Blues Traveler Takes Us Back At The Astro!

Story and Photos: Spencer Fleming

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It was a night of 90s bangers on Sunday (7.6.25) when three heavy hitters played the Astro Amphitheater in La Vista. With the temperature in the high 80s and the sun beating down it was a bit of a scorcher, but the place was pretty packed and ready for some nostalgia.

The evening started with the Spin Doctors. You may remember the band for their hits "Two Princes" and "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong". I'll never forget riding the bus to school and rocking out to the Spin Doctors on my Walkman. In the mid-90s Spin Doctors were all over the radio, you couldn't escape it. The band sounded tight with lead singer Chris Barron still in great form. The Spin Doctors dished out their hits along with some new music and even a cover of "Purple Rain". They did a great job getting the party started.

Next up were the 90s hit makers Gin Blossoms. This was my fifth time seeing the band and they never dissapoint. Their ability to create a time machine with their songs still impresses me every time. Gin Blossoms was a huge part of my childhood. I discovered them right at that crucial time when you start pulling away from your parental influences and exploring new sounds that will shape your taste for years to come. If you've never heard the Gin Blossoms think jangly power-pop dripping with melody and incredible storytelling. Their setlist doesn't seem to vary much from to show to show, but that's ok. They have tons of hits and they don't leave any unplayed. I could watch their setlist forever and never get bored. Robin had the crowd eating out of his hand by the time they hit "Hey Jealousy". The sun was starting to fade just as they broke out what may be my favorite song of all time "Til I Hear It From You". Every time Gin Blossoms come through I do everything I can to catch their show. Do yourself a favor and check them out today!

After some delay it was time for the legendary Blues Traveler! I noticed that the stage crew was cutting some songs from the setlist as there was a 10:00 noise curfew. That's the one drawback of the Astro. While I love an early show with an early cutoff, if the band is late there's no extension. No matter, the Blues Traveler faithful were all cheers after so much anticipation. The band kicked off the set with the song "Stand" and jammed out for several minutes.

I kind of knew Blues Traveler had a reputation for being a jam band, but I had never seen them live so I wasn't really sure what to expect. Most of their songs outside of the radio hits went on for quite a while. If I didn't know about the curfew I would've really enjoyed this aspect of their show. But I felt bad for the die-hard folks in the crowd who traveled or paid a lot of money for VIP tickets and only ended up seeing 9 songs. It's a shame because the band did sound great. They even brought Robin Wilson from Gin Blossoms out for a cover of "Last Dance With Mary Jane" by Tom Petty which brought the house down. Rather than banter with the audience, lead singer John Popper apologized for the late start and mentioned he had a leg injury. He said they were going to hurry through a couple more songs.

They played one of their bigger hits "Hook" and they literally did speed the tempo up to get through it. As the audience was making their way to the exit we could hear a blistering cover of "Hot For Teacher" as the band raced against the clock. I didn't hear too many complaints from the patrons around me and I even heard some folks saying how it was a fun time. I'd be interested to see another Blues Traveler show with less time constraints and really dig in on the jams! Even with the short set it was a great summer show and I'm honored I could capture it.

A huge thank to Blues Traveler for having me out. Thanks so much for reading and we'll see you at the next one!