Ringo Starr & and his All-Starr Band – Spokane WA : October 16 2016

October 18, 2016 by Leave a Comment

What a treat to finally get to see Ringo Starr in concert. It’s hard to believe that I have seen Paul McCartney 3 times and this is the first time that I have ever seen the other surviving Beatle.

I went to Spokane (just about ½ hour flight from Seattle) as I had missed the show in Seattle the week before due to other priorities. They were performing at the INB Performing Arts Center, which was in the convention center downtown in the river front area…very beautiful. Kind of a cool little theater, with the only problem being a very bouncy wooden floor. I was seated in the last row of the pit (3rd row from the stage) and it looked like the seats were temporary and not very well secured to the floor. When people were dancing in their seats, it really made the entire section of seats move with them. Made me a little woozy at times. Other than that, there was a lot of room between rows, the seats fit normal size humans, the lighting was good and the sound was great.

So, the thing with Ringo Starr is that he plays (and has for quite some time) with a group of other really great musicians (the All-Starr Band) who come from many different bands and all have extensive music catalogs of their own. The show is made up of the band playing these hit songs. The members are Steve Lukather (guitarist from Toto), Gregg Rolie (Keyboardist from early Santana and early Journey), Todd Rundgren (solo artis as well as guitar and vocals in many bands through the years) and Richard Page (bass player and singer for Mr. Mister). These guys had great chemistry and were all clearly enjoying performing together and had a great deal of respect and admiration for Ringo Starr. Todd Rundgren seemed to have the most energy of the group running from side to side of the stage and jumping around like a crazy person… I hope to have as much energy and love for what I do when I am 69 years old.

Some of the more memorable songs of the night were, I Saw The Light, Bang the Drum All Day and Love is the Answer sang by Todd Rundgren. Steve Lukather had a couple Toto oldies but goodies on the list such as Africa and Hold the Line. I was very impressed with not only Gregg Rolie’s keyboards, but also his incredible voice on Black Magic Woman. Richard Page (who’s name I didn’t recognize) did an incredible job singing and playing Kyrie and Broken Wings, both very big hits from the band Mr. Mister. Of course the highlight of the show were the Beatles and Ringo songs such as Matchbox, It Don’t Come Easy, Boys, Yellow Submarine, You’re Sixteen, I Wanna Be Your Man, Photograph among others. They closed the show with a great rendition of With a Little Help From My Friends and Give Peace a Chance. I made a little YouTube video compilation and added it below.

I would definitely go to see them again.

 

 

Filed Under: Classic Rock Tagged With:

Billy Idol – Las Vegas NV : October 15 2016

October 18, 2016 by Leave a Comment

billyidol-vegas-10152016

Another great show with Billy Idol in Las Vegas the other night. He and Steve Stevens always put on such a great show. I was fortunate enough tonight to be able to attend a meet and greet before the show started. They were both very personable and friendly and provided a great photo op.

I had a seat in the balcony off to the far stage left, and although it was in the front row I really thought it was a horrible seat when I first sat down. The stage was down, right in front of me with the video screen almost horizontally aligned with my position and the column of arena speakers were about 3 feet from my right ear. But when the show started I actually had a great bird’s eye view of the full stage and a perspective of the performance I didn’t have a few weeks ago when Toni and I were there.. We had seats at a table right up front of the stage which were awesome, but this seat was actually just as good but different.

The set of songs were the same as the previous night we saw them and I enjoyed every minute of it.

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Tribute to not going to the Desert Trip 2016

October 9, 2016 by Leave a Comment

Here are a few of my pictures of the bands performing as part of Desert Trip 2016. These are shots I took through the years starting with Roger Waters during The Wall tour back in 2010, Paul McCartney performing the last concert at the legendary Candlestick Park in San Francisco in 2014, to Neil Young performing in Seattle and The Rolling Stones performing at AT&T Stadium in Arlington Texas, both in 2015 and last but not least, Bob Dylan at the beautiful, Chateau Set. Michele winery in Woodinville Washington in 2016.

There were a number of reasons I didn’t go to this show this year, least of which was that the tickets sold out too quick and I couldn’t get any decent seats or accommodations. But as I have seen all of these bands at least once throughout the years, I didn’t feel compelled, although I have to admit…I do wish I could have made it because all of these bands are timeless and you can never see them too many times.

Filed Under: Classic Rock

ZZ TOP – The Palms – Las Vegas : October 7 2016

October 8, 2016 by Leave a Comment

Great show tonight at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. ZZ Top put on on an incredible show and although Gregg Allman was supposed to open tonight, apparently he couldn’t make it so Kenny Wayne Shepherd stepped in and did an absolutely incredible job. I have have Kenny Wayne before and was really looking forward to seeing Gregg Allman as I have missed a number roof opportunities to see him in the past. If there is anyone who could have done a better job opening for ZZ Top than Gregg Allman, it would be Kenny Wayne Shepherd…what a great guitarist and performer.

I had a VIP meet and greet package for the show tonight so had an awesome seat in the second row, dead center and nobody was sitting in front of me, so it was perfect view of the stage. It was really strange as most of the meet and greets that I do (actually all of them) happen before the show, but as I was chatting with VIP hostess, she was saying that Billy Gibbons never understood why artists do pre-show meet and greets, and that after the show, and their performance is (what he feels) is the best time to meet the fans..

Anyway, they put on a great show and had a great set… they opened with Got Me Under Pressure, Waitin’ For The Bus and Jesus Just Left Chicago and proceeded to play all the greatest hits from their career. Some of my favorites were, I’m Bad, I’m Nation Wide and of course Cheap Sunglasses, Legs and Sharp Dressed Man. I think my favorites were La Grange and Tush which were their two encore songs. They also did a real good rendition of Jimmy Hendrix’s Foxy Lady.

Another great show down here is Vegas.. Such a great place to come and see a show. Everyone has so much energy (or maybe it’s just that they are drunk 🙂 ) anyway, it was a good crowd and a great show. I’ll be back next weekend to see Billy Idol again.

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Art Garfunkel – Tacoma WA : September 24 2016

September 27, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Stock Photo

Stock Photo

Well, there is always a first and after almost four years of posting pictures and writing about how good a ton of concerts have been, I finally went to one which yielded no pics and very little to write about.

I was anxious to see Art Garfunkel as I recently saw Paul Simon and felt that I must round out this incredible duo if not together then as separate solo artists.

I have to say that the show had a lot to contend with as I have not been in the mellow , laid-back relax mood that I am typically in, and my patience for crowds was quite limited. This wasn’t a crowd that I have been accustom to either….no energy and very stuffy. Mr. Garfunkel was also not performing quite to the energy level that I needed that night. I did enjoy when he performed The Boxer, Scarborough Fair and Homeward Bound, but had to leave at the intermission. His voice was great and he sang the songs beautifully, but the mellow mood, soft music and the old man sitting next to me constantly farting forced me to make it an early night.

I do regret not getting any photos, but as there was a fairly stern message before the show to shut off all electronics, and Mr. Garfunkel reciting one of his poems about hating distractions from electronics made me decide it was not worth it.. I was also a little concerned about getting a stern look or finger wag from one of my elderly neighbors or worse, a harsh “no photographs!” from one of the attendants forcing me to keep my camera well hidden.

Oh well, there’s always a first…hopefully it will be the last.

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