{"id":18351,"date":"2026-08-10T21:08:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T21:08:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/?p=18351"},"modified":"2026-08-10T21:08:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T21:08:11","slug":"the-guess-who-with-don-felder-smart-financial-centre-sugarland-tx-aug-08-2026-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/2026\/08\/10\/the-guess-who-with-don-felder-smart-financial-centre-sugarland-tx-aug-08-2026-review\/","title":{"rendered":"The Guess Who with Don Felder – Smart Financial Centre – Sugarland, TX. – Aug. 08, 2026 – Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

Written by Dave Clements<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Last night inside the beautiful Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land, Texas, I found myself in a familiar place \u2014 camera in hand, ready to photograph and review the Takin’ It Back \u2013 The Guess Who Tour as it rolled through Houston. Don Felder, former guitarist for the Eagles, opened the evening, and the tour continues its sweep across North America.<\/p>\n

But before I talk about the show we just witnessed, I need to set the stage. Because this review isn\u2019t only about last night. It\u2019s about two shows, separated by 56 years, nearly 1,300 miles, and an entire lifetime of living.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with Felder.
\n\"\"<\/a>This is a man whose fingerprints are on some of the most recognizable guitar licks in American music. A man who, early in his career, helped teach Tom Petty how to play guitar \u2014 a gift that ultimately gave the world decades of Petty\u2019s brilliance before his untimely passing in 2017.
\nFelder\u2019s set was short, sharp, and built almost entirely from the Eagles catalog. If you even remotely like the Eagles \u2014 or terrific guitar work \u2014 you had to enjoy what he delivered.
\nHe opened right on time with Already Gone, then rolled through One of These Nights, Victim of Love, and Seven Bridges Road. He closed with a powerhouse trio: Heartache Tonight, Life in the Fast Lane, and Hotel California. Every one of them was played with precision, warmth, and that unmistakable Felder tone.
\nIn the middle of the set, he paused to sing a song he wrote for his girlfriend, Jaden Osborne \u2014 I Like The Things You Do \u2014 accompanied by a video on the big screen. It was a sweet moment, unexpected and sincere.
\nBut what impressed me most was his passion for something far beyond the stage. Felder spoke about his work with St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital, and specifically the Rock & Roll Retreat Sweepstakes he supports. It\u2019s worth a serious look on his website \u2014 a reminder that some musicians give back as fiercely as they play.<\/p>\n

Now, back to the main event.
\nThe Takin\u2019 It Back Tour features Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman, the two original architects of The Guess Who \u2014 the men who started it all in Winnipeg Canada in the late \u201960s. If you want to read a novel\u2019s worth of drama about the band name, the rights, the battles, and the eventual reunion, feel free. But that\u2019s not what this review is about.
\nThis is about two nights \u2014 one in 1970, one in 2026 \u2014 and the long line that connects them.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Show One: October 24, 1970 \u2014 University Hall, Charlottesville, Virginia–
\nIt was billed as the Circle K Concert. Don\u2019t ask me why. There was no opener. No frills. Just The Guess Who.
\nI had just graduated from college. I was about to start a career. I was worried about dying in Vietnam, like so many of my friends. And I had never traveled that far from home to see a national touring act.
\nI can\u2019t tell you what Cummings or Bachman looked like on stage that night \u2014 not precisely. But I can tell you what it felt like.
\nThe audience sang along to almost every song. The energy was electric. And when American Woman hit, the place absolutely exploded.
\nIt was one of those \u201cmoment in time\u201d experiences you will never forget.
\nThank you, Randy and Burton, for giving that to me all those years ago.<\/p>\n

Fast\u2011forward 56 years.
\nLast night, I stood in front of these two musical icons with a camera, humbled to photograph them. In 1970, they were roughly my age. Now, like me, they\u2019re approaching 80. Their bodies and voices have changed \u2014 of course they have.
\nBut something hasn\u2019t changed at all.
\nTwo brilliant songwriters, still crafting and delivering arrangements of words and notes that will outlive all of us. Songs that are larger than life. Songs that aren\u2019t just hits \u2014 they\u2019re cultural landmarks.
\nThe setlist was a reminder of just how deep their catalog runs:
\n\u2022 Hand Me Down World
\n\u2022 These Eyes
\n\u2022 Let It Ride
\n\u2022 Laughing
\n\u2022 Undone
\n\u2022 You Ain\u2019t Seen Nothing Yet
\n\u2022 No Sugar Tonight
\n\u2022 No Time
\n\u2022 Share the Land
\n\u2022 And of course, American Woman<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Every one of them is known. Every one of them is loved. And if you were in the room last night, you felt that love.<\/p>\n

A Final Thought \u2014 And a Frustration<\/p>\n

I left the venue humbled and honored to have been part of the night in Sugar Land. But I also left with one disappointing thought:
\nHow are these guys not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame? It\u2019s baffling. It\u2019s wrong. And it needs to be corrected.<\/p>\n

Until Next Time
\nPlease help keep live music alive every chance you have.
\ndwc<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by Dave Clements Last night inside the beautiful Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land, Texas, I found myself in a familiar place \u2014 camera in hand, ready to photograph and review the Takin’ It Back \u2013 The Guess Who Tour as it rolled through Houston. Don Felder, former guitarist for the Eagles, opened the… <\/p>\n

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