I had a similar encounter with Al Stewart... He was playing at a cabaret in Cotati CA.. I bought a ticket and sat down at a bar across the street waiting for the show.. He came in and sat next to me, I had no idea as I didn’t know what he looked like... he began asking questions about the college nearby I was attending, Sonoma State... he drank a beer and was chatting away (his leather pants and Scottish accent should have clued me, but I was dense). I told him I was waiting on the Al Stewart concert across the street at the cabaret and he was like “Oh yeah... what’s your favorite song?” “Year of the Cat”.. and he goes.. “that’s a good one.” He left and I finished up my beer and left too... Sure enough, there he was on stage when the show started. I was slightly embarrassed I’ll admit... Into the concert he pointed at me and said “you’ll recognize this one.”... and that piano intro started.... must admit I nearly cried..
Cool!