Just a note to add to the Minnesota fair review When Ringo introduced "Dont Go Where the Road Dont Go," the people cheered and he said "Now you cheer this was on a CD called "Vertical Man" and none of you bought it." Ringo seemed to forget it was on "Time Takes Time."

(8/26/01) From Christopher Courtney:

I saw the All-Starr Band performance Thursday night, 23 August, at the Minnesota State Fair. What a night! Outdoor show, gentle constant breeze, and Ringo!

Plenty of other reviews of other shows run down the set list, so let me hit the highlights of the night:

GREG LAKE: all three of his numbers ("In The Court Of the Crimson King", "Welcome Back My Friends..." and "Lucky Man") were absolutely stunning, but "Crimson King" was especially strong. Lake's tenor voice was in wonderful form!

ROGER HODGSON: "The Logical Song" has always been my favorite Supertramp track, and Roger's performance was fantastic. "Give A Little Bit" brought a tear (ok, a few tears) to my eyes. My (personal) fave non-Beatle performer of this batch of All-Starrs.

SHEILA E.: A special night for her, as Minneapolis is home. I was never a fan of Prince or any of his "proteges" - however, after last night, I have a new respect for her as a performer. She is amazing! Just watching her & hearing her play... wow! She is a ball of energy up on that stage! She extended her percussion solo for her hometown crowd, and they responded enthusiastically!

The other All-Starrs - IAN HUNTER, MARK RIVERA, HOWARD JONES were quite good. Mr. Jones' 80's synth pop benefits greatly from having this band behind them. I was much more impressed with Howard's performances of Greg Lake's numbers, flawlessly playing the old King Crimson / ELP numbers. IAN HUNTER certainly played the roll of the old rocker in that classic '70's mold (is it just me, or does he sound almost exactly like David Bowie when he sings "All the Young Dudes"?) He was very entertaining on his numbers, but seemed a bit bored by "Yellow Submarine". Watching Ian, I was reminded of a line from the Genesis song "Another Record": "He's an old rock and roller who's got nowhere to go." That sounds harsher than I intend it to. He was quite entertaining to watch, and in good form.

And, what of RINGO? Oh, what can I say? He looks great and healthy, sounds fantastic, and seemed to be enjoying himself. The fact that he is 61 years old, can perform onstage for a little over two hours, and then do a series of jumping jacks onstage amazes me. It was great to see him do the old Beatles / solo Ringo favorites ("Photograph", "No No Song", "Yellow Submarine", "Boys", "Act Naturally", "You're Sixteen", "I Wanna Be Your Man", "I'm the Greatest", "Back Off Boogaloo", "Don't Go Where The Road Don't Go", "It Don't Come Easy" and "With A Little Help From My Friends".) He wore the same Marley shirt I read described in another concert review.

One of the local Twin Cities radio stations described last night's show as one of the best concerts Minnesota has seen in years. I don't attend a lot of shows, but I can tell you this one will rank as a lifetime best in my mind. An unforgettable experience, and a better show than I remember the first All-Starr concert I attended in Indianapolis way back in 1989 being (and I was amazed by that show - especially Joe Walsh coming out during the break to play "Desperado" on the piano for us all!)

One word: unforgettable. And one word if you pass up an opportunity to see this All-Starr Band tour: fool.