A few years ago, I went to a Steve Winwood concert at Jannus Landing, stayed about 30 minutes, and left feeling like he was some sort of robotic construct, a Stepford musician. So last night I was in no particular hurry to get to the Forum to see him open for Tom Petty.
We arrived just as he kicked into “Higher Love.” Winwood and his band — guitar, saxophone, drums, percussion and Hammond organ — did a far more organic and funky version than the high-gloss recording. The quintet, performing in close quarters as opening acts usually do, really connected and found a cool, rolling groove.
This article appears in Jul 16-22, 2008.