A sort of homecoming: Cheap Trick plays the Keswick Theatre in Glenside, Pennsylvania
On September 21, 2026, Cheap Trick played Glenside’s 98-year-old Keswick Theatre for the second time. The 1,300-seat former movie house has one seating level, as the mezzanine once housed the projection booth. Here’s the set list from their first (2015) performance in this Northwest suburb of Philly.
What is Cheap Trick’s connection to the Philly area?
For Cheap Trick, “Sick Man of Europe” is not just a punchy, two-minute song from their 2009 release, The Latest. In 1971, three of the four members who would record the first five albums left Rockford for Philadelphia, under the band name Fused. They lived at 2126 Walnut St near Rittenhouse Square and soon changed their name to Sick Man of Europe before returning to Rockford in 1973.
The 15-song set was mostly made up of late-1970s tracks from In Color to Dream Police
As anyone who has seen Cheap Trick live can attest to, they tend to start off with a punchy one-two-three combo. In this case, “Hello There,” “Come On Come On,” and “Lookout,” were part of the two-thirds of the 75-minute set made up of Budokan tracks. The five-piece touring version followed with the heavier “Big Eyes,” then, after a brief Daxx Nielsen drum solo, they went into the concert staple “Ain’t That a Shame,” a 1955 Fats Domino cover that has never received the studio treatment, despite being played thousands of times since the Budokan Era.
While the audience was mostly on its feet during the first five songs, that changed slightly when the band went into “Need Your Love,” which appeared on At Budokan a year before getting the studio treatment on Dream Police. This was followed by “The Riff That Won’t Quit,” the only song fans got to hear from Cheap Trick’s mostly upbeat 21st studio album and tour namesake, All Washed Up. Unfortunately, no “Dancing With the Band.” Instead, another slow, moody tune, this time the title track from 1978’s Heaven Tonight. Robin Taylor Zander then took center stage for the only time during the set to handle lead vocals on “High Roller,” a track co-written by his father, which predates RTZ by at least 15 years. Bassist Tom Petersson then stepped up to the mic for “I Know What I Want,” with both Zanders sharing a mic to help out on backing vocals.
The minute Robin Zander looked out into the audience and proclaimed “I want you,” the percentage of the audience standing up went from 55 to 95%. After a brief pause, followed by “to want me,” the crowd stood up simultaneously; cell phones came out and a predictable, yet still infectious, nearly five decades later, mania permeated the audience for the final three songs of the main set. The only Cheap Trick song that people of all ages are almost guaranteed to know was followed by the band’s best and possibly most adolescent-themed track, “Surrender.” The quintet then went into its second most recognizable song, “Dream Police,” before taking a quick break, while fans nervously hoped the house lights would not go on. The previous show in Morristown had no encore.
But on this night, unlike the previous one, fans got to hear an 80s song. And it was one off Lap of Luxury, although not “The Flame,” which was Cheap Trick’s only number one single. Instead, Robin encouraged fans to help out vocally on “Never Had a Lot to Lose,” which was followed by the high-energy “Goodnight.” Tom Petersson and the two father-and-son duos took a bow and exited the stage. In less than a minute, the house lights were on, and the 1,300 in attendance made their way back to the streets of Glenside, which seems like an idyllic place to call home.
So, is Cheap Trick All Washed Up?
No, Cheap Trick is not all washed up. In fact, Rick Nielsen has joked that Too Dumb to Quit was a working title for their latest release. But a washed-up act does not release mostly solid albums like In Another World and All Washed Up. If you bisected Cheap Trick’s 21 studio releases plus Budokan, the two most recent belong in the top half, especially when compared to the 1985-90 era. Robin still sounds great, Rick still banters with the audience, and two of the guys on stage were born after Dream Police.
Most importantly, Cheap Trick never took themselves too seriously and are still a fun band to see live. While 75 minutes is short for a headlining act by today’s standards, seeing Cheap Trick nearly a half-century after their debut release feels like an evening with a national treasure who reminds us that a rock show is meant to entertain us and send us home feeling uplifted. And this show (like every Cheap Trick show I’ve been to with this and previous lineups) did that.
Now how about adding “Baby Loves to Rock,” “Dancing With the Band,” “Downed,” “He’s a Whore,” and “Heaven’s Falling” into the set from time to time?
Cheap Trick’s set list at the Keswick Theatre (September 21, 2026)
Hello There
Come On Come On
Lookout
Big Eyes
Ain’t That A Shame
Need Your Love
Riff That Won’t Quit
Heaven Tonight
High Roller
I Know What I Want
I Want You to Want Me
Surrender
Dream Police
Encore Break
Never Had A Lot to Lose
Goodnight
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Great article. You captured the essence of what makes Cheap Trick so special and timeless. So sorry I haven’t seen them in a long time.
I’d love to go back to Glenside and explore the area around the venue next year.
Hey Brian – This review is spot on. One of my favorite things about seeing CT live (which I have nearly 50 times) is that the set list is never the same. Yes, the shows are shorter now than they used to be, but an evening with Cheap Trick is still well worth the price of admission.
Thanks Tim. Have you listened to Bun Es Basement Bootlegs on YouTube? The older shows were about the same length. And yes, each of the four shows I attended had different sets.