Peter Gabriel, i/o – The Tour, Palm Springs - October 14, 2023. Review and photos by Traci Baker, Founder, #getphilvotedin

Thinking about how to summarize my thoughts about the Peter Gabriel shows, I saw on the I/O Tour; I think taking a step back for a moment, and recognizing a few things will help set the scene. Peter decided to not release his body of work as a whole, we know that every month on the full moon he would release a new song. Perhaps at the beginning of the tour this was probably maybe more difficult for some fans, because the music in large part was totally unfamiliar. Anybody remember the beginning of the Lamb tour?

So I think time was on my side, as the shows I saw were among the final on the tour —at least to date. I was able to familiarize myself with the music, learn the lyrics and the story behind them. So then the visuals made lots of sense to me and enhanced the experience greatly. I also think that as with anything, practice —trial and error— and probably some modifications and additions to the show that I saw versus what was the beginning of the tour probably made a difference. I say this to acknowledge that there was a significant chunk of the fan community that were a bit sour on the shows early on the tour. Now you’re always going to have a bit of that no matter what. But I want to give context to my comments, acknowledging that I probably saw a slightly more polished version of the show, and I had the benefit of having learned and become familiar with the music. And further, I have been a fan of Peter Gabriel‘s solo work since 1983 when I got the double album, Peter Gabriel (Plays Live). I was 13 when I got it -I may have even gotten it for my 14th birthday. So I am a long standing fan of his in general.

Right… on with the show!

I chose to purchase the VIP package, and I’m super glad I did. The seat alone was worth it. I feel I had the best seat in the house. I was in the center on the aisle closer to Peter’s keyboard in row 3. I can’t say enough how much an aisle seat makes a difference. You don’t have the heads in front of you. The preshow VIP lounge was very nice. They had a good variety of appetizer style food that was in good supply throughout. They had plenty of bartenders, and the package came with two drink tokens. I thought to myself later, after that bit was over, I should’ve asked them for one or two of the tokens back, as a souvenir. Oh well. There was a PG Selfie photo booth, but an attendant was there to assist as needed. The VIP merchandise box and tour- bag was nice. I think it’s very difficult to find items like that that people are going to love. Among the items were some leather-style coasters, a really nice spiral-bound notebook and the bag was pretty cool. I feel like they did a nice job with the lanyards and passes as well.

I heard the show was starting promptly at 8 PM. So I was sure to be in my seat with a little time to spare just to settle in. I really enjoyed the whimsy of the human clock. I also thought there was a very clever use of a the preshow music. As the moments got closer and closer to Peter actually taking the stage, the preshow music got progressively louder to the point where it was a really super loud at one point and I knew… ‘OK he’s definitely about to take the stage’ or our eardrums are going to blow —one or the other.

Peter took the stage to a roar of applause. I really liked how he started the show with a greeting for the audience. Just him on the stage, wearing a kind of grandfatherly hat, speaking in a quiet voice, sharing the wisdom of a life well lived… kind of thing. Like he was welcoming us to his home, and he set the stage for what was to come, what we were going to see and hear.

From my seat, I could make out an area centerstage that appeared to be an actual campfire with a seating area in a semi circle. And in fact, that is what it was meant to be, although it wasn’t real fire. I thought it was a clever way to open the show and present the first song, “Washing of the Water,” which is a more quiet song. More than anything for me, the theme of much of the new music is really about time and the cycle of life. And then how we contribute and participate from inception to death, and everything in between. And in a lot of the in between, I find Peter uses quite a lot of sexual imagery and energy. No one song among the new music could be more an example of this than “Growing Up.” Ansong with fantastic rhythm and very modern vibe, with almost a little kind of rap to it.

Panopticom was next. This was the first song, Peter released from the new music, and the one that perhaps many people were most familiar with among the new stuff. It does have an easy to digest hook, and chorus and is quite accessible and easy to listen to right away. But the concept of the song and meaning behind it is far deeper in my opinion. Peter describes it as an infinitely expanable sort of data globe where everything we do goes in, a mirror of what we’re doing minute by minute. Everyone’s story. Making the world visible, “where things that have been buried, denied or forgotten would be transparent, and very easy to see.”

The musicianship throughout the show is absolutely world class. Most everyone on the stage is a multi-instrumentalist, and singing backing vocals. Such a diverse group of incredibly talented people.

The set continued on with ‘Four Kinds of Horses” and the very catchy title track “I/O” before getting to the first song in the show from a previous record. “Digging in the Dirt,” (from 1992’s ‘Us’) was well placed in the set, not only because it was familiar to people who may not have ‘dug‘ into the new music, but also because it did have a part in the story Peter was telling. And it has the distinction of being one of the only two ‘newer era’ songs in the set, not from the 1986 mega-smash hit record, “So.”

The other ‘newer era’ song was from Peter’s, 2000 album “OVO,” the insanely awesome, heavily musical, very loud track, “The Tower That Ate People.” I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the insanely awesome sound at the show in Palm Desert. I don’t know if it was my proximity to the stage, or the fact that it was a new building, and their sound system was state-of-the-art, but it was absolutely mind-bogglinly good. Back to the song… I noticed in my Setlist research that this song was not always played at all the shows, it seems like only every several shows he would play it. I had a theory that he would give the audiences who he felt were particularly “into it” an extra bonus treat… I only got this song at one of my two shows. I did feel like the show in Palm Desert had a more connected audience than the LA show.

Speaking of “So,” earlier, Peter played five of the eight songs from that record, “Sledgehammer” was the first of the five, ending the first half of the set with a bang - so to speak… before taking a brief intermission. “Don’t Give Up,” which was performed beautifully with the uber-talented, and extraordinarily beautiful Ayanna Witter-Johnson, one of my favorites, “Red Rain,” “Big Time,” and “In Your Eyes,” were the others. A quick sidenote, and it’s really just one of those things I think… But sometimes people go to a show that aren’t really super into music or the artist necessarily, they just seem to know the hits. And it’s kind of a pet peeve of mine. When you go to a Peter Gabriel show for example, a man whose depth of thought and musicianship and feeling is so great- and his heart is so committed…that when the woman munching on a bag of popcorn in front of me is seated, almost in a comatose manner the entire time…until the moment “Sledgehammer,” or “Big Time,” starts, and she leaps to her feet, like you think that maybe she just won the lottery…it’s… disconcerting, or… I can’t find the words. I just felt like commenting on this. That’s all.

Interestingly, all of the songs that will ultimately make up the I/O Album slated for release this December (2023), were played at this particular show with the exception of the song “So Much.”

The visuals in the show cannot be overstated in terms of their beauty, uniqueness, and overall impact on the show. I thought it was absolutely wonderful that Peter selected contemporary artists, and featured their work throughout. And he took the time to talk about each artist and their work. He is such an extraordinary person.

In addition to some of the powerful visuals, some were really amusing, adding levity in the lightness of being to some of the songs. During this song, “This is Home,” images of rich swirling cups of coffee, of baked beans, and eggs, asparagus, and mushrooms cooking on a skillet, are just a few examples of the whimsical feel-good visuals in that song.

I also enjoyed one of the songs where a flowing mane of beautiful, long red hair was the visual, I can’t recall what song it was, but it was really such a beautiful image, so simple.

Perhaps the visual that I will neve forget was from the artist, designer and human rights campaigner, Al WeiWei whose giant middle finger rotated around the stage in various color schemes during one of my favorite songs of the new music. The middle finger is being given to death, by the “hero” of Peter’s story during “Road of Joy.” And as a fan of Phil Collins, and insanely talented bass players…it reminded me of Leland Sklar who authored a whole book featuring a couple thousand people are flipping the bird. And speaking of awesome bass players, I don’t have the time to carry on about all of the people in Peter’s band, but Tony Levin is an absolute legend. It was such a treat to see him perform. And he’s been with Peter for so, so, so many years. And of course, David Rhodes on guitar and Manu Katche, drummer extraordinaire, are again world class musicians up on that stage. If you have time read about all of the other incredible people that shared the stage with Peter on this tour, I definitely recommend that.

Another song whose visuals were absolutely stunning, employing incredible technology was during the hauntingly beautiful, very quiet song “Love Can Heal.” There was a clear sort of screen hanging along the front edge of the stage, and Peter was standing behind it. As he would walk back-and-forth, either the panels of the screen would become blurred, and then, as he walked past become clear, and again, blurred, etc. —or he would have a kind of wand in his hand, and it appeared as though he was making images appear on the screen like you would with a large stroke of a paintbrush… I can’t describe it better than that. Because we have the technology now, I highly suggest you Google this song from one of the shows to see what I mean. But if you’d like to wait and see it as it’s meant to be seen, I can reveal here that after talking with Peter’s daughter, the incredible photographer, and Director, Anna-Marie Gabriel, the two shows I happened to see in Los Angeles, and Palm Desert. California were both filmed for a concert film co-directed by Anna and her colleague Ed Coleman, who is also serving as the tour’s video Director. Anna was not able to confirm when and where it could be seen. But she did promise to keep me posted.

So if you don’t already participate on my “Phil Collins Should be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (as a solo artist),” Facebook page, I highly recommend joining the group. I share lots of fresh original content, that is designed to help exemplify the reasons that Phil should in fact be recognized for his significant contribution to music as a solo artist. I do also share things from the “Phil Collins universe,” that include Peter Gabriel, Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks, Phil’s son, Nicholas, and other related topics.

I have to admit that I did look at the set list from shows preceding mine, and was delighted that the wonderful “Solsbury Hill“ seemed to be a staple in all of the setlist's I saw, and I was not let down, he did the song at both shows I saw. And it did not disappoint. It is one of the songs that when you hear the opening notes, (at least for me), my hand goes to my heart right away, and I do a little swooning sigh… I just love this song so much. Every time I hear it -no matter what. And of course, no Peter Gabriel show would be complete without the haunting anthem, “Biko”.

Wrapping up, the show was filled with an incredibly rich, full set of music. I did miss personal favorites like “San Jacinto,” and “Family Snapshot,” but overall I left the show feeling extremely satisfied, and really full of good energy.

I do think I’ve benefited from the fact that I had time to listen to the new music, and really learn it, and the benefit of having had all of the songs from the group of new music released prior to my show.

Written By Traci Baker

Reviewing the Peter Gabriel show from Saturday, October 14, 2023 at the Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California on the I/O World Tour.