Delays Can't Dampen the Soul of Duffy's All Points West Set

An almost 30-minute delay before Duffy's afternoon All Points West set had the crowd decked out in colorful vintage wayfarers barking out U.K. soccer chants, begging the show to start. Once the rain settled down, Duffy, in red patent-leather heels and a red-and-white striped tank, came out strong to the sounds of her debut album's title track, "Rockferry."

After posing like a bashful sailor girl, swinging her microphone cord and repeatedly pointing her finger to the sky, Duffy exclaimed, "l'm an awful dancer — I can't move to save my life." Turning to the audience, she begged for "Movement please!" as she broke into "Serious." She ultimately worked through nearly every track on Rockferry, including an incredible "Warwick Avenue," sultry "Stepping Stone" and "Delayed Devotion." Just as soon as the crowd began cheering when she broke into "Mercy," it was over.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

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