Two legendary classic rock acts delight fans in different ways
Rod Stewart and Cheap Trick put on shows at Shoreline Amphitheatre
The two acts hail from different sides of the classic rock spectrum: One specializes in polished top 40 material and the other pumps out scrappy, guitar-driven numbers. But they share one thing in common: the ability to put broad smiles on thousands of faces.
Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Rod Stewart and Cheap Trick underscored that point Tuesday during a fun combo concert that drew some 10,000 fans to Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View.
Cheap Trick was the first to take the stage, delighting the audience with a 13-song set of satisfyingly rough-around-theedges power pop and classic rock.
The band was in top form, powered by founding members Rick Nielsen on guitar and Tom Petersson on bass as well as longtime vocalist Robin Zander. Daxx Nielsen — Rick's son — provided the beat, having taken over on the kit for Cheap Trick's wonderful original drummer, Bun E. Carlos, in 2010. Another band-member
offspring — Robin Taylor Zander — performed on rhythm guitar and handled lead vocals on a solid version of “Downed” (from Cheap Trick's classic 1977 outing, “In Color”).
Two of the biggest highlights came back to back fairly early in the set — and they both were cover songs.
The first was the Rockford, Illinois, band's powerful take on “California Man,” which hails from the discography of Jeff Lynne's pre-ELO band — the Move — although this particular number was written by Roy Wood, not Lynne. Cheap
Trick made this song its own, in a twist by incorporating a riff from another Move song into the mix, on 1978's “Heaven Tonight.”
The quintet then moved into its best-known cover, “Ain't That a Shame,” a charged-up take on the soulful, '50s classic that its original vocalist — Fats Domino — reportedly adored. The Cheap Trick rendition remains one of the best updates of an early rock tune, just a notch or two below what ELO did in reimagining Chuck Berry's “Roll Over Beethoven.”
People were smiling from ear to ear and singing along at top volume as the group settled into greatest hits territory. “The Flame” surely brought back memories of countless high school dances, reminiscences that quickly were replaced by thoughts of turning original vinyl (and eight-track tape) editions of “At Budokan” all the way up, as the group powered through “I Want You To Want Me” and “Surrender” at Shoreline.
Having opened its set with “Hello There,” Cheap Trick completed the musical arc by bidding fans adieu in two languages — with “Auf Wiedersehen” and “Goodnight.”
Following a short break, Stewart opened his approximately two-hour set with the first of many covers of the night, as he belted out Robert Palmer's iconic '80s number “Addicted to Love.”
“We've gotten off to a fine start tonight,” the 78-year-old Londoner told the crowd. “Cheap Trick was amazing, were they not?”
Stewart, who has sold some 120 million albums during a career that stretches back to the '60s, also sounded pretty amazing as he moved through such well-crafted
pop gems as “You Wear It Well,” “Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me),” “Young Turks” and “Forever Young.”
He benefited from backing by a tremendous 11-piece band, which included six female dancers/singers/multi-instrumentalists. Those women routinely stole the show, in a good way, as they performed on everything from mandolin and banjo to violin and harp. They also handled lead vocals on a couple of covers — Chaka Khan's “I'm Every Woman” and Labelle's “Lady Marmalade” — all the while keeping pace with Stewart's many wardrobe changes and contributing plenty of dance moves to the equation. Incredibly impressive. The music brought such joy to fans, who greeted each new offering — “The First Cut Is the Deepest,” “You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim),” “Maggie May” and more — like old friends.
A little over halfway through the 22-song set, Stewart made another wardrobe change and reappeared wearing all blue and yellow.
“I have changed my outfit to the colors of the Ukrainian flag,” he said, as he dedicated the antiwar song “Rhythm of My Heart” to the people of that war-torn country.
Stewart brought the main set to a close with
a series of fan favorites, the best being “The Killing of Georgie, Part I,” a number the Shoreline audience was fortunate to hear because the star isn't including it on all his tour stops.
A rowdy return to the stage saw him belting out a passionate encore of “Stay With Me.” Clearly, the audience wished it could.
CHEAP TRICK SET LIST >> 1. “Hello There” 2. “Hot Love”
3. “Southern Girls” 4. “California Man” 5. “Ain't That a Shame” 6. “Downed” 7. “I Know What I Want” 8. “The Flame” 9. “I Want You To Want Me” 10. “Surrender” 11. “Dream Police”
12. “Auf Wiedersehen” 13. “Goodnight”
ROD STEWART SET LIST >> 1. “Addicted to Love” 2. “You Wear It Well” 3. “Ooh La La” 4. “Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me)” 5. “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”
6. “Young Turks” 7. “Forever Young” 8. “The First Cut Is the Deepest” 9. “You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)” 10. “Maggie May” 11. “I'd Rather Go Blind” 12. “Downtown Train” 13. “Rhythm of My Heart” 14. “I'm Every Woman” 15. “Tonight's The Night” 16. “Have I Told You Lately” 17. “Lady Marmalade” 18. “The Killing of Georgie, Part I” 19. “Some Guys Have All the Luck”
20. “It Takes Two” 21. “Do Ya Think I'm Sexy” Encore:
22. “Stay With Me”