It wsn’t as horrific as The War of 1812, but America lit up Windsor last night (Mar. 5) with a glow of flashing lights and a bombast of sound. But this time the U.S. didn’t try to hit us with weapons, but with the smooth sounds of the folk-rock band America.
The duo of Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell stopped into Caesars Windsor to celebrate 50 years of making music together as America. And they kicked it off with a sampling of hits right out of the hopper. Beginning with 'Tin Man,' one of their many '70s hits, followed by their biggest hit of the '80s, 'You Can Do Magic,' it was obviously a show about the music, the hits, and the “magic” that made America a great band.
Though they never had the chance to reunite with original member Dan Peek before his passing in 2011, America has been a duo for most of its 50 years, and that’s the way most of the fans look at them. It was an authentic America concert experience in every single way.
They sounded far better than many performers from their generation – their voices still had that original charm that won fans over all those years ago.
Saving the most popular for last, the band closed with their two number-one Billboard hits, 'Sister Golden Hair' and 'A Horse With No Name,' in a show that blended a history of four decades of recordings. Mostly concentrating on '70s songs, including several tracks from their first two albums: 1971’s *America* and 1972’s *Homecoming*, the duo brought along three very talented musicians to back them up – drummer Ryland Steen, bassist Richard Campbell, and guitarist/keyboardist Steve Fekete.
All being said and done, America performed 22 classics for Windsor fans, leaving the audience with one very memorable performance.
America sounded and looked much like you’d expect from a classic band with a huge catalog of music, but the massive Caesars stage may have been overkill for the simple layout and folk-oriented performance. It was truly an intimate show in a grand showroom. One thing Caesars did provide them with was an incredible sound – both Bunnell and Beckley were then in their late 60s, and they sounded far better than many performers from their generation – their voices still had that original charm that won fans over all those years ago.
America continued its U.S. tour into the spring and eventually headed to Europe for some summer shows, in another very busy year of 'American' history.
