In his prime, Bob Seger could run with the best of ‘em.

He was a legendary live performer, widely considered to be as good as, if not better than, Bruce Springsteen.

That reputation, however, was forged long ago, back when Seger was in his early 30s and supporting such albums as 1976’s “Night Moves” and 1978’s “Stranger in Town.” It’s certainly not based on recent history. Indeed, Seger’s current tour is his first in more than a decade.

That’s why it was so hard to know what to expect going into the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s performance on Saturday night (Feb. 24) at Oracle Arena. There was a distinct possibility that, after such a lengthy layoff, Seger wouldn’t be able to live up to his own legend.

The 61-year-old Detroit rocker quickly put those fears to rest when he opened the Oakland show with an inspired take on “Roll Me Away” that sounded even stronger than the version he recorded on 1982’s “The Distance.” From there, Seger and his sensational Silver Bullet Band motored through another 23 selections that firmly connected with the 12,000-plus fans in the building.

Not surprisingly, it was an older crowd, filled with longtime listeners who can remember buying Seger records on vinyl and, maybe, could still find old 8-track tapes of 1975’s “Beautiful Loser” stashed away in boxes in their garages. Yet, this audience showed the type of youthful exuberance that one use to see from a teenie-bopper crowd at an ‘N Sync concert.

It would be difficult to find a crowd that was more into an entire show, from the opening number to the final encore, than what was witnessed in Oakland. It would also be hard to find a more enthusiastic performer than what we saw in Seger.

The vocalist appeared to having the time of his life _ pumping his fists in the air while grinning from ear to ear _ as he led the Silver Bullet Band into a revved-up take on the Eugene Williams-penned soul classic “Trying to Live My Life Without You” (which Seger recorded on the great 1981 concert album “Nine Tonight”).

Correctly gauging the desires of his crowd, Seger kept the evening’s focus on the older, up-tempo hits and delivered such raucous party anthems as “Betty Lou’s Gettin’ Out Tonight” and “The Horizontal Bop” (both from 1980’s “Against the Wind”). An early highlight was Seger’s fiery take on the fan favorite “Old Time Rock and Roll,” the tune that a young, underwear-clad Tom Cruise helped immortalize in the 1983 film “Risky Business.”

The singer, who can still hit most of his notes, also used the occasion to acquaint fans with material from last year’s “Face the Promise.” Seger played half of the album _ his first new studio set since 1995’s “It’s a Mystery.” Most of the selections, most notably “Wreck This Heart,” “Wait for Me” and the title track, sounded far superior to the album versions.

Possibly the greatest compliment one can give these new songs is that the fans treated them as more than just annoying speed bumps along the otherwise hit-filled highway.

Still, there was definitely a wave of pure joy that would wash forth from the crowd whenever Seger entered into a string of classics. That wave hit near-Tsunami-like proportion when the star played the quadruple shot of “We’ve Got Tonight,” “Turn the Page,” “Travelin’ Man” and “Beautiful Loser” (Seger has been combining the latter two since at least 1976).

Just like at the same venue back in 1996, Seger’s Silver Bullet Band sounded terrific as it mixed classic ’50s sounds, country licks, sizable doses of funk (when so required) and other musical flavors into one big arena-rock missile guided straight at the hearts of fans. This time through town, the Silver Bullet Band was aided by three backing vocalists and, on occasion, by a fine four-piece horn section that helped punch up the likes of the main-set-closer “Katmandu.”

The evening peaked during the first of a pair of two-song encores. That’s when Seger played two of his brightest gems _ the tender “Night Moves,” which is still as evocative as ever after all these years, and the pure adrenaline rush known as “Hollywood Nights.”

He would return a second time to perform the achingly forlorn, yet defiant title track to “Against the Wind” and the celebratory “Rock & Roll Never Forgets.” The latter seemed particularly appropriate on this night.

Even after more than a decade on the sidelines, Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band is still capable of putting on a rock ‘n’ roll show that fans might never forget

Shoreline Amphitheatre drew its largest crowd of 2006 for the Roger Waters concert back in October. More than 20,000 fans turned out to the Mountain View shed to see the rock legend perform Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon” in its entirety. At the time, it appeared this would be the only chance local fans would have to hear this all-time classic record performed on the live stage.

Well, appearances can be deceiving.

Waters has decided to bring this terrific tour back to the Bay Area. He’ll meet fans once again on the “Dark Side of the Moon” June 19 at Oracle Arena in Oakland. Besides performing tracks from “Dark Side,” the vocalist-composer-bassist will also touch upon other classic Pink Floyd albums as well as his impressive solo catalog.

The Shoreline show was one of the best concerts of last year. If you missed it, or simply want another “Dark Side” dose, make sure to catch Waters in Oakland. Ticket info has not yet been released, but it should come soon _ keep checking the venue’s website, www.coliseum.com.

A reader wanted to know what Rod Stewart is playing on his current tour. So I did some web work and found a setlist from a late January Detroit show on Billboard.com.

Here’s what the crooner performed that night. I don’t expect that it will differ (much) when Stewart plays the HP Pavilion in San Jose on March 14.

Here is Rod Stewart’s set list in Detroit:

“Tonight I’m Yours (Don’t Hurt Me)”
“Some Guys Have All the Luck”
“You Wear It Well”
“Lost in You”
“Reason to Believe”
“Infatuation”
“(I Know) I’m Losing You”
“Gasoline Alley”
“Ooh La La”
“Father and Son”
“I Don’t Want to Talk About It”
“Have I Told You Lately”
“Piece of My Heart”
“Hot Legs”
“Every Picture Tells a Story”
“Dirty Old Town”

(Intermission)

“The First Cut Is the Deepest”
“Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright)”
“You’re in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)”
“Fooled Around and Fell in Love”
“Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”
“Forever Young”
“Downtown Train”
“It’s a Heartache”
“This Old Heart of Mine”
“Young Turks”
“Rhythm of My Heart”

Encore:
“Maggie May”

Everybody knows that James Taylor is a great singer-songwriter. The surprise comes when one finds out he’s also a pretty solid comedian.

The 58-year-old soft-rock legend provided an ample supply of both tunes and laughs during his show on Tuesday (Feb. 13) at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco. It was the opening concert of a nonconsecutive four-night stand at the venue, which continues on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 16 and 17).

The entire run is sold out. That’s no shock. Taylor usually plays much bigger venues, such as the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, which is why fans leapt at the chance to see him perform in a comparatively intimate theater setting.

And leap they did, right out of their seats, and gave Taylor a standing ovation the moment he walked onstage. Grabbing his acoustic and taking his place on a stool, Taylor quickly lived up to that passionate greeting as he opened with one of his best-known ballads, “Something in the Way She Moves.”

The stage design was very simple _ just a few antique glass chandeliers hanging above some guitars, a grand piano (which was used by Taylor’s sole accompanist, jazz man Larry Goldings) and a few other items. The stripped-down design further heightened the casual feel, making us feel like old chums who had simply dropped by Taylor’s home for a private performance in his den.

Perhaps that why it didn’t seem strange when Taylor _ like some family member who wanted to share his pictures of his trip to Hawaii _ began showing a slideshow on an overhead screen. Since his hands were occupied on his guitar, the singer used a foot-peddle connected to an Apple laptop computer to run the slideshow.

The presentation provided some interesting visuals for the crowd, but it also set up many of Taylor’s best jokes. For instance, he introduced “The Frozen Man” by showing a picture of the song’s inspiration _ a well-preserved corpse that was found after more than a century on ice. He then admitted that he’s no historian on the subject.

“It’s surprising how little I know about the frozen man, given that I wrote a song about him and played it a 100 times,” Taylor said. “He, evidently, was frozen.”

But it wasn’t all just fun and games. Taylor used both his between-song monologues and the slideshow to paint a sharper picture of himself than most fans have ever seen before. One such moment occurred when he showed a picture of his father, who was absent during much of Taylor’s childhood years. He shared his heartfelt memories of those days, which added context and new meaning to the next number, “Mean Old Man.”

Taylor doesn’t have much of a vocal range, but what he has was put to the test on the dynamic “Mean Old Man,” a tune that might be properly handled by a Broadway belter. He did a better job on “Country Road” and “You’ve Got a Friend” _ soft-sell tunes that were perfectly suited for his endearingly warm, friendly voice.

The latter came complete with some slides from his early days on the L.A. folk scene. In one group shot, Taylor remarked that he looked like “Joni Mitchell with a mustache.” Also featured in that picture was “You’ve Got a Friend”-composer Carole King, who Taylor explained was the one that suggested he record the tune. That, of course, set up another joke.

“I recorded the tune,” the singer remarked. “Now, I have to play it every night for the rest of my life.”

Besides the slideshow, Taylor had two other tricks up his sleeve. He used pre-recorded video footage of a choir to help liven up a few songs, including “My Traveling Star” from Taylor’s most-recent studio release, 2002’s “October Road.” That might sound a bit hokey, but it worked so well that one wonders why other solo artists don’t adopt the practice.

He also played a pair of tunes with the help of a drum machine. But, truly, you’ve never seen a drum machine like this. The percussion-making contraption was roughly the size of a Scion and looked like a science experiment that was borrowed from the Exploratorium. That also might sound corny, but it sure spiced up “Slap Leather.”

Taylor, however, didn’t really need these gimmicks _ which was exactly why they worked. He already had the most important element for putting on a fine show _ a great songbook. The equally great sense of humor was bonus.

If you go . . .
An evening with James Taylor
When: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday (Feb. 16 and 17)
Where: Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St., San Francisco
Tickets: $49.50-$99.50 (currently listed as sold out)
Call: (415) 421-TIXS, (510) 625-TIXS, (408) 998-TIXS, (925) 685-TIXS, (707) 528-TIXS, (916) 649-TIXS or visit www.apeconcerts.com

As expected, the Police used the Grammy Awards as a springboard to announce a full-fledged reunion tour on Monday, Feb. 13. Unfortunately, no date for the Bay Area has yet been announced _ but it should come any minute (oh please, oh please). Based on what’s been announced thus far, I’d say that Police fans should keep late May and early June free. That’s the time frame when I predict the Police will hit the Bay Area.

Here’s the current tour agenda, as posted on the great music site, livedaily.com:

May 2007
28 - Vancouver, British Columbia - GM Place (on sale 2/17)

June 2007
6 - Seattle, WA - Key Arena
9 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
15 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Grand Garden Arena
16 - Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo Festival
18 - Phoenix, AZ - US Airways Arena
26 - Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
30 - New Orleans, LA - New Orleans Arena

July 2007
2 - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center
22 - Toronto, Ontario - Air Canada Centre (on sale 2/17)
25 - Montreal, Quebec - Bell Centre (2/17)
28 - Boston, MA - Fenway Park (on sale 2/20)

August 2007
1, 3 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden (on sale 2/20)

Former Beach Boy Brian Wilson opened the second set of his concert at the Paramount Theatre by saying, “Lets do 35, 40 minutes of some real nice music.”

That might be the understatement of the year. Nice? I’d say it was sensational.

The music being referenced was the Beach Boys’ 1966 masterpiece “Pet Sounds,” a work considered by some to be the greatest pop album ever. Wilson and his superb band performed that record in its entirety on Sunday for what might well be the final time.

The 64-year-old rock music legend has said that he’s retiring “Pet Sounds” following this tour, the last stop of which was at the landmark downtown Oakland venue.

If the genius lyricist holds true to his word, local fans saw more than just another concert _ they witnessed a piece of rock ‘n’ roll history.

Before turning on the “Pet Sounds,” Wilson and his 10-piece band warmed up the crowd with an opening set full of great Beach Boys tunes. He started off at the beginning with 1963’s “Surfer Girl,” the first song Wilson ever wrote.

That number proved to be a perfect showcase for the group’s mesmerizing harmonies, which, at times, drew upon eight different voices. The sweet ballad, one of the Beach Boys’ best known songs, also immediately got the crowd on Wilson’s side.

From there, the mastermind proceeded to roll through a plethora of tracks that don’t usually make the cut on Beach Boys “best of” collections. That meant up-tempo goodies like “Hawaii” (from 1963’s “Surfer Girl”) as well as mellow pop ballads such as “Please Let Me Wonder” (off 1965’s “Today!”).

Following the fifth selection, the fast-paced “Drive-In” from 1964’s “All Summer Long,” Wilson introduced the evening’s special guest, former Beach Boy bandmate Al Jardine. Many fans considered the pairing of Wilson and Jardine as big a deal as the final performance of “Pet Sounds,” since it was the first chance in years to hear original Beach Boys harmonize.

The payoff was worth the wait when Jardine warmly sang lead on the next track _ “Then I Kissed Her” from 1965’s “Summer Days (and Summer Nights!!)” _ while Wilson nicely wove his voice in here and there.

Wilson sounded strong in the first set, at least as good as when he performed at the Bridge School Benefit shows at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View back in October. He sang from behind a keyboard, which he used mainly as desk to set the teleprompter that feeds him the lyrics.

He would hit a few rough patches in the second set, as he headed into the more vocally demanding “Pet Sounds” material. In all, however, Wilson showed once again that he is definitely improving with each tour that follows his initial comeback of 1999.

The first set closed with a flurry of memorable tunes, including “I Get Around,” “California Girls” and _ oh, yes _ “Good Vibrations.”

Forty-one years after it was originally released, “Good Vibrations” continues to astonish, to the point where it’s still a candidate for best rock song of all time.

It’s truly, as Wilson calls it, “a pocket symphony,” a near-perfect 3 1/2 minutes of dynamic twists, turns and some of the most glorious harmonies ever devised. The words are deceivingly simple, but they remain so riveting. It’s hard not to get chocked up when Wilson sings what could be the loveliest line in all of pop music, “Close my eyes, she’s somehow closer now.”

After a short break, Wilson, Jardine and crew were back and ready to make “Pet Sounds.” Following the album’s track list from start to finish, the group opened the second set in hopeful fashion with “Wouldn’t It Be Nice.”

The band did a fantastic job bringing these difficult pieces of music to life. The arrangements were dizzying, so much so that it was often hard to tell how all the different sounds were being made, yet the musicians charged through such beauties as “You Still Believe in Me” and “That’s Not Me” like clockwork.

Not surprisingly, the performance peaked midway through the album’s song list as the band delivered the back-to-back knockouts “Sloop John B” and “God Only Knows,” which is as potent a one-two punch as you’ll find on any pop album.

Nearly as good was a somber, lonely take on “I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times” and a lovely rendition of “Caroline No,” which closed the door on “Pet Sounds” and prompted the audience to give Wilson a standing ovation.

He would further earn the audience’s love with a rocking encore that showed just how much Wilson learned from watching Chuck Berry. Indeed, he opened the segment with a raucous run through Berry’s own “Johnny B. Goode” and then kept the motor revved as the band hit with “Help Me, Rhonda,” “Barbara Ann,” “Surfin’ U.S.A.” and “Fun, Fun, Fun.”

The latter perfectly summed up the feeling of the concert. Yes, it was a historically important night, as Wilson said goodbye to his greatest achievement, but more than anything it was just plain fun.

ON SALE SATURDAY, JANUARY 13TH at 10AM:

BOB SEGER & THE SILVER BULLET BAND
Sat. February 24th
Showtime 8PM / Doors 7PM
Oracle Arena, Oakland
Tickets are $65.00 for reserved tickets plus applicable charges
Tickets available at Livenation.com and Ticketmaster outlets

(From the livenation folks:)
Bob Seger - a 2004 Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame inductee - has sold nearly 50 million albums in his career. Among his eleven platinum and seven multi-platinum awards, Against The Wind, Night Moves and Stranger in Town have each been RIAA-certified for over 5 million album sales in the U.S., as has his massively influential 1976 breakthrough classic, Live Bullet. Seger’s 1994 Greatest Hits has perennially been a Top 10 seller on Billboard’s pop catalog chart for the past 12 years, currently #2, RIAA-certified 8x Platinum, a clear indication that such vivid tales of working class lives as “Night Moves”, “Turn The Page”, “Against The Wind”, “Old Time Rock n’ Roll” and “Mainstreet” resonate as much now as when they were first recorded.

The members of the Grateful Dead were known for taking long, strange trips.

Even by the standards of those legendary psychedelic pioneers, however, the journey that brought the Rhythm Devils to San Francisco’s Warfield Theatre on Friday night was extraordinarily lengthy and bizarre.

The band’s origins stretch back to the ’70s, when director Francis Ford Coppola was looking for inspiration for the soundtrack to 1979’s “Apocalypse Now.” He found it at a Dead concert and would later ask three band members _ percussionists Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann and bassist Phil Lesh _ to go into the studio to record musical accompaniment for the film.

Some of that music would make the actual film soundtrack, but the lion’s share would be released on a separate album credited to the Rhythm Devils (reissued by Rykodisc as “The Apocalypse Now Sessions” in 1991).

On a lark, Kreutzmann and Hart resurrected the Rhythm Devils name to play what appeared to be a one-off ensemble gig with former Phish bassist Mike Gordon and Zero guitarist Steve Kimock at the 2006 Jammy Awards.

The four players had so much fun at the Jammys (the jam-band equivalent to the Grammy Awards) that they decided to invite some more friends onboard (including vocalist Jen Durkin) and take the show on the road.

That brings us to Friday night, when this version of the Rhythm Devils finally made its Bay Area live debut. The concert was a benefit for the Rex Foundation, the Dead’s charitable arm that has donated more than $750,000 to worthy organizations over the past five years.

Hart’s Planet Drum ensemble, which also features Indian tabla phenom Zakir Hussain, Puerto Rican conga guru Giovanni Hidalgo and Nigerian drum master Sikiru Adepoju, opened the show.

One has to like percussion _ really, really like percussion _ to dig Planet Drum. Most of the fans seemed to enjoy the set, yet nobody seemed disappointed that it was shorter than what one gets when Planet Drum headlines a show.

There’s always a major jolt of excitement that courses through the crowd whenever some Dead vets take the stage _ especially at a place like the Warfield, a venue that played such an important part in the band’s history. That was certainly true on Friday as Hart and Kreutzmann climbed behind their kits and the Rhythm Devils opened their two-set show with a superb take on the Janis Joplin classic “Piece of My Heart.”

Durkin, a 12-year veteran of the jam-band scene who is best known for her work with Deep Banana Blackout, sang lead on most of the tunes and did her best work with the bluesy selections like “Piece of My Heart.”

Gordon also did a fine job at the mic, especially during the band’s funky take on the Dead’s rambling country cut “Cumberland Blues,” and it was too bad that his vocals weren’t utilized to a greater extent.

The bassist was a terrific match for his percussion pals and seemed to push Kreutzmann and Hart in ways that were clearly reminiscent of Phil Lesh’s best years with the Dead. The weakest link in the chain was Kimock, who managed to sound somewhat like Jerry Garcia’s double without ever really taking over a song in true Jerry-like fashion.

The ensemble kept growing throughout the night, to the point where the entire Planet Drum group was onstage and pounding through such Dead classics as “Scarlet Begonias” and “Fire on the Mountain.”

Bob Weir even showed up and joined his fellow Dead mates for solid takes on his old band’s “New Speedway Boogie” and “The Other One.” Weir was in fine voice, but his greatest contribution was his rhythm guitar work _ which seemed to serve as the missing link between Gordon and Kimock.

For those who missed the show, the good news is that the Rhythm Devils show no sign of slowing down. Dead lyricist Robert Hunter has written a bunch of new tunes for the band and there are rumors swirling that there is a 2007 tour in the works.

In other words, the trip should grow even longer, and possibly stranger, for the Rhythm Devils.

Those looking for a healthy dose of legendary rock guitar can now circle March on their calendars. That’s when the superb six-stringer Eric Clapton will be bringing his latest tour to Northern California, for dates on March 18 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose and on March 20 at Arco Arena in Sacramento.

And here’s some good news for blues fans _ the Robert Cray Band will open both shows.

Ol’ Slowhand has been playing a mix of tunes on this tour, including early hits like “Wonderful Tonight” and “Cocaine” as well as blues numbers and newer tracks.

On-sale dates for these shows have not yet been announced. Keep checking Ticketmaster.com for more information.

For Halloween, the two remaining original members of the Who — vocalist Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend — masqueraded as real recording artists and released their first new studio set since 1982’s “It’s Hard.”

“Endless Wire” is a pretty fine effort, especially coming from a band that took a 25-year hiatus between albums, and these Englanders are justifiably proud of it.

That pride, however, led these rock legends to put on a show on Wednesday night at the HP Pavilion in San Jose that wasn’t nearly as enjoyable as the ones the Who delivered at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View back in 2002 and 2004.

Let’s face facts here for a minute. What are Who fans looking for from the band in 2006? They want the hits. They want to scream along at the top of their lungs to “Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere” and “Baba O’Riley.” Most significantly, they are looking for a show with momentum that keeps them up on their feet and dancing from the opener to the closing number. That’s exactly what they got during those two Shoreline dates.

In contrast, the Who was determined to force-feed the crowd new material in San Jose and, really, fans weren’t biting. There was a dramatic drop-off in enthusiasm from the audience whenever the Who played new songs and that really derailed much of the show.

Kicking off in fine fashion with “I Can’t Explain,” the band initially had the crowd eating out of its palm as it followed that traditional opener with rocking renditions of “The Seeker” and “Substitute.” That early momentum was enough to carry the group, and the crowd, through the first offering from the new album, “Fragments.”

The band sounded great — especially Ringo Starr’s kid, Zak Starkey, on drums — as it rolled through a forceful rendition of the classic “Who Are You.” The tune sounded nearly as powerful as when it first came out in the late ’70s, although, thanks to hip-hop, dropping the f-bomb doesn’t carry the same weight it once did.

After a lukewarm take on “Behind Blue Eyes,” the band made an ill-advised move by playing the entire six-track mini-opera from this year’s “Wire and Glass” EP (which was also included as part of “Endless Wire”). It was a gutsy move, but one that didn’t pay off. Many of the fans, most of whom were clearly unfamiliar with the material, sat down and simply waited politely for the segment to finish.

Just to be clear, a polite response from the crowd isn’t usually what occurs at a Who show.

Folks were back on their feet for the always-enjoyable “Baba O’Riley,” which once again hit with the force of a wrecking ball, and the too-slick “Eminence Front.” Daltrey, moving a bit slower than usual, did a particularly good job selling “Baba O’Riley” and Townshend was definitely on his game for “Eminence Front.”

Yet, the good times wouldn’t last as the band reopened the book on “Endless Wire” and bored the crowd with a triple-shot of “A Man in a Purple Dress,” “Black Widow’s Eyes” and “Mike Post Theme.”

The group did its best to get back on track with “You Better You Bet” and the anthem “My Generation,” during which Pino Palladino masterfully recreated the memorable work of original Who bassist, John Entwistle (who died of a cocaine-induced heart attack in 2002).

The main set came to a close with the fan-favorite “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” That song was a showcase for the entire band — from Starkey’s beat-happy runs to the fine rhythm guitar work of Pete Townshend’s brother Simon — but it was mostly an opportunity for Daltrey to shine. He did just that as he summoned up the will necessary for the Shark Tank-shaking howl that came near the song’s conclusion.

The band filled its encore with tracks from its most famous rock opera, 1969’s “Tommy,” and the result couldn’t have been much more different than what they achieved with “Wire and Glass.” Led by Townshend’s most passionate playing of the evening, the Who knocked the crowd for a loop with stellar takes on “Pinball Wizard,” “Amazing Journey” and “Sparks.”

The Who was moving with the momentum of a freight train by the time it hit the “See Me” and “Listening to You” segments of “We’re Not Gonna Take It!” Too bad the rest of the show wasn’t nearly as good.

It’s hard to knock a band for wanting to play new material, just like it’s difficult to rag on a fan base that wants to hear old hits. It’s just the situation that the Who finds itself in after waiting 25 years between albums.