80s – Josh Bradley Live

Today marks five years since I attended my first rock concert. My uncle managed to snag tickets for the two of us to see Billy Joel live and in the flesh at Tampa’s Amalie Arena, as a Christmas gift.

I still remember that night like it was yesterday. I hollered out every word to almost every song, screeching at the top of my lungs. Going to that show was something I bragged about to my friends at school, but sadly, everybody was either unimpressed, or had never heard of Willy Bowl.

My uncle, the only person I could really get deep into music with for years on end, has sworn to me ever since that show that we’d also go see Bruce Springsteen together. But even before COVID, The Boss hasn’t really been much help with that deal. (*Jamie Hyneman voice* Tour, damn you!) So we compensated with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers in 2017.

The poster I bought five years ago today still proudly dangles in a frame on my bedroom wall, with other Billy Joel ticket stubs I have obtained in recent years. Unfortunately, I lost the distressed baseball cap weeks after purchasing it, hence why I’ve made it a tradition that I buy a baseball cap in honor of it every time I see Billy live.

Now, I noticed that I have written reviews of almost every show I’ve been to, even in old perspectives. When The Monkees’ Peter Tork died in 2019, I wrote out a review of The Monkees’ 50th Anniversary Tour (which my uncle also attended with me) as if it had happened days ago. So, I’d like to do the same thing now.

Picture this:

The year is 2016. Joe Biden is still Vice President of the United States, Coldplay is about to play Super Bowl 50, and you’re still recovering from an exhilarating Billy Joel concert.

CONCERT REVIEW: Billy Joel lets Tampa’s Amalie Arena take the wheel during sold-out concert

“Good evening, Tampa-St. Pete!” Billy Joel called out to his sold out crowd at Amalie Arena Friday night.

Ever since the Piano Man’s grand return to performing after a brief hiatus, he’s been a regular in Florida, having already hosted two New Year’s Eve shows in Orlando and Sunrise. Friday night’s show at Amalie Arena was packed to the gills with both Florida crackers and NYC snowbirds, as well as some in-betweens. And the energy was so high, there were moments you thought you were actually up north at Madison Square Garden.

When the lights went down to the ending theme to The Natural some 20 minutes after the ticketed 8:00 start time, a single blue light shone on Joel–all decked out in a black, black, and black suit and tie. The floors of the dome brutally vibrated when the C# about 15 seconds into the complex opening of “Miami 2017 (Seen The Lights Go Out On Broadway)” was pounded out. Propped up on a life-sized Lazy Susan-style platform at the forefront of his circular stage, Joel didn’t miss a beat, in his vocals or fingers.

I say this with all the love and respect in my heart: Despite his massive following of die-hards and casual fans alike, Joel has evolved into a nostalgia act. He hasn’t promoted any new material since 1993’s River of Dreams, and his touring days with Elton John (who is releasing a new album next month) are most likely over. But a discography as vibrant as his still gives him all the right to present his crowds with “fielder’s choices,” meaning that he’ll throw out two songs, and he’ll perform whichever gets the most applause.

Yes, “Vienna” gave the boot to “This Is The Time.” “The Longest Time,” featuring a “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” warmup, won against its original album’s title track, “An Innocent Man.” An obvious choice of course, but a nice surprise addition nonetheless.

Billy doesn’t do full-fledged tours with back-to-back dates anymore. He plays one show a month, per his residency at Madison Square Garden, and he’ll often fly out to one or two different locations around the world a month. And since his last performance, which was January 7 at Madison Square Garden, the world has lost David Bowie, and Glenn Frey of the Eagles.

For the Starman, Joel and his flawless backing band launched into the chorus of “Rebel, Rebel,” admitting that they just learned it the morning of. As for the Eagle, who died earlier this week, there were two: A heartbreaking piano-and-microphone-only singalong of “Desparado,” and later, a ride through “Take It Easy” during a pause in “The River Of Dreams.”

Bowie and Frey weren’t the only people included in his dedications, though.

Normally, the point to live music is, well, as Joel once put it, “to forget about life for awhile.” But even the 66-year old New Yorker knows that the 2016 election is going to be one for the ages. 1975’s “The Entertainer” was dedicated to Republican nominee Donald Trump, and “New York State Of Mind” to Republican senator Ted Cruz. “These are my values, Ted.” Billy jabbed. Knowing the scarlet conservatism of Florida, part of me wonders how many people will never support Joel again after said “tributes.”

Before blasting into his electrifying, hit-scorched encore, Joel tore the house down all over again with the six-minute strong fan-favorite “Scenes From An Italian Restaurant,” and then capped up the main set with “Piano Man.” Despite every fan in the house howling the final chorus of perhaps his most iconic song back at him, what came next was what many bought the tickets for–“Uptown Girl,” “You May Be Right,” and “Big Shot,” just to name a few. Oh, and the snippet of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock And Roll” was a nice touch, as were Mike DelGuidice’s unyielding vocals on “Whole Lotta Love.”

“Turn off the news once in awhile!” Joel hollered after closer “Only The Good Die Young,” as opposed to his regular “Don’t take any shit from anybody” closing remark.

At the end of the day, it’s probably the best advice we’ll receive for another few years at least.

Once again, I will officially be reviewing Yes featuring Anderson, Rabin, and Wakeman on October 11 at Ruth Eckerd Hall! This will be my second time seeing them and my first time reviewing them over here. I reviewed them for my school paper last year as a sophomore, but needless to say, nobody, even my journalism class director, didn’t really pick up on it. But I thought that perhaps you would. I walked in that venue thinking of Yes as sort of a mediocre band. But I walked out with them in my top 10. Barely edited for accuracy, this was the first concert review I ever wrote last year, following ARW’s first Ruth Eckerd (and second overall) show that I was invited to the night before it happened. And keep in mind that it was mainly directed towards stupid teenagers who probably hadn’t heard of Yes.

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In today’s generation, a typical teenager enjoys rap and autotune, and a lot of them don’t know of some amazing music of the past. I’m the only one without a silver head at the concerts I go to, because I have an odd taste in music. This year, with the passings of David Bowie, Glenn Frey of the Eagles, and Prince, a load of people, including myself, have learned to never take anybody for granted, and this is why now is the best time to see some rock legends live before they pass away. Friday night, however, in Ruth Eckerd Hall, stood three gentlemen, two in their 60s and one in his 70s, playing a reunion concert. And you know what? The gentlemen sounded just like they did since the beginning.

The former members of the progressive rock band YES, Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, and Rick Wakeman have embarked on a world tour as ARW. Anderson still has his truly soprano voice, Rabin still shreds out the guitar solos like a master, and Wakeman played more than five keyboards and a keytar that night, sometimes two at once. They decided to kick off the tour in Orlando on Wednesday night, and were scheduled to play a show in Hollywood, FL, but had to cancel because of Hurricane Matthew. Rabin and Wakeman opened with the iconic Cinema from Yes’ 1983 album, 90125, as Anderson came running out with his Mickey Mouse gloves. The new reunion band gave its audience of about 2,000 people an electric ride through songs such as Hold On and the classic Rhythm of Love. About three quarters of the way through, as Rabin walked offstage for about two minutes, Anderson and Wakeman played a four minute song from when they were a part of a different incarnation of former members of Yes in the late 80s, which featured both of them, as well as guitarist Steve Howe and original drummer Bill Bruford. The piano accompanied song, The Meeting, which was written “at midnight, under the stars” according to Anderson. The band wrapped up the evening with their nearly 20-minute epic, Awaken, from their 1977 album Going For The One, and perhaps their most iconic song, Owner of a Lonely Heart, along with an encore of Roundabout.

“You’ll never hear a finer show,” lifelong fan Rodney Wademan stated at the end of the show. Concerts are always amazing to attend, especially if they’re somebody who has aged and still has energy and talent, because thirty years from now, if the artist has passed on, you’d have a bit of a bragging right, because you will have experienced something that your children, and possibly even your peers, unfortunately, never will get to. But with the way that all three members of ARW look and sound, even after almost 50 years, they could stay alive for another 50.