Anyway, to the show. Todd's ability to handle a crowd under all kinds of circumstances is incredible. There were bus loads of concert goers who were delayed getting to the show and they were just making there way in when Todd hit the stage. He joked with the crowd as they slowly settled in and overcame the distraction by the end of an acoustic Cliché. Hall and Oates band did an admirable job backing Todd's Liar tunes. Despite his vocal trouble, Todd rocked performing the new material! Sweet and Soul Brother were standouts. He finished his short but sweet set with a couple old gems, Love is the Answer and Rock Love. Todd left to big applause but we knew he'd return later.
Daryl and John came on about 20 minutes later and eased into a refreshing set that was a departure from their usual top 40 hit parade. Don't get me wrong. I'm a huge fan of this band but I get tired of them having to play Maneater and Rich Girl at every show. This night, probably in a effort to sell "Instant Live" disks, they actually took requests from the audience. This totally added to the backyard feel of the show and found them doing such songs as Uncanny, So Close and Getaway Car. It made their set much more spontaneous. And Daryl's voice, which had a months rest while he recovered from Lyme disease, was in rare form. Todd returned for the final set of encores trading vocals with Daryl on their old hits. Great stuff! They stopped short of doing "Love Train" which ended the Jones Beach show. Too bad. The crowd was definitely ready for more.
