United We Rock tour reviews

[UndertheWire]

A review from the Hoston show: http://www.houstonpress.com/music/reo-speedwagon-styx-and-don-felder-at-cynthia-woods-mitchell-pavilion-july-29-2017-9653872

[sodascouts]

Thanks!

[Delilah]

Thank you for the Houston Press link. I was at this show and I definitely agree with the positive review of the performances.

Unfortunately, we were late arrivals and missed the first 4 songs of Don's set. We had good seats, a few rows from the front. However the security guy standing at the entry to the VIP section was standing right in view of the camera so his head ended up being in a lot of my shots. We caught Don during "Witchy Woman." I'm bummed that I didn't get to hear his only solo material, "Heavy Metal (Takin a Ride)". However the rest of the show was really good. His vocals were better than I expected, and as the Press reviewer mentioned, he could hit some high notes. Who knew? I know there are rumors of him using auto tune, and perhaps he has done so in the past, but I didn't get that impression from this concert. At one point, he ad-libbed "ya'll" at the end of a line. I liked his energy and how he moved around on stage a lot. He also grinned quite a bit.

Appearance-wise he looked fit and healthy and summery in his thin dark shirt and white pants. He wore sunglasses, no doubt because the stage at this outdoor venue was facing the setting sun. I would rather have seen his eyes but then I can't blame him for not wanting to squint and sing the whole time.

Some notable moments:
When singing the line "some people like to stay out late" from HT, he points to himself.
Tommy Shaw joined him on banjo for "Take It Easy."
Dave Amato joined him on the dueling guitar part on "Hotel California."

The best part for me was HC. It was thrilling to see and hear that song performed by the guy who wrote the music. After watching it on video so many times, this was an awesome moment.

A note about Styx. They rocked the house. Lots of energy, lots of running around and getting on risers and the piano, etc. The two big singalongs were "Come Sail Away" and "Renegade" (surprise, lol). What was touching for me was Tommy Shaw talking about how the band started with 2 brothers going downstairs and playing music. Then he gave a big introduction to one of them, their original bass player, Chuck Panozzo, who has a chronic illness and hasn't been a full-time member for many years. Mr. Panozzo didn't look especially strong or sprightly, but there he was, playing bass on a couple of songs with band mates who obviously respected him a great deal. Their regular bass player switched to a double-neck and electric guitars in the meantime. I was so moved by this I almost started crying. Their stock has shot up in my book since then.

A note about REO Speedwagon. Another terrific performance. These guys are rockers, never mind I Can't Fight This Feeling, etc. The big drawback was Kevin Cronin's voice. I haven't been following REO lately and I wasn't expecting his voice to sound like it was sped up on a recording. Honestly if I had closed my eyes I would have thought it was Porky Pig singing Don't Let Him Go. His singing was fine. He hit the right notes and all. The rest of the band sounded great but it may be time to wind it down.

Overall I was very impressed at how great these acts rocked it out with vigor and enthusiasm and they did it all themselves; no 10-piece backing band used here (sorry, a pet peeve of mine). Even though we missed a couple of songs, I definitely feel like we got our money's worth.

[sodascouts]

Thanks for this review! How awful that you missed the first four songs, but it sounds like that amazing "Hotel California" might have been worth the price of admission alone!

[Dawn]

Thanks UTW for the link!

Hey there Delilah ..sounds like you had a great time, thanks for your review!!

[Delilah]

You're welcome, Soda and Dawn. We did have a great time.

I hope I wasn't too harsh on Kevin Cronin. :? I really am a fan of the band.

[listen to the eagles]

Delilah,

You might have been nice to Cronin!! I have always been an REO fan, but time has caught up with him. There was a noticeable difference from a couple of yrs ago.

Felder put on an enjoyable show, but for me it is easy to see why he didn't sing lead with the Eagles.

[East Texas Girl]

Glad you had a great time Delilah!

I was reading the Houston review and noticed that TITTL was not listed in Don Felder's set list and that you, Delilah, did not mention it either. He performed it when I saw him last year, wonder why he took it out?

Maybe Kevin Cronin was under the weather or having an off night?? I saw REO last year as well (twice) and he/they sounded great.

[Delilah]

Delilah,

You might have been nice to Cronin!! I have always been an REO fan, but time has caught up with him. There was a noticeable difference from a couple of yrs ago.

Felder put on an enjoyable show, but for me it is easy to see why he didn't sing lead with the Eagles.

Well, I calls 'em as I sees 'em. And hears 'em. :mrgreen:

With Don F I went in knowing what to expect. Kevin Cronin was just kind of a shock. I guess I expected (a little naively) to hear the same voice, or something close, that I heard in all those great songs. Maybe it was more due to age than an off night, b/c otherwise he performed great. He moved around a lot, sang in tune, talked to the audience, etc.


Glad you had a great time Delilah!

I was reading the Houston review and noticed that TITTL was not listed in Don Felder's set list and that you, Delilah, did not mention it either. He performed it when I saw him last year, wonder why he took it out?

Maybe Kevin Cronin was under the weather or having an off night?? I saw REO last year as well (twice) and he/they sounded great.

Thanks, ETG. Don doesn't have the same bass player he had last year. That guy (I forget his name) was a trained opera singer so he was well suited to sing TITTL. I'm assuming there's no one in Don's band who has the vocal chops to sing it now.

[East Texas Girl]

Thanks, ETG. Don doesn't have the same bass player he had last year. That guy (I forget his name) was a trained opera singer so he was well suited to sing TITTL. I'm assuming there's no one in Don's band who has the vocal chops to sing it now.

Oh, I did not know that, I'm sure that is it. I do not remember his name either, but he did a good job with it!

[Delilah]

Yes, he sure did!

[WalshFan88]

Styx does put on a good show. I like them better as a rock band than a theatrical band Dennis DeYoung wanted to be. I can't stand DeYoung, IMO rock and roll and broadway should NEVER mix and I'm not a fan of plays or theater, but still. To me Styx is Come Sail Away, Too Much Time On My Hands, Renegade, Blue Collar Man, etc. NOT Mr. Roboto, Kilroy Was Here, etc. The best thing they ever did was dump Dennis to the curb and finally rock a bit and "leave Broadway" for good.

REO is amazing. I love Kevin's voice. He's much better than Murphy or Lutrell. I like how he adds the "in a" to the end of lines in Roll With The Changes. Nice vocal quirk. I haven't heard them live in a couple years but I think they are awesome and even when they are doing Keep On Loving You and Can't Fight This Feeling, they still rock. I liked the power ballad era where some didn't like it.

Glad to hear Felder was in fine form.