 |
| The Zac Brown Band @ AT&T Park (Photo: Ken McCain) |
A triple bill of
The Doobie Brothers,
Zac Brown Band, and headliners, the
Eagles hit
AT&T Park in San Francisco this past Thursday night and tens of thousands of fans delighted in the scene. (Our review of the Eagles set can be found
here.) Under perfect conditions, this stadium was the site of legends and those in the making. The San Jose, CA rock band, The Doobie Brothers, had first crack at the bat, taking the stage promptly at 5:00pm. It was an early start, and for many it came a little too early. Fans arrived late, having to battle traffic and the sheer logistics of a mid-week show in the city of San Francisco. With a string of hits mostly coming from their first two decades, they pulled out a little more than a dozen crowd favorites for their set. I am particularly fond of the "Michael McDonald Years" with the band, which yielded a number of excellent albums and a ton of hits. However, they only played one song "Takin' it to the Streets". Without him in the lineup to sing those tunes, they rely on the rest of their catalog to cover their bases.
 |
| Tom Johnston and John McFee of The Doobie Brothers (Photo: Ken McCain) |
After the sun-filled opening set, the sun dipped below the upper stadium seats to fill the stage in shadow. This gave the lighting crew their cue to get set for the next act, the Zac Brown Band. I first covered ZBB last year at the Shoreline Amphitheater (and our review of that show can be found
here.) They're a polished and well-versed group of musicians -- an eight-piece band out of Georgia that plays mostly country music, however, you cannot pigeon-hole these guys. They are Southern Boys through and through, and can break out of that mold as quickly as you put them in it. Their 16 years of making music and heavy touring have garnered them a legion of fans and plenty of hardware from the music industry. They are three-time Grammy Award winners, and a list of others too long to get into, enough to say it that they can play!
 |
| Zac Brown Band @ AT&T Park (Photo: Ken McCain) |
The 18-song set they put together for the crowd consisted of 14 of their own hits and 4 covers. I think that most of the crowd knew the words to these 14 due to plenty of singing we heard in front of, and behind us. The covers, though, were definite hits with the fans. With the addition of a fiddle player on stage and them being country boys, who would have guessed they'd break out Charlie Daniels' "Devil Went Down to Georgia"? It was a perfect song to show off their skills and stage presence, and it really got the crowd humming! Another one they covered, and I had forgotten from last year, was The Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post". They do this song such justice it almost sounds as if Gregg and Duane were up there with them. This is a total jam song allowing keyboards and guitars to run with the song for as long as they want. Coy Cook took the reigns on this one and nailed it as he sang and played the Hammond organ.
 |
| Zac Brown Band @ AT&T Park (Photo: Ken McCain) |
Probably the biggest song for them that night, and another cover, was Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". At this point, who doesn't know that song? Even one of the younger photographers with me knew it, but didn't know the others. This song probably pushed anyone who might have been on the fence about Zac Brown into their camp and gained them a great deal more fans. It could have gone either way, yet total props go to them for trying and nailing a very beloved and difficult song. The song list, and ZBB's catalog in general, is filled with up-tempo and slowed down tunes. It makes for a very emotional ride. They put together a great show filled with that roller-coaster set which leads to a great evening of music. They have a few dates left on this current leg of their tour. Who knows where they'll be off to after that, but if they come around your way get out there and see these guys! You can find their remaining tour dates
here.
 |
| Zac Brown @ AT&T Park (Photo: Ken McCain) |
Thanks for reading and be sure to follow us on social for more pictures, and concert announcements here:
Facebook |
Twitter |
Instagram.
