The Wrigleyville neighborhood in Chicago was alive with an endless ocean of disappointed Cubs fans, licking their wounds after an 11-5 shallacking at the hands of the Red Sox on a sunny Sunday afternoon. We got off the Red Line and secured a patio table at a serviceable BBQ joint across from the field just as the game came to an end, overlooking Clark Street and the ballpark, as sour-faced Chicagoans headed to adjacent bars, Lyfts, trains, and wherever else. Ours was a different mission, though. We were in town to see a special club show by Cheap Trick, playing the Metro’s 40th Anniversary show, just a block up the street. It seems like just last summer that I was on that same block on a very similar, steamy summer evening, celebrating the Metro’s 10th Anniversary at a special show by Soul Asylum, trying out for the first time some of the material that would end up on their breakout album Grave Dancer’s Union, but that was an inconceivable 30 years ago. We padded our guts with brisket and burnt ends in preparation for the night and headed up to the end of the queue.
“Has anyone ever told you that you look like Tom?” the lonely, eccentric, and overly-chatty, but well-meaning and friendly enough lady behind us said. “Um, no. That’s a new one.” I said. (I don’t, not even close.) “I wouldn’t mind looking like a young Robin Zander though.” I joked. The doors opened on schedule at 5:30pm CST sharp, and we took our spot a few feet back from Rick Nielsen’s microphone, stage right.
Brokeback unenthusiastically meandered out to a semi-enthusiastic cheer and casually tuned up their dual Jazzmasters while the crowd sat silent, waiting for the show to start. Leader Doug McCombs, most probably known as the bassist from Tortoise and Eleventh Dream Day, introduced the band and requested, “meaning no disrespect….we’re well aware,” that the bright Cheap Trick logo lights be turned off, possibly referring to some hidden teleprompters on stage.
Brokeback (pic: Facebook)
They followed with a six-song, 35 minute set of sparse, slow instrumentals that spanned genres from down-tempo-gothy-surf to shoe-gazey-alternative. The sound was pristine and the crowd was respectful, with nary a cell-phone in sight for the duration - a welcome exception to the scene at most concerts these days. It was an odd choice for an opener to be sure, not exactly firing anyone up for the upbeat dark and jaded powerpop rock of Cheap Trick, but they were musically excellent, albeit not very engaging, and did not overstay their welcome.
By 8pm the crowd was ready for some rock, and that familiar introduction came over the PA as Cheap Trick took the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, please welcome to the stage the best fucking rock band you’ve ever seen - Cheap Trick!” Rick Nielsen hit the opening harmonics to “Clock Strikes Ten” and we were off to the races.
For the next hour and 45 minutes Cheap Trick showed the 1100 cap crowd why they are, in fact, the best rock band you’ve ever seen. The setlist pulled from each decade in their history - from their `77 debut to their most recent 2021 album In Another World. The sound was (as usual) great out front, with Rick’s guitars cutting through nicely and the freakishly awesome Robin Zander leading the way, singing circles around most dudes half his age. Robin’s son Robin Taylor Zander stands stage left, a little buried in the mix, backing up his old man on virtually every line. His presence is not intrusive, and at times he does add some texture to the high notes, as well as some youthful energy to the stage, but the support seems a tad unnecessary as the elder is quite capable of holding his own on even the most soaring vocal lines.
The band was in high spirits, sporting smiles and interacting extensively with each other and the audience. Rick looked healthier than I’ve seen him in the four post-pandemic shows I’ve managed to catch. His son Daxx Nielsen, having replaced the inimitable Bun E. Carlos well over a decade ago, leads the charge with an energetic, youthful attack, celebrating the feel and fills of his predecessor while adding his own spirit along the way. And finally, bassist Tom Petersson, who I do not look like, holding down the low-end with his 12-string Gretch bass, a bit more mobile than usual, paying special attention to a group of ladies up front on Rick’s side of the stage throughout the night.
Highlights for me were a couple selections from the first album and the encore appearance of “Auf Wiedersehen” - a dark, energetic number from Heaven Tonight. The title track of that album was also a highlight - Rick sporting an orange and red mandocello explorer for the first half as Robin sings with deep emotion “You can never come down, you can never come down…” There were no real surprises in the setlist though. No rarely-heard deep cuts, nothing from their cult-favorite `97 self-titled album, and to my chagrin, no “Gonna Raise Hell,” but the songs on the outskirts of the hits are all great (Hell, the hits are great too!), and when the show ended just shy of 2 hours, no one was complaining.
As older acts like Cheap Trick, Aerosmith, the Rolling Stones, and AC/DC ride into the inevitable sunset, we have to take the opportunities we have to see them while we can, and what better place to see Cheap Trick than their near-home base of Chicago in this rare, intimate setting. It was my pal and +1 Jake’s first Cheap Trick show (my 39th), and I told him afterwards “Well, now you’ve seen them, and if you only ever get to see them once, it was a damn good one.”
METRO SETLIST
Clock Strikes Ten/Hello There/Just Got Back/California Man/He's a Whore/Big Eyes/On Top of the World/Ain't That a Shame/Heaven Tonight/The Ballad of T.V. Violence (I'm Not the Only Boy)/Boys & Girls & Rock N Roll/Stop This Game/Downed/I Know What I Want/The Flame/I Want You To Want Me/Dream Police/Never Had a Lot to Lose/Surrender/Auf Wiedersehen/Goodnight Now
Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos. Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
www.thetucos.com
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Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic
