September 3, 2022: I'm a Little Bit Rock & Roll

Las Vegas
Fremont Street Experience

Day two in Vegas. We have hit the maximum time limit to spend in Vegas, especially when temps are in the 110s! SOOOOO HOOOOTT!!! UGH!

The main reason for my trip to Las Vegas -- to see Rick Springfield -- was on the agenda for the evening, but what to do until then? Eileen, Megan, Jackie and I managed to do a pretty good job of killing off the morning and afternoon. First up was breakfast and a little window shopping while waiting for our table to be ready. It was really too hot to stay outdoors for too long, so after breakfast we wandered over to the strip and eventually popped into the Flamingo, which is probably the last old-school hotel on the strip. Wayne Newton still performs there regularly!

We wandered around a bit and eventually taught Jackie how to play blackjack on one of the video blackjack games. A good way to learn the game, but a bit different from sitting at the tables. It was an enjoyable way to kill time between chatting and people watching. We headed back to our hotel early in the afternoon to rest and freshen up for our evening activities. Megan and Jackie weren't joining Eileen and I for Rick -- they were heading to Spago's in the Bellagio for dinner before heading over to RuPaul's Drag Race at the Flamingo. Meanwhile, Eileen and I hopped in a cab to head out to the Fremont Street Experience.

The Fremont Street Experience is definitely an... um... experience! Fremont Street is OLD Las Vegas -- where everything started before the hotels along Las Vegas Boulevard (aka The Strip) were built, and it shows. This is definitely budget Vegas and a little sketchy. I will give credit to the hotel owners putting in a decent effort to make it a draw. For a couple of blocks, Fremont Street is a pedestrian walkway with an enormous video screen "roof" that covers the entire street and sidewalks. There were even some misters in places, so wandering around outdoors in 115 degrees didn't feel quite as miserable as it could have. Still, the whole vibe of the place was rather rundown.

Eileen and I went off in search of someplace to grab dinner, but the options weren't quite as varied as on the Strip. We went into one hotel and the options were a very expensive steakhouse or McDonalds. Um... no. We eventually just settled for a Denny's we'd spotted. It was outside the "secure" area, which meant going through the security gates again, but it wasn't onerous and the "security" was the jankiest set up I've ever seen. If ever there was a prime example of "security theater," the entry to Fremont Street definitely qualified.

Despite the sketchiness of the whole set up and the janky security, there were a LOT of people along the street which made getting to the stage for the show a bit of a challenge. Especially since the show was free (another item to draw people away from the Strip.) We had both assumed that Men at Work would be up first, so we took our time with dinner before heading to the show only to discover that John Waite was up first and we wound up missing most of his set, arriving as he was wrapping up his last song -- a cover of "Whole Lotta Love!"

The area in front of the stage was jam packed, so Eileen and I worked our way to the back and found a less crowded spot behind the soundboard and camped out there. The sun was going down, so the temperature was dropping a little, but with all the people packed in there wasn't a lot of relief from the heat. We stood around for a bit waiting for Men at Work (a.k.a. Colin Hay and a bunch of musicians mostly from the Carribean) and started chatting with the people around us. It was a really nice bunch of people and an enjoyable way to pass the time.

Men at Work finally took the stage a little after 8:00 and played a bunch of songs neither Eileen or I recognized. About half-way through the set, finally, "Overkill" one we knew! That set off a string of hits for the rest of the set. All in all, fairly enjoyable. Once Men at Work finished, I was surprised at the number of people who left. It really thinned out the crowd. I guess they have a bigger fan base than I thought!

It was going to be a bit yet until Rick took the stage and it was really hot, so Eileen and one of our new friends went off to find drinks for the group. I stayed and saved spots and chatted some more with the people around me. I must say that is really one of the fun things about any live show -- you make brief connections with total strangers over the love of music.

Shortly before Rick took to the stage, Eileen and friend returned with the drinks -- mostly water with a couple of beers for a couple of the guys. I was so glad for the water! I do not like hot weather and start wilting if it gets over 80, so 110+ was just awful. I've joked for a while that if Steve Perry were to perform on the moon, I'd get my self there. Apparently, I'm willing to go to the surface of the sun for Rick Springfield! 

But now it was time for the main event. Eileen was the lucky one of the two of us back in the day having seen Rick on the original Working Class Dog tour. This show was ostensibly the 40th Anniversary celebration of that breakthrough album (it was released in 1981, so 41 years in reality), so I expected that Rick would be playing it. Nope. It was mostly a regular greatest hits set, but a ton of fun. I was a bit challenged at times trying to remember the lyrics, but most of them came back. Eileen did a better job than I did.

It's a bit hard to figure out what my favorite part was as I was all smiles and singing along all evening. "Love Is Alright" is probably my biggest song highlight as it was always one of my favorite songs. He also did a medley of songs about midway through the show that covered several songs including the always amusing "Bruce" which cracked me up. And as we were at a show a few days after Rick's 73rd birthday (!!!) there was an audience sing along of "Happy Birthday." I will say there are few 73 year old men who look as good with his shirt off as Rick does!

One of the features of Fremont Street is a zipline that runs down the length of the street, so periodically during the show there would be people flying by above us whereupon Rick would fling a guitar pick out at the audience "trying" to hit the people flying over. Another bit of amusement.

As this was the last show of the tour, Colin Hay and John Waite came out on stage and joined in on a cover of "All Right Now." It was a bit hodge-podge as they had just pulled it together that afternoon in soundcheck, but all in all a fun bit.

The show closed off, naturally, with "Jessie's Girl" with everyone singing along the whole way. The big hit is always a big highlight. (I included a clip after the set list.)

Jesus freaks Out in the street Handing tickets out for God

But that wasn't all for the Fremont Street Experience experience! No, just as the set was ending, a group of people with big signs about Jesus and sinners must repent started marching through the crowd. It was probably one of the most bizarre things I've ever seen at a show. I've seen "Jesus freaks" outside shows many times protesting the idolatry of a rock concert, but never marching through the crowd! And talk about a losing cause -- not just in Vegas, but at one of the seedier sides of Vegas. They passed through without much hassle (though the signs blocked my view of the stage briefly which was annoying.)

Eileen and I made our way out of the crowd and grabbed a cab back to the hotel where we met up once again with Megan and Jackie for a couple of drinks. Lots of late night chatting before bed, and still more chatting the next morning at breakfast before flying home. All in all a pretty fun weekend with my cousins.

 

John Waite set list:

Change
Back on My Feet Again
When I See You Smile
Missing You
Midnight Rendezvous
Whole Lotta Love 

Men at Work set list:

Touching the Untouchables
No Restrictions
Down by the Sea
I Can See It in Your Eyes
Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive
No Sign of Yesterday
Overkill
It's a Mistake
Who Can It Be Now?
Down Under
Be Good Johnny

Rick Springfield set list:

Affair of the Heart
I Get Excited
Living in Oz
I've Done Everything for You
World Start Turning
State of the Heart
 -- Happy Birthday --
Medley: Bop 'Til You Drop/Bruce/867-5309-Jenny/Jessie's Girl/Don't Walk Away/Rock of Life/What Kind of Fool Am I
Love Is Alright
Don't Talk to Strangers
Human Touch
Love Somebody
All Right Now
Jessie's Girl

 

 

September 2, 2022: I'm a Little Bit Country

Las Vegas, NV
Zappos Theater

A few months ago, I sent a message to my cousin Eileen -- "Hey, Rick Springfield is playing in So. Cal on August 30 and Nor Cal on September 1, wanna go?" She replied "How about Vegas on September 3? I'm going to be there seeing Shania Twain." Saturday night in Vegas, sure why not? About a month ago, she sent me a message that her daughter had a conflict and wouldn't be able to go to the Shania Twain show, would I like to go? Sounds like fun!

So that's how I wound up in Las Vegas on Friday where the temperature hit 110° (Leaving from SFO with fog still clinging to the hills and a high of 78° in Belmont.) I met up with Eileen, her sister-in-law Megan, and niece Jackie by mid-afternoon at our hotel a block or so off the strip. Some chatting and sparkling wine in the hotel bar before heading up to our rooms to get ready for dinner and the show.

Zappos Theater is in the Planet Hollywood Hotel which wasn't too far of a walk from where we were staying, but in the heat we cabbed it over. More chatting over dinner before we walked over to the show. Eileen managed to get us some excellent seats. Dead center, first row of the second section above the pit. Perfect! Sit, stand, it didn't matter, our view was completely unobstructed.

Now, I'm gonna be honest here, I can't say I'm a huge Shania Twain fan. I know her big hits and enjoy them, but I just never got into that early 90s pop-country scene. Still, I love live music and figured it would be a good show. I was right.

Since Shania is doing a hotel residency, this was a fairly big production compared to most of the shows I've seen in Vegas which are usually just standard tour stops, so nothing all that different from shows seen at other venues. The stage had multiple screens that moved and lit up and just made for an excellent backdrop. The show actually started with a curtain in front of the stage that was also a screen and as the lights went down, there were all kinds of images of Shania Twain over the years. When the curtain finally went up, there was Shania on in the middle of a staircase wearing a long black feathered dress with a train, long black gloves, and a hat. The crowd went nuts. The backdrop quickly changed to an American flag, and, yep, I'm at a country show!

I'll say right now, I only knew 5 of the 19 songs she performed, so I'm relying on setlist.fm for the set list when I reference any song beyond those 5 (all big hits, so you can probably guess.) The opening song "Rock This Country" included a mid-song costume change when a couple of her back up dancers helped remove the long trained skirt of the dress to reveal a much easier to perform in white mini-skirt. Everything sounded fantastic and I happened to notice her drummer sitting off to the side of the stage a bit -- she has a woman drummer. I love that!

The opening song ended with Shania disappearing back stage for another costume change which meant her band carried the show for a few minutes. Must say it was the first time I've ever seen a fiddle solo during a concert! (It was great!)

Early in the set she played a song that really caught me called "Life's About to Get Good." The chorus has a great hook and it's just an upbeat tune about the ups and downs of life. Very relatable.

About a third of the way through the set, we finally got to a song I actually knew -- "You're Still the One" -- which I really do like and she sounded fantastic. I think it was at this point in the show she thanked everyone in the audience for buying her first albums. I leaned over to my cousin and said "well almost everyone!"

Throughout the show, there were multiple costume changes, which left her band filling time. They were awesome. Her background vocalist in particular was amazing and definitely helped carry the tunes all night long. Shania also had a set of about 6 dancers who at times would carry her around the stage. It was a nice change of pace to see some hunky guys dancing around in the background rather than skimpily clad women!

A couple of times during the show, she invited fans up on stage for a bit. The first group came up about two-thirds of the way through the show with a "Twain Town Saloon" set. Everyone was masked when they came on stage and met with Shania at the "bar" (one of the lighted risers) and she chatted with them a bit then told them they could take off their masks for a photo. After the photo, they were shown to tables at the side of the stage while she sang a couple of tunes.

The final time she had fans on stage was towards the very end of the show. The curtain had come down, the band had gone off stage, and a couple of the dancers brought out a small table and a couple of chairs and put a candelabra (battery operated) and some flowers (probably plastic) on the table and escorted a couple on to the stage and showed them to their table. As before, Shania came over and chatted a bit and asked what they were celebrating. Turned out the couple was there for their 50th wedding anniversary. Another quick pose for pictures, and on to the highlight closing of the show with "From This Moment On." Hey! Another song I know and absolutely love! Granted, I usually listen to the instrumental version Neal Schon did on his album Voice, but I loved the song before that amazing version was released. She sounded fantastic.

The show closed out with the upbeat "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" which had everyone on their feet singing along (even me! I knew the words!)

After the show, we walked over to the Sugar Factory for some dessert and cocktails. All were very yummy, but the place was super bright and the music super loud (and it kept getting louder the longer we stayed.) It didn't help that only the 26 year old knew any of the super loud tunes. We stayed long enough to finish our after-show treats then headed back to our hotel. By this time it was relatively cool, so the 15 or so minute walk back to the hotel wasn't too bad (and it's always interesting to walk along the Vegas strip on a Friday night. Surprisingly, we didn't encounter too many crazies and most everyone seemed to have kept their clothes on!)

Off to bed for a decent night's sleep, before show day 2. Stay tuned!

Set List (courtesy setlist.fm)
"Set" = costume change!

Set 1:

Rock This Country!

Set 2:

Love Gets Me Every Time
Life's About to Get Good
Up!

Set 3:

Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)
Come on Over
You're Still the One
You Win My Love

Set 4:

That Don't Impress Me Much
Any Man of Mine
Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?
Honey, I'm Home

Set 5:

I'm Gonna Getcha Good!
Party for Two
Not Just a Girl
Swingin' With My Eyes Closed
(If You're Not in It for Love) I'm Outta Here!

Acoustic

From This Moment On

Encore:

Man! I Feel Like a Woman!