Stevie Nicks Returns to the Hollywood Bowl for a Witchy Night of Shawls, Classics and Tributes
Nicks performed her classics like “Edge of Seventeen,” “Gypsy,” “Dream” and paid tribute to friend Tom Petty by closing with a cover of “Free Fallin'”
Fall is in the air and Stevie Nicks brought the witches out to the Hollywood Bowl!
On Monday night, Nicks returned to the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles for Stevie Nicks Live in Concert and fans of the iconic singer flooded the seats, dressed in classic Stevie fashion from head to toe.
The show opened with the 74-year-old singer’s longtime friend Vanessa Carlton. Shortly after 9 p.m., the singer came out to “Outside the Rain,” which was featured on her 1981 album Bella Donna with her signature bedazzled microphone.
Shortly after, the crowd sprung off their seats when they heard the beats of Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” — prompting everyone to dance and sing along. Once Nicks was finished, she addressed the crowd and joked that rather than going on tangents she would try to stay focused when recounting her stories throughout the show.
“I’m so happy to be here because you’re my home,” she told the crowd as they cheered. “You’ve been here every step of the way. You’ve been here forever. Let’s get this party started.”
Throughout the night, she sang classics like “If Anyone Falls,” “Enchanted,” “Gypsy, “Soldier’s Angel” and even performed her new song “For What It’s Worth” — a re-recording of the 1966 Buffalo Springfield song. For each song, she recounted a fun story about how it came to be.
When it came time for her smash-hit “Landslide,” the songstress dedicated the song to her family and to Fleetwood Mac bassist John McVie, who was sitting in the audience.
“He’s my best friend and the person that I went to for solace,” she said.
It also wouldn’t be a Stevie Nicks concert without a touch of witchy attire. Throughout the night, the singer switched in and out of various shawls to match the theme of the song. During her performance of “Bella Donna,” she wore the original one from the album’s cover art: “Everybody wants it,” she joked.
The singer also made sure to commemorate her late friend Tom Petty, who made Nicks an honorary Heartbreaker — and she never fails to mention she would’ve loved to be a part of the band. First, she prefaced her 1981 duet with Petty “Stop Draggin’ My Heart” by recounting the story of needing a single for her solo debut — and this was the perfect fit.
Later, during her encore (and after “Edge of Seventeen” of course!), she wrapped the show by covering Petty’s “Free Fallin.'” This was unlike her other shows where she regularly concludes with “Rhiannon.” During the performance, photos of herself and Petty were projected onto the background.
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“The only thing that ever really heals anything is music,” she said during her exit speech. “You are an awesome audience and I will take that with me for the rest of my life.”
In July, Nicks revealed she would resume her 2021 tour after canceling over concerns surrounding the rising number of COVID-19 cases around the country.
“These are challenging times with challenging decisions that have to be made. I want everyone to be safe and healthy and the rising Covid cases should be of concern to all of us,” she wrote at the time.
“While I’m vaccinated, at my age I am still being extremely cautious and for that reason have decided to skip the five performances I had planned for 2021,” she continued. “Because singing and performing have been my whole life, my primary goal is to keep healthy so I can continue singing for the next decade or longer.”
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