Review - Stevie Nicks Live in Tampa with The Pretenders Nov 2, 2016

PHOTO BY: CAESAR CARBAJAL

Review:
Steve Nicks, The Pretenders connect to fans with intimate, rare songs set at Amalie Arena
11.02.16 (w/photos)

BY: GABE ECHAZABAL
Creative Loafing

Stevie Nicks has nothing to prove. The famed 68-year old free spirited chanteuse has been singing professionally for most of her life and has deservedly earned the distinction of being one of the most successful female artists of the rock n’ roll era. Whether fronting the enormously popular band Fleetwood Mac or as a prolific solo artist, Nicks has garnered one of the most faithful and passionate fan bases of all time. She sounds like no one else in the biz and her unique look, style, fashion sense and mystical, magical aura are all part of what sets her apart from everyone else.

So, with that type of dedicated audience hanging on her every move, it’d be so easy for Nicks to hit the road between gargantuan Mac tours and wheel out a trite greatest hits package tour without much thought or effort. But this is where Nicks differs from the rest of the pack: for her current jaunt around the globe, the newly launched “24 Karat Gold Tour” (named after a recent release consisting of many previously unreleased songs and recordings), Nicks has instead opted to delve deep into the vaults to offer her most loyal an opportunity to revel in songs that even the most ardent fan has no doubt ever heard played in concert.

Review Stevie Nicks Live in Tampa - Nov 2, 2016

Review: Stevie Nicks, the Pretenders dust off 24-karat rock classics at Amalie Arena in Tampa
by Jay Cridlin
Tampabay.com + Photos

Right after playing her first Fleetwood Mac song of the night, Dreams, Stevie Nicks couldn't help but pat herself on the back.

"That is the only No. 1 single that Fleetwood Mac had since 1975," the singer told a crowd of just under 10,000 at Tampa's Amalie Arena on Wednesday, "proving that it is not easy to have a hit single in 1975 -- or 2016. However, it's my single, and it hangs in my living room."

Own that gold, sister; this is your tour. After three spins through Amalie with Fleetwood Mac since 2009, Nicks, 68, finally had the big stage all to herself. And to celebrate, she threw a show aimed squarely at her superfans.

For lifelong Stevie diehards, her so-called 24 Karat Gold Tour was worth its weight in you-know-what, as she dug deep into her catalog to play songs that have missed the cut on previous solo tours. Nearly half her setlist was culled her first two albums, 1981’s Bella Donna and 1983’s The Wild Heart, including some rarely if ever played live.

Nicks shared stories, too. She talked about writing songs with Tom Petty and Don Henley, talked about the Twilight franchise inspiring the dramatic piano number Moonlight (A Vampire’s Dream), and took the crowd back more than 40 years for the slow-rolling Buckingham Nicks rocker Crying In the Night. She even showed off her original cape from the artwork for Bella Donna, fanning it into the front row of fans.

Nicks twirled (a little slower than usual, but hey, aren't we all) through several Fleetwood Mac hits, too, like the tripadelic Gold Dust Woman and gypsy anthem Rihannon. (“That old witch, she just doesn’t go away. She wants to be in every single set that I do.”) And smash solo singles like Stand Back and Edge of Seventeen, with those huge, arena-filling choruses, had the crowd screaming along.

But what proved most enlightening were those deeper cuts, those country-tinged rumblers like Gold and Braid, Wild Heart and Enchanted, with its pianos and twangy guitars. Bella Donna’s hypnotic harmonies turned to something approaching gospel at the end. It was warm, rolling, glittering and harmonious, often all at once.

“It’s really something to be able to pretend we’re up in my room and I’m playing demos for you,” Nicks said. “It’s so much fun for me, so fulfilling for me.”

Full Review + Photos at Tampabay.com

Dreams
Stand Back
Gold Dust Woman
Edge of Seventeen
Rhiannon