Electric and acoustic, Little Feat leaves Arcada on the rootsy highs of “The Last Farewell”

Photos by Andy Argyrakis

What Little Feat lacked in terms of commercial visibility, it more than made up for with an extremely dedicated cult following throughout nearly six decades of refining or reconstructing its rootsy cocktail of rock, country, blues, jazz and funk.

However, the time has finally come for the surviving members to mount “The Last Farewell,” which was a “Hot Tomato” of a ticket if there ever was one at the Arcada Theatre, but not before leaving St. Charles with almost three hours of electric and acoustic experiments dating back to the early days through 2025’s “Strike Up The Band.”

Though many members have come and gone, including late leader Lowell George, keyboardist Bill Payne was there from the very beginning, percussionist Sam Clayton and bassist Kenny Gradney cemented the classic line-up of the ’70s, guitarist/mandolin player/trumpeter Fred Tackett joined the next decade, while somewhat recently recruited guitarist Scott Sharrard and drummer Tony Leone come respectively from the Gregg Allman Band and the Chris Robinson Brotherhood.

Together, they made sure the spirit of Little Feat was not only in tact, but also fully alive in the present, splitting vocals amongst themselves and adventurously winding their way around the evening’s early grooves, such as “Let It Roll,” “Hate To Lose Your Lovin'” and “Rocket In My Pocket.”

The fellas kept picking up steam and kicking up dust as they tore through “Four Days Of Heaven, Three Days Of Work,” “That’s Her, She’s Mine” and “Old Folks Boogie,” eventually reaching the gumbo-filled glee of “Lafayette Railroad” and “Spanish Moon.”

Yet there was just as much seasoning and spice sprinkled across an acoustic set, featuring Muddy Waters’ “I Can’t Be Satisfied,” George’s “Honest Man” and the group’s own “Willin’,” enhanced by everyone’s spontaneous interplay.

Little Feat plugged back in by “Gringo,” “Time Loves A Hero” and “Fat Man In The Bathtub,” then the sweat really started to flow thanks to the feverish finger picking of “Dixie Chicken” over a smorgasbord of brass and beats.

The jams reached an apex with the fellow underground classic “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now,” which suggested there’s an endless supply of gas in the group’s tank should it decide to (hopefully) proceed beyond this swansong season.

Regardless of what’s decided, current demand warrants one extra local chance to catch Little Feat on Saturday, November 14 at the North Shore Center For Performing Arts as part of the Skokie venue’s 30th Anniversary Benefit Gala, and as the Arcada can already certify, it’s stated to be another must-see show.

For additional information on Little Feat, visit LittleFeat.net.

Upcoming shows at the Arcada Theatre include P!NK’D (May 10); Hell’s Belles (May 14); Fozzy (May 15); Cinderella’s Tom Keifer Band (May 16); Rolling Dead (May 21); Great White and Slaughter (May 22); Vinny Appice’s Sabbath Knights (May 23); The Sixties Show (May 24); Terry Fator (May 28); Tusk (May 29); The Dead Daisies featuring Glenn Hughes (May 30); The Neverly Brothers (May 31); Genesis Retouched (Jun. 4); Lynch Mob (Jun. 5); Straight From The Heart (Jun. 6); Todd Rundgren (Jun. 11); Hotel California (Jun. 12); The UFO Experience featuring Andy Parker (Jun. 13); Todd Rundgren (Jun. 14); Brandy Clark (Jun. 18); Stryper (Jun. 19); Aldo Nova (Jun. 20); Larkin Poe (Jun. 26); Vertical Horizon (Jun. 27) and AJ Croce (Jun. 28). For additional details, visit ArcadaLive.com.

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Electric and acoustic, Little Feat leaves Arcada on the rootsy highs of “The Last Farewell”

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