One of the memorable highlights of the Live8 charity concert was when Chris Martin of Coldplay announced, “this is the greatest song ever written by one of the greatest singers ever, Mr. Richard Ashcroft,” with Richard Ashcroft emerging to sing the epic “Bittersweet Symphony” with Coldplay as his backing band.  After a somewhat uneventful solo career, Richard Ashcroft is back at home with the Verve.  After last weekend as a highlight of the Coachella music festival, I had a chance to witness their stellar live return at one of two New York City concerts.

While best known for their anthem “Bittersweet Symphony” (which ironically they make little income from due to the fact that a Rolling Stones’ sample populates the undercurrent of the song), the entire album from which that song comes from, Urban Hymns, is a seminal 90’s recording of moving & powerful songs.  And the Verve did not neglect that fact, playing much of the album live with powerful renditions of songs such as “The Drugs Don’t Work” and “The Rolling People”.

It’s interesting to note that the Verve currently do not have a new album to promote, although there is a rumor that a new album is on the way (they premiered two stellar new songs) but it is not clear if they are still affiliated with a record label given that their old home, Virgin, no longer exists.

And while they played to two nights of a packed-house  at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, tickets were suddenly half-off a week before the show, which is relatively unheard of.  As a friend and I were walking away from the venue on the streets of NYC, we saw a very long line and commotion outside a GameStop… sigh… Grand Theft Auto IV had mightier buzz than the reunion of the psychedelic, rock and blues of The Verve that night.  Bittersweet.