A Joni Mitchell reference in a post not about Joni Mitchell. It's outdoor summer music season - have you seen any great outdoor shows this year? My brother won free tickets for Steve Winwood and Santana at the First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre last Friday night, July 9, 2010. I also paid an insane amount of money for tickets to the following evening's Ravinia performance by Squeeze and Cheap Trick.
If both concerts held any common ground, it's that well-preserved and genuine talent can rise above any generation's trendy novelty tunes. The major players at these two concerts were all over 50, some into their 60s. They played and sang with the energy of 20-somethings and their gifts have lost none of their sparkle.
My weekend began with Steve Winwood's set in Tinley Park. You can find a selection of Winwood's recordings here, but that's just what we own at the library under his name. Depending on your age, Winwood's name conjures up different songs. I remember his solo pop stardom with albums like "Back In the High Life," "Arc of a Diver," and "Talking Back To the Night." For my brother, in his early 50s, Winwood is the defining member of supergroups from the 60s and 70s like Blind Faith and Traffic. A friend of mine in his late 50s couldn't place Winwood's name until I said, "Well, he started out in the Spencer Davis Group." That's quite a career: he joined up with Spencer Davis at the age of 14 and is still enthralling audiences at the age of 62. Winwood wisely touched on every era in his career during his live show and his mastery of keyboards, vocals and blistering electric guitar left me wondering how on earth Eric Clapton continues to garner all the attention.
Then Carlos Santana took the stage and the accompanying montage of photographs chronicled his journey from long-haired hippie days on the stage at Woodstock to today's crossover pop/rock/Latin success. We have CDs featuring Santana the band and Carlos Santana the solo artist. Of the four acts I saw this weekend, I was the least familiar with Santana - I know the hits and that's it. But you didn't need to have an encyclopedic knowledge of the songs to enjoy this show. The large band had amazing positive energy and chemistry and the tight musicianship propelled these tunes into the stratosphere. I do like to dance and this music got everyone on their feet, smiling, moving, grooving. Perfect for a summer night, even in Midwestern humidity. You may have read the news stories that Santana proposed to his new girlfriend on the stage at Tinley Park - he did, but I have no insights to provide as I (rather foolishly) headed to the ladies' room right before it happened!
Next night, we were in literally a different part of the world, the tony environs of Ravinia in Highland Park, IL. I haven't ventured back to Ravinia since struggling to enjoy a Chieftains concert there many years ago. Too many mosquitos, too many chatty packs of friends who didn't pay attention to the music, and a very difficult parking lot to maneuver. When I heard that two of my favorite bands of all time - Squeeze and Cheap Trick - were playing there, together, I figured it was time to give Ravinia one more shot. Tickets from StubHub were ridiculously priced but I wasn't going to chance another night on the lawn. We were in the covered pavilion, the only place to be if you actually care about seeing and hearing the performers.
Even as a die-hard fan, I found this pairing a bit odd. The performances were so outstanding I didn't care. Squeeze opened with "Black Coffee In Bed," and ended with "Tempted" plus an encore of "Pulling Mussels From A Shell." The songs in between were probably known only to real fans but that's just fine with me. I could not believe how great Glenn Tilbrook sounds after all this time and it was nice to see him back together with Chris Difford. Tilbrook's guitar playing may have been the biggest surprise of the weekend. I saw Squeeze in the 80s and don't remember him being such an accomplished player! Then again, all the songs were synthesized back in those days. I left regretting only one thing: that I don't have tickets to see them in Milwaukee later on this month.
Finally, our hometown heroes (well, I'm from Algonquin, that's close enough to Rockford), Cheap Trick. Time for a confession - I have seen Cheap Trick in concert 10 times, beginning in 1978! So they really can't put anything past me. :) The Ravinia show was a killer - probably the best I've ever seen from Cheap Trick. Who can say that about a band that's been playing for 36 years? I suspect many of the Ravinia attendees were less than thrilled as the band played only 3 of its very recognizable hits - I was ecstatic. (I never EVER need to hear "The Flame" again.) Robin Zander is 57 years old but looks/sounds decades younger. As I said up above, the weekend proved beyond a doubt that people with authentic, distinctive talent can stay fresh and relevant as the trends burn out and hit the ground all around them. If you haven't heard what your favorite singers and bands are doing lately, maybe you can check 'em out this summer at a concert venue near you. If not, bring in your library card and grab a pile of our CDs. You'll be glad you did.
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