By Steven Neff, Rock At Night Orlando Correspondent
Venue: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida–March 21, 2017
Stevie Nicks, thank you for deciding not to become an English teacher; thank you for leaving college to start your music career, and thank you for a career that has spanned nearly five decades and garnered over 40 top 50 chart hits while selling over 140 million records. Thank you for a career that has enchanted and influenced all of us.
Tuesday night at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida would be no different. Nicks would mesmerize the capacity crowd for an 18 track setlist that included a fantastic duet of “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” with another rock icon in Chrissie Hynde.
There are few people that will get me out of the house for a concert during the week. A rock immortal like Stevie Nicks would be one of those people. With the passing of several of music’s great heavyweights, reality has been a bit of a fickle bitch lately, reminding me that those that remain will not be with us long. Their music will forever remain, but their presence and stage essence will not. While they are here, they serve as a bridge of time for those who will listen.
Nicks most recently released eighth studio album, 24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault, was the backdrop for which this tour was running.
Prior to Nicks’ appearance, Chrissie Hynde and The Pretenders took the stage and also served as a reminder of the iconic music we all experienced during the time these musicians were at the peak of their careers and how their songs became part of the soundtrack of our lives.
Chrissie Hynde continues to be a beautiful stage presence. Her inclusion into the Stevie Nicks tour was both solid and logical, given the fact that both women have made significant contributions with their extensive bodies of work; which are forever written in the pages of rock history. Having them both on the same ticket made for a memorable concert experience.
The Pretenders provided a solid 15 song setlist that would make people forget they weren’t watching the headliner. The night was just getting started.
The sea of Stevie Nicks fans erupted as Nicks appeared on the stage. In listening to Stevie Nicks, you realize that she’s much like the rest of us, normal; until she begins to channel the lyrics through those iconic vocals. Fame doesn’t seem to have phased her humility. She’s a normal person that just happens to be a Rock Goddess.
Appropriately dressed in black, Nicks took her fans on a journey of her lyrical memoirs while stopping for some stories of recollection. Her connection with those in the audience felt more like an evening around the campfire or living room, rather than a rock concert in the massive arena that was the Amway Center. The concert could have easily taken place in the ‘70s as Stevie Nicks voice hasn’t wavered, nor has her stage presence. Nicks continues to look incredible and my hope is that we’ll be seeing her captivate audiences for many new moons to come.
Pretenders Setlist
- Alone
- Gotta Wait
- Message of Love
- Private Life
- Down the Wrong Way
- Hymn to Her
- Talk of the Town
- Back on the Chain Gang
- I’ll Stand by You
- Don’t Get Me Wrong
- Stop Your Sobbing
- My City Was Gone
- Mystery Achievement
- Middle of the Road
- Brass in Pocket
Stevie Nicks Setlist:
- Gold and Braid
- If Anyone Falls
- Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around (with Chrissie Hynde)
- Belle Fleur
- Gypsy
- Wild Heart
- Bella Donna
- Enchanted
- New Orleans
- Starshine
- Moonlight (A Vampire’s Dream)
- Stand Back
- Crying in the Night
- If You Were My Love
- Gold Dust Woman
- Edge of Seventeen
- Rhiannon
- Landslide
Photo Gallery
SPECIAL THANKS
Special thanks go to Tanya Bowley and Emma Aistrop who made our Stevie Nicks concert coverage a memorable one. You both are truly offstage rock stars and we appreciate you.
Thanks goes to Chrissie Hynde and The Pretenders for your continued career that makes us all grateful you’re here.
Finally, thank you Stevie Nicks for the iconic music and memories you’ve given. You’re a soul that doesn’t come around that often.
The images may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without the written permission to Rock At Night and the photographer. Use of any image is a violation of the United States and International Copyright laws.
Steve is a Brevard County, Florida based concert photographer who loves the experience of live shows and tries to bring that experience back to fans through the great medium known as Rock At Night.
Whether it’s a one concert event or extended on the road tour coverage with music’s best bands, Steve covers the exciting experience of “the moment” and paints it across a blank canvas that he hopes music connoisseurs will enjoy.
A graduate of the prestigious New York Institute of Photography, Steve’s music of taste ranges from the symphonic awesomeness of bands like Within Temptation and Nightwish to the rock heavyweights of the 80’s and back to the beat of Armin van Buuren, with a little jazz and blues mixed in for some variety.
One of his favorite mottos: “Life is too short to drink grocery store coffee.”
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