Photos by JULIE ANN SHAW
Review by DAN MACINTOSH
LOS ANGELES, CA – After taking a moment to ask a sound person to alter his vocal levels, Daryl Hall mentioned to the audience how he never did sound checks. He was (we hope) only joking, but then Hall went on to spend the rest of the evening constantly signaling his sound guy, which created a huge visual direction.
There was also consistent vocal microphone feedback throughout the evening. This left the audience slightly on edge, always anticipating the next squeal. At one point, Hall even complained loudly into the microphone, “Jesus fucking Christ!” for the whole room to hear. The overall result was a show that felt a little haphazard, lacking natural flow.ALL IMAGES AND WORDS COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER® COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER®
The stage backdrop was a larger-than-life interior picture of Hall’s home, which is where he has produced his popular Live From Daryl’s House program. Furthermore, his live band is the same one seen and heard on the show. Tour dates here. ALL IMAGES WORDS © 2022 US ROCKER® COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER®
Although Hall sang a few Hall & Oates songs, he mostly performed solo creations. These included a few from his album Sacred Songs, including the title track, which found him accompanying himself on acoustic piano. He also covered Eurythmics’ “Here Comes the Rain,” with only his piano and acoustic guitar as backing instrumentation. His new album is Before After.ALL IMAGES WORDS © 2022 US ROCKER® COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER®
As for his best known musical role, Hall sang the early H&O ballad, “Sara Smile,” as well as an extended, funky take on “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do).” He closed the evening out with another one of the duo’s hits, “You Make My Dreams Come True.” One especially big highlight was his version of “Everytime You Go Away,” which was “churchier” tonight than Paul Young’s hit with it.ALL IMAGES AND WORDS COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER®
Hall’s special guest this evening was Todd Rundgren, who was fantastic. Yes, he sang his big hit, “I Saw the Light,” but he also inserted particularly enjoyable soul covers. These included Smokey Robinson’s “Ooo Baby Baby” and the Impressions’ “I’m So Proud.”ALL IMAGES + WORDS COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER® COPYRIGHT ©
Rundgren returned to join Hall for the encore, which finally found the headliner more relaxed and just focusing on the music. They sounded great together singing Rundgren’s “Can We Still Be Friends.”© 2022 US ROCKER®
Let’s hope Hall does a thorough soundcheck the next time he comes through town. Then maybe his audience can just bask in his wonderfully soulful singing voice, without distractions.ALL IMAGES WORDS © 2022 US ROCKER® COPYRIGHT © 2022 US ROCKER®
