Yesterday we ran a few reviews from concerts that happened last weekend ...
And then this one came in from East Coast Forgotten Hits Correspondent Shelley Sweet-Tufano ...
A free outdoor concert with Eric Burdon!
I booked off as soon as July came up on the request calendar. I had some
interesting reactions from others before the concert. My DJ coworker: Are you
going? I think we are planning on going. I asked D***** (person who attended
Zombies concert with us) and he said, "No. Last time I saw him, he was
terrible." Not much encouragement there. My son? "Do not miss seeing Eric
Burdon! You gotta see him! You don't know when or where you can see these great
people."
Well, I was going no matter what anyone
else said, and no matter who else was going.
Gorgeous summer night. I arrive around
6:00 pm and sit and read till show-time (7:30 for opening act; 8:15 for Eric and
the Animals) The field is already well inhabited, but as my promoter friend,
Mimsie, is playing Beatles outtakes and live recordings over the sound system, I
select an area straight back from the stage and in front of all well-placed
speakers so I am pretty sure I will hear the stage well. I may not see anybody's
face clearly but I am here to hear tonight.
As The Animals take their spots
the crowd surges into applause of anticipation. They begin a loooong intro of
'Spill the Wine'. Applause explodes as Eric Burdon ambles onto the stage,
bopping in time to the music. This man can't lose at this point. This is an
extremely receptive, eager audience. And WOW! He hits it from the start. The
verbal script of the song sounds fresh and has inflection. Let me go quickly
through the set-list with comments for those who want to know what his show is
bringing on this tour.
Next is 'When I Was Young' and I
can't help but wonder how a sound like Eric's that fills up the outdoors can
ever be contained indoors. Yes, of course, the sound system helps, but GIVE THE
MAN CREDIT. Whew, he is powerful.
"Here's a song about Monterey" ... No
explanations, no apologies, no talk. Just ... this is what is next.
He is open
about his bands' participation and introduces them as they do solos throughout
the show ...
Davey Allen on keyboards, Johnzo West on guitar, Dustin Koester on drums, Justin Andres on guitar (electric and acoustic), Ruben Salinas on saxophone and woodwind and Evan Mackey on trombone and brass. (My apologies for any mistakes!)
It is sunset, but Eric wears dark glasses. Very bluesy, very R&B,
very early jazz.
"This song is called 'Anything'. I want you to figure it out."
I hear a twang added at times so that 'anything' becomes 'anythang'. 'Bo Didley
Special' and Leadbelly's 'In The Times'. Aha, you are expecting Leadbelly's
'House of the Rising Sun' next ... wait for it ... because right now 'Momma
Told Me Not To Come' needs to be sung with sax, trombone, drums, keyboard AND
guitars.
David Bowie? Pronounced "David
BOWie" by Eric gets a deep, gritty 'Space Odyssey' presentation where, I can
honestly say, is the only time I hear him slightly off-tune as he started the
first chorus. He is very active on stage, as are his band. I saw some youtubes
of this concert and he was jumping around more than I realized. If you watch the
youtubes, you will be disappointed with the sound. It was so much better than
represented there.
Let's speed this up!
'Hit Me
With Your Stick' (ended up as my DJ friend's favorite), a slightly new
arrangement of 'Please, Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood', 'Don't Bring Me Down' (I
have video of this one from the Ed Sullivan Show), and 'House of the Rising Sun'
with solo acoustic guitar for first verse ends the show. NO! COME ON PEOPLE! You
know and I know it does not end here. Unfortunately, the man behind me screaming
"MORE" in our ears, over and over does not. When Eric and the Band return, he
feels obligated to point out, "That did it!" OK then, sir, thank you.
They had already received a
standing ovation, which on a large hilly field must feel terrific when they
continued their encore with 'We Gotta Get Out of This Place', 'It's My Life' and
'Hold On! I'm Coming'. On that last song, the band totally lets go and dances
around, hair flying, without missing a note on guitar or keyboard. Whew! Another
standing ovation ... a steamy July night ... the stars emerging in the sky to
compliment the stage ... and a drive home that was filled with contentment and
the knowledge that this after-concert high is why I keep going.
An after concert reaction from
my DJ friend?
"I am shocked at just how good he was."
Shelley J Sweet-Tufano
I've never had the pleasure of seeing Eric Burdon live in concert ... but I hear it's one hell of a show.
He has performed here several times over the past few years and his concerts typically sell out. (A spot he seems especially partial to is The City Winery, where he is booked again September 26th and September 28th. Tickets are still available for both shows through The City Winery online box office: http://www.citywinery.com/chicago/tickets/eric-burdon-the-animals-9-26.html
