Last night, I went with a friend to go see the BEAT Tour on their stop in Lynn, MA. The band is Adrian Belew, Tony Levin, Steve Vai, and Danny Carey. The first two were members of King Crimson in their mid-1980’s incarnation. Steve Vai is a well known guitarist taking on the role of Robert Fripp, the creative genius and only consistent member of the band from its founding in the late 1960’s. I sort of assume that’s why the tour was billed as “Performing the Music of 80’s King Crimson,” in deference to Mr. Fripp, rather than being listed as King Crimson.
The show, which was scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m., began at 8:02! I don’t think I’ve ever been to a show that started so promptly! The first thought that occurred to me was that these guys are old and don’t want to be up too late! But that shouldn’t be read to mean that they lacked energy in any way. Levin, at 78, is the oldest of the crew, with Belew, the front man, not far behind at 74. Steve Vai at 64 and Carey, 63, are the youngsters.
The music the band played was all from their three 1980’s albums: Discipline, Beat, and Three of a Perfect Pair. I am not terribly familiar with the music, but I wanted to see the band because they are such an icon of progressive rock, and the musicians are so accomplished. The show was filled with great energy, and they all appeared to be having a great time, and playing off each other. I had a great time, and was glad I had gone.
Here are three songs from the evening, if you’re interested: