Jack White at the Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio on Saturday 1-31-15.

     I have been a fan of the White Stripes and Jack White throughout the twists and turns in his musical career. I was never fortunate enough to see the White Stripes in concert, but this show was the fourth time I have seen Jack White. The other three: an amazing show at the Scottish Rite facility in the Masonic Temple in Detroit a few years ago, an outdoor show at the LC here in Columbus a couple years back, then a festival headlining show at Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Kentucky. I have really enjoyed each of these shows. Jack White puts on a tightly controlled, well played show.

VENUE: The concert was at the Value City Arena, Schottenstein Center. There were tickets still available right up until show time. And the upper deck was curtained off. The floor was general admission standing and was quite packed. I was seated in the lower bowl to the right of the stage.

OPENER: Chicano Batman is an East Los Angeles chicano-psychadelic rock band. These guys are accomplished musicians. Once in a while they seemed to get into quite a good groove. As I have seen Alabama Shakes and Shovels and Rope open up for Jack White, these guys were a disappointment.

HEADLINER: Jack White joined a drummer, bassist, keyboardist, violinist, and a multi-intrumentalist. The stage was bathed in blue light -- this has been on going stage theme this tour. Jack seemed to be at about 80% full voice. Jack's guitar work and the whole band are at the peak of their powers. Other than the typical off-color "squeak" of a miss on the guitar, every note was spot on.

     The set list was very good. Although there were times where the crowd lost interest and seemed to be waiting until they could hear something they recognized, there were some typical deep tracks and some hits. 

     Knowing that he was in "enemy territory", Jack White spoke to the crowd about playing at the Ohio State University being his "peace offering" from a Detroit native. 

     Highlights amongst the songs: "Icky Thump" as the opener, "Hotel Yorba" with some special instructions from Mr. White, "Sixteen Saltines", a sloppy "Fell In Love With A Girl", a different take on "We Are Going To Be Friends", and the closer of "Seven Nation Army", when Jack and band performed it well and Jack said "So you know this one?" to the happy crowd.

     A good show. Probably the weakest of the four shows I have seen, but Jack White and band put on quite a show. I give the show a 3 out of 5 stars.

 Chicano Batman.

 Jack White and his band.

 Jack White

 Jack White

 Jack White and his band.

 Jack White

 Jack White

Jack White

John Mellencamp and Carlene Carter Cash at Mershon Auditorium, Columbus, Ohio on January 30, 2015.

      This is the third time I have seen John Mellencamp. Each show has been very good. The first time was the Scarecrow tour at a stop in Cincinnati. The second was the No Better Than This tour stop in Columbus. This show was in support of Plain Spoken.

VENUE: The Mershon Auditorium at the Ohio State University is a terrific performance space with excellent site lines and really good acoustics. 

OPENER: The daughter of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, Carlene Carter Cash has been performing for over 50 years. She is in terrific voice now and she sang her own songs, a Carter family song, a Johnny Cash song, and others. Carlene added some interesting stories in between the songs. Her current husband, Joe Green, joined her for two songs. I was happy with the performance and the opportunity to see her in concert.

HEADLINER: John Mellencamp has done a variety of styles over the years. His current band can play them all: the rockers, the acoustic songs, the alt-country, and everything in between. John was in good voice for this show. The band sounded terrific.

     Early in the show, there were some real highlights: "Minutes to Memories", "Small Town", and "Human Wheels". Then came an acoustic "Jack and Diane" that really sounded special and unique. Mid show brought Carlene Carter Cash out to sing with John Mellencamp on two songs on the play that Stephen King and John Mellencamp collaborated on. From there on, the show closed with a run of seven top-notch song performances: "Rain on the Scarecrow", "Paper in Fire", "If I Die Sudden", "Crumblin' Down", "Authority Song/Land of 1000 Dances" (wow! -- I kept wishing for a snippet of "Hang On Sloopy" though), "Pink Houses", and then a grooving "Cherry Bomb" that had the crowd up and dancing. 

     John Mellencamp has matured over the years. His voice, his writing, and his musicianship have all benefited. This show was an excellent example of someone who can play great versions of old and new material later in his touring lifetime. 

     My rating of the show is 4 out of 5 stars.

 Carlene Carter Cash.

 Joe Green and Carlene Carter Cash.

 John Mellencamp.

 Carlene and John.

 John Mellencamp.

John Mellencamp.

Bob Seger and the J. Geils Band at Nationwide Arena on 1-29-14.

     I have seen both of these bands in the past, but was looking forward to seeing both bands. I saw J. Geils at Hara Arena in Dayton on the Love Stinks Tour. An odd thing happened at that show: I left my seat to go to the restroom. I was walking down the concourse and was following right behind a man dressed with black with a big fro of hair. He certainly looked distinctive! I thought he looked like a rock 'n' roll musician. Once the J. Geils Band arrived on stage later, I realized that that gentleman was Magic Dick, the harmonica player for the band!
VENUE: Nationwide Arena was the location and was nearly a sell out. Good crowd!
OPENER: The J. Geils Band had long time singer Peter Wolf, harmonica player Magic Dick, and keyboardist Seth Justman along for this tour. The other musicians were very good. The band ran through many of their hits with high energy and a terrific sound. Top songs included "Looking For a Love", "Give It To Me", "House Party", "Love Stinks", "Must of Got Lost", and "Centerfold". A really good opener.
HEADLINER: Bob Seger is in his late 60s but has the energy and fire to put on a really good rock show. His voice has aged some but he still sounds quite good. And his band and back up singers really fill out the sound. Alto Reed, Bob's saxophone player for years, is still along for the ride. And the drummer was Don Brewer! He was the drummer for Grand Funk Railroad. He also wrote and sang their first big hit "We're An American Band".
     Bob hit all the highlights amongst his hits. And the new songs sounded right at home with the other songs. I was happy to hear "Like A Rock", which Mr, Seger stated he very rarely plays live. I always look forward to hearing "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" and this version was terrific. "Hollywood Nights" is always a high-energy concert favorite and this version did not disappoint. This has not been billed as a pre-retirement tour, but if it turns into that, Bob Seger and his band are going out on a high note!
     I rate this show 4 out of 5 stars.

 Magic Dick of the J. Geils Band.

 The J. Geils Band.

 Peter Wolf of the J. Geils Band.

 Bob Seger and band.

 Bob Seger.

 Bob Seger.

 Bob Seger.

 Bob's guitarist from Columbus, Ohio (!) and Mr. Seger.

Bob Seger.