Although the set was abbreviated since Todd was the warm up, Todd did let the crowd know early on that this was going to be blues set, which was warmly received by the crowd. Todd gave us a taste of Delta, Texas, and Chicago blues, as well as some blue-eyed soul and blues from Philly, and even gave the "skinny white guitarists from England" some recognition for their contribution to the blues. I did hear a few people around me making comments about how impressed they were with Todd's guitar work (neophytes) and I did hear a couple of grumbles because the only pop hit played was I Saw the Light. Todd's rendition of Black Maria on "Butters" was among the best versions I've ever heard from him and I've seen Todd play this song at least 20 times over the years. I also liked Open My Eyes and LOVED, LOVED, LOVED Kiddie Boy. I forgot how good that song was and really enjoyed it. Of course Weakness was amazing and is probably my favorite song from "Arena." The half-dozen Robert Johnson songs were also outstanding and Jesse got some nice recognition for his solos on a couple of songs.
Despite being the warm up act, the crowd seemed to be a "half-and-half" crowd, with many there for Todd (like me) and the others were there primarily for H&O. H&O came on about 20 minutes after Todd left and ran through many of their top 10 hits from the late 70s and 80s and did not disappoint. They sounded really good and had many dancing and singing to their favorite H&O hits catalog. However, their set seemed to abbreviated as they only played a little more than an hour and a half, including the two encores. Todd played just short of an hour and was invited out by H&O for their two encores to sing background vocals.
I regret not being able to hear the entire "Johnson" set, but came away amazed, but not surprised, at Todd's versatility and ability to put on a great, great blues show.
