Winslowboy's Review

Sheffield - 16 June

So on to rain-swept Sheffield or, a ‘working class’ city as referred to by Glenn during his introduction but I’m sure he meant well.  Perhaps it reminded him of his Michigan background!

I apologise in advance if some of this news sounds like earlier Earl’s Court postings however, this was a cold and wet one night stand compared with a four night affair and this may explain certain differences.  No one was searched  on entry but very few people seemed to bring cameras - I only saw a few flashes go off the whole evening.

The concert opened about 10 minutes late and rather suddenly out of the darkness with Seven Bridges Road – lovely harmonies but not a well known song in UK – audience response was politely muted, I thought.  Long Run came next – Don warming up – audience response a little better.  New Kid in Town then Wasted Time followed quickly by a short burst of part of the instrumental reprise.  Was this a taped track ?– it seemed fuller than Al Garth’s violin alone.  Glenn admitted to having a slight cold but Peaceful Easy Feeling was well sung by him - still the audience seemed muted in their appreciation.  Steuert Smith was introduced as the first of the backing musicians.  It must be hard for him to have a frontline spot but a backseat reference.

The sound quality for the first six numbers was all a bit fuzzy and Timothy’s baseline was hardly noticeable. Pretty Maids was the first of Joe’s numbers  but I didn’t think he put as much enthusiasm into this and In the City compared to some of his later solo tracks. Timothy’s Love Will Keep Us Alive was next – probably the best solo voice on the night.  Boys of Summer – brilliant  - I play this all the time in my car - but not well known by this audience.  Take It To the Limit  - another of my favourites – not Randy Meisner but Glenn did pretty well with this, I thought.  Best of My Love followed by a rocking Already Gone – the boys seemed to welcome the change in tempo as did the audience. Before launching into In the City Joe said ‘I apologise for the high notes - the rain went inside my head, but we can still have a good time’. A rousing One of These Nights brought the first half to a close. 

I was in the 4th row but I thought the audience response up till then had been very, very subdued.  Were they still wet from waiting in the rain outside? Were they too old or embarrassed to rock – you’re a long time dead ?  Does an all-seater stadium and the security guards’ ‘no standing in the aisles’ constrain more active participation ? 

Second half started with Hotel California – some people still returning from the bar – how rude for the band as well as annoying for the audience.  Not bad but I thought the HFO tour version was better. Steuert Smith is technically accomplished as a guitarist but he is not Don Felder and he is not an Eagle.  The band misses his charisma at the front and an equal foil for Joe Walsh.

Lyin Eyes followed by Timothy’s other song followed by Walk Away - a Joe special ‘Now it’s my turn’.  I think Glenn’s Silent Spring appeared briefly here (does it cover for a set change?)  Tequila Sunrise followed by Don’s Sunset Grill.  You belong to the City – Glenn does this OK and the horn section sways and harmonises nicely.  Life’s Been Good and the band is wondering what new lyrics Joe will come up with tonight!  I was straining to hear but unfortunately I couldn’t make out many words at all.

Dirty Laundry  - a real rocker followed by Funk 49 which enabled the audience to appreciate more of Joe’s guitar work building to the footstomping/air guitar waving Heartache Tonight (Tim beckoned the audience to get up on their feet at this point – remarkably some, of my neighbours at least, refused !) and ending with Life in the Fastlane at about 1030.

The audience (including those same neighbours this time) howled for more and back they came with Rocky Mountain Way – I think even the rest of the band was in awe of Joe for this number.  Off stage again then back for the final encore of Take it Easy and Don’s Desperado for which people sat down as if in reverence of their National Anthem. Finished at about 1055 and the roadies started dismantling as the audience was vacating the hall.  Some other band is due tomorrow and so they have another 4 hours work to look forward to!

Overall comment – ‘awesome’ (since I was wearing my Winslow shirt) – they are the Eagles after all and can do wrong.  My wife said it’s the best birthday present she’s ever had. Me - I’m looking forward to drier weather and my next concert at Birmingham.  I hope they tour UK again but I wouldn’t put money on it – better go see them now!  If you do, don’t forget to rock and show them you’re alive – remember you’re a long time dead !

Did you know that:

They use eleven 40 tonne trucks (I noticed Cologne number plates in the carpark) to carry all the equipment?

They have a roadie crew of 70 who arrived at 0730am with the equipment dismantled from Birmingham the night before?  It takes 9 hours to set everything up and 4 hours to dismantle.

They were still assembling equipment and doing sound and lighting checks 2 hours before the concert was due to start and that the spotlight ‘monkeys’ have to stay aloft for the whole performance?

Joe wore his red/white/blue sort of check trousers. Glenn was the chief spokesperson;  Don said very little and remained rather aloof;  Tim waved a lot and I think Joe was a little under the weather.

Merchandise available included – tour programme £8  - expensive  - very little ‘new’ information but nice pictures.  T Shirts £16 , Hooded Sweat Shirt £50, Baseball cap £10, mugs £6, leather jacket £200, lighters £11 (I think)   

Dave's Review

The lights go down, and four familiar figures walk to the front of the stage, 
up to the microphones, four voices start singing, The Eagles are in town!
Seven Bridges Road is a masterstroke to open the show with. Just four voices
in harmony, stating their presence on the stage before the ensemble of
musicians behind them slowly join in.  The Long Run follows, always one of my
favourite songs, it’s not until New Kind In Town that I can take time to relax
a little and take stock of what's going on, on stage.
The sound is excellent for The Arena, piano and percussion fills coming
through loud and clear. Blue lights fill the stage as they start Wasted Life.
 Never one of my favourite songs, but at least one of our party things this is
the highlight of the first set.
The reprise flows in to Peaceful Easy Feeling.  Now this is one of my
favourites, and tonight's version is a stunner.  It setout what promises to
be one of the focal points of the show, the relationship between Joe and
Stuart.  As the two guitarists play off each other the violin soars over the
top of them. It all adds perfectly to the essence of the song. Pretty Maids
and Love Will keep us alive follow, then comes the major disappointment of the
show.  Boy’s Of Summer, is just thrown away.  Probably in the wrong set, it
seems hurried, being driven too much by percussion.  The song doesn’t have
the space within it which it should have.  You can’t get lost in it’s hot
summer days / nights like you normally do when hearing the song.  Take It To
The Limit, I’ve never been much of a purist and as long as The Eagles are
playing it, then I’m happy to hear it, no matter who’s singing. Best Of My
Love is beautiful, especially towards the end, as the Sax plays in and out of
the bands “Oh Ohh you gave me the best of your love" harmonies.  I could have
done with this lasting a lot longer.  Already Gone is storming, with those
guitars rocking. The brass section add a lot of depth toxin The City, giving a
foretaste of how strong they’ll be in the second set.  Finally the set ends
with One Of These Nights. It sure is turning out to be one.

A trumpet intro heralds the beginning or the second set, and Hotel California.
What strikes me about tonight’s version is the great guitar interplay towards
the end of the song, turning it into a far more rocking version than I would
ever believe.  Lineless follows, then Tim’s back up for I Can’t Tell You
Why.  His voice tonight is the best of them all, and then Stuart takes a
stunning solo towards the end of the song making it one of the nights
highlight. Up steps Joe, “now it’s my turn” and after apologisingbefore hand
for the state of his voice, both Glen and Joe are suffering from bad colds,
gives us a rocking version of Walk Away.  After drinking a little Tequila, we
go down to the Sunset Grill.  A strange and mundane choice given the wealth of
Don’s back catalogue. Glen’s vocal problems become apparent on You Belong To
The City, with Tim helping him out.  By now the pace is beginning to speed
up, and as the show gets rocking I’m noticing less and less, and enjoying it
more and more as I get swept up into the shows momentum.  Joe play's the clown
during Life’s Been Good, Dirty Laundry is awesome, Funk 49gets a little lost,
but no one seems to mind. By now the brass section are providing some
stunning depth to the sound, Joe and Stuart are trading guitar licks all over
the place, as the show wrap-up the Heartache Tonight and Life In The Fast
Lane.

The first encore is a monster version of Rocky Mountain Way, with Joe going to
town on the old guitar. The second encore, although predictable is perfect,
Take It Easy, whereat all began, and Desperado, which is augmented by The
Sheffield Arena Choir.

A few thoughts that the hindsight of 24 hours bring.  Both Glen and Joe are
suffering from colds, and so there vocals were not as pure as they usually
are, Joe in particular seemed to struggle.  Although this may have put some
listens off, I confess to never worrying too much about note perfect
renditions of song.  What matters to me is how much emotion and belief a voice
has.  And neither could be faulted on that point. Joe's cracked vocals on
Pretty Maids actually added to the song).  Both Don, and Tim in particular
did an excellent job of backing up their band mates. I don’t know what
Stuart’s position within the band is, but if the groupware committed to a
long-term future then they’ll be hard pressed to find as good a guitarist.
When soloing his playing was uniformly excellent.  From the Hawaiian style
breaks he played on the more country style songs, to his more aggressive style
towards the end of the show.  His solo’s displayed maturity, being faithful to
the original when needed, yet with little twists that enabled them to be his
own.  Whence and Joe got together, especially towards the end of the set,
they played off each other beautifully, forcing each other on to new heights.

In comparison with 5 years ago I felt that they seemed more comfortable being
The Eagles.  Not only in their choice of songs, but also in the way they mixed
them into the set, and they way they approached playing them.  

5 years ago, as much as I enjoyed them, I felt as though the first set was an
Eagles set, played as much to please the fans, and the second set what they
really wanted to play. But this year I saw The Eagles.

Disappointments? – No Old 55, one of my favourite tracks, and I feel that they
could have been a little more adventurous in some choices, much of the set
being a little too similar to the last time they toured.  Do we really need
Wasted Life and Pretty Maids again, there’s a wealth of material in that back
catalogue, don’t be afraid if it.

But these are minor gripes in what was a great show – see you in Birmingham in
a month’s time.

Emma S's Review

After one hell of a drive in the pouring rain we arrived in Sheffield.  We were early so got the chance to see some of the band arrive and hear the sound check.  I even think I saw Winslowboy in the car park!
 
When the doors were finally opened we made our way inside.  The rest of my party had seats up the back somewhere but the reason for my trip, all that way was that I had a front row seat.  I made my way all on my own, past several security people down to the front of the arena.  The stage got bigger and bigger the nearer I got.
After making friends with the people around me and listening to some woman complain because she was third row and had expected to be in the front I settled down for the evening.
 
Glenn introduced the show as an evening with the band that wouldn't die.  He then launched into some speech about how nice it was to be out of London and in 'working class' Sheffield.  He called London a cross between New York and LA.  At this point people were cheering and I had my head in my hands.  This was much to the amusement of my new found friends who knew I'd travelled up from just outside London.  I'd already received the usual 'I bet you don't remember the Eagles the first time around do you?' comment from the guy sitting behind me.  He also said 'I bet you're the youngest one here, HA HA.'
 
Anyway, on with the show.  Seven Bridges sounded the same as it had done in London.  I thought the sound was much better in Sheffield.  Peaceful Easy Feeling sounded the best I'd ever heard.  Wasted Time was also brilliant.
Due to Joe and Glenn both having colds and Don not saying much at all it was Timothy who seemed the most chatty.  He praised Joe's guitar playing and commented that he really gets rocking later in the show.  Don seemed a little subdued.  I spotted him staring into space at one point.  I get the feeling that he may have been a little unwell too.  He made no comment during the show, dropped All She Wants To Do Is Dance from the set list and even handed his 'thanks for the past 30 years' speech over to Glenn.  
 
It was hard for me to take it all in.  I wanted to remember every second of what I saw and what I heard.  I think I must have had the straightest look on my face.  I was concentrating so hard.  I saw the Eagles in 96 and can't remember a thing about it so was determined to remember every detail of this tour.
 
During the interval I got talking to the woman sitting next to me.  She said how surprised she was that no one was standing up.  I replied that after the next song people usually start to get up.  After a longer interval than usual the Eagles came back on and launched into Hotel California.  Still no one got up.  Even at the end.  By the time they reached the intro to Dirty Laundry I took one look at the woman next to me and gestured to her to stand up.  We were the only two in the whole front row.  It sort of opened the floodgates as I became aware that the audience behind us were gradually getting to their feet.  I'm not sure if it was us or Don and Timothy's encouragement that made them get up.  There were the three people in the front row next to me who refused to stand until they got up to leave though.  I think Glenn and Don may have spotted this because they sort of looked in their direction then at each other and started to laugh.
 
I felt quite sorry for Glenn during You Belong To The City.  He warned us that he was ill.  He sounded fine on all the other songs that he did but this one made him sound like a cross between Kermit The Frog and Dame Edna.  The others helped him out a great deal on it.  I would still rather he replaced it with The Heat Is On.  If no other songs get people up and dancing that one will! 
 
The highlights of the Sheffield show as far as I'm concerned weren't that different from London.  Apart from where I was sitting that is!  The Long Run is always a pleasure to hear live but I feel it would be better suited to later in the show when people are up and dancing.  Walk Away was again fantastic and all the better for me having a seat right in front of Joe who was clearly suffering.
 
They all seemed to be getting along well.  Don and Glenn shared a few jokes between them.  I've never seen DH laugh so much as when Joe began playing around with his microphone during Rocky Mountain Way.  He kept making the assistants run onto the stage and stand it back up for him.
 
All in all I had the time of my life.  I never thought I'd be that close.  I'd never even dreamed of being in the front row of an Eagles concert.  I'd like to say a huge thanks to the lovely people that I met that night.  I was there on my own and felt really looked after.
 
I can't wait for the Birmingham show in July. 

 

Winslowboy's Reprise

Five days after the concert and I’m still suffering from a mixture of Intoxication  Blues, Cold Turkey and a Harmony Hangover all rolled into one. There is only one known cure for withdrawal symptoms and that is to feed the fire with more of the same! What a truly great night it was and how I look forward to going again!

They say you should always see a pantomime at three different stages during its programme run because you will enjoy three totally different performances.  I wonder if the same will be true of the Eagles? Those of you lucky enough to attend concerts across the full spread of dates might care to comment in due course.

On reflection of the night, there was so much going on visually and aurally that the first half dozen numbers or so seemed to pass in a blurred haze of unleashed reality; which is another reason why I have to see them again, to find out what I missed the first time!  I forgot to mention the lighting! It was superb, a mixture of hot reds and cool blues, witchy greens and pure whites which danced in rhythm to the beat and the mood of the particular number.  Downlighters and spots picked out the ‘man of the moment’ and even the use of blackness created its own special effects.

I saw Timothy drinking bottled water but where was the famous Gatorade?  Will they have graduated to Irn Bru by the time they hit Glasgow

So fly away safely Glenn, Don, Timothy, Joe, Steuart et Al until you land on our shores again in July - 60 million hungry fans are waiting!

PS - Did I mention the lighting?

 

Derek's Review

It had been 5 years since I had spent one of the best nights of my life on a beautiful warm day in a Huddersfield football stadium – the Eagles were in town. Tonight was also supposed to be summer but it was grey and wet – but no matter because ‘the band that wouldn’t die’ was back in town (thankfully indoors). A sell-out crowd, and this fan in particular, waited in anticipation – in fact, for a 40-something grown adult I was really excited ! The set was a-la-Moscow, opening with Seven Bridges Road (so good to hear again), the second half with a perfect Hotel California (superb performance but in the wrong place in the set). Encore was missing All She Wants To Do Is Dance & Ol’55 – have they been played at any concert yet ? The first half was excellent (Wasted Time was superb) but perhaps a bit too low key in song selection, especially for bit-time fans (not me). Sound was a bit out of sorts with, at times, Joe’s and Steuart’s guitars mixing together. Both Glenn and Joe were feeling a bit under the weather due to colds although made light of it (Glenn :  ‘the further I get from London, the better I feel’. Joe : ‘the rain has got in my head’) – sure Joe missed some of the high vocals and Glenn’s voice did seem to tail off a bit in the second half but it didn’t really affect the performance. The second half sound (I thought) was much better, seemed to suit the more up tempo numbers and now the crowd got more and more into the event. Mind you it still didn’t seem to please one man in front of my wife who was heard to remark that ‘they sound better on cd’ !!!!! (and he was being serious). The crowd were on their feet from Dirty Laundry onwards and really enjoyed the night. For me, loved every minute of it – a 40+ wrinkly who got a high without the need for any drugs – here’s to another dose in Manchester on the 18th.