Josh Bradley Live

Adam Lambert

Brian May

Brian May

Adam Lambert

Roger Taylor

Adam Lambert

Brian May and Roger Taylor

Brian May

Queen + Adam Lambert played their sold out, debut Tampa show Sunday night

Roger Taylor

Roger Taylor

Adam Lambert has a message for everyone saying that Queen died when Freddie Mercury did.

“I’m actually just like you because I’m also a big fan. I’m just up here in the gayest suit you’ve ever seen in the really expensive seat.”

Late last year when the American Idol runner-up and surviving Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor announced The Rhapsody Tour, the hype was bigger than the announcement of their last full-fledged US tour, which occurred in 2017. At the time, their groundbreaking Oscar winning biopic Bohemian Rhapsody was out just short of over a month, and the band’s fanbase had already grown massively. So when those lights shut off at 8:12, many of the young people in the crowd weren’t only screaming for Lambie.

The projected curtain rose to reveal a glorifying, gold-plated stage design, with fans who payed $1000 to sit up high with the screens. Now I’m Here kicked off the royal evening. Teenagers and adults sporting their Queen shirts, and some still unsure of the legends onstage, other than the singer, shrieked as Adam, dressed in a gold-and-black suit, effortlessly staged the first song Queen ever played in Tampa. Next came a shortened version of the earlier hit, Seven Seas Of Rhye. When the late, great, Freddie Mercury (who, per Adam’s request, received 11 seconds of applause) was alive, they’d play a shortened version of it, which is why that wasn’t unusual.

Many of the 40+ year old tunes were shortened a verse or two. Keep Yourself Alive only went on for the first verse, the chorus, and then ripping right into the fist-pumpin’ Hammer To Fall. I wasn’t sure why exactly, but as much as they want to cram every song they’ve ever written into the show, I’m sure it had to do with timing.

Of course, Freddie’s showmanship is inimitable, and Adam mentioned early on how he’s not trying to be Freddie. Based on the props used and the action he was in, you could tell he was being truthful. Posing on top of Spike Edney’s piano during Killer Queen, and posing on a motorcycle at the foot of the stage during Bicycle Race wasn’t really Freddie’s thing. Adam did Adam, which made the show even more worthwhile.

A running joke in the Bohemian Rhapsody movie, and possibly in reality, was how nobody in Queen liked Roger Taylor’s I’m In Love With My Car. Well, apparently the joke was so well-received, they threw the song into the setlist, even having Rog sing it behind the drum kit.

After ideally harmonizing on I Want It All, everyone left the stage for a minute or two, except for Brian, who made his way to the foot of the stage. Or, in this case, since the stage was shaped like a guitar, the headstock. “To tell you the truth, I never thought I would be here doing this at this point in time. It’s a treat, it’s a privilege.” Brian remarked. Unfortunately, he didn’t say anything about this being the first Tampa show for Queen. Normally, there’s a history lesson of some sort during this part of the show. Normally, it’s about Dr. May’s fascination of astrology.

Speaking of astrology, after crooning and plucking out Love Of My Life, (with archive footage of Freddie singing the last verse) Brian dusted off “kind of a futuristic, funk song,” ’39, off of 1975’s A Night At The Opera. He requested we sing it with him, or if we didn’t know the words, clap. Sadly, most people just clapped. But don’t worry, all of us die-hards hollered out every word back at him, while NASA footage rolled behind him.

Roger and Adam then joined Brian at the headstock to run down the first two verses of Doing Alright, which was revived through the biopic last year.

A few hits and outlandish theatrics later, Brian had a ten minute long guitar solo, which started with him rising on a platform that, from the front, looked like he was playing on an asteroid. When he came down, it was five more minutes of just him, shredding the hell out of his iconic, hand-crafted as a kid, Red Special. From there, you know he actually lead in the first full verse of Tie Your Mother Down? Not sure why, but that was a shock.

Radio Gaga was also in segment mode, but that didn’t mean that our hands didn’t go up in the air during the chorus, like at Live Aid. That becoming one of the absolute highlights of my concert-going career, Bohemian Rhapsody in full wrapped up the main set. About half of the song (most of the opening, and “I see a little silhouetto of a man”) was the original recording blaring across the venue. Everything else was live, including Brian’s iconic solo at the halfway point, which he slightly resembled a cyborg for. He joked online about a month ago that soon enough, the “cyborg” could play the whole show for him while he relaxes backstage.

Once that extravagant segment of the show came to an end, everyone left the stage, which eventually triggered the packed-to-the-gills house to start stomp-stomp-clapping. Before responding with We Will Rock You and a grand finale of We Are The Champions, we were visited by a ghost. Freddie, that is. You can’t have a Queen show, with or without Freddie, without the audience being part of the fun. Or should I say, vocal improv. The tape from when he played around with his legendary Ay-oh’s at Queen’s 1986 show at Wembley Stadium was rolled. Since the video was rolled on the digital curtain that had lowered, it looked like Freddie was actually onstage.

The Great Pretender ended his improvisation with a good ol’ “fuck you.” I mean, how else would you want it to end? Even in death, Freddie still has the vocal range to rule them all.

Joan Jett and the Blackhearts opening for Heart.

Joan Jett and the Blackhearts opening for Heart.

Nancy Wilson of Heart

Ann Wilson of Heart

Joan Jett

Heart rocking their first show in Tampa since 2016.

Elle King opening for Heart and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.

When Heart’s Ann Wilson happily announced Saturday night that “a big, giant, Florida cockroach” she found onstage was now part of the show, you knew she’s having a great time on this tour.

It’s been a rocky few years for Heart frontwomen Ann and Nancy Wilson. The last time they stopped in Tampa was at the tail end of their 2016 Rock Hall Three For All Tour with radio regulars Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and Cheap Trick. The other two names on that roster have continued touring, and have, in fact, stopped here again since then. The Wilson sisters, on the other hand, had a family falling out, causing them to go their separate ways for two years. This year, however, their Love Alive reunion tour was announced, with singer songwriter Elle King and of course, just like last tour, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.

Elle King and the Brethren stormed the stage at 7:05, kicking off an evening featuring the trio of rock and roll goddesses. Elle was in Tampa as recently as 2018, at 97X’s Next Big Thing, also held at Tampa’s MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheater. She played for a half hour, which feels like it should be enough time, but there could have been much more for her to play. King, whose resume includes opening for Dashboard Confessional, Ed Sheeran, and most recently, Miranda Lambert, released her second album last year, entitled Shake The Spirit, which she has called her most personal work anywhere, ever. She wrote most of the songs on it, too.

Elle also saluted Florida boy Tom Petty, and Stevie Nicks, with a flawless cover of Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around, with the male co-lead vocals and all. Once she wrapped up her twangy, yet rockin’ set, a half hour passed until we got our first Hall Of Famer of the night.

Joan Jett and the Blackhearts arrived onstage at 8:00 sharp, all at the same time, to launch into Victim Of Circumstance, followed by Cherry Bomb, a Runaways song. If you didn’t know, The Runaways was Joan’s first band, from before The Blackhearts came around. That wasn’t the only time they were brought into play, though. You Drive Me Wild was squeezed out later on.

The rest of Joan’s set consisted of slightly more obscure album tracks, (as oppose to the no-stranger-to-radio ones to come later) along with the Bruce Springsteen-penned Light Of Day. “A real long time ago, I did a movie with Michael J. Fox,” Joan recalled. It was in reference, of course, to the film that shared a title with the song Bruce penned. “We were selling our record out the back of our trunk, and all of a sudden, we had a hit record!” original Blackheart Kenny Laguna recalled. Apparently, no record label in the late 70s to early 80s could fathom a woman fronting a group of all dudes. Way to beat the system.

She couldn’t skip the classics, though: You know, I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll, Crimson & Clover, and I Hate Myself For Loving You. Closing off her annual gig in Tampa were two covers by The Replacements, and Sly and the Family Stone, coincidentally on the 50th anniversary of Sly’s performance at Woodstock.

The stage was stripped, and at 9:25, as promised online, the Wilson sisters, Ann and Nancy, along with the rest of the band, came sneaking out in the dark. There were no extra introductions or anything: They’re (in terms of the front women, literally) a family, so why separate who comes out first, and who comes out last?

The recently reunited sisters blasted off their first Tampa show in three years with Rockin’ Heaven Down, a pretty deep cut that hadn’t been played on tour since over three decades ago. Immediately following was Magic Man, which was the first rocker from the first Heart album, Dreamboat Annie, appropriately released on Valentine’s Day 1976. Oh, and Ann actually blew into a flute during Love Alive. Who’d have guessed?

The Wilson sisters have been playing different covers on tour from the beginning, so it was no surprise that they whipped up some new arrangements of Paul Simon’s (okay, Simon & Garfunkel’s) The Boxer, and Yes’ Your Move. And these weren’t just mediocre attempts to salute some of their favorites. Ann and Nancy gave every song the Wilson sister treatment: New harmonies, transposition, and tweaking just about everything except for the lyrics. My dad, who is a massive Trevor Rabin-era Yes fan, even told me afterwards that it’s really hard to do Jon Anderson’s vocals justice, and that this was the first time he was ever thoroughly impressed by a Yes song not sung by, or at least including, Anderson. 

After the covers, the Hall Of Famers dusted off album title tracks, such as Dog And Butterfly and Little Queen, along with the hits that appeared on, or alongside them. Nancy even lugged around a Flying V on Even It Up.

There wasn’t much commentary during their set, from anybody. That is, until Ann found someone who jumped onstage to hang out with them. “I was over on stage left for that last song. I look down and I see a big, giant, Florida cockroach. But we’re not gonna kill it – he’s now officially part of the show!”

Tampa was given a very generous encore after Crazy On You, which featured Nancy flawlessly plucking out the same acoustic guitar solo opener that started the song some 40 years ago. Another cover was given the Heart treatment, but this one sounded more like the original than any others. Stairway To Heaven, with Ann reprising her side-role as flutist, has been a regular on their setlist for many a year. At one point a few years ago, while on tour with Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience, they were playing it onstage with Bonzo Jr. every night,.

The nostalgic evening of female-powered rock and roll ended with a slow rendition of Alone, and of course, an identical, head-bangin’, fist pumpin’ Barracuda.

Ann just released a new album, Immortal, which features deep cuts from rockers who have died in the last few years. Perhaps the next release that comes from her will include her sister. Who knows? The tour with Joan Jett is still a few months away from being over, and they’re having a great time not recording anything new.

Hopefully, there won’t be anymore roaches interfering with their shows.

Asia

Alan White of YES

Billy Sherwood with YES

John Lodge of The Moody Blues

John Lodge of The Moody Blues

Arthur Brown singing for Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy

Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal with Asia

Geoff Downes with YES

Asia

Arthur Brown

Steve Howe and Jon Davison of YES

Carl Palmer

John Lodge of The Moody Blues

The order of Friday night’s concert lineup at Ruth Eckerd Hall went like this: Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy, The Moody Blues’ John Lodge, Asia, (featuring a reunion with Steve Howe) and Yes. Oh, and legendary artist Roger Dean, who designed many of Yes’ album covers, was out in the lobby signing his artwork and meeting fans.

How in the world could you pass this opportunity up?

At 7:00 on the dot, the lights went down, the big screen turned on, and a bell rang four times. The last surviving member of Emerson, Lake, & Palmer, along with guest vocalist, the God Of Hellfire, Arthur Brown, and the ELP Legacy band, kicked into Karn Evil 9 1st Impression, Part 2, appropriately. “We’re so glad you could attend, come inside, come inside!” sang Arthur Brown.

Palmer did most of the talking during their set, even telling someone interrupting him to shut up at one point. ELP’s cover of Aaron Copland’s Hoedown was thrown in as well, without a single keyboard. How, you may ask? Hotshot guitarist Paul Bielatowicz has pedals and such to make sure his guitar sounds just like the late Keith Emerson’s keyboards did. Knife-Edge, which was the B-side for the band’s first number 1 in the US, was also thrown in, with Brown on vocals.

Of course, Palmer played in The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown before ELP came around, so with both Brown and Palmer there, it was only appropriate to squeeze out their smash hit Fire. Fanfare for the Common Man wrapped up the set, which featured a five minute long drum solo from Palmer. No backup drums, no backing track, no nothing. Just a 69 year old drummer of countless bands doing what he loves best, in front of fans spanning over 50 years.

Immediately after Palmer headed offstage, without intermission, bassist for The Moody Blues, John Lodge, was up next, opening up with Steppin’ In A Slide Zone. Not a single song off of Days Of Future Passed was played, not even Nights In White Satin. Granted, he just spent the last few years with The Moody Blues on (hypothetically) their final tour, playing the album all the way through for its 50th anniversary. But that doesn’t mean that he played a bad set. The bulk of the set consisted of the Blues’ greatest hits. Legend Of A Mind, for example, was dedicated to the late Ray Thomas, who passed away last year, just before the band got inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

Of course, it’s not a Moody Blues show without Gemini Dream, or I’m Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band). Lodge closed out his set with Ride My See-Saw, which was turned into a duet between him and Yes’ current lead singer, Jon Davison. They seemed to be having a good time, and it must have been a nice breath for Davison to be vocalizing to something else other than Yes for a change.

Once Lodge and his band left the stage, the lights still didn’t come up. The big screen went from John Lodge’s name written in a Roger Dean-esque font, to white lettering that said “Asia will be onstage in two minutes.”

It wasn’t terribly hard to set up for Asia, considering Palmer’s drum kit was still onstage from the ELP Legacy set, and Geoff Downes’ keyboard rig was already set up.

Guest appearing with Asia this tour is Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, formerly of Guns N’ Roses. He shreds his double-neck guitar, and sings the vocals of the late John Wetton, who passed away in 2017. And of course with his mad guitar skills, he covers for Steve Howe, who actually came out later in the set, but I’ll get to that.

Asia kicked off their set with Go and Don’t Cry, both semi-hits from the mid-80s. Then came a few tributes to two of the band’s original members’ past lives in music. If you didn’t know, Geoff Downes was half of The Buggles, whose hit record, Video Killed The Radio Star, was the first music video ever played on MTV, when it blasted off in 1981. Considering the fact that both him, and the other Buggle, Trevor Horn, have been members of Yes, both on keyboards, a Yes reunion with Horn added to the current lineup would be a double-reunion, if you think about it.

After a tribute to John Wetton through The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, Carl Palmer was up next. Bumblefoot took lead vocals on ELP’s Lucky Man, which was that first number 1 in the US that was the A-side of Knife-Edge. Behind him scrolled photos of his fallen bandmates with and without him.

Then, Bumblefoot put his guitar down, and out came Steve Howe, to shred out four songs from Asia’s self-titled debut album. Of course, the set closed with the first song from that debut album, the tune-for-the-ages Heat Of The Moment, which had everyone in the house, no matter who they came to see, singing along to the chorus.

Finally, the lights came up, and Carl Palmer, Arthur Brown, and Bumblefoot were actually out in the lobby meeting fans. I walked out to buy a t-shirt, and to wait in line to meet Master Palmer. But while I was waiting to thank him for all the music, I heard the sound of Steve Howe’s guitar coming from the Hall, which caused me to run back to my seat. I ended up missing Carl altogether, because by the time Yes’ set was done, everybody had already left. Damn.

The 2019 incarnation of Yes features Steve Howe on guitar, Geoff Downes on keyboards, Jon Davison (different guy than Jon Anderson) on vocals, Jay Schellen on drums (for a little while anyway) and Billy Sherwood on bass. Billy also plays in Asia, and was handpicked by the late, great Chris Squire, to take his place in Yes, should something happen to him. He died of cancer in 2015.

Their setlist did not consist of the hits the way Yes featuring ARW’s did. This incarnation of Yes focuses on their progressive era, but mainly the deep (to an extent) stuff. By that, I mean everything pre-Owner Of A Lonely Heart. The latest they went was Tempus Fugit, off of the band’s 1980 album, Drama, which did not feature Jon Anderson. At one point, Howe was the only one onstage, while he showed off his plucking on the instrumental The Clap, off of 1971’s The Yes Album. Looking back, that song was one of his first chances to shine in the band, considering that The Yes Album was his first recording with Yes. And to be honest, he may have slowed down a little bit, but everything Howe played that night sounded just like it did on their original recordings.

The Chris Squire penned Onward was dedicated to the man. “Thank you for being in the moment for that one. Didn’t see many ‘ha-ha’s’ or cameras, thanks.” Howe nodded, as he prepared to introduce Alan White. The drummer of the band’s “classic” lineup, White has been having some health problems of the late, alas he cannot play the entire show. But he stuck around for their cover of Paul Simon’s (okay, fine, Simon and Garfunkel’s) America, which Jon Anderson also played in Clearwater not two months ago.

After a longer-than-usual rendition of The Gates Of Delirium, Clearwater received a very generous encore.

Believe it or not, before he joined Yes in 1972, White was a drummer for John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band, hence why he drummed on Imagine. Marking the second cover in their set, Jon Davison sang it out in his own, non-Lennon way. Downes played the piano part exactly how it originally sounded, along with his own solo, and the chorus being repeated an extra time, both near the end. Finally, not that I have to say it, but it’s not a Yes show without Roundabout, and/or Starship Trooper. Howe had two guitars around his neck during that iconic intro to the former.

Every year since 2012, Clearwater gets a little dose of Yes. This year, especially, has been a double dose, with Jon Anderson’s 1000 Hands tour back in May, and with “classic” keyboardist Rick Wakeman on the way in October, the Tampa area shall continue to be no stranger to Yes.

As for the other bands on the bill, especially Carl Palmer, they’re all welcome back anytime they want to drop in, long as they bring their raw talent with them.

Jeff Lynne’s ELO, and special guest Dhani Harrison played their first gig in the Tampa area since 1976 Sunday night.

Jeff Lynne’s ELO, and special guest Dhani Harrison played their first gig in the Tampa area since 1976 Sunday night.

Jeff Lynne’s ELO, and special guest Dhani Harrison played their first gig in the Tampa area since 1976 Sunday night.

Jeff Lynne’s ELO, and special guest Dhani Harrison played their first gig in the Tampa area since 1976 Sunday night.

Dhani Harrison’s first ever Tampa gig was as Jeff Lynne’s ELO’s opening act.

Please tell us why we had to wait for him for so long (So long.).

I’m talking, of course about Jeff Lynne, only the mastermind behind the Electric Light Orchestra and The Traveling Wilburys. A man who’s produced Tom Petty, George Harrison, and The Beatles’ Anthology project. No biggie, right?

Sunday night was his first stop in Tampa in over 40 years, which understandably, was sold out. Joining him was his fellow Wilbury, George Harrison’s son Dhani to warm up some 12,000 who came in from all around the world. People were sporting older ELO shirts from more recent tours, and many of these folks probably caught the original ELO years ago, while they still could.

This version of the band is not the ELO from the 70s and 80s. Yes, Jeff Lynne is right up front, but the 12 backing him up – the string section, the keyboards, and even Yes featuring ARW bassist Lee Pomeroy, were not present on any of those original recordings. But that’s okay, because every song squeezed out in the hour and a half the band was on was perfected note for note.

At 8:00 on the dot, Dhani Harrison gave us a half-hour sneak peek at his more recent musical ventures, which have their own sound, far from his dad’s. They’re more progressive and synth sounding, and he even played a song coming out next week, Murders. This was Dhani’s first time in Tampa ever. “I want to thank Jeff Lynne for taking me out with him! You’ll have a great time!” he warned us.

He was right, too.

At 9:10, the Orchestra took the stage, and the UFO on their screen flew away, to reveal raindrops. Standin’ In The Rain, with that twinkly intro and everything. “It’s great to be back here, it’s been long ago for us since we were here.” Jeff humbly reminded us. The last time Jeff was here was before Xanadu was a thing. Can you imagine?

The hits were thrown in, of course. You know – Do Ya, Livin’ Thing, and even When I Was A Boy, a new-ish song off of Alone In The Universe, an album credited to Jeff Lynne’s ELO. All songs had the mandatory video backgrounds and light shows that was set the theme of lasers, UFOs, and areas of peace, such as mountains and rivers.

If you don’t know by now, Jeff is, unfortunately, one of two living members of The Traveling Wilburys. Bob Dylan still tours, but he only played one Wilbury tune a few times, about 30 years ago. Thankfully, Jeff doesn’t want the group to fade away, so at every show, he cracks out Handle With Care, but this tour, it would be a little extra special. Dhani Harrison came back out, to sing his dad’s original lead vocals, while light brown and black spirals spun behind them, later displaying videos of each member.

Understandably, the recently fallen Florida boy, Tom Petty, who some of the crowd saw in the same venue two years prior, got a little extra roar of respect when he popped up.

Jeff and company ripped through the rest of the set like it was nothing. Not much commentary, just wall-to-wall hits. Hearing Xanadu without Olivia Newton-John was pretty cool, and Telephone Line was when the green lasers turned on. They didn’t overwhelm the talent, either. They didn’t change colors or anything, so even while keeping an eye on them, you knew that there was pure, raw talent right in front of you.

Obviously, the show began to wind down with an asteroid-dodging excursion through Turn To Stone, and a crowd-rising Mr. Blue Sky, which was also not a thing the last time ELO was here. We were rewarded with a rowdy encore of Chuck Berry’s Roll Over Beethoven, which featured solos from basically everybody onstage, while a video of the original 45 was rolling right behind the band.

Jeff’s voice hasn’t gone away at all, and his band seems to be tighter than ever. He’s touring now more than he has in years, so hopefully, this won’t be the last time he hits Tampa. And if it isn’t, hopefully it won’t be another 40-some years.

But hey, if Jeff is willing to live for that amount of time, I’m all for that.

“Weird Al” Yankovic kicked off his Strings Attached tour at Ruth Eckerd Hall Wednesday night, with never-before-played songs.

The Saga Begins

The first ever live performance of Weasel Stomping Day.

White & Nerdy

Yoda

Amish Paradise

Yoda

Smells Like Nirvana

Dare To Be Stupid

At 8:00 on the dot, the lights have gone down. The evening’s conductor, Arnie Roth, walks on, puts his hands up, and the “Ruth Eckerd Hall Chamber Orchestra” kicks into…

The theme from Raiders Of The Lost Ark. Next, the theme from Mission Impossible. And finally, the theme from the original Superman.

The lights come up for another 20 minutes.

There have only been two shows like it before last night, and they were back-to-back at the Hollywood Bowl, in the midst of parody king “Weird Al” Yankovic’s critically acclaimed Mandatory World Tour. After a year off the road in 2017, the Eat It maestro returned last year to tour with his originals, deep cuts, and hardly any hits, with no costumes, props, or video screens. There were no shows in Florida at all, which may explain why Yankovic’s current Strings Attached tour, described to be his “most over-the-top” run, kicked off Wednesday night at Clearwater’s Ruth Eckerd Hall.

At 8:37, the orchestra, once again, stormed the stage with Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, later leading into an orchestral rendition of Al’s longtime instrumental concert opener, Fun Zone. When the man came out, sporting an unbuttoned one of his trademark Hawaiian shirts, the first thing he did was sit on a stool.

James Holzhauer finally lost on Jeopardy the other day, and even changed his profile pic on Twitter to Al in the I Lost On Jeopardy music video. So understandably, Al opened his set with an acoustic segment from that ear worm, followed by the same, from I Love Rocky Road and Like A Surgeon. “Tonight is the dress rehearsal for Ft. Lauderdale” Al said after his acoustic medley.

He confirmed beforehand that there would be some deep cuts this go-round, but him doing The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota all the way through was a huge shock. I think he only did that one on the deep cuts tour from last year. And that wasn’t even the biggest shock of the evening. After turning his shoulder towards the crowd like Elvis during One More Minute, we got a literal live debut. “June 5 is a very special day, I mean, besides being the first day of the tour. We made a little song about this very special day. I hope you all join us in celebrating.” Al requested. Most members of his immediate band reported to the front of the stage, put viking helmets on, and for the first time ever on stage, celebrated Weasel Stomping Day, video and all.

He also dedicated a transposed Don’t Download This Song to the RIAA, of whom he has done “some charity work” for. Harvey The Wonder Hamster, another live debut, and Jackson Park Express were the last ones played before the major clip shows and costume changes began. Of course, for Smells Like Nirvana, he threw on his Kurt Cobain regalia, as did bassist Steve Jay for Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, and drummer Jon Bermuda Schwartz for Dave Grohl. Al’s new backup singers, dubbed as “Al’s Gals,” played the cheerleaders behind him. For this tour, he recruited some female backup singers, Lisa Popeil, Monique Donnelly and Scottie Haskell, to make every note sound spot-on. They’ve appeared on his albums before, so they’re not strangers or anything.

Of course, there was the DEVO-esque Dare To Be Stupid, as well as White And Nerdy, with Al zooming out on his Segway, and main set closer Amish Paradise. All those had Al in the outfits he wore for each video. He ended his main set by explaining to the crowd, in a James Brown style that he “can’t do no more,” since it wasn’t feasible to do so. Al was even helped offstage by a roadie, who draped him in a James Brown-blue cape.

Then out came keyboardist Rubén Valtierra dressed as Emperor Palpatine. He was later followed by the 501st Legion, the group that cosplays as Star Wars characters for charity. An entire line of Stormtroopers came out, with Darth Vader in the center. The rest of the band, minus Al’s Gals, reentered in Jedi robes to start their sing-alongs of The Saga Begins, and Yoda. Sadly, The Yoda Chant usually done at the end of the song was excluded from this performance.

Either way, Al’s got a whole tour ahead of him. He might announce dates outside North America, or even release a live album further down the line. But tonight was sold out, and this is only the kickoff.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

David Crosby’s almost-annual gig in Clearwater was full of stories, sarcasm, and his own originals, old and new.

Right as twice Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer David Crosby came onstage seven minutes late, audience members were already yelling comments at him. Nothing negative or anything, but the first one, even he couldn’t understand. “She just said something she thought was important!” he remarked, before strumming his way into Crosby, Stills, and Nash’s In My Dreams.

Crosby is one of only a select few living people who played at Woodstock, and considering all his health problems over the years, it’s a wonder that it’s a truth. He hasn’t played with his partners Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and/or Neil Young since 2015’s National Christmas Tree Lighting. If you want to hear the CSN hits, Graham Nash is your guy to catch live, as he was the one to write Our House and Teach Your Children. Same goes for Stephen Stills with Southern Cross and Judy Blue Eyes. But if you want to hear a smartass tell stories along with his just-as-beautiful songs, and then some, here’s Croz!

“There was a rumor that I took acid once, maybe twice. I was high, so I couldn’t tell.” he joked. Appropriately, him and the band continued on with Crosby-Nash’s Naked In The Rain, and a rather non-Bond take of Eight Miles High, from Croz’ days in The Byrds. A new song was revealed, too. “So, this is your fault. You made us feel good, so now, you’re gonna have to suffer through a brand new song.” I Think I is just one of the infinite (literally?) number of songs that Croz has been writing. In the last four years, he’s released three solo albums with a number of different musicians. The most recent, Here If You Listen, just came out this last fall, and to be honest, I won’t be surprised if another one releases before 2019 is out.

The melancholic, yet heartwarming harmonies of Guinnevere were spread across the theater, followed by an electrifying sing-along of Long Time Gone. Right before a 20 minute intermission came band introductions, and the longest rendition of Déjà Vu I’ve ever heard. Croz had both fellow members of his early 2000s group, CPR with him: His son James Raymond on keyboards, and session musician Jeff Pevar on guitar. Raymond’s high school friend and former drummer for CSN, and Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, Steve DiStanislao provided the beats, while keyboardist and backing vocalist Michelle Willis and bassist Mai Leisz throbbed and crooned the finishing touches to every note.

Once intermission came to an end, Croz came back with a question. Actually, make that two questions. “Are we having fun?” Obviously, everyone roared back an obvious yes at him. “Now, I want an honest answer out of you: Did anyone go outside and smoke a joint? That’s what concerts used to be for.” Not yet, Croz. All Florida fans must survive the night without a jail sentence. For now, anyway.

Once Croz got back into the music, he began to tell a story with what sounded like a lump in his throat. It was time for the hardest part of the show. “This song comes from a really hard time in my life. I was a junkie.” Apparently, when Croz was basically on the verge of death in the 1980s, Jackson Browne came to visit him at his house, and persuaded Croz to finish writing a song he hadn’t finished yet. So the two drove down to Warren Zevon’s house (“There can be only one. Not the house, either.”) and that’s where Croz finished writing the next song on the setlist, Delta. “I was about to go into the bathroom to get loaded again, and Jackson told me ‘Don’t do it, you promised.’ So…I didn’t.” Croz concluded.

Then came the politics. If you don’t know by now, Croz is very strongly against Donald Trump, and has even said that CSNY’s shared hatred of him is currently the only reason they’d think about reuniting for another few shows. I was expecting certain fans who didn’t do their research to walk out angry and drive back to their trailer parks. But no one walked out, and there was actually some applause and cheering. (one guy yelled out “Croz for prez!”) With that said, Croz didn’t explicitly say anything about Trump. He expressed how dead democracy currently is, but also remembered watching President Eisenhower tell the country to “beware of the military industrial complex” in his farewell speech. At the time, he didn’t know what the hell that meant, but when he found out, he wrote probably one of the most relevant songs of today, 1971’s What Are Their Names. His band went into acapella mode for that, and didn’t provide any of the original instrumentation. Sometimes, it’s better to just skip to the point.

After an all-hands-in Wooden Ships, and a jam session of Almost Cut My Hair, came an encore of Neil Young’s legendary protest song, Ohio. Nobody in the theater sat down through it, either. Every pair of hands together, and every voice, ages 17 to 70 belting out “Four dead in Ohio” repeatedly.

Croz has said in the last few years how he’s feeling better than ever due to his new musical awakening. But what if CSN never sing another note, with or without Y? What if Croz retires Guinnevere and Almost Cut My Hair, and only sticks to his solo work? Well, look: He’s pushing 80, and he’s still doing this. How about some grace?

Then again, all four members of CSNY are still alive, so if they can patch things up, anything is possible.

Jon Anderson of YES, and the 1000 Hands band, give his solo and YES music a 2019 feel.

Jon Anderson of YES, and the 1000 Hands band, give his solo and YES music a 2019 feel.

Jon Anderson of YES, and the 1000 Hands band, give his solo and YES music a 2019 feel.

Jon Anderson of YES, and the 1000 Hands band, give his solo and YES music a 2019 feel.

At exactly 7:30 Wednesday night, Jon Anderson of Yes came fluttering out like a pixie to get his first glance at Clearwater in a year and a half. His new band, 1000 Hands backed him up the whole way through, kicking off with Yes’ signature Owner Of A Lonely Heart. This band has everything – a cello, a violinist from Taiwan, a keyboardist who convinced Jon to recover his old tapes from 30 years ago, you name it.

“I’m sorry, I have about three frogs in my throat tonight,” Jon confessed about halfway through the first set. “But we’re gonna do it!” Along with music off his new (in spite of it being conceived nearly 30 years ago) album, 1000 Hands: Chapter One, came old songs that Yes feat. ARW never played once. Yes’ cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s America, played a half-step down, was a major surprise, and included a well deserved post-song shout-out to Paul Simon for writing such a great tune.

Also present was a reggae rendition of Long Distance Runaround, and an electrifying I’ve Seen All Good People, complete with those harmonies and all. Oh, and Sweet Dreams, off of Yes’ 1970 sophomore album Time And A Word was a pretty sick treat.

So, about the new album: Jon began recording a concept album about 30 years ago, and had pretty much any name in the Yes, and prog in general, circle you can imagine: Chris Squire, Alan White, Robby Steinhardt, Ian Anderson, and Jean-Luc Ponty, just to name a few. But his touring schedule with Yes was so overcrowded at the time, he decided to abandon the project. But Michael Franklin, who happens to be playing the keys this tour, convinced Jon to recover the tapes and get back to recording his vision. So, Jon headed to Orlando to finish the album he had left behind all those years ago, and on March 31, he released the true masterpiece.

The new record, as well as Jon’s solo catalog in general, were not ignored. New songs, including WDMCF, (Where Does Music Come From) a foot tapping Ramalama, and the joyous Makes Me Happy, were cranked out. The latter had a music video released recently, featuring Jon holding things he loves, in front of a green screen of places he loves. It’s such a fun song, and video, you can’t not at least smirk during it.

Jon wrapped up the show with a tumultuous rendition of 1971’s Starship Trooper, and an encore of, yes sir, Roundabout. Because you can’t have a Yes show without it.

Yes fans are so dedicated, too. One woman sitting in front of me was telling me that this was her eleventh show on this tour alone. God knows how many times she’s caught Jon live, with or without Yes. But since Jon comes around to Tampa every year or so, it’ll probably be at least one more time.

With the condition Jon’s in, compared to 10 years ago when his health got him booted from Yes altogether, all signs point to much more to come.