Friday night Lisa and I went to see Fran & Andy from Travis as they kicked off a six-night stint at Joe’s Pub in the Village. It was a really interesting show — much different than what I’m used to from them. It was, I guess, an “unplugged” version of Travis. Usually their shows are quite raucous, but this was a quiet affair with Fran simply telling stories. Following is the setlist, along with some of the stories he told (at least the ones I remember). I’ll never hear “Flowers in the Window” quite the same again.
- 20 – The first song our young Fran ever wrote.
- All I Want to Do is Rock – Vacationing on an island in Scotland, Fran wrote this with the intention of it being the best song he’d ever written. Mission accomplished!
- Turn – I believe this was written in honor of his grandfather.
- Writing to Reach You – Fran wrote this after being dumped. Inspired by Kafka’s letters, he wrote the girl constantly. He realizes now it was probably kind of creepy.
- Why Does it Always Rain on Me? – The band went to Israel for some sun and relaxation, and it rained the entire time. Quite a literal translation!
- Slideshow – I don’t remember the genesis of this song, but while they performed it, a slide show of the band through the years played in the background and it was wonderful.
- Flowers in the Window – This story was hilarious. One night all the band was out partying, except for Fran, who was home alone trying to write a song. The boys came home, drunk and loud, and then all went to their rooms to sleep it off. Fran heard what he thought was the sound of someone choking on their own vomit and began running through the house in a panic, opening doors to find out who needed help. Eventually he burst into Dougie’s room. Dougie was puking out the window down the side of the house. Relieved he was okay (i.e. not choking to death), Fran returned to his room and then wrote “Flowers in the Window” in ten minutes. I KNOW. Inspiration comes from odd, odd places. (If you’re not familiar with Travis, “Flowers in the Window” is their most adorable love song.)
- Driftwood - Fran took the chords from “Wonderwall” for this one. I never really noticed that until he pointed it out. Duh.
- Sing – This song was originally written as “Swing,” after Fran saw some commercial on MTV. Then in the studio, he accidentally sang “Sing” and realized it worked much better.
- Love Will Come Through – Fran wrote this song for the movie “Moonlight Mile.” Who knew? I love this song so much. I get teary every time I hear it.
- Closer – Written after Neil’s terrible accident when he broke his neck diving into the shallow end of a pool. At that time, the band hadn’t been getting along well, and the accident brought them back together. Neil is fine, by the way.
- My Eyes – Fran wrote this about his young son, Clay. Who is adorable.
- Before You Were Young – Er, I can’t remember what he said about this one.
- As it Comes – And I believe this is a new song.
Thanks for another great show, guys! 
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Thanks so much for this! Y’all are so lucky that you get to see shows like this. When they were on their last (big) tour and came to PHX, Mrs. O’Toole was pregnant with Chimps, so we couldn’t go. I love Travis’ music, and am fascinated with the lyrics. I put “My Eyes” on a video compilation of Chimps pics when he was a month old, and it makes me tear up every time. Great music.
“My Eyes” is such a wonderful song. He put up a photo of Clay while he played it (although did ask us not to take pictures). He has long blonde hair and an impish face. Fran said that right now he is obsessed with Michael Jackson — to the extent that Fran’s mom made him a tiny, single sequined glove. I DIE.