Seventy-two year-old Rick Wakeman is bringing his “Even Grumpier Old Rock Star” tour to downtown Clearwater’s Bilheimer Capitol Theatre on Nov. 19.

Wakeman was almost one of David Bowie’s Spiders from Mars. After proving himself through his impeccable work on the Starman’s Hunky Dory album in 1971, Bowie personally asked the keyboard wizard to play in the band—on the same day that Yes’ Chris Squire called and asked if he could replace Tony Kaye. While Rick did remain close to Bowie, choosing to join Yes was probably the best decision he ever made.

RELATED
Just say Yes: Rick Wakeman talks to CL about Bowie, holy trinities and Jon Anderson

With almost 100 studio albums on his resume (not counting collaborative works), Grumpy Old Rick is ready to get back on the road following everybody’s stressful year off. While he won’t be with any iteration of Yes, or a Bowie tribute band of sorts, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee does not need anything extra to make a memorable night on his own—excluding a grand piano, and a microphone, of course.

Tickets to the Nov. 19 date of Rick Wakeman’s “Even Grumpier Old Rock Star” tour close at Clearwater’s Bilheimer Capitol Theatre go on sale Friday, June 26 and start at $49. The show will comprise songs from his 50+ year career, as well as self-banter, stories, and of course, that legendary, Wakeman sense of humor that he brought with him to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2017.

Not that Wakeman’s a stranger to Tampa Bay, but none of us are getting any younger—especially considering the shit that Rick has been through.

Support local journalism in these crazy days. Our small but mighty team works tirelessly to share music news, events and concert announcements as the Tampa Bay music scene recovers from coronavirus shutdowns. Please consider making a one time or monthly donation to help support our staff. Every little bit helps.

Follow @cl_tampabay on Twitter and subscribe to our newsletter.