Burning Spear Fan Appreciation Tour

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Looking forward to tomorrow night's show at the Moore Theater in Seattle.  We have good seats with extra leg room on the rail in the lower balcony.  Hope some of you Portland folks can catch tonight's show at Roseland.  
 

Has anyone in SoCal seen the show already?  Curious to hear your reviews.

Wasn't planning on going, but my buddy just won tickets for tonight's show at the Roseland, so I am in.   Roseland is a dump, but will brave it for free Burning Spear.   Haven't seen old Winston since a reggae fest in Vermont in the 1990s.

I think this is his first tour since 2016. At least tonight's Roseland Show is 21+, which makes the venue a lot easier to deal with, particularly if it isn't sold out. Psyched to go tonight 

Can't understand for the life of me why these west coast gigs are indoor venues except sd 

still

enjoy

Have a great show tonight, Ken and Wingfan!

San Diego was excellent. Played almost 2 hours. Less than half full. 

maybe 1/4 full slack, i felt bad for him. show was better than the '16 hollywood bowl show. sd venue is actually really nice. 

jah is my driver.

spear's whole vibe is intense. took my buddy, he was stoked. spear has gotten a bit thinner as he has aged. still dancing and played a lot of conga.

Show was great last night.  Full theater but not as insanely packed as the Roseland can be sometimes.

Burning Spear was backed by an energetic eight-piece band of great players.   Dude might be old, but is spry as a jackrabbit and spent the instrumental breaks trying out his best MJ and JB moves.

I had a great time last night. Burning Spear brings it. Show was great, see them if you can, while you can. Spry is right, hard to believe he is 77 years old 

We are headed to the NYC Central Park shoe, and very much looking forward to it!!!!

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Burning Spear made a triumphant return to Seattle at the Moore Theater last night, Wednesday, July 27, 2022.

After a great dinner catching up with a couple of my best friends at the French bistro Le Pichet a block away, we ambled over to the venerable Moore Theater on 2nd Avenue.  It was a lively pre-show crowd hanging outside as the heat of the day started to subside.  Seattle's old school Reggae crowd was well-represented, and it was a pleasure to hang with a mature, experienced, and enthusiastic group of music lovers.  Outside people caught up with old friends, smoked joints right in front of police officers (this is the crowd that fought the winning fight for cannabis legalization), and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the sunset by Elliott Bay.

Our seats wound up being 6 rows up in the first balcony, right on the aisle, which gave us plenty of leg room to stretch out, and a great birdseye perch to watch the proceedings.  It was comfortable, not too warm, and I enjoyed sharing stories of Burning Spear shows with folks in the neighboring row who had seen Spear in the late 70s on his first trips to Seattle.

After a solid D.J. set of Roots and Dub for from longtime KEXP Saturday morning Reggae Show host Kid Hops, the Burning Band took the stage at 8:55.  The sound was a little muddy on the bottom end at first, but by the third song, things were dialed in, and it was quickly apparent that we were being treated to a very well-rehearsed, tight, and dynamic performance from this group of musicians.

His drummer was exceptional, laying down rock solid rhythms all night and contributing great counterpoint whenever Spear played his set of conga drums.  The rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, and bassist all were deftly adding there weave to the mix as they dug deep into the Spear catalog with songs like Door Peep, Jah Is My Guide, and Live Up In The Hills.  The three piece horn section was tight and stacking the harmonic layers majestically, while the lead guitarist showed restraint and kept his solos on point without overkill.

Spear struck me as still finding his way back to the concert stage after his long hiatus.  He was physically in great shape, looking a little trimmer than when I'd last seen him, his dreadlocks a little shorter.  He puts on as energetic a show as Mick Jagger does with the Stones, falling under the trance of the music and alternating between practiced dance moves and abstract movements that made me wonder if he hung out with the Spinners at those Grateful Dead shows he attended at the Boston Garden in the early 90s.  He kept getting more assured as the show progressed, exhorting the crowd with his praise of Jah Rastafari  and the old familiar calls of "do you want some more?  Then tell me that you want some more!"  
 

The crowd was rapturous, swaying and skanking caught in the hypnotic spell of the old master.  Those of you seeing shows later in this tour are in for a special treat, as the Burning Band is only going to get tighter and fiercer as they get more reps.
 

After closing the main set with Marcus Garvey, they came out for the encore, first launching into The Days Of Slavery.  Spear then took a moment to thank the fans for standing by him and coming out to see the show, then took his t-shirt off and hurled it deep into the audience to some lucky fan. He then led the band into the finale, African Postman, standing like a victorious prizefighter who has just gone 15 rounds before flashing a peace sign and exiting stage right as his magnificent band played him off, bringing a memorable night in Seattle to a proper conclusion.  
 

Thank you Burning Spear and the Burning Band.  The world is a better place with you in it.  Irie heights!


 


 

Looking forward to the Burlington Vermont show!

 

wow Dave great revue saw them in some ucsb gym many years ago, they're playing not so far from me 12 Aout might go

That sounds like a sweet show, great review! 

 

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Thanks for the reviews on the Burning Spear tour.

Spear is playing a free outdoor show in Hartford, CT on Thursday August 4th!

Hartford Live at the Old State House, 6:00.

 

 

 

 

^ Fuckin A man ! Nice hot tip. Possibility if the heat breaks that evening. 

Burning Spear and the Burning Band jammed out in Hartford last Thursday August 4th.

On a hot but breezy evening they delivered a really good show. Spear is definately into it, in strong voice, dancing and playing percussion throughout the one set show.

The band was very good, laying down the groove, and the horn section was having a good time playing and dancing with Spear.

As Dave mentioned, Spear has lost weight and is fit and trim, his shorter dreads up under his cap.

Here's the setlist:

Soundcheck: Jah Is My Driver

Door Peep, Shall Not Enter, Resting Place, Pick Up The Pieces, Man In The Hills, Jah No Dead, Rocking Time, Nyah Keith, Marcus Garvey, Old Marcus, Jah Is My Driver,  Enc: Red, Gold, And Green, Slavery Days, African Postman

Show was 1 hour 45 minutes

According to Setlist.FM pretty much the same setlist every show with one or two substitutions.

There were 2 tapers there in the sweet spot by the soundboard, so maybe this show might pop up on a download site.

There are a couple one song videos from this show on Youtube, kind of cool to see Spear and the band on stage with the backdrop of Hartford offfice buildings.

Funny observation from watching videos from this tour, you'll notice Spear is always wearing the same well worn cut-off jeans every show.

If you can catch the rejuvenated Spear on this tour I would highly recommend it.

Thanks for the review, I was curious how long His set would actually be.

Headed down tonight to see The Central Park Summer Stage show. heart