An Evening with Queen + Adam Lambert at the Tacoma Dome

Queen + Adam Lambert at the Tacoma Dome
Queen + Adam Lambert at the Tacoma Dome – The Rhapsody Tour

The mighty rock and roll machine Queen, featuring vocalist Adam Lambert landed at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, WA for the second stop on their The Rhapsody Tour World Tour.

No opening band. Just an evening with Queen – which consists of Brian May (guitar / vocals), Roger Taylor (drums / vocals), Adam Lambert (lead vocals), and touring musicians Spike Edney (keyboards / vocals), Neil Fairclough (bass), and Tyler Warren (percussion / drums / vocals), as well as video montages and vocals by the late great Freddie Mercury. The band performed for over two and a half hours, regaling the crowd with songs from their storied five decade career.

As “Innuendo” played through the sound system, the house lights dimmed and the band made its way to the stage to perform “Now I’m Here,” “Seven Seas of Rhye,” and “Keep Yourself Alive” back to back with no breaks in between.

As the band launched into “Hammer to Fall,” Lambert continued to prove why he was an excellent pick to be the front man of Queen. His stage presence and command of the crowd makes him one of rock’s ultimate front persons.

The band played the perennial fan favorites “Somebody to Love,” “Fat Bottomed Girls,” and “Radio Ga Ga,” but they also touched on such gems such as “Dragon Attack,” “Love of My Life,” and “Doing All Right.”

Taylor also proved that he still has an awesome set of pipes by performing David Bowie’s part during “Under Pressure” as well as singing “I’m in Love With My Car.”

May also performed “Love of My Life” front and center, just him, his acoustic guitar, and his voice. He was then joined by Lambert and Taylor to perform “’39.” Later in the set May also performed a searing rendition of “Last Horizon” before tearing into a crowd pleasing guitar solo.

The band finished out the main part of their set with the fan favorites “Tie Your Mother Down,” “Another One Bites the Dust,” and “Bohemian Rhapsody.” If there was any doubt as to whether Lambert could pull off “Bohemian Rhapsody” late in the set, that was all cast aside.

During the band’s performance, they paid tribute to their late front man, Freddie Mercury, by showcasing his image during some of his peak iconic performances, such as during “Machines (Or ‘Back to Humans’)” and of course “Ay-Oh!.”

With five decades of music and a packed house full of people young and the not so young, it was an unforgettable evening that was exciting from beginning to end. A highly recommended performance if one is able to catch Queen as they come to town.

Setlist:
Song played from tape – Innuendo
Now I’m Here
Seven Seas of Rhye
Keep Yourself Alive
Hammer to Fall
Killer Queen
Don’t Stop Me Now
In the Lap of the Gods… Revisited
Somebody to Love
The Show Must Go On
I’m in Love With My Car
Bicycle Race  (with full intro)
Fat Bottomed Girls
Machines (Or ‘Back to Humans’)
Radio Ga Ga
Love of My Life (Freddie on screen for the end of the song)
’39
Doing All Right (first verse sang by Roger, second by Adam)
Crazy Little Thing Called Love  
Under Pressure (featuring “Flash” drum intro)
I Want to Break Free
You Take My Breath Away
Who Wants to Live Forever
Last Horizon (Brian May cover)
Guitar Solo (Brighton Rock)
Tie Your Mother Dow  (short version)
Dragon Attack
Another One Bites the Dust
I Want It All
Bohemian Rhapsody

Encore:
Ay-Oh (Freddie signing -video on screen)
We Will Rock You
We Are the Champions
God Save the Queen (Thomas Augustine Arne song)
Song played from tape – Heroes (David Bowie song)