Forever young and cheeky, Stewart rocks

February 05, 2007|Sarah Rodman, Globe Staff

The enduring appeal of Rod Stewart could easily be summed up by one moment from his robust two-hour show at the TD Banknorth Garden Saturday night.

Strutting his way around the catwalk encircling his large in-the-round stage set , the faithfully rooster-coiffed Stewart started giggling. Even he couldn't keep a straight face while performing his regrettable but undeniably catchy disco thumper "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?"

At 61, Stewart may pout and preen like some of his Hall of Fame peers but there's always been a sly nudge and wink in between the booty shakes. That cheekiness has never detracted from what has been truly great about his career -- roots rock classics like "Maggie May" and "Reason to Believe" -- and has helped mitigate what has been less stellar -- the spandex and the limp Great American Songbook records. And his awareness of his own occasional ridiculousness is a sweet poke to the audience as if to say, "Well, you guys went for this stuff."

Saturday night the 12,000-plus audience went for that and much more as Stewart and his huge band shifted back into Rod the Rocker mode, playing 20 of his biggest hits, a couple of obscure gems, and a few tracks from his rote new covers album "Still the Same: Great Rock Classics of Our Time."

Although he now often takes the low road where he once shot for the high, his famous whiskey and gravel croon was in strong form and his spirits were high as he shimmied, kicked, and boogied his way through everything from '80s dance rocker "Infatuation" to a galvanic rendition of the Temptations soul shouter "(I Know) I'm Losing You" to the rustic Cat Stevens ballad "First Cut is the Deepest"-- augmented by fiddle and steel guitar.

Of the new covers it was another Stevens song, the ruminative "Father and Son," that shone brightest as Stewart imparted the paternal advice as touching images of his own father and sons played on the pristine video screens. As he sang the line, "Look at me, I am old but I am happy," it was clearly heartfelt.

Singalongs -- "You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)," "Maggie May," "Tonight's the Night" -- were plentiful, as were Stewart's costume changes. And if there were less-than-captivating moments -- like a version of Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart" sung by his trio of backing vocalists and a dull "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" -- they tended toward the brief and still hummable.

For many, including Stewart who crowed "I love this one," the night's high was the anthem of uplift, "Forever Young." While he may not be chronologically youthful, Stewart remains convincingly young at heart.