Steve Winwood & Eric Clapton-United Center, Chicago 6/17/09

This was a long awaited show, and for a while it looked like it was going to be only destined for the New York audiences. Last year this duo got together for three nights stand at New York’s Madison Square Garden. So, when the announcement of a full length tour came along few months ago, it was joyful news.

Opening with Had to Cry Today revived the Blind Faith spirit, and set the mood for the evening. In fact, Blind Faith was revisited three more times throughout the evening. Both performers in great instrumental and vocal disposition kept delivering the goods time after time. The back up band was very solid, and complemented the star duo in a great manner.

The highlights of the evening were of course the Blind Faith songs the audience waited so long to hear. That’s why songs like Presence of The Lord, Well All Right, and Can’t Find My Way Home, and the opener got a lot of audience response. The material played in between those songs included many solo tracks from Clapton and Winwood. Some covers were very notable as well. Winwood’s soulful rendition of Georgia on My Mind was very moving, and Clapton guitar work on Voodoo Chile was shattering.

The performance itself was very driven. You could see the band having a great time on stage, the energy created spilled onto the crowd. Despite playing in a big concert hall this really felt like a small club. It had that very intimate bluesy feel to it. The production was very simple, but the music spoke volumes.

Minding this was taking place in Chicago, you knew the encores were going to be surprising. Buddy Guy joined the band on stage for the three tracks. This made the finale very special, and ended the show on a true Chicago note. Another evening like this may never happen again. The history was definitely unfolding in front of our eyes.

Mark Kadzielawa