Keith Urban Concert Review Edmonton, Canada by Riveting Riffs Magazine

Keith Urban Rocks Edmonton With His Own Brand of Country Music

Keith Urban / Rexall Centre / Edmonton, Canada /September 21, 2011

keith urban photo 1 Keith Urban’s music transcends genres and generations, as evidenced by his performance on September 21^st at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, where children, teenagers, young adults and seniors were up on their feet for most of the concert, clapping to his blend of crossover country music and rock. He opened with the quick-tempo, rocking confession of love, “Put You In A Song,” which featured ripping guitar riffs by Urban who was flanked by multi-instrumentalist (this time playing guitar) Danny Rader and longtime friend Jerry Flowers playing bass guitar. “Put You In A Song,” is from Keith Urban’s current album Get Closer.

Dressed In a navy blue tee shirt and blue jeans and alternating between playing and singing from the center of the main stage, one of the mini stages to the left and the right and in front of the main stage, as well as another micro stage in the center of the audience, Urban was at his best when engaging his audience, which was often. After spotting a sign held by one of his fans, far removed from the stage and announcing her birthday and that of a friend, Urban eventually invited them onto the stage, so they could be serenaded appropriately. At another juncture during the concert he picked three people from the audience, a young girl, a man and a twenty-something woman to sing a verse from “Kiss A Girl,” from his Defying Gravity album. After asking the audience to cast their vote by applauding, as to who they thought did the best job singing, Urban had the young girl sing with him at the front of the stage and the other two individuals sang background vocals with his bandmates.

The slower, romantic song “Making Memories of Us,” on which Keith Urban accompanied himself with an acoustic guitar and the pretty “Raining On Sunday,” played with electric guitar provided an opportunity for him to showcase his vocals and although raspy, he brings the same charm to the songs as he does when he flashes his smile at his fans. “Without You,” from Get Closer is about finding that someone special and letting her know that although you have a lot of things going on in your life, none of them is more important than her.

Other song highlights included a pair of summer songs, the boy wants girl “Long Hot Summer,” (Get Closer) and “’Til Summer Comes Around,” with the companion video playing in the background. Keith Urban sounds like a lot of other singers when he is rocking out, but the emotion that he brings to these slower ballads and his more romantic songs distinguish him from most. In particular with “Til Summer Comes Around,” and the previously mentioned “Without You,” he seems to be very much in the moment and seemingly is transported to another place and time.

Keith Urban was on stage for approximately two hours and fifteen minutes and whether he was singing “You Look Good In My Shirt,” “I Told You So,” or “Somebody Like You,” he created an environment where his fans felt welcomed, appreciated and relaxed. He encouraged them to sing to his music and he took time at the end of his concert to thank the fans for coming out, letting them know that he is aware that these are not easy economic times and that for them to spend their money on tickets to his concert was not something that he took for granted.

Riveting Riffs Magazine would like to thank Live Nation for making it possible for us to review this concert