When Seattlest received that fateful email from a friend, our immediate reaction was a roll of the eyes and an audible, drawn out, "Bull shit." No way would the one and only Beastie Boys play the legendary but very wee Crocodile Cafe. No way. Then came the Ticketmaster link all but confirming it. The Croc's website kept mum, not listing the show at all. Supposedly The End had been talking it up, but we wouldn't know since we haven't listened to that station since discovering KEXP years ago. A click of the mouse fractions of a second after tickets went on sale and we were in. Many of our friends and most of the Seattle area weren't as lucky. A quick check on Craig's List and Ebay showed that scalpers had done some of the immediate damage. Venting ensued.

Jump forward two days and we're standing in line with a buddy and hundreds of other people. We've been to sold out shows at the Croc before but we couldn't believe the line wrapping itself outside the Croc, down the street and around the corner. We asked of no one in particular whether this many people could even fit in the Croc, but apparently so. Once inside the all-ages show we swallowed a quick drink at the back bar and got our asses to a spot about twelve feet from the stage.

After a lengthy wait, presumably to get everyone with tickets through the front door, the lights dimmed and percussionist Alfredo "Fredo" Ortiz took the stage followed by longtime keyboardist Money Mark. Three and a half seconds later, MCA, Adrock and a curly-haired Mike D ascended the stage amid a roar of shouts and applause. Holy fucking shit, we thought. We realized, right about then, that this was going to be a once in a lifetime show. The boys looked very Blues Brothers in sharp suits, sunglasses and Adrock sporting a classic fedora. They nodded, gave a quick smile and a wave and took up their instruments. MCA on bass, Mike D on a second set of drums, Adrock on lead guitar.

As the set was to be a warm-up to Sasquatch and a showcase for their upcoming (June 26) album The Mix-Up, it was largely instrumental -- no sampling -- showcasing the boys' funk sensibilities and true blue musicianship. They played a totally funkified version of "Root Down" amid a slew of new songs like "Electric Worm" and "Suco De Tangerina". Eager to please, the boys did mix in classics like "Sure Shot", "Remote Control", "Heat Attack Man" and even (after some prodding from a group of drunk idiots in the crowd) a raucous, if not somewhat sloppy "Sabotage".

Adrock seemed to have a good time teasing the crowd and Mike D was charming as he played up the whole small band in a small club thing. "We're the Beastie Boys. We're from New York," he repeated a few times and, "Don't forget, we've got t-shirts and CD's for sale at the front of the house."

Photo Courtesy of Travis Hay on Flickr.