06/22/2007
Rick Springfield
House of Blues
Chicago, IL
Opening Band: The Squirts
Rolling Stone magazine called this one of the "don't miss" shows for the weekend (link here). We didn't need them to tell us that :)
The House of Blues is a cool venue. It is very small, which means that you are never very far from the stage. One of the things that I don't like is that it is general admission. Since we were already at the HOB for the Roe Conn show, we ate dinner there and got to go in a bit earlier. We actually wound up with actual seats up in the second level...opting for that rather than hanging out in the pit up front.
The Squirts are actually Rick's band minus him. I had seen them open for him once before, but must admit that I didn't pay that good of attention. They were actually very good, and Matt Bissonette has an excellent voice.
The Rick show was pretty good...although it was very much like the shows that we have seen before...and we did have a difficult time seeing the stage for much of the show. On the plus side, we didn't have to fight the crowds below. Throughout the whole show, Rick was paranoid that he had split out the seat of his pants and kept asking people if he was okay.
My pics didn't turn out very good...but here they are...
How about that for a guy who is almost 60?!?!?
My biggest complaints about the HOB as a venue: 1) It cost $26 to park downtown (and the Chicago city council, in all of their wisdom, is contemplating a new toll to drive into the city!!) 2) A can of domestic beer cost the price of a six-pack 3) Absolutely poor communication regarding the camera policy (rant below)!!
When we arrived for the radio show, we were told that cameras were absolutely not allowed and had to check them (for a fee, of course). We were told that artists in general don't allow cameras, so it was their overall policy. This was in direct contradiction to what we had been told when we called. After the radio broadcast, and before the concert, we asked about it again. We were told that cameras weren't allowed because Rick specifically forbid them. I have only been to ONE Rick Springfield show (in 1982!!!!!) where cameras were not allowed. We were told that they had "brand new, really good security wands" and that if we had cameras, we had better check them right away. We asked how all of the people who had cameras during the radio broadcast (never mind all of the camera phones) had managed to get them in...and they said they were just lucky. You would think that the major security concern would be weapons rather than cameras and bottled water. Twenty minutes before showtime, they made an announcement and said that if you had checked your camera that you could go pick it up and that cameras were indeed allowed. How messed up is that!?!?!?
