Photo: Steve Raymond/WZXL
My personal time machine is real. It accelerates to Mach speed as I strap myself in and the first chords rip over the sound system. I was on a personal exodus to a land where time stands still. The land on this night, Tuesday July 23rd was Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. My aged skin felt tightened up, my hearing was at peak for The 50th anniversary summer tour of Journey with Def Leppard and special guest, The Steve Miller Band. The iconic artist/songwriter/composer Steve Miller took the stage at 6:00pm sharp to the opening "space sounds" of Fly Like An Eagle. Bravo! The ageless troubadour, who turned 80 years old in October, 2023 showed fantastic "cool". Reflecting on his first time performing in the city of Brotherly Love in 1967, his interaction with the packed ballpark crowd was engaging and enlightening and his crisp, youthful vocals sounded identical to my vinyl record collection purchased 50 years ago! Steve effortlessly sent my rocket ship at warp speed back to 1974. It was a time when needle on vinyl was the norm and I felt more hair on my head then on my back! Eeww. Touch much information.
Not to mention, Miller jamming into Fly Like An Eagle album cut Serenade, ripping into 1960's hippie classic Living In The USA and taking me back to the 1980's with the cool pop sound of Abracadabra. Take The Money & Run got great crowd response as did 1976 hit Rock N' Me and his first major hit on the pop charts in 1974 (50 years ago), The Joker! No one is sure if Steve is still a "midnight toker", a lover' or a midnight sinner", but he was surely a "picker" and a "grinner" all these years on, keeping us boppin' and smilin in a bangin' opening set. Jet Airliner, an all time favorite from my ancient school days was an amazing finale to the set which lasted one hour.
Journey was next taking the stage in rocket propulsion style with Only The Young, Stone In Love, Faithfully and all the hits! I waited patiently albeit white-knuckled to my time warp space ship for Separate Ways (Worlds Apart). I crank that up still on my 2024 playlists but the live version was done with high-powered rock precision! 70-year old Guitarist extraordinaire Neal Schoen powered through various guitar solos that kept up our vibe and energy and showing us why he has been dominating in his vocation since he joined Santana as a 17-year old prodigy back in the day. Journey would close their in between set after one hour to a stadium shaking rendition of Don't Stop Believin'. WOW! The noise, the energy, the escape these road warriors provided for us grateful souls will be a lifelong memory!
Def Leppard picked the short straw this night and had headliner-closing act honors and did not let down the throng of 30,000+ on hand at the ol' ballpark! They opened at 9:30pm sharp with the song I came to see them play, Rock! Rock! (Til You Drop). Certainly a longtime show open staple for the English lads, it has been my favorite since forever! Front man Joe Elliott who turns 65 on August 1st came out rockin, his silver mane flowing and showing his steady confidence of life and his craft since 1981. High powered renditions of Armageddon It and Animal sounded better than the record. Phil Collen, a virtuoso of his craft put on a show on guitar! Nothing beat great classic rock staples played LIVE over massive sound systems. Every nuance of sound, every key, every string brought forth with amazing clarity. Love Bites, Too Late For Love and Bringing On The Heartbreak brought the singing and crowd swooning to perfect synchronization. My time warp travel was not over yet. Rock Of Ages and Photograph from the Pyromania closed the initial set. Hysteria and Pour Some Sugar On Me was the encore finish! WOW! I was 17 again! What a night. This summer concert tour is a must in any city. Check here for your closest city and go!
Grade: A+++