Hollywood Bowl – September 14, 2025
This was another last minute decision (and by last minute I mean a few weeks before the show). Julie didn’t want to go, so I found someone else. I got seats in the weird little triangular section of Q1 and they turned out to be nice seats (there are no bad seats at the Bowl). I was able to get an overhang seat so there was no one directly in front of me. And then it turned out to not be sold out. There were a lot of empty seats in my section and I think only one other person in my row. It’s always pleasant when you can stretch out.
Christopher Cross sounded exactly as he should. Lots of familiar songs, but I confess that I was starting to doze off a bit. It’s just smooth and mellow. Yacht rock at its finest. The background singers were mesmerizing with their synchronized movements and bright pink dresses. Christopher mentioned that his daughter produced a documentary about Yacht Rock that was on HBO so I texted my husband and within 10-15 minutes he was texting me back with anecdotes from the documentary. I really should have brought HIM to this show!
I had seen Chicago a year or two ago at the Forum with Earth Wind and Fire and I knew they were fantastic. If anything, having Christopher Cross open for them worked better because when Earth Wind and Fire plays they really bring down the house. This way they were able to shine. They really showed their age though. Peter Cetera was there, but he doesn’t even try to hit the high notes anymore. I think he sang maybe one or two songs. The other singer they had singing his parts sounded a lot like him though so it worked really well. Chicago has a lot of hits. My friend said she only knew Saturday In The Park on the way to the show and I told her, “You know more. Just wait you’ll see.” I prefer the 70’s stuff over the 80’s stuff. I’m not sure if that’s a reflection of the music or a reflection of teenage me rolling my eyes at the MOR 80’s songs while I was into much edgier (for its time) music. The horns all sounded great and I love a good horn section. The trumpet and trombone in particular were fantastic. At one point there was a very, very extended drum solo. I was joking that the others had to go offstage and take their pills my friend added “and huff some oxygen.” The fireworks happened during 25 or 6 to 4 and they were great. My friend commented on how long the fireworks went on. They go for the entire song…which is why you’ll never get $1 seats on fireworks nights. It’s expensive!
It was a fun show. Not the best I’ve seen this year, but I wasn’t disappointed. Next time Chicago comes to the Bowl I might skip it though.