The Zac Brown Band brought their Down The Rabbit Hole Live Tour to Toronto's Rogers Centre on Friday night to the delight of thousands of their GTA fans were ready for them.
The Grammy-winning country stars wasted no time getting started once they came out onto the stage, and over a 23 song set, plus a wicked encore, ZBB gave everyone a chance to sing along to their favourites from the band and an assortment of covers.
From our view in the 200 level of the stadium, we could see the fans packed in around the stage, on their feet, hands in the air, having the time of their lives. It was also easy to look around at every section in the 100 and 200 levels to see fans standing, dancing, and enjoying the show in their seats. This was live music doing what live music does best, creating a pocket in time, away from the rest of the world, where all that matters is what's happening right there and then.
The Down The Rabbit Hole Live Tour stop in Toronto also included a super-Canadian surprise when Bubbles (Mike Smith) came on stage with an electric guitar strapped on to help the band play a rocking cover of Metallica's 1991 classic, Enter Sandman. The crowd roared, the cover was tight, everyone rocked out and as you can see in the photo, good times were had.
We need to take a quick minute to talk about how great all of the members of the Zac Brown Band are as musicians. On Friday night there were eight band members on stage (not counting Bubbles) and each and every one of them took turns throughout the set showing everyone how good they are at what they do. Whether they're playing solos or they're playing together, they are all more than proficient, they are excellent.
Covers have become a big part of what the Zac Brown Band are known for when they play live. Back in 2016 at the CMT Music Fest, we saw the band play S.O.B. - Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Baba O'Riley - The Who, Don't Let Me Down - The Chainsmokers ft. Daya, Let's Go Crazy - Prince, and Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen.
Two years later (almost to the day), we saw the band rip through Enter Sandman, The Devil Went Down To Georgia - The Charlie Daniels Band, Use Somebody - Kings Of Leon, Next To Me - Imagine Dragons, Take Me To Church - Hozier, and pieces of Take It To The Limit, Isn't She Lovely, Into The Mystic, and the encore medley that included Cult of Personality, Bennie And The Jets, Tush, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), Black Magic Woman, I Like Big Butts, Thunderstruck, and Sabotage.
It was fantastic.
As the second half of the show rolled on, fans become more and more excited for the one song that they all knew was coming... Chicken Fried.
It was a catch-22 really. We wanted to hear it too, but we knew that when we did, the show would be coming to a close. But, when the band did play their first #1 hit, after playing 22 others before it, we were all ready. All of us.
The thousands of Zac Brown Band fans at the Rogers Centre sang at the tops of their lungs, they soaked it all in, and they realized that they had gotten exactly what they were hoping for when they walked through the gates earlier in the evening.
If you have the chance to see the Zac Brown Band on the Down The Rabbit Hole Live Tour, do it. And if you don't - keep your eyes open for the next tour date that comes to a stage near you!
Zac Brown Band - Toronto Setlist, Down The Rabbit Hole Live Tour
📀 Day For The Dead
📀 Knee Deep
📀 The Devil Went Down To Georgia [The Charlie Daniels Band]
📀 Sweet Annie
📀 Use Somebody [Kings of Leon]
📀 Quiet Your Mind
📀 As She's Walking Away
📀 My Old Man
📀 Homegrown
📀 It's Not OK
📀 Colder Weather / Take It To The Limit
📀 Enter Sandman [Metallica]
Intermission
📀 Loving You Easy
📀 Toes
📀 Tomorrow Never Comes
📀 Next To Me [Imagine Dragons]
📀 Keep Me In Mind
📀 Isn't She Lovely / Neon
📀 Whiskey's Gone
📀 Take Me To Church [Hozier]
📀 Beautiful Drug
📀 Free / Into The Mystic
📀 Chicken Fried
Encore:
📀 Cult Of Personality / Bennie And The Jets / Tush / Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) / Black Magic Woman / I Like Big Butts / Thunderstruck / Sabotage
