Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band @ First Niagara Center, Buffalo, New York 4-18-13

Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band’s 2013 Rock and Roll Never Forgets Tour made a stop at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York, on Thursday. It was certainly a night to remember (or never forget). Seger came out full of energy and he was greeted by a thunderous crowd already pumped up by the noteworthy opening act, Joe Walsh. Seger took the stage at 8:45 PM to the tune of “Long Twin Silver Line” and he kept his fans revved up throughout an impressive 20 song set, including two encores. The Silver Bullet Band sounded great. The band was complete with backup singers, ‘The Motor City Horns’ horn section, Chris Campbell on the bass, Alto Reed on the Sax, Craig Frost on keyboards and Don Brewer on the drums. Newcomer Rob McNelly (comparatively speaking) did a great job on lead guitar and Jim “Moose” Brown rounded things out on the rhythm guitar.

The crowd was all about Bob Seger, but he took a few breaks and showcased his worthy band members throughout the performance. Seger sat down with an acoustic guitar and Alto Reed took his turn commanding the stage with his saxophone during “Main Street.” Later, Seger introduced “a song he hasn’t performed on tour in 26 years” as he shared the spotlight with guitarist Rob McNelly on “Like A Rock.” For “Come to Papa,” Reed stepped up to a single timpani (kettledrum) above the drum kit and played that, along with a handful of maracas. Seger likes that “Old Time Rock & Roll,” but listening to “Come to Papa” reminded me that he really likes rhythm & blues too.

Seger moved to the piano for “We’ve Got Tonight” and “Turn the Page” as the audience swayed and held cell phones in the air in place of lighters of old. His raspy voice is still strong and tender. He finished up the set by introducing the band and singing “Katmandu” before exiting the stage. The crowd was standing and screaming for more as Bob Seger returned to the stage for not one (1), but two (2) encores. The fans were more than satisfied and Seger’s mission was accomplished. Seger is an authentic classic rocker who sings his heart out for his audience. This was his crowd. Seger is 68 years old and still rockin’ with a voice stronger than his 2011 performance in Buffalo, NY. Admittedly, his high notes weren’t as high, but he cleverly let the fans fill-in the gaps as the singing along nearly drowned him out a few times. The set list was mostly Seger classics and the fans loved it. He also performed a few new songs, including “All the Roads,” slated to be on his upcoming album due out in the fall.

As previously noted, the legendary Joe Walsh opened the show. The lights went down and Bob Dylan’s “Everybody Must Get Stoned” was piping through the arena as Walsh entered the stage. It was a quite a treat to see both Joe Walsh and Bob Seger on the same night. I wasn’t going to review Joe Walsh, but his performance was too cool not to share some highlights. He had his usual comedic moments, but he wowed me with his guitar playing and his guitars as he used a different guitar for each song, and even used two during “Rocky Mountain Way” and, of course, ‘old school’ talked through one of them. He had two full drum kits and three drummers behind him, along with a couple of outstanding backup singers that took the lead as Walsh paid tribute to the tragedy at the Boston Marathon this week, dedicating “I Shall be Released” to Boston, MA. Instrumentally, the band played a tight set and wrapped it up with the Eagle’s classic “Life in the Fast Lane.”

Bob Seger Set List:

Long Twin Silver Line
Tryin to Live my Life Without You
The Fire Down Below
Main Street
Old Time Rock & Roll
All the Roads
Like a Rock
Travelin’ Man
Beautiful Loser
Roll me Away
Come to Papa (Willie Mitchell/ Earl Randle)
California Stars (Woody Guthrie)
We’ve Got Tonight
Turn the Page
Sunspot Baby
Katmandu