Back in the mid-70s an Eagles/Steve Miller Band pairing was a stadium concern — and the reason for that was evident when the two performed again on Friday night Oct. 13 at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena.
Part of Eagles’ The Long Goodbye farewell tour, both acts brought a parade of hits and radio staples (often both), primarily from the 70s; the most “recent” of the 34 songs performed between the two was Eagles’ co-founder Don Henley’s 1984 solo hit “The Boys of Summer.” But that’s exactly what the crowd of more than 14,000 paid substantial ticket prices to hear and you’d be hard-pressed to find a complaint, from Miller’s opening “Swingtown” to Eagles’ finale of “Life in the Fast Line” three and a half hours later.
It was also a time for both groups to pay tribute to absent friends. Miller, per usual, dedicated “Jet Airliner” to his godfather and mentor Les Paul and added Jimmy Buffett, who passed away during September. Eagles also saluted Buffett, who inducted the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, before its rendition of “The Boys of Summer” and gave props to founding bassist Randy Meisner before current member Vince Gill deliver his signature tune, “Take It to the Limit.”
Interestingly Glenn Frey, Eagles’ Royal Oak-raised co-founder wasn’t mentioned by name but was certainly there in spirit, particularly during “Peaceful Easy Feeling,” which was sung by his son Deacon Frey and finished with a photo of Frey on the video screen behind the band.
But those solemn moments were a break from the nostalgic party that reigned throughout the night. For Miller — whose band was added late as a substitute for Steely Dan, off the road after frontman Donald Fagen was hospitalized with an undisclosed illness — it was a second visit to the metro area in less than two months, following a headline stop Aug. 12 at the Pine Knob Music Theatre. The quartet proved more than acceptable substitution, with a 65-minute set that, sans keyboardist Joseph Wooten, had a leaner and grittier feel than its predecessor.
The maroon-jacketed Miller, seemingly ageless at a recent 80 (Oct. 5), introduced himself as “Stevie ‘Guitar’ Miller” and lived up to the adopted middle name with nimble playing and frequent stretches on songs such as “The Post,” “Jet Airliner” (which was played twice, one in an acoustic arrangement similar to songwriter Paul Pena’s original), “Living in the U.S.A.” and a trippy “Fly Like an Eagle,” on which Miller estimated Wooten’s parts with his guitar. He also celebrated the 50th anniversary of “The Joker” with the title track, a singalong that featured some slick slide playing by Miller.
That teed things up nicely for Eagles’ portion of the evening, which Henley referred to as “a couple hours of vacation from the turmoil outside, throughout the world.” The group started with a quick video reminder of the band’s iconic history before taking flight with the a capella start of Steve Young’s “Seven Bridges Road,” a gauntlet-throwing delight that proved the group, eight singers strong in this configuration, still has the vocal chops that have been its trademark since 1972.
And from there the jukebox ran non-stop, through the Frey-sung “Take It Easy,” “One of These Nights,” the Gill-led “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Best of My Love…” — you get the picture. Eagles has always been careful with its stagecraft and hasn’t altered that for the long goodbye, delivering nearly studio-perfect versions with up to five guitars and two keyboards — not to mention a crystal-clear sound mix — capturing the layers and nuances of the 21 tunes. There was no horn section this time, or orchestra as on the 2022 Hotel California tour; it was simply a band playing generational favorites whose licks and lyrics were familiar to everyone in the ground.
Per usual it was clown prince guitarist Joe Walsh who really lit things up, with “In the City” from “The Warriors” soundtrack (and later Eagles’ “The Long Run”) album, an exuberant rendition of the James Gang’s “Funk #49,” the comic “Life’s Been Good” and “Rocky Mountain Way.” Longtime (since 2001) adjunct guitarist Steuart Smith, meanwhile, remained Eagles’ semi-secret weapon, playing most of the night’s solos from far stage left and even engaging Frey in a bit of six-string dueling at the end of “Already Gone.” A faithful “Hotel California” was delivered with studio-worthy precision, and the hush of “Desperado” gave way to the cranking attack of “Life in the Fast Lane” before the group said its goodbye.
If it’s really goodbye, of course. Henley called the notion of farewell “bittersweet” early in the show, but later on, as he thanked the crowd for “a wonderful 51-year run,” he teased, with a smirk, that “we might be back, though. We’ll have to see how the old skeleton holds up.” You can bet that every fan at Little Caesars on Friday would be happy to recommend a chiropractor to make sure it does.
Review: ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour’ among greatest concert films of all time
Detroit area theaters ready for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour film
The Link LonkQueen founders and Adam Lambert keep the band’s legacy alive
October 14, 2023 at 11:27PM
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiZGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZW9ha2xhbmRwcmVzcy5jb20vMjAyMy8xMC8xNC9lYWdsZXMtc2F5cy1hLWxvbmctZ29vZGJ5ZS1tYXliZS1hdC1saXR0bGUtY2Flc2Fycy1hcmVuYS_SAWhodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVvYWtsYW5kcHJlc3MuY29tLzIwMjMvMTAvMTQvZWFnbGVzLXNheXMtYS1sb25nLWdvb2RieWUtbWF5YmUtYXQtbGl0dGxlLWNhZXNhcnMtYXJlbmEvYW1wLw?oc=5
Eagles says a Long Goodbye — maybe — at Little Caesars Arena - Oakland Press
https://news.google.com/search?q=little&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
No comments:
Post a Comment