If rock \u2018n\u2019 roll needs saving, Bryan Adams qualifies as one of its saviors.<\/p>\n
Yes, Bryan Adams.<\/p>\n
Whatever your opinion of \u201c(Everything I Do) I Do It For You\u201d and his similarly middle-of-the-road ballads, Adams in 2026 is staging as pure a manifestation of a straightforward rock \u2018n\u2019 roll concert \u2014 the safe, nonthreatening, nice-guy kind, at least\u00a0\u2014\u00a0as you\u2019ll find at the arena level.<\/p>\n
That was made abundantly clear during his exuberant, no-frills, good-natured singalong Friday at the Smoothie King Center. He and the three members of his crackerjack band occupied an unadorned black stage. There were no risers, no rugs, no adornments and no props, save a couple of airborne inflatables and the light-up wristbands distributed to audience members that changed color on cue.<\/p>\n
Stage lighting was minimal, often just bare spotlights. Video content on the one LED screen that served as the stage backdrop was also relatively simple.<\/p>\n
In what, sadly, now qualifies as a novelty, Adams and his musicians performed without the aid of prerecorded vocals and music tracks. Every sound was made live and in the moment by four humans across a tight, well-paced, two-hour show built on guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and Adams\u2019 sturdy, sandpapered voice.<\/p>\n
That was more than enough.<\/p>\n
Guitar heroics by Giraldo<\/p>\n
Opening act Pat Benatar subscribed to a similarly minimalist philosophy, though she did allow herself the luxury of a Persian-style rug.<\/p>\n
Benatar co-bills herself with her husband, guitarist and main musical collaborator of the past 47 years, Neil \u201cSpyder\u201d Giraldo. Theirs is that rare rock \u2018n\u2019 roll relationship that has endured for decades as both a personal and professional partnership.<\/p>\n
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Neil Giraldo, left, and Pat Benatar perform during a tribute to Icon award winner Pink at the iHeartRadio Music Awards on Monday, March 27, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chris Pizzello | AP<\/p>\n
They do not hide the fact that she is 73 and he is 70; they both sported gray hair. He still slicks his back in the style of a \u201850s rocker; hers now tumbles well past her shoulders.<\/p>\n
They played to each other\u2019s strengths on a string of multiplatinum albums in the 1980s and continue to do so onstage, even as their recorded output has nearly ceased. In the past 30 years, Benatar has released only two albums; the most recent, \u201cGo,\u201d came out in 2003.<\/p>\n
Their hourlong set bounced around their recorded history but skipped \u201cHit Me With Your Best Shot.\u201d (Benatar \u201cretired\u201d her \u201cHit\u201d several years ago out of respect for victims of gun violence, despite the \u201cshot\u201d in the song being metaphorical.)<\/p>\n
\u201cAll Fired Up,” the opening track from 1988\u2019s \u201cWide Awake in Dreamland,\u201d was just as rousing onstage as on record.<\/p>\n
Benatar prefaced songs with brief asides. Early in their collaborative career, she and Giraldo were hesitant to write about their own relationship. That changed with \u201cPromises in the Dark.\u201d On Friday, Giraldo teased out the song\u2019s piano intro, then quickly switched to the guitar cradled on his lap for the dive-bomb runs he detonated on the first chorus.<\/p>\n
Giraldo deftly handled both rhythm and lead parts. He ranks among rock\u2019s most underrated guitarists. His style is masculine but not overly aggressive, active but not overly busy, with a rich, hearty tone. (Beyond the substantial Benatar catalog, he was the lead guitarist and bassist on Rick Springfield\u2019s 1981 smash \u201cJessie\u2019s Girl.\u201d)<\/p>\n
With the exception of a jaunty new song titled \u201cCome On People\u201d for which he stuck to piano, his guitar prowess was front and center all night.<\/p>\n
The LED screen behind the band only displayed the \u201cBenatar + Giraldo\u201d logo. Maybe that was their choice; maybe that was their fate as the opening act. Regardless, close-up views of the musicians at work would have been welcome in such a vast room.<\/p>\n
They approached \u201cDirty Little Secrets,\u201d from the lesser-known 1997 album \u201cInnamorata,\u201d with just as much passion as \u201cHell Is For Children,\u201d the anti-child abuse anthem that is a long-standing staple of their show. Both songs benefitted from fiery Giraldo solos.<\/p>\n
Benatar may no longer scale the uppermost reaches of her multi-octave range, but her voice is still potent and powerful. She wailed across a rocked-up \u201cLove Is a Battlefield\u201d and a final \u201cHeartbreaker,\u201d which detoured into Johnny Cash\u2019s \u201cRing of Fire\u201d before Giraldo and the rhythm section stamped an exclamation point on the set.<\/p>\n
Adams’ aw-shucks rock<\/p>\n
Exactly 30 minutes later, Adams materialized unannounced on a small, secondary stage at the back of the arena floor, strumming an acoustic guitar and singing a solo \u201cCan\u2019t Stop This Thing We Started.\u201d<\/p>\n
At 66, he is still remarkably boyish. His inherent \u201caw, shucks\u201d Canadian affability and eagerness to please make it easy to root for him. That the Smoothie King Center’s upper bowl was nearly empty did not seem to deter him. To the contrary, he came across as incredibly happy to be there.<\/p>\n
Following an unplugged, harmonica-augmented \u201cStraight From the Heart,” he strolled to the main stage, fist-bumping fans along the way. With Adams on bass, he and his three bandmates jumped right into a fully amplified song from his 2022 album \u201cSo Happy It Hurts\u201d called \u201cKick Ass.\u201d<\/p>\n
They proceeded to do just that.<\/p>\n
A lean \u201cRun to You\u201d pivoted without pause into \u201cSomebody.\u201d \u201cRoll With the Punches,\u201d the title track of his 2025 album, held its own amongst his hits. Hard-hitting drummer Pat Steward punched up the 30-year-old track \u201c18 til I Die.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Bryan Adams, as seen on the stage video screen, performs at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans on Friday, July 31, 2026.<\/p>\n