Seattle, Wa July 16, 2008 Woodland Park Zoo

This was our first zoo concert of the year - normally we attend everyone as we live very close and have two young children who get in free - and it was a wonderful reintroduction. We just returned from a family trip to Italy and were excited to get back in the swing of the Seattle Summer. We’ve seen Marc Cohn and Aimee Mann at the zoo before, but not together. The show was very mellow, lots of people and enjoyable. There have been some changes to the layout of the field including a removal of the speakers that are normally about half-way up the field so the back of the crowd can hear better (that’s where we were so tough to hear words), a closing off of part of the hill where the kids play (bummer!) and ommitting the canopy over the sound board (due to GREAT weather). Both artists have relatively new albums out so we got a good dose of those plus some of the classic tracks.
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I was really looking forward to this show. David Lee Roth is back, Eddie Van Halen looks to be in great shape, good venue for a show and the right group of friends to make a memorable evening. Too bad Van Halen mailed in the show. As we left the Key Arena and walked down the hill to our cars, the conversation from the entire group was in general negative. Some general comments:
- The energy level from the band was low. Diamond Dave did a lot of walking around the main stage, Eddie didn’t seem excited about being there until really late in the show when he grabbed a smoke and then did a few kicks.
- The band looked great. Both Diamond Dave and Eddie are in great shape. Dave wore a series of signature jackets with asian inspired stitching while Eddie was shirt free for the entire show with signature baggy pants and tennis shoes. Wolfgang looked like a 16 year old kid playing bass in his high school band and Alex looked old.
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I love Neil Young. Old, cranky, pissed off and rockin’ in the free world. I love the Canadian cynicism, the warbley voice that can soar and the spot on writing. I’ve seen him live twice before, but this was by far my favorite. The stage was smallish, cluttered with guitars, banjos, two pianos (grand and upright), a wooden indian and an oil can. His wife Pegi opened with a short set from her new album and he was backed by his band from his latest album “Chrome Dreams II” - Ben Keith (pedal-steel guitar, dobro and other instruments), Rick Rosas (bass) and Ralph Molina of Crazy Horse (drums).

This was my first show at the WaMu Theater and even though the space was no where near as cozy as the Triple Door, the sound was fantastic and Neil sounded wonderful. Neil was wearing a rumpled suit and played on and off for over 3 hours. The tickets were expensive (but worth it) and the crowd was in the 40+ range but very enthusiastic.
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First of all, I am so glad The Police did not play in one of the barns or stadiums in the Seattle/Tacoma area. I will never see another show at the Tacoma Dome and I’d much rather see the Police as a tight trio than a bloated band. With that said, the concert last night was VERY good and the sound was VERY good at the Key Arena.

The band kicked off with a gong bang (Stewart complained about this on his blog at the Vancouver show - but it was fine) and then a great version “Message in a Bottle” that got the crowd grooving. Everyone (mostly people like me in our 40’s) was pumped to see them and it was a great song to start with. The band (just the three) played with a lot of energy and enthusiasm - especially Stewart and Sting. Stings’ voice sounded strong and man can he hit still the high notes. The next couple of hours was a litany of greatest hits with some of the lesser known (but fun) songs mixed in. I especially like So Lonely, the moody Invisible Sun, the extended/jazzy Roxanne and the last song Next to You.
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