Great show. Some prog rock, pomp rock, AOR, even a few yacht rock tunes. But it all worked well as a whole. I don't consider myself a big fan but I know and like most of the hits. The only two albums I own and have ever owned are Tales of M&I and Eye in the Sky.
So it was a big and pleasant surprise that they played all of Eye in the Sky. Really a strong album from start to finish. And it was played very well as was everything.
All legacy bands out there playing primarily 30/40 year old hits should take note: this is how you do it. The musicians were impeccable. Superbly talented and very well rehearsed. Vocalists could hit every note with ease and grace. Four of the band's frontline sang, so they could easily handle the different vocal styles of Rainbow, Zakatek, Woolfson, etc.
Parsons himself took a few vocals, something I believe he never did on the records. But his voice worked well when that distinctive Englishness was needed. And the other vocalists seamlessly swapped in when a melody went out of his range.
One interesting note: Parsons promised us that everything was 100% live, which you might doubt because of how full and in tune the band sounded. Except, he admitted they used a taped orchestra on Silence and I. Personally I wouldn't have used it; I think the keysman could have handled it well enough on his own. But still great that everything else was truly live.
In sum an exciting solo night out: definitely worth the very reasonable $35 (same thing I paid for Santana a week before. There are still major acts with reasonable ticket prices...)
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