that it was December. The song is absolutely beautiful, touching, and inspired. I am so looking forward to getting the album. I will try to give you the setlist. I did not write this stuff down, so I will have to just list them for you, in no particular order.

Nexus
Captured Angel
The Reach (my all-time favorite for the whole history of the world-
forever, Amen)
Forefathers
To The Morning
Leader of the Band
Make Love Stay
Longer
Morning Sky (awesome!)
Eleanor Rigby
Full Moon Mansion
Todos Santos
Run For The Roses
Road Beneath My Wheels
Don't Lose Heart
The First Christmas Morn
Part of the Plan (the most rockin' rendition I have EVER heard of this,
totally awesome!! And to think he did it with cold fingers!)
Encore: Same Auld Lang Syne

He gave a great performance. He proved once more that he is a master of what he does. Most of all, I was impressed with his attitude. He tried to keep a positive attitude in the cold. He did not seem annoyed, although he probably was. He seemed to really try to give us his best. He made one or two comments about cold fingers, but not to complain, just to let us know that if he goofed, that might be the reason. He didn't mess up, as far as I could tell.

I hope I did not leave anything out. The concert was very enjoyable, and the two victims that I dragged along, are now e-mailing me asking which albums they should buy first. Maybe I will finally have someone to talk with about this extraordinary music. I hope it has been enjoyable to read this. I know I am a little long-winded. I want to say to Dan that I am grateful for all that he has given me as a listener. I realize that he has sacrificed alot to give us what he has. In many ways his life would have been more enjoyable if he had chosen to keep the music to himself. Thanks for everything, Dan. May God bless you for the uplifting effect your music has had on so many.
Peace.

Tisha Howe


Dan's concert in Deer Valley, Utah, took place on July 30th. We were all holding our breath as to whether the concert would take place or not. It had been raining quite hard during the day. Finally about an hour before the concert, the rain subsided a bit, so on with the show!

I wish you could all attend one of his concerts in this setting. Deer Valley Amphitheater is at the base of a ski run, and is surrounded by beautiful mountains, trees, and clean air. It is the perfect setting for his music.

The concert began around 7:20 p.m. with Eliza Gilkyson as the first act. She did a good job and the weather cooperated during her performance. She finished around 7:50 p.m. Dan came out at 8:15 p.m. He was wearing a blue jacket, white, button down collar shirt, levis and sandals. He thanked everyone for being there and said how wonderful it was to be back in the Rocky Mountains. He said that he left his band at the airport drinking coffee and playing Canasta. He talked a little about the beautiful surroundings and said "Sitting here with the ski runs and lifts makes me very horny to ski". Okkkkay, anyway the show opened with the song Nexus. Then it started to get cold and rainy again. It sprinkled on and off through the whole show and Dan kept commenting on how cold it was and how it was only July. He must have been cold because he kept rubbing his hands together and blowing on them to warm up.

The rest of the set went like this: Captured Angel, Forefathers, To The Morning, Don't Lose Heart, Make Love Stay, Road Beneath My Wheels, The Reach, Todos Santos, Eleanor Rigby (instrumental which he said he called the little old lady from Ipanema?), Full Moon Mansion, Christmas song called The First Christmas Morning, Run for the Roses, Morning Sky, Longer, Leader of the Band, Part of the Plan, and the encore, Auld Lang Syne. He played around 1 hour 45 minutes.

Despite the cold and drizzle, it was a fabulous concert. The audience seemed to really enjoy Dan. As stated in other reviews, Dan seemed to be more in tune with the audience. He was very talkative, and friendly. He joked quite a bit and told stories about the songs he introduced. He said he wanted to come play for us with just himself and his wooden friends. He put out a small, white, plastic, horse on his piano when he played Run for the Roses, and put out the Christmas tree and stocking, when he played the Christmas song, like he also did at other concerts.

I have seen Dan in concert around seven times, and I think this was his best performance ever.
Thanks Dan, hope you have warmed up!!

Happy listening all,

Mary Ann


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