Boston & REO Speedwagon
July 27, 2015
The Forum- Inglewood, CA
For several hours on July 27, Boston and REO Speedwagon brought fans back to the 1970’s & 80’s with their timeless rock n’ roll hits. REO Speedwagon started the night off right, performing hit after hit while smiling into the adoring crowd who sang the lyrics back at them. Although REO has only one original member left, keyboard player, Neal Doughty, fans didn’t mind and and the current members performed as if they were with the band since its inception in 1966.
REO Speedwagon performed a 13 song setlist and a 2 song encore which featured songs from 8 of their 16 albums. The band were clearly enjoying performing as much as the crowd enjoyed watching. Singer Kevin Cronin, bassist, Bruce Hall and lead guitarist Dave Amato would constantly come together and perform side by side as the crowd cheered at them. Songs of the night included, Can’t Fight This Feeling, Take It on the Run and the encores Keep on Loving You & Ridin’ the Storm Out. The band warmed the crowd up and really set the mood for the night.
Following REO Speedwagon were headliners of the night Boston, the classic rock legends. Much like REO, Boston currently has one remaining orignal member, lead guitarist, Tom Scholz but current members did an exceptional job filling in the shoes of past members. The band’s stage set up was very detailed and precise. Scholz and Boston had complete control over how the set up was to ensure a memorable concert. Amps surrounded the stage, in the middle there was a drum set which was surrounded in plexiglass so that they could control how much sound of drums the crowd could hear. Scholz had his own setup with his guitar and pedals. The details of the stage plot were done to a tea and the sound that resulted was simply amazing. The band started off their 21 song and 2 song encore setlist with Rock & Roll Band from their first album, Boston which peaked at number 3 on the US Rock charts and ended up selling over 17 million copies.
Current lead singer, Tommy DeCarlo did a fantastic job hitting all the notes and intriguing the crowd; he would constantly walk from one side of the stage to another, belting out notes and reaching into the audience. The band performed from 5 of their 6 albums, which had something for old and new fans alike.
If you’re a fan of classic rock and enjoy watching a show that is extremely professional in sound quality, or just want to hear some hits from the 70’s and 80’s, then be sure to catch these two bands in a city near you!
Review by: Nicole Lemberg
Boston
REO Speedwagon
