Sir, you're 59 years-old! For the love of God, take off those spandex pants! I had the pleasure of seeing Rod Stewart in concert at the Journal Pavilion last night, and it was an amazing show. Rod is one of the very few "mainstream" pop artists of whom I'm a huge fan. I admit I prefer his work with Faces, the Jeff Beck Group and his early solo stuff to his later pop superstar status and his current phase as Tony Bennett gargling nails. But, that said, the man can still entertain with the best of them.
It rained through a good deal of the show, but that didn't matter. I had on my rain poncho on, and I was too captivated by the concert to care about the weather.
The show was by far the most elaborately staged concert I've seen yet. The first half was Rod on a white stage, backed by amps disguised as swanky white refrigerators, and a snazzy video screen. In this segment he did mostly upbeat rock and pop hits, while going from a nearly punk orange and red outfit to a sharp black suit. He nearly had as many costume changes as Cher. He still had all the rock star swagger down perfectly, and his voice was in fine form. He also let his seventeen year-old daughter come out and sing a Pretenders cover.
After an eleven minute break, the show changed considerably. The set was now an elaborate, old fashioned orchestra stage, with stairs in the center, backed by glittery gold drapery. Rod came out in a tux and sang old standards and some of his slower ballads. He got gradually less formal, sipped a cocktail on stage and ended the show in a red velvet suit kicking soccer balls into the audience.
I forgot to mention his three fabulous and fabulous-looking backup singers, who each got several chances to shine in duets with Rod or solo. Also, he had two gorgeous women in his band; a stunning thin blonde who played sax and a more mature, but dead sexy brunette on violin. Hey, Rod can get the ladies.
It was also nice to see that some of the proceeds Rod gets from his high ticket price obviously go
back into things like hiring the best people and getting the best possible stage design and production.
Rod, you are one classy dude. Keep up the good work!