Every year near the end of summer I start to dread the imminent arrival of fall and cooler weather. The weather forecast is unacceptable to me unless it’s warm enough to leave for work in the morning without a coat and still warm enough to come home at the end of the day without a coat. The minute the temperature starts to require me to add layers to my clothing, I’m pissed and depressed. Not enough to make me want to move to Florida, but enough to make me wish it could be summer all year long. As the summer of 2019 nears its end, I decided to send it out with a bang.
My 13-year-old daughter recently expressed interest in going to her first concert. She’s currently listening to Shawn Mendes nonstop, so on August 28 I took her to Shawn’s concert at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia for a late birthday present. I’m not a fan of much of today’s pop music, but I’m happy to say that Shawn’s show was full of energy and he really knows how to work the crowd. In a pop music climate filled with electronic loops and Auto-Tune vocals, I was thrilled to see that Shawn doesn’t just use the guitar as a prop, he actually plays it. Vocal effects were used sparingly, as a supplement rather than a necessity. He can sing his ass off, so he doesn’t need the gimmicks. It was also a thrill to watch thousands of young fans singing along to his songs with the same fervor as if they were on stage with him. After fearing for the future of good, catchy pop songs, I am quite relieved to see that at least one member of the next generation of musicians is making sure that catchy hooks won’t go away any time soon. The expression on my daughter’s face during the show was well beyond worth the price of the tickets. I’m pretty sure she’ll remember that night forever.
Now back to the subject of the end of summer depressing me. I decided that I really needed a one-two punch to end the summer on a high note. After taking my daughter to her first concert to see her current musical hero, I decided I would take her to see a concert with two of my all-time greatest musical heroes, Daryl Hall & John Oates. She’s seen the new kid in town, so I thought I would expose her to the greatest musical duo of all time (in my opinion at least). She knows many of their hits by heart simply via osmosis because I listen to them so much. So off we went to Hall & Oates’ August 30 show in Atlantic City at The Hard Rock’s Etess Arena. I’ve seen Hall & Oates many times since I first saw them in the eighties. I’m elated to report that instead of just phoning it in as many veteran acts seem to do, Daryl & John are at the top of their musical game. Sure, it’s still a greatest hits show for the most part (with the exception of the rarely played “Is It A Star,”) because let’s face it, when you have as many hits as these guys do, that’s what most of the crowd wants to hear. It’s been a few years since I’ve been to a Hall & Oates show, but I’m elated to report that their performance is still superb. The hits often featured fresh arrangements while still staying true to the core essence of each song. The fresh arrangements don’t distract the listener, they simply breathe new life into the classic songs. I wanted to show my daughter what the masters of pop music can do, and Daryl & John did not disappoint.
And so our boys of summer cheered us up in only the way that music can. Shawn Mendes showed me why my daughter loves his music, and Hall & Oates showed my daughter why they mean so much to me, and that — in her words said with genuine enthusiasm– “those old guys can really still rock.” I’m pretty sure that’s high praise from a 13-year-old.
The Great Song Traveler: Chasing Songs From Town To Town 