Popcorn and Pen

Two legendary blues/rock acts took the Verizon Wireless Music Center stage Saturday night, providing an entertainment outlet for classic rock and soft rock fans. Joe Cocker and the Steve Miller Band not only gave an older audience base a little rock nostalgia, but proved they still knew a thing or two about putting on a good show.

Joined on stage by eight band members, rock/blues singer Cocker warmed up the crowd for the Steve Miller Band. Dressed in all black, with black curtains covering the stage and backdrop, Cocker’s simple setup allowed the crowd to focus on his gritty voice and his band’s music.

Cocker, who came to popularity in the 1960s, is best known for his voice, spastic facial expressions, and his re-engineered cover versions of popular songs, namely those of The Beatles. Just two songs into his set, Cocker got the crowd up and dancing with “Feelin’ Alright.” He continued his hit-filled setlist with “The Letter” and “N’oubliez Jamais.”

Joined by one of his back-up singers, Cocker sang the No. 1 hit and Grammy Award-winning “Up Where We Belong” from 1982’s “An Officer and a Gentleman.” The slower portion of the show continued as Cocker performed “You Are So Beautiful,” before speeding back up with “Summer in the City.”

Randy Newman’s “You Can Leave Your Hat On” from the “9 ½ Weeks” soundtrack got the women in the audience up and dancing in their seats. “Unchain My Heart” provided a nice sax solo by Norman Fimple.

Before a two-song encore, Cocker performed the song he is best known for – “With a Little Help From My Friends.” As soon as the music began, fans who may have been seated jumped to their feet, sang along and provided an uproar of ovation when Cocker hit the patented high note and again when the song concluded and he left the stage.

Cocker also played The Beatles’ “Come Together” and “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window.” The 1970’s hit “Cry Me a River” ended Cocker’s set.

Fans expecting a complete rundown of The Steve Miller Band’s Greatest Hits 1974-1978 were a little disappointed as the band and frontman Steve Miller had other thoughts in mind for the audience.

While the band started the show with with “Swingtown” and “Abracadabra,” the show had several new songs not yet heard by fans ears. Miller said that in preparation for this year’s tour, the band entered the studio and cut 41 songs – three albums worth of new material – which they performed to fill in between classic hits.

“It’s about time, huh?” Miller jokingly said.

This year’s tour also marks the debut of vocalist Sonny Charles, originally from Fort Wayne. Charles was the lead singer of Checkmates, Ltd. in the ’60s and ’70s, before launching a solo career in the early 1970s.

“It’s something we don’t do very often,” Miller remarked. “The last time was probably 15 years ago.”

After a handful of new songs, Charles took over the vocals for a few more – including a cover of the late Bo Diddley’s “Pretty Thing.”

“Bo Diddley was one of the greatest innovator’s in rock and roll,” Miller said before the song. “This is in memory of Bo Diddley and for all of you.”

Following a few songs sung by Charles, the band returned to a few of its bread-and-butter songs. “Fly Like An Eagle,” which lasted nearly 15 minutes, included solos by all band members and a new rap verse by keyboardist Joseph Wooten.

The setlist varied like Miller’s guitars. After almost every song, Miller received a new one which ranged from acoustic to electric and six-string to 19-string, and some even had a story told about how he got them.

After 11 songs into the concert, the band returned to the greatest hits. Greeted with a hullabaloo response from the audience, Steve Miller Band performed “Dance, Dance, Dance,” “Rockin’ Me,” “The Joker” and “Jet Airliner.” As if that wasn’t enough for the already excited audience, the encore featured “Take the Money” and “Jungle Love.”