REO Speedwagon – Tropicana Showroom – Atlantic City, NJ – December 4, 2021
REO Speedwagon brought out thousands of excited fans on Saturday night to the Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. While most of the crowd fell in the fifty something category, younger fans were represented too, as this band keeps bringing it fifty-three years after they first formed in Champaign, Illinois.
Let’s face it, REO Speedwagon are rock legends. The members of the band have remained the same for over three decades and they still hit the stage every show and give 100% to the music that their fans love. Their vocals remain strong, and their playing continues to hit the mark. While sharing a story with the audience, singer/guitarist and sometime keyboardist Kevin Cronin (who first joined the band in 1972) mentioned he was 70 years old! I found that shocking after seeing his energy and stamina.
Other band members – Davie Amato, Bruce Hall, Neal Dougherty and Bryan Hitt – also put on an amazing, high-energy show. After not seeing them in concert in decades, I was most taken with how their performance remains stellar with epic guitar and drum solos and crisp vocals.
Playing many of their biggest hits, REO belted out several songs from their über-popular 1980 hit album Hi Infidelity including “Keep on Loving You,” “Don’t Let Him Go,” “Take It on the Run,” “Tough Guys” and “I Wish You Were There.”
Fans were on their feet and dancing in the aisles to other songs like “Time for Me to Fly,” “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and “Keep Pushing” from other popular REO albums including REO TWO (1972), Ridin’ the Storm Out (1973) and Wheels are Turnin’ (1984).
Though they have not released an album in over a decade, REO’s music is still loved and easily identifiable to anyone who flips on the radio. While chatting with one fan, I learned this was her eighth time seeing REO live since she was in high school, and another told me she lost count around twelve times.
The set design and lighting were impressive and added to the excitement of the performance as colors changed to the music. Go check out REO as they close out this current tour or when they embark on their next tour – mid 2022 – alongside other 1980s favorites Styx and Loverboy.
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Dec 7, 2021 – Palace Theatre – PA – Greensburg, PA
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Dec 11, 2021 – The Colosseum At Caesars Windsor – Windsor, ON
Dec 13, 2021 – The Lerner – Elkhart, IN
Dec 17, 2021 – Premier Theater at Foxwoods – Mashantucket, CT
Dec 18, 2021 – MGM Northfield Park – Center Stage – Northfield, OH
Jan 12, 2022 – Fred Kavli Theatre At Bank Of America Performing Arts Center – Thousand Oaks, CA
Jan 14, 2022 – City National Grove of Anaheim – Anaheim, CA
Jan 15, 2022 – San Jose Civic – San Jose, CA
Feb 18, 2022 – The Aiken Theatre – Old National Events Plaza – Evansville, IN
Feb 19, 2022 – Appalachian Wireless Arena – Pikeville, KY
Debbie Wagner
Copyright ©2021 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: December 7, 2021.
Photos by Debbie Wagner © 2021.
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