Concert review: If you loved the ’80s, Styx and REO Speedwagon made you feel young
If you were in search of a 1980s fix Saturday night in Charlotte, you were in the right place at a nostalgia-drenched concert at PNC Music Pavilion.
A triple bill of Styx, REO Speedwagon and Loverboy produced four hours of hits straight from the era of big hair, indoor malls and MTV. And it was an impressive show overall, with each band concentrating largely on the hits that made it famous — which is exactly what a show like this could do.
The show, which comes to Raleigh Wednesday, seemed intent on bringing the 1980s back for one night. In that, it was successful, although none of us look the same as we did back then.
The primary lead singers for all three bands ranged in age from 65 to 70, with REO Speedwagon’s Kevin Cronin the oldest at 70 exactly. Cronin leaped around the stage with vigor, though, as did Styx’s Lawrence Gowan and Tommy Shaw. Loverboy’s Mike Reno was a little slower afoot, but his vocals on “Turn Me Loose” and “Working for the Weekend” were highlights in his band’s 45-minute opening set.
Because of the relatively simple staging — drum kits on wheels, band logos that can be slid aside almost as easily as curtains — the breaks between the three bands’ sets were minimal. If you’ve ever been to a music festival where it’s not that way, you know how difficult it is to rebuild any concert momentum after a roadie crew takes 90 minutes to reset the stage.
In this case, however, REO Speedwagon took the stage only 15 minutes after Loverboy left, cranking out a series of hits in a 65-minute set that ranged from rockers like “Roll with the Changes” to ballads like “Time for Me to Fly” and “Keep on Loving You.”
The band’s best album, the 1980 classic “Hi Infidelity,” was a staple of my album collection throughout high school and was well in evidence Saturday. Cronin no longer has his 1980s-era big hair, but his voice still filled the place on “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and “Ridin’ the Storm Out.”
After a 20-minute break, Styx played a rousing 80-minute set to close the night before a crowd I would unofficially estimate at 15,000. Highlights included “Come Sail Away,” “Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)” and “Mr. Roboto.”
Styx has so many hits that it would require a show that didn’t include three bands in one night to play them all. But not including “The Best of Times” and “Babe” (both originally sung by long-departed former Styx frontman Dennis DeYoung) in the set at all is a disappointing choice.
On a happier note, Gowan once took a turn alone on his spinning keyboard — which he rotated dozens of times throughout the night — and offered a surprise. His solo version of Elton John’s “Rocketman,” which turned into a singalong, was one of the night’s best segments. Unexpected covers like that should be part of more live shows. It reminded me of Garth Brooks’ recent show in Charlotte and the medley he did of James Taylor songs, which was a delight.
A lowlight: Traffic getting into the venue.
As usual, it seemed unnecessarily difficult. It felt like the sort of traffic jam that occurs before the Coca-Cola 600 every year, although PNC Music Pavilion can only hold a fraction of the amount of people that can be shoehorned into Charlotte Motor Speedway. While bathroom and concession lines seemed manageable this time around, and the workers outside the venue were courteous and doing their best, the traffic pattern surely could be improved.
The crowd was overwhelmingly white and mostly made up of people ranging in age from their 40s to their 60s. Gowan noted once that the younger people in the crowd had either had facelifts or “had embraced classic rock,” and it sounded more like the latter, judging from the applause.
But many in the crowd had lived this music during their formative years the first time around. It showed in their knowledge of the lyrics and the way they threw their arms around each other during the hits, of which there were plenty.
Styx Setlist
The Fight of Our Lives
Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
The Grand Illusion
Lady
Crash of the Crown
Light Up
Sound the Alarm
Rockin’ the Paradise
Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
Too Much Time on My Hands
Khedive
Rocketman (Elton John Cover)
Lost at Sea
Come Sail Away
Mr. Roboto (1st encore)
Renegade (2nd encore)
REO Speedwagon Setlist
Don’t Let Him Go
Take it on the Run
Keep Pushin’
Live Every Moment
Tough Guys
Can’t Fight This Feeling
Like You Do
Time for Me to Fly
Back on the Road Again
Ridin’ the Storm Out
Keep On Loving You
Roll with the Changes
Loverboy Setlist
Notorious
Lucky Ones
Queen of the Broken Hearts
The Kid is Hot Tonite
Lovin’ Every Minute of It
Hot Girls in Love
Turn Me Loose
Working for the Weekend
