More than just fine: Rod Stewart performed in Houston

“Houston, we have a problem” – who isn’t familiar with these words from a famous, though not entirely accurate, radio transmission sent in April 1970 by the crew of Apollo 13 to NASA Mission Control in Houston, Texas.
Yesterday, Sunday, at least 17,000 people in the Texan metropolis were free of their problems for around two hours, as they were the lucky ones who managed to get hold of tickets for Sir Rod Stewart’s sold-out show at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in north Houston.

The man with the raspy voice, spiky hair and large nose was accompanied by his mate from the 1980s – Howard Jones was, as on previous occasions, a celebrated opening act who got the audience warmed up and in the mood with a five-song setlist.

A few minutes late, a once again in high spirits Sir Rod took to the stage and immediately got the fans going with five rock classics in a row. By the time he played “Infatuation”, “Hot Legs”, “Tonight I’m Yours”, “Some Guys Have All The Luck” and “It’s A Heartache”, even the most reluctant dancer in the audience could no longer stay in their seat. It was only with the 70s ballads “The First Cut Is The Deepest” and “Tonight’s The Night” that the audience were able to catch their breath for the first time, and Sir Rod also slowed things down a little up on stage – but only to ramp up the tempo again with “Forever Young”.

The evening promised a musical journey through the last 50 or 60 years, and there was probably no one in the audience who didn’t indulge in fond memories and take their own little trip down memory lane to hits like “Maggie May” or “Young Turks”. The fans had a great time in front of the stage, as did the musicians on it. Two hours flew by, and for many visitors, they were over far too quickly.

Stephanie left her seat absolutely thrilled: “A fantastic show! Rod was brilliant, his band was superb, and his backing singers alone would have been worth the price of admission. Their version of ‘I’m Every Woman’ was breathtaking!”
Jennifer was also absolutely thrilled: “A fantastic show! He got the audience singing along! Incredible energy!!! At 81, Rod is still a force of nature.”

The venue, the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, could barely contain its excitement either. On social media, they wrote: “Rod Stewart is simply stunning. He has so many hits up his sleeve and delivers such a fantastic live show to sing and dance along to that we almost feel like getting our hair tousled just the same and trying out our best British accent. Tonight was truly the night – and it was more than just alright.”

Setlist:
Infatuation
Hot Legs
Tonight I'm Yours
Some Guys Have All The Luck
It's A Heartache
The First Cut Is The Deepest
Tonight's The Night
Forever Young
Every Picture Tells A Story
I'm Losing You
Mandolin Wind
Maggie May
Young Turks
Downtown Train
I'm Every Woman (Band only)
The Killing Of Georgie
People Get Ready
Have I Told You Lately
Proud Mary (Band only)
Stay With Me
It Takes Two
Da Ya Think I'm Sexy
Love Train