Review/Photos: Little Steven @ Keswick Theatre

Words & Photos by Rod Snyder

Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul made a stop at the Keswick Theatre in Glenside, PA last night during their “Summer of Sorcery” 2019 Tour, 20 years to the day that Little Steven first officially became a member of the E Street band. Stevie and his fifteen-piece band weaved in and out of the past few decades and gave the crowd a sense of nostalgia, but added the signature “Jersey Shore” sound to the songs. The group performed covers from selected groups such as Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, The Youngbloods, Artists United Against Apartheid and of course from his own solo catalog and the Disciples.

Van Zandt’s raspy vocals blended very nicely with the his backing singers, Jessica Wagner, Sara Devine and Tania Jones – these three ladies added another element to the show. Visually they are exciting to watch, as the choreography kept them all moving throughout the show. And the sounds their voices produce together was just phenomenal.

That’s not to say the rest of the band wasn’t in the spotlight during the show -not at all. Each member in this outfit stood out at sometime during the 2.5 hour, non-stop set. From the fiery percussion of Anthony Almonte, or some of the lead guitar of Marc Ribler, to the five-piece horn section of Eddie Manion, Stan Harrison, Clark Gayton, Ravi Best and Ron Tooley. The band is a well oiled, tight unit.

Little Steven wasn’t too political, he wanted us to escape into the music on this night. He also touched on his TeachRock program that he created for teachers across the country. This program is a standards-aligned, arts integration curriculum that uses the history of popular music and culture to help teachers engage students. More about this can be seen at www.teachrock.org

Never seeing the band live before, I very much enjoyed the show, but the song “Sun City”, put together by Van Zandt’s “Artists United Against Apartheid” really stood out for me at the end of the show. The show finally ended with the Little Steven original “Out of the Darkness”. After a big thank you from the band, while all lined up on the stage, the band disappeared into the darkness themselves. They continue their tour in various markets in North America and the European market this year.

Setlist:

Communion
Camouflage of Righteousness
Party Mambo!
Love Again
Education
On Sir Francis Drake
I Visit the Blues
Gravity
Los Desaparecidos
Little Girl So Fine
Trapped Again
Love on the Wrong Side of Town
A Would of Our Own
Suddenly You
Vortex
I Am a Patriot
Superfly Terraplane
Bitter Fruit
Forever