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The Goo Goo Dolls performed at the Santa Barbara Bowl with their new tour, bringing the Collective Soul rock band with them last Saturday.
First to perform was Tribe Society, which did very little to add to the evening concert — it was really about Collective Soul and the Goo Goo Dolls.
The second to perform was the Collective Soul rock band with its high-energy performance that gave the audience what they were looking for — a supercharged evening on fire. But many felt it was disappointingly short, lasting only a little more than a half-hour.
It could have been much longer as Collective Soul should have had a more equal billing with the Goo Goo Dolls. The setlist for Collective Soul was only eight songs to the Goo Goo Dolls’ 21. It could have been because of the new Boxes album being released by the Goo Goo Dolls while on tour, but still it seemed a little unfair with the recent release of the See What You Started album by Collective Soul.
Finally, the Goo Goo Dolls were ready to perform. Having seen the Goo Goo Dolls in May 2011 at the Chumash Casino Resort, I wasn’t sure what to expect on this concert night. John Rzeznik, lead singer and frontman for the group, was going on and on at the beginning of their performance that he wasn’t sure if he had ever been to Santa Barbara before, and remarking about how pretty it was here. The answer is yes, the Goo Goo Dolls did perform on June 25, 2007, at the Santa Barbara Bowl, so I was beginning to wonder if he also had forgotten about being at the Chumash Casino Resort on May 26, 2011.
I remember thinking that it was one of the worst concerts ever, or that they were having a very off night, and I was beginning to think they were washed up, burned out and finished — like so many other bands, a flash in the pan, here today gone tomorrow.
So last Saturday night, I was geared up for a long yawn evening. Wow, was I proven wrong. At the beginning of their concert, they seemed to be slow and dragging a bit. Of course, it might have been because of the high-energy performance that was just performed by Collective Soul, but after the first few songs, I was drawn into their music like a magnet. They were tight, spot on, energized and very professional in every way — a far cry from what I saw five years ago. I can’t say enough about how well I felt they performed.
While taking notice at the concert, it seemed to be about 50/50 to whom the fans liked the most — Collective Soul or the Goo Goo Dolls. To say who was the better of the bands is a matter of personal preference. Both bands have achieved gold and platinum album status and millions in record sales worldwide, and have stood the test of time, lasting two decades — unlike many of their predecessors who have fallen by the wayside.
In any event, it was a great concert on a warm evening with nearly a full house of enthusiastic fans at the Santa Barbara Bowl. What more could you ask for?
Here are the setlists for both bands that were performed at the Santa Barbara Bowl.
Setlist for Collective Soul
» 1. Heavy
» 2. River
» 3. Better Now
» 4. Ayta
» 5. Shine
» 6. Rule #1
» 7. December
» 8. World I Know
Setlist for Goo Goo Dolls
» 1. Over and Over
» 2. Long Way Down Slide
» 3. Slide
» 4. Big Machine
» 5. Rebel Beat
» 6. Here Is Gone
» 7. Black Balloon
» 8. Smash
» 9. Bringing On the Light
» 10. Name
» 11. So Alive
» 12. Souls In the Machine
» 13. Better Days
» 14. Already There
» 15. Never Take the Place
» 16. Come to Me
» 17. The Pin
» 18. Stay with You
» 19. Iris
» 20. Broadway
» 21. Long Way Home
— Gary Lambert is a Noozhawk contributor. The opinions expressed are his own.