BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD – FOX THEATER, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 1, 2011

By Eric Sorensen

After a subdued 45-minute set by opener Gillian Welch and her partner David Rawlings, and a fifteen-minute intermission that allowed the roadies to rearrange the stage, there was no emcee introduction.  Five musicians – Stephen Stills, Neil Young and Richie Furay (the three surviving members of the seminal 60s band that flirted with folk-rock, pop-rock, country-rock, blues and psychedelia) – backed by bassist Rick Rosas and drummer Joe Vitale, strode onto the Fox Theater stage.  When the musicians picked up their instruments and played the opening song of a 18-song set – “On The Way Home” – it was the only introduction that the Buffalo Springfield (the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997) needed.  The concert artwork – a huge Buffalo Springfield label plate, flanked by vintage tractors, was illuminated above the band.  One of Neil Young’s favorite props, the familiar cigar store Indian, stood onstage.  Two songs into the set, Young smiled smugly at the overwhelmingly Boomer audience and said “We’re Buffalo Springfield, and we’re from the past.”

Young provided most of the banter with the audience between songs – quipping once “We only know about ten songs, so we have to stretch things out” and saying later “I was just thinking about Rosemary Woods, Nixon’s Secretary.  I wonder if she ever had a 44 year gap?” – a reference to the band’s long hiatus since its final live performance in 1968.  Richie Furay then responded, “Hey, I’ve been married for 44 years” and that became his introduction to his signature love song to his wife Nancy – “Kind Woman.”

The trio may not have looked like the youngsters who played the Whiskey-A-Go-Go in 1967, but they sure sounded like the Buffalo Springfield of old.  Stills, now wearing black frame glasses, still gave each of his lead vocals the gravely, soulful treatment his songs were known for.  Young, forever an imposing stage presence, wore a Panama hat and fringed leather jacket throughout the show – adding harmonica accompaniment to several songs.  Center stage, between his more iconic bandmates, was a smiling Richie Furay, strumming on a variety of guitars and  cementing this lineup the same way he did years ago.

Stills, Young and Furay had actually reunited last fall for two performances during Young’s annual benefit concerts for the Bridge School.  While those performances were hailed by fans, they were a bit ragged.  This year, for this tour, it was very evident that the band had rehearsed its material well – with the three veteran vocalists excelling on harmony vocals on songs like “On The Way Home,” “Go And Say Goodbye,” “Burned” and “Nowadays Clancy Can’t Even Sing.”  In addition to “Kind Woman,” Furay’s poignant, sweet tenor voice highlighted each of the songs he sang – including “Do I Have To Come Right Out And Say It,” “A Child’s Claim To Fame” and “Sad Memory.”

About a third of the way into the set, Young strapped on “Ol’ Black” – his vintage Les Paul guitar that has helped define his sound – and he launched into a blistering version of “Mr. Soul.”  Stills, alternating between instruments that included a Fender Strat, a Gretsch White Falcon and a Gibson Flying V guitar, and Young traded lead guitar licks on many songs – these dueling solos were the band’s trademark during their live shows in the 60s.  The pair excelled on this tandem approach during the band’s extended version of “Bluebird” (a song once aptly described as “controlled chaos”) – which ended the 18-song opening set.

The Fox Theater crowd expected an encore, and they weren’t disappointed.  The band returned to play one of Young’s opuses – Broken Arrow” – with Young on an amplified acoustic guitar and Stills playing an upright piano.  The audience’s patience was then rewarded with a terrific version of the band’s first chart hit – “For What It’s Worth.”  That song then segued into Young’s anthemic “Keep On Rockin’ In The Free World.”  It was the only song of the 21 songs that the group performed that wasn’t original to the Buffalo Springfield … but it was a great way to end the evening, with the audience singing along.  Long may you run, Sir Stephen, Sir Richie and Sir Neil – AKA Buffalo Springfield!

Eric Sorensen is a Baby Boomer music enthusiast who is passionate about jangly music and pseudo-60s pop.  He has written CD reviews and authored pop music columns for the past fifteen years.  Eric was also the Project Manager for three tribute compilations: the 36-song Full Circle: A Tribute to Gene Clark; Five Way Street: A Tribute to Buffalo Springfield; and the four-CD Timeless Flyte: A Tribute to the Byrds.