Steve Hackett

Steve Hackett, Birmingham Symphony Hall, 18/11/19.

I'll get the gripes out of the way first. Every time I see him, his guitar is too far down in the mix, as is Nad's voice. Is it too much to ask for Steve and his singer to be audible above the rest of the band? And please don't turn your lights on the audience unless they are top lights. The lights from the stage are quite literally blinding.

Anyway, apart from those two little niggles, the quality of the music was superb as usual. The new drummer - Craig Blundell - was completely different. They even gave him a drum solo at the end of Clocks, and if I closed my eyes I could have been listening to Carl Palmer or even Bill Bruford at one point. I did think the band missed Gary O'Toole's vocals though.

The first half was Spectral Mornings with a few tracks from At the Edge of Light. John Hackett joined them for a couple of tracks, and a real surprise was "The Red Flower of Tachai Blooms Everywhere", which is a Chinese-influenced track which I didn't think the band could pull off - but they did thanks to a flute duet with John and Rob Townsend.

After a short break, they played "Selling England" straight through, just as you'd hear it if you played the CD. The extended version of I Know what I Like was fantastic. Hats off to Nad for completely nailing "More Fool Me". I used to try and sing this when I was a folkie, and I had to do a simplified version on the guitar and some of the notes I couldn't reach even if I dropped it down a key or two. And The Battle of Epping Forest was really well done by them all.

For me - and this is a technical guitar thing - the highlight was just two notes in Steve's guitar solo in Firth of Fifth. I had no idea a guitar could play notes that high, which seemed to be the 5th or 6th harmonic of a note played halfway up the neck on the G string... When the place went silent after the applause for that song, a man in front of me shouted out "That was the best version ever!" and do you know, I tend to agree with him.

The bonus track, "Deja Vu" - well that was a complete triumph. Absolutely beautiful. On the way back I tried to think what album it could have fit into, and to be honest the only one I could have fit it into was... Voyage of the Acolyte or maybe even Spectral Mornings! Too beautiful for one of the Gabriel era Genesis albums, even though he wrote it.

Overall, I noticed that the band seemed to have been let off the leash a bit performance-wise, particularly Rob Townsend and Jonas Reingold.

And a teaser for you - he mentioned the Heart of England orchestra he toured with last year - and said they are working on something similar...

Well there you have it. I nearly killed myself getting there as I've hardly walked for 6 weeks following my op, but I'm so glad I made it. Those of you going, you are in for a real treat.

Dear Steve and amazing band:
Michael and I are overwhelmed by this Berkeley , CA concert! We LOVE LOVE LOVE your band and everyone plays an important part in the music! We have loved Steve Hackett since he was with Genesis ...and we have always thought his interpretation of the music was the MOST important! Love the "older" UTUBE concerts where Gabe was a "babe" in arms and Hackett a virtuoso of the guitar! Nad is the most amazing performer and instills a part that only "GABE" could do! There are many rock guitar styles from the early 60's to 70's that we admire: Jimmy Page, Pete Townsend, David Gilmore, Of Course J. Hendrix ,Keith Richards and then the number one man : STEVE HACKETT! We could listen, watch, enjoy this music until our 100's. I only hope that my children, grandchildren enjoy the most Progressive Rock in history by listening to Steve Hackett's band and all the fantastic music that NO ONE DOES today! PLEASE come back to Berkeley, CA theater soon! Love Mr. Wind, Roger, Gary, and any of he amazing bass guitar players you choose to tour .....Love, Love, Love, I could have listened for 4 days non stop! We Love you Steve Hackett, you are the God's gift to the Universe! See you soon and safe travels! Lori D. and Michael K.

My wife and I did the pre show meet and greet, like we did last year in Chicago. You can tell I'm a fan, have been since 1975.

The Tivoli was a great, intimate venue for such a show. The official song run list looks good and after dinner, we head for the show. Steve Hackett's guitar playing is fantastic, note perfect all night during 2.5 hours of intense playing. The crowd are happy with this minute of solo Hackett and best of Genesis, and a standing ovation greets the band not only at the end but after every Genesis back catalogue 'event'. The Brisbane crowd welcome Steve as a long lost son and everyone cheers during the "Suppers Ready' line - 'its been a long long time, hasn't it?'.

So, well worth the trip from Melbourne to Brisbane, and well worth the chance to consume a musical feast of what represents ground breaking music of the 70's. Steve Hackett is a star of the Gibson guitar, a true gentleman who is true to his ideals. Finally, nice touch Steve on making everyone feel welcome by talking about your families refugee history. What a star.

Colin

Can he hack it? I think so! Steve Hackett, ladies and gentlemen. One of the most influential guitarists of the seventies, being looked up to by Eddie Van Halen, Alex Lifeson, Brian May and Steve Rothery. It’s no wonder that this guitarist was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010.
Being in Genesis however, didn’t hinder the fact that this guitarist had time to record his own albums and put them out there only for them to chart his first six making the top 40. Tonight is in celebration of some of his most successful works. Opening with the distinct sound of “Every Day”, this audience are full of nothing but alcohol and praise as they sing along, loud and clear. “Sentimental Institution” is another song that keeps this gathering on their toes, enjoying the show in front of them. There is absolutely no doubt that Hackett is a good singer, but when he launches into his guitar solos, the audience go absolutely wild for it.

Okay But No Cigar
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Sorry Steve but it didn’t work with the Orchestra and it’s your fault because you and the band didn’t allow them to breathe; you played your normal band set without enough space left for the orchestra, consequently Nad Sylva's vocals were drowned out every time the orchestra came in. What’s the point of doing Suppers Ready or Musical box if you can’t hear the lyrics? What should have been a magical re-interpretation of Genesis back catalogue and Your Songs with an orchestra, turned into a fight to be heard. It probably would have been better if you dispensed with the band apart from Sylva and the drummer for this one concert and worked with the orchestra to re-interpret the parts played by the rest. It was still a great night out despite the above but the night could have been so much better.
Standout song :Serpintine song
Most disapointing song : Suppers Ready, due to what I outlined above.
3 out of 5

Very enjoyable show. This was my fourth time seeing Steve Hackett. I will definitely see him again the next time he is in town. I love watching and listening to him play electric guitar.

The set list was a good mix of new and old material. He played the "Selling England By The Pound" album in its entirety, but it was wonderful that he immediately followed it with a song which was recorded at the time of that album but never included on it. It was good that he was also celebrating the 40th anniversary of his "Spectral Mornings" album. The first set started with a great version of "Every Day" and ended with "Clocks" about 55 minutes later. After a twenty minute break, they played the second set which ran for an hour and a half.

The sound quality and the lighting were excellent. His band are great musicians. It was a sold out crowd in a lovely old theater which just made the evening even more enjoyable.

An amazing show. Steve and the band seem to be getting better every year. His playing was phenomenal, and even with two new band members, the band was tight and played perfectly. The show starts with some great songs off the new album, and then a celebration of Spectral Mornings. After the intermission it's Selling England by the Pound end to end and then some tunes off Trick of the Tail to close.

I really appreciate how much the band loves to perform and how much the audience loves the show. There were multiple standing ovations and Steve in particular seemed to be touched by the response. He spoke a lot, telling some stories behind the songs. It was a great connection and what a concert should be.

I highly recommend the show. If you even just like (vs love) prog rock, or early Genesis you just have to see this show. It will give you a whole new appreciation for how awesome this music is.

I was at Shepherds Bush last night and I thought I must leave a review to say what a great night it was.

Great track list, really good balance between old and new. Great to hear Get ‘Em Out By Friday and After The Ordeal which I haven’t heard live for many a year. I also though it very thoughtful and unselfish of him to play things like Cinema Show where keyboards feature heavily and is so appreciated by the audience.
Sound quality and balance was also excellent, much better that last year at Hammersmith which wasn’t up to their usual standard I thought.
To do a tour the size of the one he's doing and to play for nearly 3 hours is amazing.
Anyway one of the best concerts I’ve seen in a long while – and from the long standing ovation at the end I think my feelings are shared
Well done all round!

Been 50 yrs and Steve had clearly used the gap in our get togethers to practice. I've heard lots of Steve's post-Genesis music and liked it all a lot. The gig, however, just blew me away. The 2nd half reworking of a seminal Genesis work, Selling England by The Pound was absolutely amazing. Steve's band are exceptional and if anything I enjoyed their version to the original. The first half mixture of recent and older works were equally well presented. The audience were entranced by all the skills on show and Steve's stories. I'd recommend this tour and any others they may undertake. A full house showed their appreciation with a well deserved and loud and long standing ovation. The two bonus encore gift were equally brilliant. And then another ovation. Fantastic. Thanks Steve and gang.

Superb show.
Saw the band last year which was also good but this surpassed it.
The show has really evolved with better orchestration and much fuller production all round.

New drummer Gary O'Toole is terric as are Messrs Beggs, Silver, King, Alexander. While Steve continues in top form.

The first half comprised materiL crom Steves solo career inuding tracks from the new album. The new stuff sounding particularly fine.

The 2nd half was Genesis revisited with all the classic Hackett set pieces. Wind and wuthering best buts, Firth of Fifth and a classic Musical Box.

See tgis show if you get the chance.
Great night.