Rick Wakeman – Des Plaines Theater, Des Plaines, IL 3/5/22 (words and images by Mark Kadzielawa)

 

Rick Wakeman is a legendary British keyboard player.  He is known for his association with Yes, and The Strawbs, but above all he is a solo performer with countless albums and credited appearances.  There is no doubt, Wakeman, is one of the greatest personalities in the world of rock music.  Tonight, he was appearing in a beautiful Des Plaines Theatre on what he calls The Even Grumpier Old Rock Star Tour.  As you can see Rick Wakeman certainly has a great sense of humor, and he proved that repeatedly.

This was a stripped-down performance; a piano, keyboard, and a microphone.  No fancy set ups, no big production, not even a cape!  It was down to basics, and yet it was a very sincere, funny, and electrifying performance.  Wakeman’s interaction with the audience was great, and the evening had a very intimate feel.  Also, the nature of the Des Plaines Theatre allowed everyone a perfect visibility.  A big change from the big stadiums or auditoriums where he would appear with Yes.

Rick Wakeman would tell many stories and anecdotes from his time on the road.  Some extremely funny, proving once again that the truth is often stranger than fiction.  He was not afraid to dig dep, or have a dig at himself, and shared some embarrassing moments as well.  In between these stories he would perform music.  Wakeman would navigate between his piano and the keyboards.  His performances were flawless and full of passion.  Despite the advanced age and the self-described grumpiness, he still has his chops in order and can play unlike anyone else.

Rick Wakeman spoke about the plans to perform a big show with Keith Emerson of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and Jon Lord of Deep Purple, and his sadness that it never materialized.  Afterwards he played, Gone but Not Forgotten, and paid a tribute to the departed Emerson and Lord. 

 Musically he was all over the place highlighting many great moments from his career.  The crowd definitely enjoyed hearing few selections from his award winning The Six Wives of Henry VIII.  Wakeman actually admitted to have the gone through few wives on his own, and got the crowd laughing.  He acknowledged his time with Yes by performing a beautiful piano rendition of And You And I, which certainly brought the house down.  There were many Yes t-shirts in the audience, which on this side of the Atlantic is understandable.

There were some less know gems performed as well.  One such composition was After the Ball from an album White Rock, or the warm and beautiful Sea Horses from the Rhapsodies record.  It was great for Wakeman to expose some of those lesser-known tracks and explain what makes them special.  There are 90 solo albums available to explore, and that’s a lot of music to choose from.

Wakeman spoke how he communicates with his sons through texting, and how they always send him various acronyms.  Afterwards he introduced some new acronyms that elderly rockers like himself may want to apply.  Some included TOT, which stood for texting on toilet, or BFF which stood for best friend’s funeral.  All of which generated some serious laughter from the crowd

Wakeman even took some questions from the audience which were submitted before the show.  He did have fun with the questions, and that once again generated some fun responses from the crowd.  One of the questions asked about the possibility of a retirement, to which Wakeman assured the audience that he loves playing music and will do it as long as it will be physically possible for him.

 Rick Wakeman concluded the evening with two compositions from John Lennon and Paul McCartney, before returning for an encore with David Bowie’s Life on Mars; a song he originally recorded with Bowie back in 1971.  At one point of the show, Rick Wakeman, remembered his first piano teacher who always told him that playing music was like painting, and he’s been painting ever since.  This evening was full of such images, and a tiny bit of laughter too.

Mark Kadzielawa