Styx
Concord Pavilion
June 1, 2018
Photos by Raymond Ahner.
One of the most anticipated tours of the Summer rolled into the Concord Pavilion recently, bringing co-headliners Styx and Joan Jett, along with openers Tesla together for an evening of classic (and new) rock underneath the stars for thousands of fans spent the night singing along to every word.
Having released their sixteenth studio album, The Mission, last year Styx are technically touring in support of it, but that didn’t stop them from combining the songs from the new record with their enormous back catalog of hits that have made them one of the most successful bands in rock history.
Opening their set with ”Gone Gone Gone” from the new record, the band wasted no time setting the fast-paced tempo of their set. With a two-level stage, multiple video displays, and plenty of lighting, guitarists Tommy Shaw and James Young moved from one side of the stage to the other, stopping more than a few times in the middle to trade guitar riffs. From there Styx pulled out all the stops, playing “Blue Collar Man,” “The Grand Illusion,” “Lady,” and “Light Up,” all of which sounded just as good as when they were recorded. After a few more songs from the new record, Tommy Shaw introduced bassist Ricky Phillips and drummer Todd Sucherman before bringing out band founder and longtime bassist Chuck Panozzo, who still tours and makes special appearances with the band.
After a fourteen-song set that closed with the classic “Come Sail Away,” Styx returned to the stage for “Mr. Roboto” (which they are playing live for the first time since 1983) and “Renegade.”
Supporting Styx on this evening was Joan Jett, who delivered an energy-packed set of her own, opening with “Bad Reputation.” From there she brought out all the hits, including “Cherry Bomb,” “Do You Wanna Touch Me,” and “Light of Day,” before closing her set with a cover of Sly and the Family Stone’s “Everyday People.”
Opening the show was Sacramento’s Tesla, who brought the still filtering in crowd to the front of the stage early with “Signs,” “Love Songs,” and “Modern Day Cowboy.”
Here’s a slideshow with more photos of Styx and Tesla by Raymond Ahner:
Styx
Setlist: Gone Gone Gone | Blue Collar Man (Long Nights) | The Grand Illusion | Lady | Light Up | Rockin’ the Paradise | Radio Silence | Miss America | The Outpost | Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man) | Too Much Time on My Hands | Khedive | Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen cover) | Come Sail Away | | Mr. Roboto | Renegade
Find out more about Styx here.
Joan Jett:
Setlist: Bad Reputation | Cherry Bomb (The Runaways cover) | Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah) (Gary Glitter cover) | Victim of Circumstance | Soulmates to Strangers | You Drive Me Wild (The Runaways cover) | Light of Day (Bruce Springsteen cover) | Fetish | Love Is Pain | Fresh Start | Love Is All Around (Sonny Curtis cover) | I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll (The Arrows cover) | Crimson & Clover (Tommy James & the Shondells cover) | I Hate Myself for Loving You | Real Wild Child (Wild One) (The Dee Jays cover) | Everyday People (Sly & The Family Stone cover)
Get all the latest about Joan Jett on her website.
Tesla:
Setlist: I Wanna Live | Hang Tough | Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out) | Signs (Five Man Electrical Band cover) | What You Give | Love Song | Little Suzi (Ph.D. cover) | Modern Day Cowboy
Get all the dirt on Tesla here.
