Sir Rod in Tinley Park: 22 songs – 2 hours of top-notch entertainment

As Muddy Waters, the American blues musician who inspired and influenced the young Rod Stewart, once said: ‘Going to Chicago is like travelling to another world.’

Well, Rod Stewart travelled to Chicago yesterday, Saturday, and played his concert in front of over 20,000 visitors at the Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre in the Tinley Park district. For the fans, it was definitely ‘a journey to another world.’ In this case, a world full of hits from over six decades, and Sir Rod took his audience on this nearly two-hour trip, peppered with beautiful memories and the opportunity to simply forget the worries of everyday life for a while.

After US rock band Cheap Trick kicked off the evening with an hour-long set and got the fans in the right mood, Sir Rod took to the stage at 9 p.m. local time to thunderous applause and cheers from the stands.

And with that, it was over for visitors to enjoy a chilled evening in the Illinois sun. Stewart really stepped on the gas right from the start and sparked a general dancing and party frenzy among the visitors with his opening triple of ‘Infatuation,’ ‘Tonight I'm Yours’ and ‘It's A Heartache.’

By the time he reached ‘It Takes Two’ – the fifth song of the evening – even the last dance refusenik couldn't resist and got carried away by the general party atmosphere.

Young and old alike jumped around enthusiastically to the songs, while others showed off their singing talents, good or otherwise, especially during ballads such as ‘Tonight's The Night’ and ‘Have I Told You Lately’.

Rod interacted with the fans, blew kisses to the audience, jumped around the stage like a teenager and swung his microphone stand through the air.

There was no holding back on or in front of the stage, and the arena turned into a madhouse. And Sir Rod didn't let up. Whether it was ‘Forever Young,’ ‘Maggie May’ or ‘Young Turks’ – the song selection left nothing to be desired.

The short breaks, during which Stewart enjoyed refreshments backstage and changed outfits, were bridged by the magnificent band with catchy tunes such as ‘I'm Every Woman’ and ‘Proud Mary’.

This did not dampen the good mood of the audience at all. A touch of melancholy set in as the show entered the home stretch. For many fans, the time flew by far too quickly. After a rather contemplative part with the Simply Red classics ‘If You Don't Know Me By Now’ and ‘You're In My Heart’, Sir Rod picked up the pace once again.

‘Da Ya Think I'm Sexy’ heralded the final phase in Tinley Park, with Sir Rod once again delivering two of his biggest hits, ‘Hot Legs’ and ‘Some Guys Have All The Luck,’ before the ‘Love Train’ concluded the evening under the Chicago sun.