A sliver of the West Side Tennis Club’s clubhouse peered through the stage’s backdrop as Sheryl Crow took stage on Hump Day, June 13, 2018 in Forest Hills, NY.
Wearing her signature glossy red hot pants that she’s been rocking while on her summer tours, Crow swooped toward the crowd while belting out memorable tunes that topped American record charts back in the ‘90s like “All I Wanna Do,” “Soak Up the Sun” and “Favorite Mistake.” Taking the audience back even further, though, Crow intermittently referenced her Missouri roots and how her family would ritualistically watch the US Open, which was held in Forest Hills from the early 20th Century up until ’78.
“It’s so cool to play here,” marveled Crow as she looked out at the audience and mentioned spotting four-time US Open singles champion John McEnroe in the audience, who also happens to be equally into his rock music as his tennis game these days. “Johnny Mac played here when he was 9 years old. I mean, that’s pretty hot. I just had to get that off of my chest.”
Reflecting further on her preliminary tennis spectating days down South - well before ever achieving the musical notoriety that she’s amassed – Crow mentioned one player whom her father picked on.
“Dad would complain about Ilie Nastase, and just call him ‘nasty’ rather than Nastase,” said Crow about the 1972 US Open men’s singles champion who recently came under fire for mocking Serena Williams’ pregnancy and also saying unsportsmanlike comments during Romanian Fed Cup play. Clearly, her dad could read Nastase’s gamesmanship back then; and on-court behavior lasts a lifetime, carrying off court as well.
And then there’s the main act, who by all accounts acts with the utmost class in every arena in which he performs – whether that’s on the tennis court or in front of thousands of devoted fans.
“[Robert Plant] is one of the architects [of rock ‘n roll music], and the rest of us are just kind of imposters,” said Crow of her touring mate whom she looks up to. Everyone in attendance knew that Plant had been one of the most integral figures in shaping rock ‘n roll music into what it is today, having been the frontman of the legendary 1960s-70s rock band Led Zeppelin. Yet most people probably had no idea that Robert really loves playing tennis, and that the stadium they’re sitting in was where tennis fans famously cheered on trailblazing Americans like Arthur Ashe, Billie Jean King, Jimmy Connors, Stan Smith and Chris Evert to victorious Grand Slam singles crowns.
Back in the early 2000s, Tennis Magazine ran a piece on Plant that showcased his talents in songwriting and performing alongside his passion for tennis, and how the two balance him out personally. But had the Englishman ever ventured into this neck of the woods before, with Forest Hills famously being home to punk rock band The Ramones.
“Someone asked me ‘have I ever been here before?” recalled Plant after having entered the stage clad in vegan leather pants and a casually unbuttoned velvet top to a roaring crowd that rivaled any heavily spectated live tennis match. “The answer is probably – [Forest Hills is] getting big again!”
When counting the collective years of history between The West Side Tennis Club and Robert Plant’s tenure as a musical legend, that’s upwards of 175 years of greatness (Plant’s been at it for most of his 70 years while West Side recently celebrated its 125 th anniversary). It goes without saying that tennis increased in popularity on an international scale thanks to the golden US Open years, while simultaneously original Led Zeppelin songs like “Stairway to Heaven”, “Fool In the Rain” and “Whole Lotta Love” redefined rock music.
Throughout his set alongside the Sensational Space Shifters band who indeed lived up to its namesake, Plant and his bandmates introduced audience members to tunes they might have caught an auditory glimpse of from Plant’s newest album, “Carry Fire.” That album made Rolling Stone’s top 50 albums of 2017 list, four years after Robert Plant and the band became one.
While Plant’s show mainly focused on that rock nouveau sound he’s been experimenting with as of late, combining psychedelic sounds through the incorporation of tambourine and violin sounds, it wasn’t until the very end of what turned out to be a beautiful Wednesday evening in Queens that folks felt like their pilgrimage was more than worth it. Shaking his hands while his signature long,
curly locks bounced around, Plant belted out "Whole Lotta Love" which just so happened to have been partially recorded in New York. The crowd began mirroring what Plant started as hands seemingly created one massive blur of love that the rocker could see well from his perspective. This anthem also coincidentally tops the list that Rolling Stone editors compiled containing what are regarded as “The Greatest Led Zeppelin Songs of All Time.”
Circling back to Plant’s words, Forest Hills has gained popularity due in part to welcoming such big names in music. Combine that fact with tennis, which is one of the hottest sports out there for those of any age or playing level, and you’ve got a match made in heaven that you can’t even buy.
For a full list of upcoming performances that span into September, visit http://foresthillsstadium.com/. And for more information on the neighboring West
Side Tennis Club, visit its site here: https://thewestsidetennisclub.com/.
A month after seeing Plant perform, the author won the 2018 USTA (United States Tennis Association) National Grass Championships in the women’s 30s division on the Forest Hills grass courts (five summers after having won the Open division in Newport, RI), and cites seeing Plant as inspiration for those recent victorious tournament runs.