Hubbard shows there's life after FGL

In a show that at times rocked before moving more and more into country territory, Hubbard is making a go of it on his own, apart from Brian Kelley. Playing a smaller venue (capacity 2,500, but it was not filled) than arenas ins his previous life fit him just fine.

Hubbard has released two solo albums and played 18 songs from his new disc, "Strong," and his self-titled debut. Most of the new material stood up with a lot of the material focusing on and nostalgia for small town life ("Small Town Me" and "American Mellencamp" stood out) and Friday nights (that was mentioned in at least three songs).

Hubbard also trotted out a two-week old song, "Heroes," which honors those who been the backbone of life in this country. Perhaps simple, Hubbard also expressed a lot of sincerity and appreciation of various types of heroes in the U.S.

This was not a case of Hubbard turning his back on his past (he apparently wanted to continue only doing FGL and letting solo careers happen down the road. Kelley thought both could work, but that obviously didn't happen). He appropriately embraced it by doing FGL's first huge hit "Cruise" mid-way through the set, upping the excitement quotient of the crowd. Ditto for "Meant to Be," the group's humongous hit with Bebe Rexha. The preamble to the rendition was on par with the song itself as Hubbard gave his wife credit for what became the title and how he didn't think it was that good a song.

Hubbard also told a good story about the Jason Aldean hit "You Make It Easy," which Hubbard helped wrote. Aldean rejected a batch of songs that Hubbard brought to him, thinking they were the perfect fit. Hubbard came back with one more. While a hit for Aldean, Hubbard showed himself to more than the songwriter; he turned in a good rendering of the song. Some artists are really more songwriters and singer. Hubbard has skills in both areas.

Florida Georgia Line seems done for now at least, but Hubbard showed that he's doing just fine on his own.

Alana Springsteen opened, and one should separate the music from the rest of the performance. Good outing overall, which was well received by the crowd. A steady stream of personal songs and touring (this was at least her third time in the Boston area in the past two years) has helped. So does having the vocal chops to pull it off.

Springsteen started smartly with "you don't deserve a country song," about an ex-, who she didn't want to write about. The song has a cute premise and played to her vocal strengths. Springsteen tended to veer more towards rock than country, although the latter came more to the fore over the course of her set. The new song, "Cowboy," released just two weeks ago, was better than the recording. Her other new song, "Hold My Beer," eventually percolated and came off as an obvious crowd sing-along.

As for the rest, there was a cliché element to the 45-minute set as well. That was true from the second she hit the stage with a Red Sox shirt on. Have enough confidence not to pander to the hometown crowd. And her choice of covers left a lot to be desired. She got the crowd singing along (no problem there) to Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" before singing maybe a minute of Kenny Chesney's hit "When the Sun Goes Down" and then closing this segment with Bon Jovi's "Livin' On a Prayer." If you really think a song is worthy as a cover, sing the whole song, not a tease. What about singing a country song (at least Chesney'sa counts towards that) and make it your own? The whole segment left one wondering exactly what kind of artist Springsteen wants to be.

And her guitarist, Josh (no last name offered), was more about rock licks and facial grimaces.

Despite that, Springsteen is on the rise career-wise. One can see why from this performance as well, but she needs to figure out who she is a bit more.