An Evening with Train at Mountain Winery

I was thankful for all the years of listening to soft rock stations in the bay (Kbay, Koit, Alice) because I was more prepared than I anticipated for seeing Train at the Mountain Winery this week.

Coincidentally the tickets were won by my friend's mom on 97.3 (Alice), so we had a pretty good idea of the type of concert goers that would be in attendance. And it was a sea of gray - as far as the eye could see.

Before I get into the show, I want to get the snarky thoughts I had during the concert out of the way.

1. Elderly attendance

2. The Ann Taylor and Chico Fall fashion line is alive and well at The Mountain Winery tonight

3. The lead singer of Train looks like a slightly more tired version of Jason Bateman

4. At what point did Train "make it big" or have they always coasted on the success of "love songs after dark"

5. A lot of hip gyrating happening to "hey soul sister"

I had a great time. I was able to spend quality time with three ladies I absolutely adore, sit and eat a leisurely meal at one of my most favorite venues, the weather was spectacular and Train was a lot of fun. The seats were outstanding too.

Pat Monahan played the hits and covers of songs that are frequently found trailing his own on those soft rock stations. He was excited to share they had a new album coming out, but said he wouldn't play any of it - because folks are there for "Drops of Jupiter" and "Drops of Jupiter" only.

One of the surprising moments was when they played Led Zeppelin's Going to California. It was really nice. They had hit their stride during the set, the lights dimmed to blue and his voice took on a really lovely Robert Plant quality that fit the space so beautifully. Then they transitioned right into a Dirty Heads song, also appreciative and surprising.

I love live music and having an opportunity to go see in a space like the Mountain Winery was such a treat after so much time at home, missing the energy that comes with concerts.

While the venue took a ton of precaution for vaccination cards and negative tests, I still had an uneasy feeling being there with all of humanity and left my mask on the majority of the show.