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Daniel Downtown Lee's Review
(more reviews coming)
Also See:
The show details.
A Boston Herald pre-show story.

First Set
1. Carry On
2. Southern Man
3. Stand And Be Counted
4. Pre-Road Downs
5. Heartland
6. 49 Bye-Byes
7. Slowpoke
8. Marrakesh Express
9. Faith In Me
10. Almost Cut My Hair
11. Cinnamon Girl
    Second Set
12. Helplessly Hoping
13. Our House
14. Old Man
15. Dream For Him
16. Looking Forward
17. Someday Soon
18. After The Goldrush
19. Guinnevere
20. Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
21. Out Of Control
22. Seen Enough
23. Teach Your Children
    [7th Inning Stretch]
24. Woodstock
25. Eight Miles High
26. Ohio
27. Love The One You're With
28. Rockin' In The Free World
    Encore
29. Long May You Run

As most of you know, the Sunday night Boston gig (which I missed) had some pleasant surprises: the debuts of Helpless and Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, and the return of the now sometimes sporadic Down By The River. After reading the reviews, I couldn't help but have high expectations for this show. Sadly (for me), the set list was cut by one song (bringing it down to about 3 hours and 5 or 10 minutes). And the absence of both Helpless and DBTR were particularly tough for me to swallow. Despite these disapointments, I can't go so far as to say that I was DISAPOINTED by the show: I still walked out of the Fleet Center with a huge smile on my face. I guess that says a lot about the quality of the show.

This was one of those nights during which the concert was less of a Neil show and more of a CSNY effort. Not that Neil was particularly down -- it's more that the other three seemed particularly UP. The most heartwarming, reoccuring theme of the night for me: every time one of the four played one of their songs that went over particularly well with the crowd, the others seemed genuinely happy and proud for the songwriter. It was particularly evident for Crosby with Almost Cut My Hair, for Stills with Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, and for Nash with Our House and Teach Your Children. As for Neil, pretty much everything he played sparked the audience. 'Nuff said.

Some particular highlights from the first set:

• Heartland sounded great.
• When Neil started in on Slowpoke, the crowd was absolutely SILENT for the first time as he went into the opening lines. Truly magical.
• Almost Cut My Hair was definitely the highpoint of this set: Croz looked so well and alive, and the audience really responded.
• Neil and Stephen really did an awesome job playing back and forth during ACMH.
• Cinamon Girl was the perfect set closer.

• Perenial favorites Our House and Teach Your Children got a lot of people singing and clapping, even way up in the nosebleeds were I was sitting.
• Old Man and After the Goldrush sounded particularly sweet and pretty.
• I was never a huge fan of Dream for Him and Seen Enough, but both songs sounded a lot better live. Both songs included improved guitar licks that should have been included in the recorded versions.

• A real powerhouse: Neil played each song with the kind of intensity that other bands/musicians would usually reserve for the final number.
• Love the One You're With sounded great as a more bluesy, stripped-down rocker.
• Eight Miles High was really charged up.
• So was Ohio.
• And what really needs to be said about Rockin' in the Free World ? Granted, it wasn't Crazy Horse playing with Neil, but it's still RITFW...

• As usual, the merchandise was grossly over-priced. It seems to me like it's cheaper to get it online, even with the shipping charges. Go to the show to take a close-up look at what you want, and then get it online.

• I had no idea how long the intermission was going to be -- it was about 20 - 25 minutes in case you're not sure if you can get back to your seat in time.

• While I was in the bathroom during the intermission, some guy at the urinals turned around when he was done and said to everyone else, "How 'bout that Neil?". The whole bathroom erupted. It was great.

(more reviews coming soon... --RE*AC*TOR)