Venue:
The Royal Albert Hall, London
Date: 16/06/2025
Bonnie Raitt at The Royal Albert Hall? It’s always one of my favourite gigs of the year, when it comes around every couple of years.
This time, the support is the Man from Kent who is called ‘the 8th Wonder of the World’ by Bonnie herself; Jon Cleary. He comes out to a packed audience, many of whom know him well due to his ten-year residency in Bonnie’s band around the turn of the century.
Cleary immediately sets about turning the big old hall into a piano-bar on Bourbon Street in New Orleans; the city he’s called home for much of his life; and has us in the palm of his hand, (I’m actually sure he has three hands; so mesmerising is his playing.) His voice has been soaked in Sazerac rye whisky and the smoke from a thousand Lucky Strikes and the 40 minutes passes in the blink of an eye and ends with a huge ovation.
Bonnie’s band has two ‘new-boys’ over the last couple of tours; Duke Levine has stepped into the huge shoes left by George Marinelli, Bonnie’s gunslinger for 30 years, and does a brilliant job. A veteran himself of Mary Chapin-Carpenter’s band, Levine is a wonderfully melodic player but can also swap those blues-soaked solos with his boss in Marinelli’s song, Livin’ For the Ones.
On keyboards and backing vocals is Canadian, Glenn Patscha who has previously toured with Ry Cooder, Roseanne Cash and Marc Cohn. How good is he? I thought it impossible that Bruce Hornsby’s playing on Bonnie’s signature ballad, I Can’t Make You Love Me, could be bettered but, tonight, Bonnie stands and applauds him, along with everyone else, when the final chord fades. One of those moments I’ll treasure for a long time.
The two newbies join James ‘Hutch’ Hutchison on bass and Rickey Fataar on drums, (Bonnie ends his impressive cv during her introduction by calling him ‘Stig O’Hara from The Rutles’,) who between them have 77 years service in Bonnie’s band.
The old place goes nuts when Bonnie walks out; she’ll be 76 this year but her 54-year legacy is firmly locked-in; her slide playing is imperious and she still has the very best pipes touring the world.
The setlist is a wide and varied tour through Bonnie’s back-catalogue as well as more classic old blues songs than we would normally get in the years when she has a new album to sell. Bonnie introduces each song with a story about the writer and her history with them as well as punctuating her patter with lines like ‘we’re so pleased to be out of America at the moment,’ and ‘we apologise for our government right now.’
Old favourites like Thing Called Love, Dimming of the Day and Nick of Time mix with brilliant covers. Blues songs from the past 100 years like I Sho Do, Women Be Wise and Your Good Thing are all given the appropriate reverential treatment and introduction as well.
Jon Cleary reappears for a couple of songs that almost blow the roof off the old place before we’re into the straight and the run to the line. Angel From Montgomery, John Prine’s wonderful song that Bonnie has sung at every show, since 1971, is stunning and reduces me to tears. Then comes Marinelli’s nod to his hero, Keith Richards, and Livin’ for the Ones before a genius cover of Annie Lennox’s Little Bird which stomps and stamps its way to the end of the set.
They’re back for that heart-stopping version of I Can’t Make You Love Me, then Rafferty’s Right Down the Line before the magnificent Burning Down the House. The roar at the end is as emotional as it is raucous and Bonnie bathes in the warmth and love which washes over her from the crowd
The audience:
A personal sidebar from me; I find myself sitting behind Giles Martin and guitarist, Robbie McIntosh, (who gets an ‘I’m honoured to have guitarist Robbie McIntosh here; wow;’ from Bonnie, late on.) As the band leaves the stage before the encore, Robbie looks around the hall and faces me. I tell him that my next gig is on Friday when I’m going to see him at The Sound Lounge in Sutton. He is quite taken aback and shakes my hand, telling me he has no idea what they’ll be playing yet but they’ll sort something out. As we all leave, (he and Giles are heading backstage, obviously,) he makes a point of thanking me and gives me a cheery; ‘see you Friday,’ before they disappear.
I’m a bit starstruck.
It made me think..
I’ve had many special nights with Bonnie and her wonderful band. This was one of the very best.
Great review @@niallb . Similar experience in Manchester – a lovely, immaculately performed gig and a great setlist (good that she is ringing the changes slightly night to night; Manchester had a different opening and also a different set of encores). I agree that ‘Little Bird’ was a real highlight; I hope she records it.
She has a great ear for a cover. I would never have that song as a potential Bonnie tune but, jeez, she ripped it.
I was there too.
My wife and I both thought she was stupendously good and marvelled at how her voice shows no signs of weakening.
The closing Burning Down The House was absolutely magnificent. The best version of the song I’ve ever heard.
Fantastic, wasn’t it? Another great cover.
Sounds brilliant. Lucky you!
👍
Nice review. How was the sound? Can be very variable in the RAH, especially in the nose bleed seats.
Saw her twice in quick succession on her last tour – Birmingham and Black Deer. The band were fantastic but the audience at both gigs were lacklustre which seemed to drain some of the energy out of the sets. She could have done with upping the volume at both gigs.
Sound was immaculate. I must be very lucky because, since they spent a fortune upgrading the acoustics a few years ago, I’ve never had bad sound there; and I go a lot.
I sat at the very back of the hall, last row, for Gilmour last year and the sound was perfect.
Agreed.
It was far removed from the RAH sound I recall from the last century.
Good to know. Don’t think I have been there in 20 years. Solo Springsteen
My. You lead a wonderful life!