March 10, 2023 -- Legends in LA La Land

Inglewood, CA
SoFi Stadium

 

not the greatest shot, but it will have to do

Early in November, my cousin Denise sent me a text -- Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks were playing a co-headlining show in Dallas. Wow, cool, but damn, Dallas. That's just a bit too far to go. The next day she texted again -- two new shows, including one in LA. Now that's much more doable! I texted our cousin Eileen -- the show was in her backyard -- wanna go? She said she did and so did her husband. Denise was iffy pending kid obligations.

Tickets went on sale about a week later and since I've never been to SoFi stadium before, I logged into Ticketmaster late the night before to check out the seating chart and see if I could figure out where the best seats might be. In doing so, I somehow managed to stumble into some kind of pre-sale. Denise hadn't decided yet on getting a ticket, but I couldn't let a great opportunity like that pass, so I jumped on the pre-sale and got three tickets. The next morning, about half an hour before the general on-sale, Denise texted me -- how much were tickets and what are your plans? I told her what had happened the night before and how much I'd paid for the tickets, and she decided she was in. The only problem was, she was in the car on the way to Fresno, so I logged in to Ticketmaster again and in a texting relay was able to grab her a seat next to the ones I'd already purchased and billed her credit card directly instead of mine. Yay modern technology and voice command texting!

Ticketing settled, we waited until after the holidays to sort out travel planning. That was complicated a bit by my plans to see Bruce Springsteen in Portland two weeks before. It got further complicated when I came back from Portland with COVID. Three years in, I finally got hit with it. To be honest, I'm surprised I hadn't contracted it earlier -- between concerts, baseball games, two trips to Las Vegas, and a couple of known exposures it was only a matter of time before I came down with it despite being fully vaccinated and boosted. Fortunately all my symptoms were fairly mild and by last Sunday all I was dealing with was lingering congestion. I checked the CDC to see what the current restrictions/recommendations are for a post-positive COVID test, and so long as I wore a mask in crowds, I was good to go. Even if I tested negative by Friday (I didn't), I was planning to wear a mask -- I didn't want to get a rebound case!

Denise and I flew down to LA from separate airports, but arrived at LAX a few minutes apart. Since LAX is huge and we were on different airlines, when we landed I texted Denise to meet me at the car rental. I got there first, which was good since the car was in my name. It was a bit confusing figuring out where to go to pick up the car, but I eventually made my way to the right counter and got in line. Denise arrived just as I was talking with the agent, so I told her to stay where she was and I'd come find her once I was done. A few minutes later I had the key to a Polestar 2 -- an electric car from Volvo. I met Denise and went off to find the car. Naturally our car wasn't under the covered shelter, which meant getting in the car in a pretty good rain. It's been a wet winter in California, but it was just grey and cloudy when we left the Bay Area and I expected the weather to be similar in LA. Nope. That made getting in the car more complicated, and I finally had to find someone to help me figure out where the trunk release was and how to turn on the defogger. Eventually we made our way out of the car rental and got checked in to our hotel. 

Eileen and Doug were going to pick us up about 5:30 for the 7:00 show, so we freshened up and then hung out in the hotel lobby chatting until they arrived. I hadn't seen Denise in person since last summer, so it was nice to catch up face to face rather than via text. Eileen and Doug arrived more or less on time and we were off to the show.

SoFi Stadium is the new football stadium in Inglewood where the Rams and Chargers play. It's only been open a couple of years, and I was curious what it would be like. Wow! The place is huge. Luckily, Eileen had purchased a parking pass, so we were able to park relatively close to the stadium and it was a short walk in the now drizzle to find the right entry gate. We had to ask staff, check the stadium map, and get a little bit lost before we found our seats which were about the 50-yard line and 9 rows up from the field. Pretty decent for a stadium (and pretty pricey!) We hadn't had time to grab something to eat before leaving for the stadium, but luckily we could access the field club concession area so we were able to get some decent snacks before showtime without having to wait in line too long.

I'd gotten several emails saying the show would "start promptly at 7:00", but I've been to enough shows to know that was unlikely. Still, it wasn't much of a wait until Stevie Nicks came out about 7:15 and kicked into her set. I wasn't familiar with the opening song ("Outside the Rain") but the set quickly became familiar with "Dreams." Just a few songs in, Billy Joel came out to join her for "Stop Dragging My Heart Around." I thought this would be likely since the last time I'd seen Stevie, she was touring with the Pretenders and Chrissie Hynde joined her on the Tom Petty part. Billy did a pretty good job and it was an enjoyable duet.

Stevie went back and forth through her set performing solo songs along with songs from her Fleetwood Mac catalog, and all sounded warm and familiar. The crowd would cheer whenever she would embark on her trademark twirl -- a bit slower than it once was, but she is in her mid-70s now! A personal highlight from the main set was her tribute to Tom Petty when she sang "Free Falling" with lots of images of Tom on the video screen -- including many of them performing "Stop Dragging My Heart Around" over the years.

The set was pretty brisk and she wrapped up the main set by about 8:30, but of course there would be an encore. Denise and I briefly guessed what she might play, then Stevie reappeared launched into "Rhiannon" which made me think "oh, duh!" But the highlight of the night was the finale. Stevie closed out the set with "Landslide" while pictures of Christine McVie scrolled through the video screens showing the decades long friendship the two shared. Tears came to my eyes immediately and remained throughout the performance. The audience did a great job singing along, and hearing all those voices join in was amazing. Just as the song was ending, Stevie put her head down -- she was too emotional to get to the final note. It was a heartbreaking moment. She kept her head down for a bit, and when she raised it again it was with tears on her face and a comment along the lines of "damn, I didn't want to screw that up." She didn't. It was a real emotion and everyone felt her grief.

Stevie took her final bow and it was time for a brief intermission while the set was changed over for Billy. We chatted a bit about the set and speculated on whether or not Stevie would come out and join on one of Billy's songs, and if so, which one.

We didn't have to wait too long -- Billy took the stage about 9:20, so about 30 minutes after the end of Stevie's set. He kicked off his set with Beethoven's Ode to Joy before launching into "My Life" -- woo hoo! the song that introduced me to Billy Joel at age 10! (I'm fairly sure I heard/knew some of his earlier songs, but "My Life" is the one that hooked me.) Up on my feet singing along under my mask!

Like Stevie's set, Billy played hits along with some deeper album tracks. I'm a bigger fan of Billy's than Stevie's, so have all his albums and thus really enjoyed the album tracks like "Vienna" and "Zanzibar." (Not that I didn't enjoy Stevie's, I just didn't know them all that well.) About half-way through the set, Stevie did indeed come out to join Billy on "And So It Goes." It's one of my favorite ballads of Billy's and unfortunately probably not the right song for Stevie to sing as a duet. Her trademark warble was a little rough on such a delicate melody. I think something a little more mid-tempo like "Say Goodbye to Hollywood" might have worked a bit better. Still, it got an enthusiastic response from the crowd.

A few personal highlights of Billy's set were "An Innocent Man" and "Only the Good Die Young." For the former, Billy joked how when he recorded it back in the early 1980s he recognized he was hitting some high notes that weren't coming as easily as they once were, so beware 40 years later! Billy managed to pull off the high notes, in part by starting the song in a lower key than the original. When "Only the Good Die Young" hit, I grabbed my cousins on either side and made them stand up -- can't have the Catholic school girls sitting for that one! (The crowd was a bit up and down all night, so were we.)

Throughout Billy's set he featured various members of his band in extended solos from his trumpet player on "Zanzibar" to multi-instrumentalist Crystal Taliefero singing "River Deep, Mountain High" in the middle of "The River of Dreams" (she's awesome!) Probably the most amazing part was when one of his guitarists came out and sang "Nessun dorma" from Puccini's Turandot (and yes, I had to look that up.) Absolutely incredible - what a voice! My mother's been trying to get me to go to the opera (or more accurately watch in-theater live streams of the Metropolitan Opera) for a few years now, maybe I'll finally take her up on it! This brief operatic interlude was followed by "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" and worked wonderfully.

Billy's set closed out of course with "Piano Man" and having 60,000 people singing along for the chorus felt epic. He did change up the second to last verse singing "It's a pretty good crowd for a Friday" and the crowd roared in response.

It was close to 11:00 by the time the main set ended, so I expected that we'd only get one or two more songs for the encore, but he managed to play five more! He kicked off the encore on guitar for "We Didn't Start the Fire" while the video screens behind him scrolled through photos of all the people/places/things he mentions in the lyrics. It was pretty clever and made it look like scrolling through photos on your phone. 

The show wrapped up about 11:20 and we made our way through the crowd to the parking lot. It took a while to wind our way out and back to the hotel. Denise had an earlier flight home than I did, so we met for breakfast the next morning then I dropped her at the airport and went off to meet Eileen for lunch before I too needed to get on a plane home. A quick fun trip to a wet and cloudy SoCal with my cousins! (And COVID negative as of Sunday.)

{You can check out cousin Denise's take here.}

Set lists courtesy of setlist.fm

Stevie Nicks:

Outside the Rain
Dreams
If Anyone Falls
Stop Draggin' My Heart Around (w/ Billy Joel)
Fall From Grace
For What It's Worth
Gypsy
Wild Heart
Bella Donna
Stand Back
Free Fallin'
Gold Dust Woman
Sara
Edge of Seventeen

Encore:
Rhiannon
Landslide

Billy Joel:

My Life (w/ 'Ode to Joy' intro)
Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)
Vienna
Zanzibar (Carl Fischer on trumpet)
An Innocent Man
Don't Ask Me Why
Just the Way You Are
Allentown
And So It Goes (w/ Stevie Nicks)
Say Goodbye to Hollywood
Sometimes a Fantasy
Only the Good Die Young
The River of Dreams (w/ 'River Deep, Mountain High' interlude sung by Crystal Taliefero)
Nessun dorma (Giacomo Puccini cover) (sung by Mike DelGuidice)
Scenes From an Italian Restaurant
Piano Man

Encore:
We Didn't Start the Fire
Uptown Girl
It's Still Rock and Roll to Me
Big Shot
You May Be Right (w/ 'Rock and Roll' by Led Zeppelin interlude sung by Mike DelGuidice)

February 25, 2023 -- Concerts Are REALLY Back!

Portland, OR
Moda Center

In 2020, when all my concerts were canceled and ultimately led to a two-year-long gap in seeing live music, I longed for a show full of life and energy. With all that was going on -- staying home, isolation, fear of the unknown -- the top thought in mind was "God, I need a Springsteen show." I had to get out of the house and feel alive, and that was the fastest, surest way I knew. In October, 2020, Bruce released a new album with the E Street Band, Letter to You. The first song I heard from that album was "Ghosts" and my immediate first reaction to hearing it was "oh man, this will sound so good live!" I hoped I wouldn't have to wait too long.

I only saw one concert in 2021, towards the end of the year as things became less restrictive and vaccinations more available, and it felt so good to feel like life was getting closer to "normal." I saw more shows in 2022, and even traveled to Las Vegas for a couple. Still, the one show I was really waiting for wasn't on the agenda. Yet.

Finally, in July 2022 Bruce Springsteen announced tour dates. First were shows in Europe, then shows in North America. But wait... there isn't a single show in California?! Oh hell no, I'm not waiting any longer than I have to for this. What's the closest show? Portland? Cool I have friends and cousins in Portland so at least a place to stay if no one wants to go with me. Sure, I figured there would be more North American dates scheduled later in the tour, but it's been too long to wait already. I texted my cousin Laura and friend Mary to see if either were interested in joining me, and Mary took me up on it. Ok off to register for tickets.

I won't go into the whole mess of getting tickets and I get why Springsteen fans are upset about the ticket prices for this tour, but after decades of being under market rate for an act of his stature I'm not going to begrudge him this time. (How Ticketmaster handles tickets and marked up prices on their internal resale market is a WHOLE different scenario.) Tickets were definitely more expensive than I expected, but I was able to get two behind the stage for only slightly more than I'd planned for.

Mary and I have been friends since high school and have always shared a love of music, just not always the same music. Her tastes run more towards power pop/Americana while mine more mainstream rock. There is definitely some overlap and we mostly enjoy at least some of each others preferred genres, and that rigid "I'll only listen to what I like" mindset of high school is long long gone. This is my long-winded way of saying Bruce Springsteen isn't someone Mary usually listens too and had never seen perform, so I gave her some "homework" leading up to the show. Listen to Letter to You and Bruce's latest release Only the Strong Survive since he will surely do a bunch of new songs. Learn the first verses to "Thunder Road" and "Hungry Heart." She did that along with listening to a bunch of E Street Radio on Sirius, so she had a baseline for the concert (while driving her husband slightly nuts with the deluge.)

Finally, it was time to fly to Portland for the show. Just a few complications. Portland had gotten a record amount of snow on Wednesday. Roads were still closed and icy when I flew up on Friday. I assured Mary I could get myself from the airport to her house either using a ride share service or public transit, no need to pick me up. I got to the airport only to have my flight delayed 30 minutes as there was a substitute pilot coming in from Sacramento and he'd gotten stuck in traffic. Ok, that's not too bad. Board the plane, pull out of the gate, and.... sit on the tarmac. There was a problem with one of the navigation computers. Back to the gate to wait on a fix. I figured absolute worst case scenario, so long as I was in Portland by noon on Saturday, I'd be OK. Fortunately we were eventually able to take off, but about 2.5 hours later than planned. I got to Mary's by 7:30 Friday night and had a yummy dinner while we caught up. (Thanks Kai!)

Saturday we just hung out around the house as it was still cold with melting snow on the ground. Not a bad way to spend the day, though I know Mary wished we could have gone out and done stuff before the show. I didn't mind. Resting up before Springsteen is always a good idea. We grabbed an Uber about 5 and headed off to the show. It took us forever to get some dinner as the nearest place to eat by the arena was absolutely packed. I think everyone had the same idea as we did -- don't want to drive/walk around too much in the snow and ice, so just grab something at the arena.

The nice thing about standing around with a bunch of people waiting on a show is a chance to chat with them. I was rather surprised at the number of people who told me they were seeing Springsteen for the first time. Not young kids either, but people at least in their 50s if not older. Including Springsteen on Broadway, this was going to be my thirteenth show. A few weeks ago, my cousin Denise sent me a question from a Twitter account she follows -- "Which band or artist do you think you've spent the most money on?" Well, that one is kind of a "duh" question (and if you're reading this and don't know the answer take a look at the menu to the right) but I wondered who ranked number two, so did some counting of concerts and after eliminating performers whose count is inflated by having toured with Journey, Bruce Springsteen came out on top. Rather as I had expected. He's just someone I refuse to miss if he's in town and I can get tickets, which I have mostly been able to since the first time I got tickets in 1992.

We made our way into the show and found our seats relatively easily. Mary had never been to the Moda Center before, so it was a new experience for both of us. Our seats were behind stage left, which gave us a pretty good view. I've done behind the stage seats before and other than the chance of getting a bunch of cables blocking your view, they're usually pretty good. Sure, the performer isn't usually looking in your direction, but it's a close seat and really a cool perspective looking out at what the performer sees. 

Leading up to the show, I'd been checking out the various set lists of earlier shows. Normally, I wouldn't do this as I like to be surprised, but I was curious what new songs would be included. I really enjoy Letter to You, and even though the broad theme of the album is one of loss, it's also a celebration of life and friendship, and resonates so much. Most of the set lists had at least four songs from Letter to You and one or two from Only the Strong Survive, including my favorite from that album, "Nightshift."

Still, even knowing what to expect, I was thrilled when the band took the stage and kicked into "No Surrender," which is probably my favorite track from the Born in the U.S.A. album. I actually prefer the version from Live 1975-1985 and it's slower pace, but the original version has the high energy needed for an opening track. Thematically, it also works really well with the newer songs, so when the next song was "Ghosts" it was a great transition. As I mentioned above, this was the song I absolutely had to hear live once I'd first heard it. It's a song made to be played live and hearing "Count the band in, then kick into overdrive/By the end of the set we leave no one alive" live and loud was exactly what I was hoping it would feel like.

Contrary to their contemporaries in the Eagles, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band put on a high energy non-stop performance. One song segued into another with very little down time in between, and absolutely no intermission! The core of the E Street Band are all in their early 70s, but clearly the energy they get by performing gets fed back out and keeps them young. There were a number of times when I would glance up at the screen and noticed just how much joy Bruce was getting from performing live with his long time friends and bandmates. You could just see how much he loves what he does.

We got a tour debut with "I'm on Fire" about half-way through the main set, which was a pleasant surprise. Alas, it took the slot of "Nightshift" which I had been really looking forward to. I love the original version by the Commodores and Bruce does an excellent job covering it. It's also a song that fit in thematically with the broader set. Between the new songs from Letter to You and the older selections from the catalog, many of the songs were about friendship, age, and loss. The deepest of those being friendship and the importance of those close life long relationships we form.

That theme carried on when Bruce got to "Last Man Standing" and he told the story of forming his first band the Castiles (which requires a hand gesture best described as "voila!") when he was in high school with his friend George Theiss. George's death a few years ago was the inspiration for Letter to You and left Bruce as the last living member of the Castiles -- the "Last Man Standing." This was followed by "Backstreets" and in combination they were powerful.

A few other highlights of the set included "Kitty's Back" which is one of his earliest songs. It's one I'm not actually that familiar with as it appears on his second album which I didn't own until a couple of years ago when I decided I needed to complete my catalog. It's mostly an instrumental tune and showcases the talent of the band fantastically. Everyone in the E Street Band, whether a long-time member or a more recent addition/hired for touring only are top notch. I was especially impressed with Jake Clemons over the course of the show. He's grown so much into his role in the band. While no one will ever replace Clarence, his nephew is doing an excellent job. He was really letting his personality show and that he feels like he's really a part of the band.

The encore came upon us quickly (without the band even leaving the stage, just a bow and back to work) and covered all the key points -- audience singing along to "Thunder Road," house lights up for "Born to Run," tribute to Clarence and Danny Federici with "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out." For the latter, Bruce went out into the audience to a secondary stage behind the general admission section to start it off. 

Finally, the band left the stage and it was just Bruce left for one last song. I knew what it would be since I had been reviewing the set lists. My favorite track from Letter to You -- "I'll See You in My Dreams." The song made me cry the very first time I heard it and has continued to do so nearly every time since. Bruce singing this one solo with just an acoustic guitar -- absolutely hammered me. Normally I would not be sitting down for the last song of the show, even a slow acoustic number, but I needed to for this one while I sobbed and smiled and sang along. It was excellent and so powerful.

Once the show was over, Mary and I headed out to catch our Uber home. While waiting in the cold Portland night, I asked her what she thought, and her first comment was "I've never seen so many people on stage at one time!" I got a big laugh out of that. Most of the bands she sees are four or five people and in smaller venues, so it's not surprising that there isn't a plethora of other musicians on stage. The horn section, percussionist, and backup singers alone were more than she usually sees at once. She definitely enjoyed them and can now add another Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee to her list (which is one of our on-going conversations about music, I'm leading in that category.)

My 2020 concert longing is finally sated, and even better, I've got tickets to both of his San Francisco shows in December which went on sale last Thursday. They're the last two shows of the tour, so I'm really excited for what they might hold.

 

Set list:

No Surrender
Ghosts
Prove It All Night
Letter to You
The Promised Land
Out in the Street
Candy's Room
Kitty's Back
I'm on Fire
Burnin' Train
Johnny 99
The E Street Shuffle
Last Man Standing
Backstreets
Because the Night
She's the One
Wrecking Ball
The Rising
Badlands

Encore:
Thunder Road
Born to Run
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Glory Days
Dancing in the Dark
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
I'll See You in My Dreams

February 21, 2023 - Return to the Hotel California

San Jose, CA
SAP Center

Including last night, I have tickets to six concerts already for 2023. It's been a long time since I've had that many shows lined up so far in advance. With any luck, I'll be adding at least one (and hopefully two) more tomorrow. After 2020 and the year of no concerts, I definitely don't take having shows lined up for granted. My first show after everything opened up again was the Eagles Hotel California show at Chase Center which soothed the soul more than I could imagine. So when it was announced that the Eagles would be back in San Jose with the same show, I jumped at the chance to see it again.

When I looked at the calendar to see if it made sense to take in a show on a Tuesday night, the only thing that stood out was my already purchased tickets for Bruce Springsteen in Portland on Saturday night. Nothing on my boss's calendar nor any of the managers I support, so yep, it should be fine. Buy.

Oh the best laid plans. Last month my boss decided he wanted to have a 2-day meeting with his team leadership for long term planning. The best option -- next week. So with Monday a holiday and Friday me being on plane to Portland, a Tuesday night concert was not the best option. Still, one of the upsides from the pandemic is that my job is now hybrid and I can work from home on a regular basis, so off I went to a weeknight concert knowing I could work from home the next day and thus sleep in a bit.

I went into the office yesterday since it's closer to the SAP Center than my apartment, but whew what a day to be out. It was extremely windy, so there were branches of trees all over the roads along with swirling leaves and other debris. The drive was fairly easy and I didn't even need to get on the freeway, but wow there was a lot of stuff to avoid. Grabbed some dinner in San Pedro Square which was interesting to see. I haven't been down there since before the pandemic and they've turned most of San Pedro street into street dining, which is a terrific idea. Had a yummy Mexican dinner and headed up to the venue where I encountered the world's stupidest bag policy. I bring a pretty small purse to shows, but apparently having a bag that's one-inch too wide (yet at least 4-inches shorter in height and depth) is too big to bring in. My options -- schlep back to my car and leave it in the trunk of my car or pay $10 to check it. I opted for the bag check and WHAT a pain in the rear that was as it required downloading an app which wouldn't work the first three times I tried it. Finally got it loaded, paid my $10 (plus an extra $0.59 in fees!) and put my now nearly empty bag in the locker having moved my phone, wallet, and glasses to my various pockets. Thank goodness it was a chilly evening and I was wearing my multiple pocketed jacket.

Purse frustrations resolved, I made my way into the arena, grabbed a bottle of water (at a self serve concession! Well, something has improved here!) Once I got settled in my seat, I focused on the pre-show music coming over the PA -- lots of Beatles tunes -- and they helped me calm down. At least until I looked at the time and saw the show was about to start, so I'd better pull out my new earplugs I'd bought. Shit. They're on my key chain, and thus in my purse. Fortunately, the opening notes of Billy Joel's "This Is the Time" started over the PA and I sensed that was the queue song before the show would start, so I focused on listening to that until the house lights went down and the Hotel California sign was lowered.

As before, the "butler" walked across the stage to put the Hotel California album on the turntable. The needle drops, curtain rises, and off we go. Don Henley was in good voice, but not as good as last time. Still, he doesn't sound like he's lost much over the years which is more than can be said for many of his peers. It was so appropriate that Vince Gill gets to sing "New Kid in Town." He does a fabulous job on it. As with the last show, my personal highlights were "Wasted Time" and "The Last Resort" which are two of my all time favorite songs and having the additional orchestra and choir just made them sound fantastic.

Once the Hotel California set wrapped up, about 50 minutes in to the evening, Don Henley stepped to the front of the stage and welcomed the crowd and talking about how "albums were only 40 minutes long" followed by a comment that 40 minutes would be too long for today's music, but he's "old and grumpy." I got a giggle since he's been old and grumpy since the 70s! The band then went off stage for a brief intermission.

Once the band returned, they kicked off the second set with "Seven Bridges Road," and though the line up has changed and aged since their 1970s prime, the harmonies are still amazing. We were then treated to a pleasant surprise when Deacon Frey joined the band on stage and sang "Take It Easy" and "Peaceful Easy Feeling." He's officially stopped touring with the band, so it was great to see him once again. It's still scary how much he looks like his dad at the same age. His voice is different than Glenn's, but still quite good. 

Vince Gill continued to impress me, and as he sang "Tequila Sunrise" it occurred to me that I should have that to drink for dinner instead of my margarita! I need to spend some time on Spotify listening to his own material. Joe Walsh had the line of the night as he introduced "Life's Been Good" by saying "it was a lot more fun being in your 20s in the 70s than being in your 70s in the 20s." That got a great response as did the song.

As is often the case when I see the Eagles, the crowd was pretty laid back and mellow, sitting almost entirely through the show. It wasn't until the last song of the main set -- "Heartache Tonight" -- that everyone got on their feet, clearly recognizing the show was nearing the end.

It was, of course, not the end. Out for the encore and my absolute favorite Eagles song "Desperado." I will never tire of that song and love that I get to hear it live and have quite a few times now. Deacon Frey came out once again and joined for the final two songs, taking lead once again on "Already Gone." The show closed out with Don Henley introducing "Best of My Love" by saying it was a song written about a couple falling apart, but he wanted to dedicate it to the "Dis-United States of America" as things have come more divisive over the years. With that preamble, the lyrics hit me differently and tears welled as I thought about how "we try to talk it over, but the words come out too rough." We really do need to give the best of our love.

Set list

Hotel California
Hotel California
New Kid in Town
Life in the Fast Lane
Wasted Time (w/ orchestra)
Wasted Time (Reprise) (orchestra)
Victim of Love
Pretty Maids All in a Row
Try and Love Again
The Last Resort (w/ orchestra)

-- Intermission --

Seven Bridges Road
Take It Easy (with Deacon Frey)
Peaceful Easy Feeling (with Deacon Frey)
One of These Nights
Take It to the Limit
Witchy Woman
In the City
I Can't Tell You Why
Tequila Sunrise
Lyin' Eyes
Life's Been Good
The Boys of Summer
Funk #49
Heartache Tonight

Encore:

Rocky Mountain Way
Desperado (w/ orchestra)
Already Gone (with Deacon Frey)
Best of My Love (with Deacon Frey)

 

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