How to do a perfect Rock and Roll Concert:

-Start on time

-Have The Sheepdogs open the show

-Have the Sheepdogs rip you a new one.

-Have a short set change

-Have a Canadian legend start a show on a little stage near the soundboard, with an acoustic guitar and a harmonica.

-have the legend play for two and a half hours

-Pack in enough hits that even casual fans would know most songs.

-Play some songs from the current album.

End the concert on the same little stage, with the legend playing his acoustic guitar again.

I must admit, I was on the fence about getting a ticket to the Bryan Adams show at the Canadian Tire Centre on Saturday, October 4. I was hanging with my lady, Lisa, in the afternoon on the day of the show, and she just said, “Just go! Have fun.” (I will admit that Lisa doesn’t like the rock music like I do. I did drag her to see Judas Priest in Montreal, Extreme in Montreal and Heart in Ottawa. She tolerated Priest, drooled over Nuno and didn’t enjoy Heart, for some reason. She’s a work in progress. HAHA_)

I like Bryan Adams and have seen him a few times, dating all the way back to the Reckless tour. (Yes, I’m old) I even saw his show in 2022, which was a good show. He’s always good, and I shouldn’t have been on the fence, but I went alone to get my fix of classic rock. 

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THE SHEEPDOGS

The show was scheduled to start at 7:30, but I’ve been to enough shows to know that that probably wouldn’t happen. When the lights went down at 7:28, I was pleasantly surprised. The opener for this gig was The Sheepdogs. I have always enjoyed their music but have never seen them live.

Sometimes, when you enjoy a band’s music, you have no idea how it will translate to a live show. The Sheepdogs exceeded my expectations. This is a seriously tight band, with great musicians. Vocalist/guitarist Ewan  Currie was in top notch form, and had the crowd right into the tunes, which ain’t easy when opening for a massive figure in Canadian music. As mentioned, the band was tight, with bassist Ryan Gullen and the band’s new drummer, Trevor Falls, locked in all night to lay down some serious Sheepdog groove. Lead guitarist Ricky Paquette, from nearby Gatineau, in my opinion, was the star of the show. This dude can play, and his tasty solos were a perfect match for the rockin’ boogie boogie of the band. I think what surprised me the most was the jam factor. The some were longer, with more solos from Paquette, Currie and keyboardist Shamus Currie. The incredible trade off sold between the three was one of the highlights of the entire night. 

The only problem with The Sheepdogs’ set was the length. Thirty-five minutes ain’t enough of this band. I will admit, I’m greedy, and I wanted more…much more. The Sheeodogs were incredibly well received, and need to make a headlining appearance in Ottawa again soon. This band has all the tools to be playing their own shows at Canadian Tire Centre. Let’s make it happen Canada!!!

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The Sheepdogs Setlist

I’ve Got A Hole Where My Heart Should Be

Who?

Bad Lieutenant

Find The Truth

Downtown

How Late, How Long

Take Me For A Ride

Feeling Good

I Don’t Know

Nobody

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BRYAN ADAMS

When I entered the building, one of the attendants handed me an electronic bracelet that she said would light up to the music when Bryan Adams played. I won’t lie…I thought, at the time, “Oh boy. This could be pretty cheesy.” During intermission/set change, I sat, looking at the new jewelry on my wrist, wondering if I should just hide it. Ah, what the hell. When in Rome, keep your cheesy bracelet on and be a part of the show.

After a 20 minute set change, with some fun animation on the stage screen, (horses pooping, boxers boxing, a man in a wheelchair pulling a car, an Ed Wood style spaceship, etc) the lights went down and MR. ADAMS appeared on a small stage at the back of the floor section, with an acoustic guitar and harmonica. An acoustic version of Straight From The Heart, with 15,000 fans singing along…I won’t lie, it was kind of chill inducing. And, as the crowd would soon discover, every note, every lyric, every story he told, was straight from the heart.

For those who don’t know, Bryan Adams grew up in the Ottawa neighbourhood of Beacon Hill where he formed his first band and practiced in the basement. He hasn’t lived here for almost 50 years, but it is still a type of homecoming, I would imagine. On this night, he was bringing his show to Ottawa to support his most recent release, his 16th album, Roll With The Punches.

So, Bryan (we can call him by his first name now, since he has a way of making every fan feel like his buddy) made his way to the main stage, and the party truly began with a kick-ass version of, well, Kick Ass. And kick ass he did. 

I was a little surprised when he played Run To You after Kick Ass. How dare he play my favourite song so early in the set? It will all be downhill from here. 

HAHA! No way!

Somebody, Roll With The Punches (I’m glad he’s adding new songs to the set), 18 Til I Die, Please Forgive me, It’s Only Love (with a nice tribute to Tina Turner during the intro), Thought I’d Died And Gone To Heaven and Take Me Back.

That, right there, is an amazing start to a concert. Old stuff, new stuff, rockin’ stuff, slow stuff.

A few things to note about the gig after ten songs:

• Bryan Adams is almost 66 years old. He sounds absolutely incredible. There were a few times when I thought maybe the vocals were pre recorded, but then he would make a slight change in pitch or tone. He sounded better than the Reckless Tour.

• Guitarist Keith Scott is criminally underrated. This dude has been with Bryan for almost a billion years, if my math is correct. He doesn’t do blistering Eddie Van Halen solos, but every solo fits the every song so perfectly. He is phenomenal live.

• The ‘cheesy’ bracelet was actually very cool. The building lit up with red, white, blue and white lights made for a very cool addition to the show. Colour me embarrassed for thinking negatively. Old man syndrome. Get off my lawn.

He played all the songs you would expect him to (Heaven, Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman). He played songs you wouldn’t expect him to (Lonely Nights, This Time, Make Up Your Mind). He played a couple covers (Twist And Shout, Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You). His band, guitarist Scott, keyboardist Gary Breit, drummer Pat Steward were as solid as a band can be. 

The crowd soaked up every second of every song (except the yahoos in my row who left to get food about 6 times during the concert). Lovers instantly held hands or put their arms around each other when Everything I Do (I Do It For You) started. (LISA!!!! Next time). They sang the words to every song (Man oh man, you should have heard the dude in front of me! He was all in, with his voice turned up to 11). Every person in the crowd was brought back to their younger days. And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better…

In typical rock concert fashion, Bryan saved the best for last. I can’t ever recall a crowd reaction as loud and excited as when Keith teased the first D chord in Summer Of 69. I thought the roof might cave in. There was an incredible vibe in the arena on Tuesday night, and it reached its crescendo during this classic.  I felt sorry for Cuts Like A Knife, which was next in the set. It would be like the Beatles opening for your band. As good as you are, people will just remember The Beatles. 

A beautiful version of Alberta Bound, with lyrics changed to Ottawa Bound wrapped up the main stage set before Bryan made his way to the B stage at the back of the arena and finished the way he started. An acoustic guitar, an amazing voice (with 15,000 backup singers) and the final song of the night, All For Love, a song he originally recorded with Sting and Rod Stewart. (For the record, I played the role of Sting on Saturday night). 

And that was it. More than two and a half hours of rockin’ good fun. If you are looking for a blueprint of a perfect rock show, this is the tour to see. When you have two incredible bands rocking basically non stop for three hours, a crowd that was in a frenzy from the get go, hit after hit, cool wristbands, a Canadian icon in the capital of Canada…I don’t know, this was as close to a perfect evening of rock and roll as I’ve ever seen. 

I have only three problems with show: The Sheepdogs didn’t have enough time, Bryan didn’t play my request for Kids Wanna Rock, and he didn’t do a second night in Ottawa so I could see it again.

Oh yeah, one more…Lisa wasn’t there. She would have liked it more than Judas Priest, Extreme and Heart. He’ll be back

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Bryan Adams Setlist

Straight From The Heart ( acoustic – B stage)

Kick Ass

Run To You

Somebody

Roll With The Punches

18 Til I die

Please Forgive Me

It’s Only Love

Thought I’d Died And Gone To Heaven

Take Me Back

Shine A Light

Heaven

Never Ever Let You Go

This Time

Lonely Nights

Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman

Here I am (in French – Me Voila)

You Belong To Me

Twist And Shout

(Everything I Do) I Do It For You

Make Up Your Mind

Back To You

So Happy It Hurts

Summer Of 69

Cuts Like A Knife

Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You

Alberta Bound (Ottawa/Ontario Bound)

All For Love (Acoustic B stage)