Ticket 2 Ride

Fifty-three years, 100-plus concerts a year, Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley are still going strong as the group, America. I saw them pre-pandemic at the same venue where I just attended their concert.

America, yacht rock. The tendency is to dismiss these guys as just a soft-rock legacy act. America is best-known for their 1970s and early 1980s recordings, but the band occasionally releases new material, and Beckley has an active solo recording career. Mostly, America goes out on the concert trail, where they perform to fans (like me) who know the old songs. I own every America studio album and all of Beckley’s material. America was a band that inspired me to write my own songs.

Having seen them before, I was sure we’d see a rocking night of great music. America’s backing band is quite good, seasoned professionals who have backed a variety of success artists, and who have toured with America for a number of years. Rich Campbell plays bass (and handles their video), Ryland Steen plays the drums, and Steve Fekete is on guitar, banjo and keyboards.

America is well past their days of large venues, now they play concert halls of several thousand, with a lean operation. No laser lights, dancers, fog machines or complex set design, but a large video screen behind the stage, which is fairly standard for live performances. The video and graphic effects added an element of history and remembrance. What was fascinating was the number and variety of singers who have covered America’s songs, and the various films and television programs featuring their hits. The presentation of this brief history was a bit like what precedes an NBA starting lineup.

Beckley was more talkative Bunnell, making jokes, offering some America trivia and generally connecting with the audience. These guys know the concert goers are the ones paying the bills. The banter was as light and engaging as America’s hit list, which serves as the soundtrack for the youth of most in the audience. A lot of gray hair and no hair in the audience. Casino crowds for some reason, seem to behave like they are sitting in their lawn chairs for a park and recreation free summer concert. Besides showing up late, a heard a number of people talking loudly during songs. It was annoying and rude. Putting that aside, it was a fun concert and I never get tired of seeing this band; they always deliver.

The set list:

“Tin Man” – Starting with an up-tempo hit. Still great harmony vocals. A crowd-pleaser. From Holiday, the first of their George Martin -produced albums.

“You Can Do Magic” (Russ Ballard cover) – The band’s last top 40 chart hit in the U.S. It’s still a great song.

“Don’t Cross the River” – The folk-rock hit, complete with banjo, and vocal by the drummer. This was a song written and sung on Homecoming (1972), by the late Dan Peek.

“Daisy Jane” – Known for romantic ballads, this is one of only a couple of slower songs on the set list. It still sounds warm and meaningful after almost 50 years. Beckley’s voice still has that poignant, youthful timbre.

“Riverside” – The first of five songs on the set list from their debut album. The song showed off some of their acoustic guitar skills. The first album was mainly acoustic guitar driven songs.

“I Need You” – The other required ballad, a top 10 hit from their first album. Beckley normally plays piano on this song, but played guitar instead. The lead guitar player played the piano part.

“Here” – A haunting and melancholy acoustic song that rocks out in the middle section before returning to the slower, harmony vibe.

“Ventura Highway” – My fav America song. Definitely a crowd favorite as well. The best song Bunnell has written and it still sounds crisp and full of great imagery. The video behind the film puts you cruising down the highway.

“Driving” – An upbeat and rocking song, from the Lost & Found album of songs recorded but not released until 2015. Lost treasures on this album.

“Nowhere Man” (The Beatles cover) – A nod to their later producer George Martin. A great cover, but there are so many other America songs they could have performed.

“Cornwall Blank” – From Homecoming, it could have been on the first album, it’s moody and dissonant, heavy electric guitars instead of acoustic. The more serious side of America.

“Hollywood” – From Holiday, a song that starts with an acoustic groove that turns into a heavier, raw edge song of the trappings of the Hollywood-show biz culture.

“Survival” – A track from 1980’s Alibi album. A solid, catchy, uptempo song that should have been a hit. Great vocal interplay. Nice they unpacked this song from the vault.

“The Border” – Co-written with Russ Ballard, from 1983. Their last song to chart. The Border has a vibe from their early days, mysterious imagery, on the run, unsure of the destination. A great performance song.

“Greenhouse” – From 1994’s Hourglass, “Greenhouse” was co-written by actor Billy Mumy (Lost in Space), a frequent writing partner of the band. Environmentally-themed, the song is uptempo with crunchy guitars and a mean solo. Probably known by only the more serious fans, but it has that classic America sound.

“Woman Tonight” – A reggae-flavored song, bouncy and light. From their Hearts album (1975), the third single. Written by Peek.

“Only in Your Heart” – From their second album, a delicate, upbeat, soft rock song. Romantic, without the schmaltz.

“California Dreamin’” (The Mamas & the Papas cover) – Recorded by the band in 1979 for the film of the same name. Frequently performed in concert. The song fits their soft rock, laidback, California style.

“Lonely People” – A tribute to Dan Peek. Featuring his actual vocals from a filmed performance playing behind the band. A top 5 hit from 1974.

“Sandman” – Another song from their debut album. If you doubted that America could rock, this song should decide the matter. Raw and powerful.

“Sister Golden Hair” – The first and most successful single from Hearts, it went to number one. The song has not lost any luster and gets the crowd on their feet.

Encore:
“A Horse With No Name” – The most performed song by America from their catalog. A real crowd pleaser. The film footage playing behind the band is from the promotional film released to hype the song when it was released. A chart-topping song.