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Review & setlist: Sheryl Crow’s sunny Boston Calling set shone through the rain
Sheryl Crow delivered a hit-filled set at Boston Calling 2025, called on Bruce Springsteen to run for president, and brought the sunshine.
First things first: After her set at Boston Calling Friday night, there’s no doubt which side Sheryl Crow is on in a certain recent dispute. “I don’t know, Bruce Springsteen for president?” Crow asked the crowd to cheers and applause, after pulling off her sparkly black jacket to reveal a vintage Springsteen concert T.
But her 11-song set wasn’t about politics: It was about spotlighting an amazing catalog of well-crafted, singalong California pop that she quietly amassed over the course of the 1990s and early 2000s. She’s done some great stuff since then too, but Friday’s set was about playing the hits, and did she ever do them justice.
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Kicking off with a vibrant version of 2002’s “Steve McQueen,” Crow and her talented longtime band grabbed the crowd right away, rain be darned. (Fans of the album that captured Crow’s iconic, rainy 1999 Central Park concert will recall she has no problem navigating the elements.) Segueing into two stone-cold classics from her 1996 self-titled LP, “A Change Would Do You Good” and then “If It Makes You Happy,” it was clear that this was going to be a welcome stroll down memory lane for the long-timers.
Remarkably, Crow’s voice is richer than ever — an impressive sound mix at Boston Calling’s Green Stage didn’t hurt — and while it may be little reedier than during her ‘90s heyday, its also taken on a slightly gruffer tenor that gives songs like the driving “Real Gone” (pun intended, it’s from the “Cars” soundtrack) an almost bluesy edge.
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The set didn’t have what you’d call any major surprises, although a vibey version of Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home” that led into “Strong Enough” was a lovely departure, and her cover of Rod Stewart-by-way-of-Cat Stevens’s “The First Cut is the Deepest” was another mid-set treat. But from there Crow was into the crowd-friendly home stretch, rocking the bass on a fabulous, funky “There Goes the Neighborhood” before launching into her first big hit, “All I Wanna Do Is Have Some Fun,” which still has every bit of the lived-in barfly charm it had back in 1993.
If there had been any sun to soak up earlier in the day on Friday, it was certainly long gone by the time Crow got to “Soak Up the Sun” for her penultimate song of the set: “Who knew it was going to be winter in Boston?” she asked the poncho-laden crowd full of good sports. And darn it if she didn’t bring some sun into our soggy lives for those few minutes.
The singalong sunshine from that 2002 favorite gave way to her closer, “Every Day is a Winding Road,” her paean to navigating the struggles of daily life (also from the “Sheryl Crow” album). “Anybody else struggling here?” she asked before launching into it, to which many in the crowd answered in the affirmative. But in that moment, appreciating Crow’s joyous noise was anything but a struggle — just the opposite, in fact. (Staying dry was another story.)
Setlist for Sheryl Crow at Boston Calling 2025:
- Steve McQueen
- A Change Would Do You Good
- If It Makes You Happy
- Real Gone
- My Favorite Mistake
- Can’t Find My Way Home/Strong Enough
- The First Cut is the Deepest
- There Goes the Neighborhood
- All I Wanna Do is Have Some Fun
- Soak Up the Sun
- Every Day is a Winding Road
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