Hi all! I realize it's been a long time since I've posted here, and I'm doing so tonight because I absolutely must give kudos to Mr. Don Henley! This was the best solo show I've seen from him by far. It was unbelievable. This is the 7th Cass County show I've seen of his (8th if you count the Runaway event), and this topped them all.
I see where Soda posted the setlist from the Little Rock show, and the setlist tonight was exactly the same (including no Best of My Love), except he inserted a song I've never heard before. Rainy Night in Georgia, originally sung by Brooke Benton and written by Tony Joe White (I think...it's not like you can get your cell phone out and take notes.) He said they worked it up three hours before, and it was definitely appropriate, as the weather here has been rainy my entire trip. He did a fantastic job on it, it suited his voice, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The crowd was fantastic. Simply fantastic. It's the best crowd I've been a part of that I can remember. Probably since the Atlanta Falcons won the NFC Championship a few hours earlier, everyone was in a good mood, and they were ready to party. They enjoyed the intro with the radios, but I have to say, when they all came out and did an absolutely amazing job on Seven Bridges Road, the crowd was totally hooked. After giving a standing ovation for it, most stayed standing for Dirty Laundry. The crowd sang along to nearly every song, and they seemed to appreciate the songs from Cass County. Of course, when an audience gives such great feedback, it drives those on stage to be even better. Don, at least, was jumping around at times, and he smiled a lot and looked like he thoroughly enjoyed himself.
He didn't say 'for Glenn' before Wasted Time and Desperado, but he did say it was a rough year and we lost a lot of people, including his good friend Glenn Frey. He said something else there as well, but I could not hear it.
I very nearly sold my ticket for this show, if I wouldn't have had to take the hit on airfare and prepaid hotel, I might have. My Steelers were playing in the AFC Championship game, and I have not missed watching a Steeler playoff game since about 1974 or 1975, and have only missed watching a handful of regular games in my entire life. Even without taking into consideration how the Steelers played tonight (or didn't play, as the case may be), Don definitely made it worthwhile. (My brother texted me frequently with game updates, and in spite of being front row center, I don't think anyone noticed me glancing at my phone).
There were people using their phones during the first couple of songs, and Don nicely asked them to stop, saying he'd make a deal with them, they could video and take pictures during the song about the hotel later in the show. So, expect to see a few put up on YouTube, I imagine.
One other thing, as each of the ladies sang their parts in the duets, as their parts came to an end, the crowd applauded even though the song was still going on, and Don was quite pleased by that. It was a very appreciative crowd, but then again, everyone on stage knocked it out of the park, and gave us a lot to appreciate.
It's still bittersweet for me to listen to the Eagles songs, and even his solo songs that I've seen the Eagles perform. For some reason, tonight it was hard to hear One of These Nights. All I could think about was how much I missed seeing Glenn on stage. Still, I could appreciate the great job they did on it, and how much the crowd enjoyed it.
It wouldn't be a complete review from if I didn't include what a fantastic job he did on The Heart of the Matter. I absolutely love love love this song, and while he always does a great job, he put a lot of passion into it tonight, which is hard to do since for this tour he plays the guitar on it instead of just holding the microphone. This is the last show of Don's I have scheduled, I hope he schedules more for the summer or fall. As long as he continues to perform The Heart of the Matter, I'll continue to follow him around the country. I like all his other songs, of course, but THOTM is a song above all other (secular) songs in my book.
In case you hadn't noticed, I thought it a fantastic show.