“It’s always good to be Rod,” boasted the 59-year old Scot after opening his show with a tepid version of “Forever Young” followed by a surprisingly potent “Young Turks.” Looking at the man, it was hard to doubt his statement. He was in great voice, shape and spirit. The rock legend bounded around the stage with a boyish energy, laughing and kicking customized soccer balls to his absolutely adoring fans. Unfortunately, this show suffered from poor pacing but as this is a brand new tour, maybe there’s time for this to be worked out. For the first half of the show, Stewart relied on the light rock side of things. “Downtown Train,” “The First Cut Is The Deepest,” “You’re In My Heart” and “Some Guys Have All The Luck” were among the tracks chosen. Only later did he dig deeper for stellar versions of “Ooh La La” and “You Wear It Well.” Rod did manage to rock a little here and there. “Hot Legs,” while significantly rearranged still had a little fire but it took an even more muscular version of “Stay With Me” to really get things cooking. At this point, Stewart simply blurted out “Gotta have a beer. Be back in 20 minutes.” The show, just picking up steam, never regained its momentum after the intermission.

When the curtain re-lifted, the stage had been changed to resemble a ‘30s nightclub complete with an orchestra. Stewart now donned black tie and tails and quietly crooned “As Time Goes By” while footage from Casablanca flickered behind him. And that’s what we got for the next hour or so. The singer did respectful, but not particularly special interpretations of standards such as “The Way You Look Tonight,” “Someone To Watch Over Me” and “I’m In The Mood For Love.” During this set, the approval seemed to be split. Women swooned and threw bouquets of roses while the men seemed slightly horrified at the display. Rod even did orchestral versions of some of his own hits. It made enough sense. “Tonight’s The Night” and “Have I Told You Lately” fit right in nicely. Thank God that he ditched the orchestra for the finale. Even if he did mangle the lyrics to “Maggie May” (you’d think after 33 years and with the help of a teleprompter he could remember them), it felt as rocking as Metallica after the wedding band / Vegas act. For his encores, he chose the disparate pairing of “Twistin’ The Night Away” and “I’ll Be Seeing You” which was the perfect symbol of the unevenness of this show and for that matter, his entire career.

(Chris McKay / concertshots.com)