Steve Winwood – 4/28/17

On Friday, 4/28/17, I saw Steve Winwood at Foxwoods Casino Grand Theater in CT.  Now, Winwood isn’t someone I’d normally see, but he fits my code. For 2017, I decided to only go to concerts when it’s a band I haven’t seen before, my wife wants to go, I got free tickets, or it’s Guns n Roses – always mandatory! Winwood is an act I’ve never seen.

I’m not going to pretend I’m some big fan. I went only at the encouragement of co-workers who were also going. My wife, I found out later, loved Winwood back in the day and was much more exited than I was.

Don’t expect me to recite a set list, because I cannot do that.

Steve Winwood is 68 years old now, but he still sounds great and he can really play guitar and organ. He opened with “High Life” which was cool. Kicking off with a hit was a great way to go. The band was tight throughout the show and you can  tell they enjoy what they do.

Many of the songs transitioned from one to the next with the band’s jamband style of playing. For me, not knowing all the songs, I could appreciate the talent, but the 20 minute songs lost their luster.

Later in the night they played “Can’t Find My Way Home” which Winwood wrote to my knowledge, and it’s been covered 100 times. For me, I still love the House of Lords version (look it up). But they definitely rocked it.

They also played “Higher Love” as he night went on and that was another highlight for me. Steve Winwood’s daughter, Lily Winwood, joined the band for the this song and some others. She was also the opening act for the night. Good guitar player with a great voice, but the songs were a bit too folksie for me.

For their encore, they played 2 songs. I couldn’t tell you the first, but the second was “Gimme Some Lovin.” This was a Spencer Davis Group hit back in the day, written by Winwood.

Overall, it was a good show especially for a casual listener who was really only familiar with 4 or 5 songs. For a true fan, I’d bet the show was amazing. As I stated, he sounds great regardless of age, the  and is tight, and they rocked! What more can you ask for?