Steve Hackett in Seattle

Steve and his five-piece band played a two-and-a-half-hour set last night at the Moore Theatre -- no opening act, no intermission. His band includes Rob Townsend on keys and winds, Roger King on keyboards, Gary O'Toole on drums, Nick Beggs (once and future bassist in Kajagoogoo!) on bass and Nad Sylvan (from the Genesis tribute band Unifaun) on vocals. Except for Beggs, these musicians all appear on the CD/DVD set Genesis Revisited: Live at The Royal Albert Hall.

The sound was clean, the band was ultra-talented, and the selection was impressive. It takes real skill, focus and commitment to do justice to these songs, and no one in the group slacked off. Sylvan's voice is strikingly similar to Peter Gabriel's, although not as strong in the upper register. He brought the theatrics, with his long curly blond hair, his makeup (including silver nail polish), his frequent changes of clothes (heavy on the frilly shirts, brocade vests and long coats) and his flamboyant hand flourishes and props (brandishing a blade during "The Knife," changing outfits to act out characters in "Supper's Ready," peering through a mariner's telescope during "Watcher of the Skies"). For all that, though, he always kept to a spot further back than Hackett's front and center position. For his part, Hackett's guitar playing was fantastic, and he was very warm and funny in his stage banter. He kept talking about how incredibly old these songs are: "This next one came out in eighteen -- no, sorry, nineteen seventy-four ..."

The audience was mostly male, mostly gray-haired, mostly sitting in their seats quietly during the songs, nodding along to the complicated beats. At times, I looked out across the crowd and watched all those gray heads and double chins moving in unison. (Not to imply that I look much better.) I saw one family who'd brought a young girl along -- she looked like she couldn't have been older than 12. She also looked like she'd rather have been just about anywhere else.

But nearly every song got a standing ovation. Request shout-outs were minimal; I guess most of the crowd was just glad to hear whatever Hackett had to offer. One wag shouted out a request for "Close to the Edge." Hackett responded, "That'd be very fitting, because Alan White is in the audience." Sure enough, the Yes drummer (and Seattle resident) was about five rows behind us.

SETLIST:
Dance on a Volcano
Squonk
Dancing with the Moonlit Knight
Fly on a Windshield
Broadway Melody of 1974
The Return of the Giant Hogweed
The Fountain of Salmacis
The Musical Box
I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)
Horizons (Steve solo on acoustic)
Firth of Fifth
Lilywhite Lilith
The Knife
Supper's Ready

ENCORE:
Watcher of the Skies
Los Endos

Glad you enjoyed it. I don't know how many Hackett-era Genesis enthusiasts there are on this board, but count me as one of them. From everything I've read and seen, Hackett seems like a genuinely nice guy who truly loves making music, and continues (unlike the other ex-members of Genesis) to create new music that is often very good.

But the concert you attended was all about nostalgia, and sounds like the band delivered. Cool that Nick Beggs is back in the band, but that meant cutting "Eleventh Earl of Mar" from the setlist since that required a second guitar part that Hackett's previous bass player Lee Pomeroy handled. Yeah, I'm a dork for knowing that. Anyway, I would have loved to have heard that solo in "Firth of Fifth" in person. One of the best guitar solos ever.

Beggs' instrument of choice, for most of the show, was a double-neck with bass and 12-string, much as Mike Rutherford often played in Genesis. King and Townsend often played the bass line on keyboard, whenever Beggs was called upon to provide guitar support. Whatever Hackett's reasons to drop "Eleventh Earl" from the set, the lack of a capable second guitarist wasn't among them.

Cool. Didn't know Beggs played guitar as well. Anyway, I'm a doof...the song I was thinking of is "Dance on a Volcano," not "Eleventh Earl."

Beggs is also in Steven Wilson's band right now. He's a great player, and works well as a backup singer as well. Who knew the guy from Kajagoogoo would be a first-call prog rock session dude?

My understanding is that he hasn't forgotten his roots and still plays with Kaja whenever they gig.

Michael, since we're talking Genesis and Wilson, have you heard the version of "Can Utility and the Coastliners" on Hackett's Genesis Revisited II album w/ Wilson on lead vocals? If not, you should!

Indeed I should. I'm woefully ignorant of Hackett's solo work, Genesis covers or no.

I picked up a bargain-bin cassette of Voyage of the Acolyte some time back in the 1980s. Couldn't tell you a thing about it now ... except that it was on Chrysalis.

That's what I was thinking. His gig in Kajagoogoo would seem like slumming, by comparison.

That's kind of disappointing that the set was so heavy with Genesis. I have fond, 35 year old memories of hearing blistering Hackett solo material like "The Steppes" from "Defector." As for Nick Beggs, he doesn't slum with Kajagoogoo… he makes them listenable! His stick playing on the second album, "Islands," where he took lead vocals after whatsisname left is a real treat for discerning music fans. I figure if Robert Fripp releases your solo album on his label, you've crossed the line into Prog! Best just roll with it. Beggs can sit on the same shelf as Tony Levin, as far as I'm concerned. Both are Chapman stick masters.



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Monk, the entire tour is devoted to the "Genesis Revisited" albums he did, so there is not solo material.