The Girl in the Scarf

This past weekend brought me a little over 700 miles east to the city of Cincinnati, OH. Like Omaha, Cincinnati sits only a stone’s throw away from the next state over, Kentucky, in this case. The bridge in the picture above showcases the close proximity.

But I wasn’t there to sightsee, though I did my share of that during the day. I was there to see Steve Hackett, who is easily one of my favorite active artists to go and see live. This year’s tour was structured much like past shows. The first set was devoted to solo material, while the second set was centered on a particular Genesis album. In the past, I’d seen Selling England by the Pound, Nursery Cryme, and Foxtrot all played in their entireties. This show was centered on The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. All of these albums have celebrated their 50th anniversaries within the last few years, so it’s been a real treat hearing each album honored in the way they deserve to be during past tours. Lamb was released in 1975, so it was next in line for a commemorative tour.

I was telling the truth when I said Steve is one of the best active artists you can see today. Every show of his that I’ve been to has been nothing short of epic. His band lineup changes here and there, but even then, everyone onstage is at the top of their game. I’ll admit, I’m not as familiar with the Lamb material as I am with the other Gabriel-era albums, but after seeing Saturday night’s show, I’m inspired to dive into it in more depth. And then, of course, there were songs featured at the end of the show like “Supper’s Ready” and “Firth of Fifth,” that I think, alone, were worth the trip. Here’s a couple of photos from that night! This is the closest I’ve ever sat at a Hackett show. I was in the first row of fixed seats.

This is where my experience gets more exciting. Before the show, I, along with a handful of other people, was treated to a private backstage visit with Steve and Jo Hackett. I’ve had a number of encounters with the Hacketts over the years. We met for the very first time on my first Cruise to the Edge in 2019, and then I had a few more scattered visits with them at pre-show meet and greets and then, more notably, on a post- Cruise to the Edge trip to Delray Beach, FL in 2024, where a small group of us were led to a Japanese Garden and a few other scenic stops. I hit it off especially well with Jo, probably being that we were the only two women there. At the end of that visit, Jo gave me an email to reach out to during future tours. Here’s a few photos from that afternoon!

Going back to last Saturday, tour manager Adrian led the small group I was in down the back of the venue to, what I want to say was, the green room, though it wasn’t green at all. There were a few doors, each of which were cutely designated for certain members of Steve’s band, like this:

Anyway, Steve and Jo were as lovely as ever. Our conversations included Marillion’s upcoming show at the Pompeii Amphitheatre, me seeing H at Progstock, going to Japan, and even the current flu season, since Steve had recently been under the weather. Nad Sylvan made a brief appearance, too.

Sorry about the blurry, out-of-focus photos! I was standing pretty close and I was trying to be discreet with my photo taking. Pictured in Steve’s hand is a CD of my friend Rachel Flowers’ album Bigger on the Inside, which I brought for him and Jo. It sure was a swell way to begin the evening. when it came time for Steve and the band to get ready for showtime, which was a little less than half and hour away, my group was led up the stairs and then actually through the stage and back down to the orchestra section so we could find our seats. What followed was over two hours of gloriously epic prog and musicianship.

I look forward to seeing the Hacketts again, but onstage and off!