Location: Grado / Diga Nazario Sauro / Italy
Date: Wednesday, July 20, 2016
Guitar legend Steve Hackett is usually most revered by fans of his former band Genesis, even though this fairly recent inductee into the famous Rock ‘Hall of Fame’ in Cleveland, and one of the most influential guitarists of all time, deserves far more attention even from those who aren’t exactly prog rock worshippers. During a four-day Italian tour, he dropped by the resort town of Grado. For these four Italian shows, Steve decided to go acoustic as the ‘Steve Hackett Acoustic Trio’. To make that happen, he called on keyboard wizard Roger King (The Mute Gods) and versatile wind player Rob Townsend from his touring band, who kept him company for most of his set at Diga Nazario Sauro, on the coastal side of Grado.
The venue sits right by the sea, which offers a gorgeous panorama and a pretty much ideal ambience for Steve’s body of work, which this time took on acoustic ‘notes’. As soon as his wife Jo Lehmann had checked on the situation in the seats in front of the stage, the English guitar grandmaster got the signal to begin. He came out alone, without the aforementioned instrumental sidekicks, which, as expected, didn’t last long. Steve sat down on a stool and warmed up with a lengthy acoustic guitar improvisation, which he most likely developed completely spontaneously and which was probably different at each of the four Italian dates on the current tour. Steve was just chatty enough this evening to explain the essence and message of individual pieces, especially the new arrangements, while, as usual, self-deprecatingly apologizing for his lacking Italian.
The serene, melancholic »Swan Fountain«, which Steve dedicated to his late mother-in-law, was the first new composition of the evening. »Horizons«, Steve’s most famous acoustic guitar instrumental, written back when he was still a member of the legendary Genesis, signaled that (as expected) we wouldn’t be hearing only Hackett’s solo pieces tonight. »Horizons« also marked the end of the opening part of Steve’s set, as that’s when his two ‘comrades-in-arms’ joined him on stage: Roger King on keyboards and Rob Townsend, who mostly stuck to the flute this evening but also delighted the crowd twice on the Irish whistle.
To kick things off they played »Jacuzzi«, a classic from »Defector« (1980), and then caused a proper little delirium with an interesting Genesis medley made up of the opening section of the epic »Supper’s Ready« plus the rarely played live »After The Ordeal« and »Hairless Heart«. After the first of the evening’s concert highlights, Steve and the instrumental duo played »Jazz On a Summer’s Night«, which so far exists only in a live version. You can hear it on the live album »Hungarian Horizons: Live in Budapest« (2003). The still-life, almost perfect-for-a-seaside-panorama »The House of Faun« was yet another brand-new addition to Steve’s acoustic treasure chest. Among the surprises, the standout of the night was »The Red Flower of Tachai Blooms Everywhere« from »Spectral Mornings« (1979), which maestro Hackett plays very rarely, even though, ambience-wise, it’s one of his most beautiful instrumentals, reminiscent in structure and mood of Japanese folk music. Mr. Hackett, who is incredibly ‘well preserved’ and spry for his age, physically as well as musically, of course didn’t forget his long scarf, which Jo probably knitted for him and which has become one of his trademarks in recent years.
Another small surprise was »Walking Away From Rainbows« from »Guitar Noir« (1993), and most people also weren’t expecting »Hand of Priestess« and »The Hermit«, not exactly frequent live fare, from Steve’s legendary solo debut »Voyage of the Acolyte« (1975). From that masterpiece, the usually punchy »Ace of Wands« naturally made an appearance, and it turned out really interesting in its acoustic version. In the middle of an arrangement of a classic piece by Johann S. Bach called »Bacchus«, a surprise popped up in the form of the Genesis gem »Firth of Fifth«, which elegantly morphed back into »Bacchus« just before the end. For the encore, Steve came back out completely alone and played two more pieces from the acoustic album »Bay of Kings« (1983), namely the title track and »The Journey«. He dedicated the latter to his late father, who, of all Steve’s pieces, apparently loved listening to the ambient beauty of »The Journey« most, and who, according to Steve, polished off no less than a whole bottle of brandy during it.
After the show, Mr. Hackett, as usual, took time for some of the fans who didn’t want to leave without autographs and group photos. Despite his extraordinary body of work and his influence on the development of various guitar techniques, the maestro stays modest and approachable, which is one of the main reasons many Genesis fans value him even more than his far more famous former bandmates Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins. Steve’s acoustic set by the seaside was a real balm for body and soul, just as you’d expect from a guitar grandmaster we’re used to for pure ambient perfection. The setlist was interesting and nicely varied, with just the right mix of long-standing classics, rarely played pieces and fresh material, so there wasn’t a single truly predictable moment. And of course, besides the guitar maestro, credit goes to his two partners in crime, King and Townsend, who once again proved why they rank among the best instrumentalists in modern progressive rock.
words: Peter Podbrežnik
photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Setlist:
1. Acoustic Guitar Improvisation
2. Swan Fountain
3. Horizons
4. Jacuzzi
5. Supper’s Ready / After The Ordeal / Hairless Heart
6. Jazz On a Summer’s Night
7. The House of Faun
8. The Red Flower of Tachai Blooms Everywhere
9. Walking Away From Rainbows
10. Hand of Priestess (Part 1 & 2)
11. The Hermit
12. Ace of Wands
13. Bacchus
14. Firth of Fifth
15. Bacchus (finale)
—encore—
16. Bay of Kings
17. The Journey
