Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Five Decades of Rock In Three Months!

Do you ever wonder about time travel? Is it possible to go back and witness incredible events from the past? I went back to the future recently, and I really liked what I saw.

I was a teenager in the 70s when rock concerts were cheap and plentiful. By the time I turned twenty I'd already seen 100 shows including David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, and The Who. Since then I've been a faithful rock and roller, both as a performer and journalist. Sometimes it seems like there's nothing else to see or do in the music world. This year proved me wrong. I saw five shows that took me through all the stages of my life and reaffirmed my love for the music of my youth.

The 60s came alive at the Santa Barbara County Bowl in June with the reunion of Buffalo Springfield. It was wonderful to see old heroes Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Neil Young on stage singing tunes like "For What Its Worth" and "Mr. Soul." Furay is the forgotten man, a guy who never quite made it with his group Poco or solo career. He was the star on that cool night, standing in the middle of his more famous brethren, his voice strong on "Kind Woman" and "On The Way Home." I was happy to see him finally get his due.

The spirit of the 70s took over Las Vegas when I saw Carlos Santana perform the last show of his two-year stand at the Hard Rock Casino. I play guitar but not like Carlos, who can make the instrument sing and cry. I almost cried when he settled into "Samba Pa Ti," a beautiful instrumental he rarely performs. There were plenty of hits like "Black Magic Woman" and "Smooth," but watching this guy play was the highlight for me. To celebrate the final show, every band member got a whipped cream pie to the face, including Carlos who kept right on playing. This was May 1st, the night bin-Laden was finally found, making it an evening I would never forget.

One of the top selling albums of the 80s was Purple Rain by Prince. The movie of the same name was also a hit and made Prince a multi-media star. I saw him twice in his heyday and what amazed me more than his great songs was his unbelievable musicianship.This guy could play guitar like Hendrix or tap out a cool ballad on the piano while crooning like Sam Cooke. I'm happy to say when he played The Forum in May he sounded better than ever! His opening 9-song medley started with "When Doves Cry" and ended with "I Would Die for You," two of the biggest hits from Purple Rain. Of course he played the title track at the end of the show. In between Prince showcased his dance moves and his airtight band, going from song to song without a break, even throwing in a Bob Dylan cover "To Make You Feel My Love." He did three encores and I left feeling he would have gladly played until dawn.

In 1991 the band U2 released one of the greatest rock albums of all time: Achtung Baby. When I drove down to Angel Stadium in June for their "360" concert, I had no idea U2 would showcase that masterpiece, beginning with "Even Better Than The Real Thing." After that they reeled off classic after classic in one of the best openings I've ever witnessed, including two of U2's biggest hits: "One" and "Where The Streets Have No Name." After seven songs I would have left a happy man but U2 was only getting warmed up. The giant stage known as "The Claw" was as much a part of the show as the band, changing colors and belching out smoke with a top spinning like a disco ball. It contained the best sound system I'd ever heard in a stadium, carrying Bono's powerful singing to the very back rows. More than just a rock concert, it was a grand spectacle, of the likes I'm sure I'll never see again.

In 2000 an unknown band from England released a song called "Yellow" which became a worldwide hit. That group was Coldplay, and in the past decade they've sold more than 50 million records and won seven Grammy awards. I've been a fan ever since their debut and I've been waiting to see them in person. Coldplay started out this summer playing festivals around the world and thanks to the internet I was able to see many of their shows on my computer. Out of nowhere came the news of a benefit concert at the UCLA tennis stadium, a much smaller venue than usual for Coldplay. I was lucky to get tickets through the fan club pre-sale. No matter where they play singer Chris Martin is always the focus of attention. He's a humble yet powerful front man who loves leading the crowd in sing-alongs on anthems like "Viva La Vida" and "In My Place." Out of all the acts I saw this year, Coldplay was the only one to focus on new material. They have another album coming out in October and it sounds like a winner to me.

Before Coldplay hit the stage at UCLA, the PA played the theme music from "Back To The Future." It made me think about all the music I enjoyed in the past few months, and all the great music that lies ahead.