OK....I've given it some thought....and my Essensual Ellis is my first Ellis Paul show. Many of you have probably heard my "how I found Ellis Paul" story (oh, we probably need to re-resurrect that thread!) and know that I first saw Ellis by accident. It was in Seattle when I was there for a conference. Talk about stars aligning!
Anyway...the thing is....I didn't know what EP looked like. Had never seen him. Had never seen a picture of him. Knew one song from the radio ("Deliver me" - now you know why I'm so happy that it made the cut for the
Best of CD!) So, before the show started, as I was sitting there having dinner with 2 friends...somebody sitting next to us....or maybe it was behind us...said "There's Ellis Paul"...and I'm like "Where? Who?" And they pointed to where Ellis was talking to some people in the audience. I mean....
he was talking to people in the audience before the show! For some reason that really really really amazed me....and I felt a powerful.....admiration, for lack of a better word. And I was immediately and inexplicably drawn to him. And that was before he sang a note. And in my memory he was wearing a red flannel shirt and a pony tail. (I don't know if that's an accurate memory or not, but it's what I always see in my head!) And then he did sing a note...and I swear after the first 3 notes I was a goner. Remembered almost the entire set list that night from memory....although I didn't write anything down. Had I known! But then....
after the show I got to talk to him! I bought a CD ("stories") and waited in a long long line to get an autograph. And he looked at me. ME. Looked right into my eyes and said "Thanks for coming." Asked my name. Wrote "Karen, spread the word, Ellis Paul" on my CD. Honestly....I'm getting goosebumps remembering it. No one has affected me like that before or since. Essensual it was. Essensual it is. Still. And still honoring the mystery of it.
KarenZ