Shows/1987-04-19
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Links:
- Recording of "Why Does The Sun Shine?" on YouTube
- Newsday ad; Apr. 17, 1987
- North Jersey Herald-News ad; Apr. 17, 1987
Setlist: (possibly incomplete)
They Might Be Giants
West Bank Cafe in New York, NY
April 19, 1987 at 8:00 AM
Fan Recaps and Comments:
This was Vin Scelsa's second annual "Easter Acoustic Extravaganza," a radio program on WXRK that was broadcast from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Easter Sunday. The show had been pre-recorded a week or two earlier at the West Bank Cafe Downstairs Theater Bar, located in the basement of the West Bank Cafe in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan.
They Might Be Giants were among the nearly fifty acts on the lineup, all of which performed acoustic sets. A recording of two songs from their performance circulates online, though it is unclear if that was their entire set. The band was joined onstage by Glenn Morrow's group, Rage to Live, who assisted in performing the spoken-word verses of "Why Does The Sun Shine?".
This event was reviewed by R.J. Smith in the April 21, 1987 issue of The Village Voice:
There were many folkies in one room, and my teeth itched. We were in the basement of this restaurant on 42nd Street, and everywhere, the sensitive. The night it had its moments. The occasion was a taping of an Easter (pagan holiday) special, by K-ROCK DJ Vin Scelsa. In between all the soulful wisenheimers, Marshal Crenshaw and Buster Poindexter took turns onstage. They Might Be Giants jammed with Jorma Kaukonen. Christine Lavin wiped her mouth on a tablecloth and then sang a laff riot of a song. Joey Ramone performed acoustically. The show will air April 19, on 92 FM, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.. [...]
Anyway, there in the basement near Times Square, Lucy Kaplanski showed off her swell voice; Tony Bird, Last Roundup, David Massengill, Peter Stampfel and the Bottlecaps all butted in. It's better than a hollow chocolate Easter bunny.
This performance served as a precursor to a pair of shows hosted by Scelsa at the Bottom Line the following week, which featured both They Might Be Giants and Rage to Live on the bill.