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 British rocker Rod Stewart belts out a tune for an adoring crowd at Rexall Place last night. Stewart, 64, delivered a wide array of the rock classics that make him famous. (KEN ARMSTRONG/SUN MEDIA) |
EDMONTON - It's not just the authors of the Great American Songbook who should shudder when Rod Stewart approaches.
The next victim of his voracious appetite for musical frivolity will be the American R&B stars of yore. He's already thoroughly wheeled on Sam Cooke, as fans should know, but the late soul legend got off easy. Now it's personal. Expect an R&B record packed with Rod-ified soul hits by Christmas. Be very afraid ...
Let's face it, this guy slaughters almost everything he sings these days -- including his own material -- with a smirk and wink and a big helping of pure, undiluted schmaltz. But you know what? He does it with such an obvious love for the music that it's hard not to like him.
He wins you over with pure charm.
And he sure knows his fans -- 11,000 strong at Rexall Place last night, mainly women. You might ask: The guy is 64 years old. Did he do Do Ya Think I'm Sexy? Did he do it with a straight face? Yes, and no. The song -- which was torqued up with a cool new arrangement -- saw the first appearance of a thrown feminine undergarment, always good for a giggle.
Moving onto one of his more poignant songs, Forever Young, he's still holding the panties! Perhaps because he doesn't get nearly as much of an underwear tribute as people like Tom Jones, Rod wants to savour the moment a bit longer. Hard to know.
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Stewart didn't do any music from his critically-panned Great American Songbook albums last night, no low-key versions of Stardust or My Funny Valentine.
It was a pure rock 'n' roll show as imagined in a Rod Stewart Vegas theme hotel -- huge white stage, white instruments, lighting tastefully hidden behind white curtains, backing musicians in old-time suits, a trio of fabulous back-up singers dubbed "the Bicycles," plus a competent saxophonist and a violinist who also happened to be female.
From the opening lines of Some Guys Have All the Luck all the way to Maggie May in the encore, Rod played the big ham. He seems perfectly aware of this aspect of his personality, the role he seems born to play, so that helps. Even a cheesed-up rendition of Tom Waits' Downtown Train was tolerable.
The show featured most of the greatest hits fans expected to hear, each song featuring a special treat, showcase solo, costume change or joke of some kind. Stewart did his soccer ball-kicking schtick in Hot Legs -- he can still kick the thing halfway across an arena. Fans were also treated to a few bonus numbers from the aforementioned R&B project -- like a spirited romp with Twistin' the Night Away (Cooke) and Love Train by the O'Jays.
Despite the frivolity -- he even cracked up in the beginning of his venerable heartbreak tune, The First Cut is the Deepest -- there were a few hints he might only be using humour to cover up for the fact that his raspy voice is not what it once was.
There were a few hints of actual soul amongst the high-production glitz. For every Do Ya Think I'm Sexy there was a lovely ballad like Have I Told You Lately. That was enough to win me over. That, plus the charm, of course.
The opening act the Kin didn't have to work too hard to banish the notion that they're the new Proclaimers. These two apparently identical brothers with identical hedgehog hairstyles and haberdashery who sing earnest love songs about complicated relationships are clearly gifted enough to hold their own beyond such comparisons. Besides, they're from Australia.
One of them even pulled out the dreaded didgeridoo for a pointless crowd-pleaser -- but this was the only cheesy moment in an otherwise tuneful, often powerful show. Definitely a band to watch.
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SOUNDCHECK
MAIN EVENT
ROD STEWART
IN THE SEATS
11,000 IN REXALL PLACE
NOTE PERFECT
HAM AND CHEESE IN A ROCK 'N' ROLL SHOW SAVED BY A LITTLE SOUL AND A LOT OF CHARM
RATING
FOUR OUT OF FIVE