No Croaking

Reunited band revisits hit album for current cross-country tour

Doni Blair remembers the first time he heard songs from The Toadies' album "Rubberneck." He received a preview performance.

Blair's band Hagfish was opening up for the Dallas-based group even before the 1994 release of that album. He liked the songs then, and he owned a tape he played often, one that included an early version of the song that would become The Toadies' signature track, "Possum Kingdom."

FAQ

The Toadies

WHEN — 8:30 p.m.

WHERE — George’s Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville

ADMISSION — $17.50

INFO — georgesmajesticloun…

Then, The Toadies officially dropped "Rubberneck."

"That's all we ever listened to," Blair says from Amarillo, Texas before a tour stop there. "This band we were friends with made this amazing record."

It's an amazing record he now gets to play every night from start to finish. Blair joined The Toadies when the group reformed in 2008 after a lengthy hiatus. He was with the band for its three newest releases, and he's on the 20th anniversary celebration tour that will bring the band to George's Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville on Saturday. The Toadies will perform "Rubberneck" in its entirety to start the show.

The idea to tour behind the band's biggest and best-known album had been discussed for several years, Blair says.

"It's a cool thing to be around 20 years. ... A lot of great things came from that (album)," Blair says.

Indeed, it put The Toadies on the map, and the vague but entertaining "Possum Kingdom" became a popular post-grunge rock anthem. The album sold more than a million copies, earning platinum sales status in late 1996.

But the very idea of its popularity created questions about the mechanics of the anniversary tour. Specifically, how should the band present the songs everyone knows?

"We entertained the idea of doing 'Rubberneck' last," Blair says. Otherwise, "We're going with the biggest hits in the first 15 minutes of the show," he says.

But the band opted to go with "Rubberneck" first, jumping in with little fanfare and not addressing the crowd until the end. From the second the band opens with the lead track, the instrumental "Mexican Hairless," the fans follow along, Blair says.

And they don't leave when the band transitions to other tunes, Blair says. The band fills its second-half setlist with tracks from more recent albums such as 2008's "No Deliverance," 2010's "Feeler" and 2012's "Play.Rock.Music." They have typically been closing the night with a series of songs that were recorded at the time of "Rubberneck" but left unreleased until the 20th anniversary edition. The bonus tracks include a few live numbers and also a cover of Pylon's "Stop It," which has been a real crowd pleaser, Blair says.

Blair encourages everyone to arrive early. Current tour partners Ume, fresh off a tour of England, are not to be missed, he says.

NAN What's Up on 08/01/2014

Upcoming Events