#28 - Miller Time

This seemed like an appropriate pick for today since I mentioned it in yesterday's post.

The only downside to having horns at a TMBG show is that I miss out on Dan Miller's fantabulous guitar intro to Istanbul (because the horns do the intro instead). Dubbed Miller Time on many a setlist (among other things), Dan gets the opportunity to take the basic rhythm of Istanbul and run wild with it, usually in a sort of Spanish flamenco style that shows his mastery over the acoustic guitar. To let Dan describe it himself:

"There is acoustic solo in front of “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” that I really enjoy doing. It’s a chance to work into the show some things that I’ve been working on in private study. The only criterion is that at some point I state the melody to show the crowd where we’re heading. If the tune is going well the band will join in and it becomes this spontaneous composition. When the stars align and I’ve done my finger exercises I think it’s one of the high points of the show as neither we nor the crowd know how it’s going to end up. Occasionally it’s a train wreck, but there is learning in those times, too." (Quoted from this interview.)

 At a lot of shows you can tell that the majority of the crowd has no idea what he is playing until he weaves in a little bit of the Istanbul melody and they all erupt into cheers. This allows me to have a private moment to enjoy being one of the few people in the room to know what comes next. And oh, what comes next. Aside from fact that Dan is a KICK-ASS guitar player and the solo displays this brilliantly, my favorite part of the whole thing is the end where he increasingly revs up the speed until his hand is moving so fast it is just a blur and yet he is still playing actual notes and rhythm and absolutely blowing my mind EVERY TIME. Plus I love watching the entertaining way he bobs his head while he plays.

I've included my video of what is probably my favorite Miller Time I remember hearing, but there was also a fantastic one in Worcester a couple of years ago where they started the show with just Dan on stage doing the solo in a single spotlight. It was pretty epic. But then, Dan is pretty epic in any lighting.