Jack White’s surprise performance gets Fargo love

Local music lovers have rock and roll spiritual experience

What musical act would you stand in line for four to six hours to see? It’s a question many in Fargo found themselves grappling with when, mere hours before the gig, Jack White finally announced the last of his five-state acoustic performances to end his Lazaretto World Tour and begin a live-show hiatus of an undetermined amount of time.

My social media feed was filled with debate about whether or not Jack White was worthy of that amount of time or if any act was for that matter. My answer after seeing him Sunday night on the Fargo Theatre stage for $3 was it most definitely was. But it’s an interesting dilemma.

This was the result of Jack’s game to play the five states he hadn’t played yet by announcing them the day of the show at 8 a.m. with tickets going on sale at noon for $3 and limiting sales to one per person, which prevented scalping. Because North Dakota was the last of the five states, anticipation and speculation had built to such a level that fans were guessing where and when it would happen.

I had pegged Sunday at the Fargo Theatre as the likeliest choice. Fargo no doubt was chosen in part because we had our White Stripes date cancelled in 2007 (he owed us), in addition to being North Dakota’s largest city. The Fargo Theatre has the closest capacity in town to other venues on the acoustic tour. There really wasn’t anywhere else suitable for an acoustic show that would hold that many people. The Fargo Theatre also had a special screening booked on Saturday evening with an actor Q and A that made a Saturday night booking impossible.

So when people were waiting in line Saturday -- some of whom had travelled long distances -- I only smirked. Many of them had to make plans to stay in Fargo one more day and many did. I heard reports of Vault members (White’s Third Man Records special vinyl club) travelling from all over the country to see White perform his last show for what some have speculated will be a long time.

The sense of community you felt waiting in line for hours, seeing people you know, knowing you were going to see something special and it was right here in Fargo, made it worth the wait. We all knew we were getting to see something special and we were proud it was in our town. We were going to represent and have a hell of a time doing it. All it took was a coffee or food run to get through the time, along with a ton of conversations about music. By 7 a.m., it was reported that there were some 500 people in line. While only 800 were allowed into the show, there were about 400 who waited in line for hours only to get told it was sold out. No doubt that answered the question of how many would wait in line hours on short notice to catch a musical firebrand such as White. Probably many more would’ve attended if they had the chance or didn’t have to get up by 9 a.m.

With Jay-Z’s fledgling music streaming service Tidal streaming White’s Fargo performance, speculation built in line about who might be the special guests at the show as so many huge music stars backed the new service, including White. But ultimately it ended up being just White and his band on stage and that was just OK too. Anything else would’ve seemed silly or out of place.

After getting the wristband admission, thoughts immediately sprung to waiting in line to get into the show, and some did that right away to guarantee the best spot. With open doors at 7 p.m. and the show at 8:30, I took a much-needed nap, happy in the solace I was guaranteed a seat.

Of course some wondered why the show wasn’t electric like White normally performs. I think this may be easily answered: That wouldn’t have make the show any different than normal. To make it special, White did something he’s never done before. Fargo and four other cities got something no one else did.

His music lends well to it. He even remarked he probably should’ve recorded one of the songs he performed acoustic but didn’t. The old-timey feel of his suit and his music stripped down with a ragtime, bluesy sound (he ended with a Leadbelly cover) backed by a standup bass, violin, Dobro and mandolin felt right in the Fargo Theatre setting, which was built in 1926. He even looked like a silent movie star from a Charlie Chaplin film, pale skin and all. The yesteryear mood was set with a pre-show warning to put our phones away and take in the performance through your heart and soul (like we used to do), and a boombox played music from Bob Wills and Lawrence Welk right before White took the stage.

All sorts of props found in the Fargo Theatre littered the stage, including an American flag (I wondered if we were going to have to sing the Pledge of Allegiance like in kindergarten), a reel-to-reel and an untouched old piano -- all of which lent to the mood that this show could’ve easily been set in 1935, not 2015.

All of the anticipation to the show and days of waiting led to a warm and raucous reception for White immediately upon taking the stage. There were several standing ovations. However, the command White had of the audience was clear during the quiet parts of the set when you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was rapt in attention and eating up every moment, a rare sight in our society these days.

The 14-song, hour-long set was a mix of old and new with songs culled from throughout White’s career, including solo, The White Stripes and The Raconteurs. I was happy for all the old White Stripes including some of my favorites like “Do,” “The Same Boy You’ve Always Known” and “You’ve Got Her In Your Pocket.” White came out solo for the encore, sans his fantastic band, who really shined throughout the night and whom he was happy to highlight. While some wished he would’ve played all night, at the $3 price tag, we really couldn’t complain. And it’s not like we were let down, we just wanted more.

He ended the show with a rant that music is sacred and to treat your local touring band as well as a blockbuster movie. He asked for an amen and received it. It’s a speech he first said following his recent Coachella performance, his final electric show (for at least a while). It resonated well in the Fargo Theatre, especially after a night like this.

After the show ended, White signed autographs, shook hands and handed out baseball cards out back of the Fargo Theatre for some lucky fans who were waiting and had perfect timing for cigarettes. Jack and the band also had a private tour wrap party in downtown Fargo where the booze was flowing and the ones who heard about it were trying to sneak in.

All in all, it made for a pretty special evening, one that had some people saying, with all the spectacle and end result, it was one of their favorite concert experiences in Fargo. One thing's for sure: It cemented our love of music and ability to get it. When something like this happens and someone like this comes, yes, it is a big deal and we should be freaking out. I think for where Fargo is at right now, with the growth and progressive nature of our downtown, we deserve nights like this. So for all the naysayers, I am sure your Netflix and sleep was fine, but you missed out on one hell of a night that many won’t soon forget.