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Morris Day and the Time – Dec 31st – Choctaw Casino – Durant, OK
Ok, so the end of the year is here (man…that was fast) and this time instead of NYE creeping up on me with no plans or too many plans we had decided on just going up to a casino in Oklahoma, getting a great room and holy shit….ringing in the new year with Morris Day & The Time.
This satisfies several fundamentals across the board –
1) A need to get out of town but not too out of town.
2) Jess has never been inside a casino.
3) Getting a room for the night.
4) Finally seeing Morris Day & The Time!!
We had entertained several options:
a) – we were grateful for having a long-standing invitation to spend NYE with our friends in Clutch around the corner from my old apt in Brooklyn, NY
b) – We thought about getting way out of town and seeing the Melvins in San Francisco, my fave city in America (and seeing the Go-Gos there the day before).
c) – Staying in Dallas and finding something fun.
As fun and ambitious as the first two choices were, the cold and potential travel delays on the East Coast kept us away and we just couldn’t seem the find a decent flight or hotel to the West Coast. We still wanted to get out of Dallas for the night however.
If we were to stay our options were:
d) Joining my sister and her husband at the Larry Gee party along with the Rich Girls
e) The Old 97’s at HOB
f) The Gorehounds at Double-Wide
Spending it with my sister would have been fine but we saw the Rich Girls last year on NYE last year.
I’ve done The Old 97’s on NYE twice before.
The Gorehound who we saw along with the Rich Girls last year at this same venue…and while both bands were not responsible, it was one of the most disatrous NYE’s ever.
So while we were in the car just a few days before Christmas, we heard the radio spot for the Morris Day show and shrieked “SOLD!”
We invited some friends to join us, I reserved the rooms and we were all set.
However in the week between Christmas and NYE, our friends got sick and then BOTH of our cars broke down, mine on Dec 30th to be exact. WTF?!?!
Miraculously I was able to rent a car and across the border we sailed.
I can’t even fully illustrate how successful this night was – From the moment we arrived it was the perfect NYE and the one people (including us) always shoot for but never quite make it to).
Right when we got there we saw everyone with decorative hats etc and Jess asked this one lady where everyone was getting them and very generously she smiled and handed Jess one and said “Here you go honey, my husband doesn’t wanna wear his?” –
I made a Frosty the Snowman reference all night because Jess, who is a lovely girl, but suffers from dibilatating social anxiety puts on the hat and suddenly she is the most animated person there.
We ate like Kings and Queens at one of the casino restaurants and made our way to the show.
There’s a certain anticipation I had before seeing Morris Day and the Time, even though I had an idea of exactly what we were about to see.
There are concerts and there are shows, and while Clutch or the Melvins would have no doubt been unforgettable in their own rights, instead of being at a club at another show we were wanting more of an “adult” NYE – Get dressed up, go out for dinner and then something as shamelessly fun as Morris Day was perfect.
The show was a non-stop, over-the-top medley of classic uptown soul hits. I can’t say enough about the crowd – I was so worried it was gonna be wall-to-wall drunk, gambling hicks and this could turn into a nightmare but everyone was dressed to impress and ready get down.
From the opening notes of the intro song, the crowd was up on its collective feet and did not sit back down until the first slow jam about 6 songs in.
Once the band (including original drummer Jellybean Johnson and Monte Moir on keys) was warmed up, Morris entered at stage left with his requisite mirror and always affable sidekick Jerome Benton. What followed was a blur of 80s superhits in a pseudo-medley that was heavey on hooks and grooves, almost like a DJ set.
The party was jumping until Day left the stage during a guitar solo, only to return as a disembodied voice from backstage as the band laid into the slow jam Gigolos Get Lonely Too. Upon his return to the stage, the ladies were swooning. To pick up the pace, an assortment of ladies were invited on stage.Perhaps unintentionally, funny this was by far the highlight of the show. The unflappably smooth Morris and the boys know how to work a crowd and the the resulting dancing was far more entertaining than the song itself.
The set continued to play out like a greatest hits package without any filler. The shiny suits and slick choreography distracted from the fact there was really no new material during the night. There was little mention of the recently reformed Original 7ven other than a stage rap skit from Condensate.
At the end of the night, the crowd called back for a raucous encore of Jungle Love and were left worn out and satisfied.
Setlist –
Cool
Get It Up
Pandemonium
Chocolate
Wild and Loose
The Stick
Blondie
My Drawers
Fishnet
The Oak Tree
Jerk Out
777-9311
Gigolos Get Lonely Too
If the Kid Can’t Make You Come
The Walk
The Bird
Encore:
Tricky
Jungle Love
…..but really the night was just beginning it was only 10pm! We knew going in that the show was going to end way before midnight, though it would have been cool to ring in the new year with Morris Day and company. But it was cool and relaxed because usually on NYE by the time I get anywhere and get situated its like 1145pm and then the night is soon over. So if felt good to already have eaten, seen a show, and have a few hours to gamble before the new year.
This was Jess’s first time at a casino and while we are both not really gamblers, anyone’s first time at a casino (and one this size) is overwhelming.
I had mentioned a slot machine called Fireball that I’ve had a few memorable times with – We went with our tastes this time and found themed machines by Dolly Parton and Michael Jackson, but were too occupied to play. But later returned for a big payout by Dolly for Jess (and not so much for me with MJ, fun but unlucky).
We stayed close the middle of the casino where a band (ironically called The Time Machine) were doing contemporary fun hits, new and old and knew that this would be the place to be at midnight.
…and sure enough about 1130pm we made our way down front where there were other spillovers from the Morris Day show like us and next thing you know I’m being twerked upon by large black women and laughing with everyone – it was so much fun – The crowd was such a blast and such a relief from what I’ve been around in the past on NYE. Midnight came and it was truly special and again the kind of NYE you want – it was a perfect night.
Happy New Year!
Photos –
Roy Turner
Brianne Nemiroff
