(Photo by Andy Argyrakis.)
Going to a Steve Hackett concert not only means lots of great music in your earholes, but it also generates lots of food for thought for a doofus such as myself who ponders things such as how much solo vs. Genesis material Hackett should play. He's been making solo albums since 1975 and has 27 to his credit with another one due in just a few months - much more material than he ever produced as a member of Genesis. Hackett shows also make me ponder what eras of his solo career deserve representation in the setlist. Should the emphasis be on his classic 70's output with 40+ years of newer music being ignored? "Loving Sea" is a late-period classic and I will fight anyone who says otherwise.
At the end of the day, the guy has to put butts in seats and long gone are the days when a snippet here and a snippet there of a Genesis tune would suffice. It seems that it really wasn't until the early 2000's that he began to inject whole Genesis songs into his setlists in earnest and found a nice balance of his solo material and that from his former band. Things tipped towards the latter in 2013 with his Genesis Revisited tour as large chunks of his concerts became devoted to his days in the group.
Several years ago he started dividing his shows into solo and Genesis sets. More recently, he's been doing Genesis albums in their entirety. Such was the case last year when my Frau and I saw him in Minneapolis where he went all meta and did the entirety of Seconds Out. Earlier this month when I saw him at the Copernicus Center in Chicago, it was Foxtrot at 50.
I am not the biggest fan of established artists doing an entire classic album live. While I suppose it is a genuinely celebratory gesture and can be pulled off creatively, such a setlist is usually bereft of variety with countless songs left out and most albums not being represented at all. Not a single guitar chord nor even one Mellotron note. And I'm not just talking newer material but classic stuff from the 70s as well. It can be frustrating if you like many eras of a musician's career. Plus, you are robbed of the element of surprise since, for at least a big chunk of the show, you know what's coming.
Well, Steve Hackett will populate his setlists with the songs he thinks will draw crowds. Plus, I'd imagine he throws in some tunes that he simply wants to play at that time. There are songs from Cured, Till We Have Faces, and Darktown that I'd like to be in the audience for when he plays them live but don't think that will ever happen. But hope springs eternal.
On this current tour, the trend of a set of Hackett solo followed by a set of Genesis prevailed.
While there was no "The Air-Conditioned Nightmare" or "Matilda Smith-Williams Home for the Aged" or "Omega Metallicus", there was no way I could turn my nose up at "Ace of Wands". The band was cookin' on "Every Day" which features his most epic guitar solo that isn't on "Firth of Fifth". It's a song that is a joy to behold, not only for its tunefulness, but to witness Hackett conjure notes by plucking the strings by the pickups or tapping on the neck. There's just something joyful about witnessing a master of his craft practice it before your very eyes. And ears, in this case.
(Photo by David Giard.)
Newer material was reduced to one song - "The Devil's Cathedral" but "Camino Royale" was added. At first, I was "I know this song. It's that one I cannot remember the name of from Highly Strung." So that was a real treat. And just as he did last year, he (and the band) brought the first set to a close with the instrumental section of "Shadow of the Hierophant". While I've always liked the song, I felt that Sally Oldfield's vocals on the studio version were rather twee for the longest time, as if they were some Hobbit maiden's hymn. At some point, I matured or got old or something and I just fell in love with them with their gentle clarity and delicate resonance. I hope to witness that song performed in full someday. And just as he did last year, Craig Blundell proved to be a monster on drums and added so much excitement and dynamics to it. The song built in intensity largely on his percussive prowess.
After an intermission, the lights went down and those unmistakable Mellotron chords heralded the start of "Watcher of the Skies". Great? To be sure. But I was really keen on hearing the middle trio on Foxtrot - "Time Table", "Get 'Em Out by Friday", and "Can-Utility and the Coastliners". The first was never played live by the band while the other two were never played after the Foxtrot tour. Nope, never an abbreviated version in an oldies medley. Not even a snippet during the jamming bit in "I Know What I Like".
Just as watching Hackett solo in "Every Day" was a joy, so was watching Jonas Reingold ply his trade on "Get 'Em Out by Friday". Maybe Genesis stopped playing it because Mike Rutherford didn't want to play that bass line. Reingold had his Rickenbacker in hand and I sat there in awe as he played the fast part - such as at "I think I've fixed a new deal/A dozen properties – we'll buy at five and sell at thirty-four". There didn't appear to be a bad seat in the house but I wish we'd had seats closer up so I could watch just what his fingers were doing. They looked like a blur a la the Tasmanian Devil to me.
A rousing "Supper's Ready" closed out the second set. Tears welled in my eyes twice. First during "The Guaranteed Eternal Sanctuary Man" and then again during "As Sure as Eggs is Eggs (Aching Mens' Feet)". The band didn't alter or tweak the song a whole lot but Hackett did add some extra and very wonderful soloing to bring the song to a close. Tender, aching notes them all.
The band stepped backstage very briefly before returning to encore with "Firth of Fifth", a drum solo, and then "Los Endos" with some of "Slogans" weaved in for good measure.
Hackett and Co. put on a fantastic show. One moment I've got Mellotron and bass pedals sending a shiver down my spine and the next there's Nad Sylvan's singing and Hackett's guitar bringing me to tears. Live music are better!
In a stroke of good luck, Hackett will be bringing this show here to Madison come the spring at the Orpheum. Plus, he's got a new album coming out in February called The Circus and the Nightwhale for us to look forward to.
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