moe.’s Tropical Throe.down planned for January 2016 has combined forces with Little Feat’s Feat Camp.
Little Feat is no stranger to these types of trips: Feat Camp will be Little Feat’s 14th annual Feat Fan Excursion.
Island Gigs representatives have assured moe.rons attending the Jamaica jaunt that Little Feat’s presence will not interfere with moe.’s performances at all. But it will give attendees access to three full Little Feat shows in addition to three moe. shows at night, plus an acoustic day set (for the first 200 people who booked) and three shows from special guests Medeski Martin and Wood.
The addition means the sale of packages for Throe.down were put on hold temporarily, but they will be available for fans to purchase again at 10 a.m. Monday, Sept. 14. According to moe.’s website, “Space is limited and fans are encouraged to book early, as the rooms are expected to move quickly.”
The joint festival will be held Jan. 10-14, 2016, at the all-inclusive Jewel Paradise Cove Beach Resort & Spa in Runaway Bay, Jamaica, though Feat will play an extra show on Jan. 9 for those who choose to add the extra pre-night to their vacation.
This is not the first time moe. has collaborated with Little Feat. The Hollywood-based band played at moe.’s 2007 Snoe.down in Lake Placid, and Little Feat keyboardist Bill Payne played with moe. for the band’s Big Lebowski-themed Halloween show in Las Vegas last year.
The feathery, jazz-infused voice of Yankee Blood singer/bassist Ruth Kelly, supported by guitarist/vocalist James Karp and drummer Adam Verone, filled downtown Funk ‘n Waffles Thursday, September 3, with a lighthearted yet full sound that would never suggest they were short a keyboardist. A healthy crowd had gathered even before Yankee Blood got the show started, who were opening for local band Grayak. All three musicians casually donning t-shirts and jeans, the lazy, bluesy feel of their second song, “Sioux City” got the crowd swaying in an almost dream-like state.
They performed a brand new song titled “Savage,” which will be included on their EP coming out in October. The track started off as a slow rock number, but carried out a heavy instrumental buildup with head bang worthy beats. The egg crate stuffed into the bass drum quivered in approval. After their performance of “Blue Eyed Lover,” Kelly divulged how she normally plays the tune on upright bass, but winged it (very successfully) on her red lacquered Gretsch hollow-body electric bass.
Yankee Blood’s second to last song, “Beekeeper,” will also be featured on their EP. Kelly made sure to alert the crowd of Karp’s ironic fear of bees before adding that once the EP is out, copies will be distributed with jars of honey. Her witty quips between songs revealed an endearing and sharp sense of humor, painting the trio as the sort of people that would be fun to hang out with and share a few beers. Softly crooning the line “I want someone to love,” during “Beekeeper,” followed a theme present in several Yankee Blood songs concerning an honest yearning to share such tenderness with someone.
The five members of Grayak, who had been mingling in the crowd during Yankee Blood’s set, coalesced on stage to commence part two of the evening’s entertainment. Frontman Phil Grajko, sporting suspenders and a metal canteen slung across his torso, looked ready to embark on an intense musical expedition. Thinking logically, he opted to set the canteen by his feet rather than trying to rock it while simultaneously playing guitar. With Hannah Grajko assisting on vocals, Brendan Gosson on fiddle and mandolin, Blake Propst on upright bass and Tyler Dattmore on drums, they opened their set with a bouncy, optimistic tune titled “Seek It Still.” It describes a personal quest of persistence and determination to find truth and meaning in the world even if the path is rough.
The song functioned as a fitting kickoff for Grayak, a project which Grajko has been nurturing for quite some time, often playing solo, but finally able to showcase with a full ensemble. The crowd, heavily speckled with friends and fans whom have seen Grajko develop and transform his musical repertoire over the years, welcomed the distinctive guitar/fiddle intro to “Have a Beautiful Now,” quickly getting into a flowy dance groove and happily singing along to a song many audience members share a personal connection to.
The more reggae-style instrumentation during “Maya” provided a slight divergence and nice addition to the folk-centered genre Grayak largely falls under. The playful fiddle part literally chases the lyrics “I run, I run, I run…” adding an intriguing audio element that emphasizes the vocals. Before beginning “Together” Grajko announced, as he always does, “This is a love song but it’s also sort of about the apocalypse.” The introduction usually provokes people to smile and possibly feel slightly confused. After the song concluded, Grajko noted his musical troupe has only been playing together for a few weeks, adding to the impressiveness of their collaboration. The band polished off their set with Grayak’s title track, “Made of Light.” Opening with a low-key bass solo, the lyrics speak to the connectedness of humankind. It slowly builds with up-tempo guitar and runaway fiddle parts that might make someone wish they were standing in a breezy meadow on a warm summer’s day.
A few weeks ago I shared with you Part 1 of a two part interview with legendary keyboardist, and original founding member of REO Speedwagon, Neal Doughty. As REO rolls into town again this weekend, September 12, 2015 to the Seneca Allegany Casino in Salamanca, NY, it only seemed fitting to share the remainder of our conversation as a prelude to their upcoming show so that you could appreciate a backstory of their musical journey to today. Over a 48 year career, this group found a way to share their stories through their music, lyrics, and performances capturing the attention of generations of fans.
Before I pick up where I left off, let me recap for you a bit. A lifelong fan of this group, I couldn’t help but gush a little as I spoke with Neal about their beginnings in Illinois at the University of Illinois, some of their earlier gigs when they started out, their work on albums, the progression in song writing from their earlier works to those songs that brought them the most attention during the 1980’s, as well as how they have managed all these years keeping audiences coming back, all while not killing each other on the road.
Touring non stop since their inception, Neal’s analogy of how they have developed into an old married couple, seem spot on as these five men have gone through the highs and lows together for most of their adult lives, and have withstood all that the music industry has thrown their way while staying true to their sound. You could say they’ve ridden “…The Storm Out”. See what I did there? Okay those REO Speedwagon fans will definitely get that pun. Not familiar with the band yet, please take a moment to visit Part 1 if you haven’t had the opportunity to read it yet, then come back here so I can fill you in on where we left off of this amazing conversation Neal and I shared.
Kathy Stockbridge (KS): You have had the chance to do some pretty amazing gigs over the years. Talk to me a little about your time at “Live Aid”.
Neal Doughty (ND): That was kind of unreal almost because everybody was there. We played very early in the morning, which we weren’t used to anyways, just getting up that early made it surreal. Then we get to the show, and back stage is every famous musician in the world walking around back there. People we idolized. It was so hectic too, because they were getting bands set up. They had a revolving stage where there was never a break between bands. We had our two hits songs ready to go, we climbed up on stage while it was still turned around away from the crowd, and they said “okay, as soon as the stage rotates into view, start playing”. They had some technical glitches with the thing and as I began playing “Can’t Fight This Feeling”, nothing was coming out of the piano. So I stopped. Come to find out it was coming out to the feed that was going on television but we weren’t hearing it. So you hear me start the intro to “Can’t Fight This Feeling” twice, because the first time I wasn’t hearing it at all. I looked over to our monitor guy and go “you ready?”, then I start playing it again, and then this time I could hear it. So if you watch that old tape from Live Aid you’ll see me play about 2 bars of “Can’t Fight This Feeling”, then stop and go “are you ready?” The sound literally was not coming to the band at all.
KS: That had to be the most amazing experience though just being there in front of that audience.
ND: Oh yeah. They were telling us there were about 1 billion people watching us on television. Then when I hit the first note of our biggest song, and nothing comes out…guess that shows whether it’s 1 billion or a crowd of 1 person, you never know when something will go wrong. It’s actually scarier playing in front of a smaller crowd where you know people in the crowd. When it’s 1 billion people and they are watching on tv, that’s not REAL from where you are sitting. Of course, the 100,000 people sitting there live, well that made us a little nervous. After a while, you feed off the nervousness though. I usually play best when I’m really nervous. Which doesn’t happen often any more. I’ve done this enough now, that I’m probably going to make it through the song. We just recently played on Jimmy Kimmel with Imagine Dragons. He does this band name mashup, where we were dubbed Imagine REO Speed Dragons. That was “live” television, and in those situations you can fix something I believe up to one hour before it airs in New York, but we didn’t have to with this performance.
KS: Wow, that had to be the best. I just covered them and they are such an energetic band, that loves to play to their fans. That had to be one hell of a mashup.
ND: They were the greatest guys to work with, with so much respect for us. It was nice to have a band that hot, selling out the Forum tonight, at the peak of their career, wanting to be on tv with us. We get there and they feel the same way, they were think how do we get to be on tv with them? It was mutual respect from the minute we met each other. It went great. We did “Roll With The Changes” and we changed the beginning of it to sound a little more like an Imagine Dragons song. They have those jungle drums going…
KS: Yes they are very percussion heavy in their sound, where you guys are very heavy guitar and keyboards.
ND: We let them start the song with their big drums and then we went into “Roll With The Changes”. It was very interesting. Then we watched them play five songs on Kimmel’s outdoor stage, and they were just great. But it was so nice of a feeling for a relative new, very hot band, to be doing something with us on nationwide television, that I want to add we worked up that afternoon together.
KS: You’re being very modest I must say. You guys are legendary.
ND: I’ll accept that in the sense that yes, everybody’s heard of us. When you’re around this long…
KS: You are a legendary band, highly respected, during the 70’s and 80’s you were “THE” band to see live. So I do believe that Imagine Dragons probably grew up, like I did listening to you.
ND: Oh yes, they acted as though they were really impressed to be playing with us. We sometimes forget, as we have become very down to earth about the whole thing. We feel lucky to still be doing this, we’re pretty nice guys, and actually we are pretty modest about the whole thing. We’ve just been doing it so long that when we walk out on stage and there are 10,000 people there we say “Bless their hearts, they are still showing up”. It’s just so gratifying to feel that respect. We’ve been together so long and people will still show up by the thousands to see us play. It’s really a heartwarming feeling. Then when you have the hottest band in the country meet you and their star struck…sometimes we just forget. I’ve never thought of myself as some sort of rock star. When I’m home, I’m building a roof on the patio. People come over and see that I’m just a regular guy. Yep. Regular guy that lucked into a GREAT job!!
KS: So glad you did.
ND: The first ten years, there were a lot of moments where I thought, I should have stayed in college. Where I would be sitting on a rock by the ocean saying, “what have I done”? People would walk by and go, “are you okay buddy?”. I would say, “yeah, I just think I screwed up my life, that’s all”.
KS: In 2013, being from the Midwest myself, storms and tornadoes are unfortunately common place for the area, and due to the storms that devastated that area, you coordinated “Rock To The Rescue.” Can you tell us a little about what that was all about?
ND: That was an amazing experience where everybody we called to play this show said “heck yeah, I’ll be there”. The storms happened very close to where Gary Richrath, our guitar player, grew up, in Peoria, Illinois. Bruce, our bass player lives down in Florida and plays golf with Larry The Cable Guy, or Dan (his real name). He is a really nice guy, who volunteered to MC the whole thing. Every band we called, and most of them were from Illinois, said yes it was amazing as we threw together things so fast. Not only having Gary come up and play with us on a song or two our great friends from these Illinois based bands, like Styx and Survivor, are great buddies. Cheap Trick wanted to make it but they couldn’t do it due to their schedule, but they would have been there had things worked out as we had all hoped. These are all bands that have been our friends for decades. So to have them all in one building was amazing in itself. Back stage was like a high school reunion catching up with each other. Then having Dan go out there, MC and telling jokes, while not charging us a penny. He actually does stuff like that all the time. His showing up made the show all fit together seamlessly with no confusion between bands. It was old home week for a great cause.
We actually took the tour bus out to the neighborhood that was hit the worst and it was unbelievable. It was as though you were looking at special effects in a movie scene. As far as you could see, every house was down, furniture was in the trees, no leaves left on the trees, cars overturned and wrecked vehicles. It was like a spectacular scene from a science fiction movie, only it was really there. You can’t imagine the power of nature until you visit a scene where nature has destroyed everything for miles. And there are people who are suppose to be living there. You see a teddy bear lying in the gutter and you think, gosh that’s some childs teddy bear. Their house isn’t even there any more, but their teddy bear is there. So you think, someone has to help all these people. There is progress occurring already getting everything rebuilt, but it will take years before it goes back to the way it was. Basically we raised half of a million dollars to help take care of the people during their transitional time. You of course will not build a town with a half of million dollars, but for those whose houses blew down, you can give them some help. That was the purpose of the fundraising. We knew we couldn’t rebuild the town. Once again it was a heart warmer event as all your buddies from all the years just go “We’ll be there tomorrow”.
This job never gets boring, but then when something like that happens, it reaffirms that “man I’m never going to stop doing this”. People even ask if we get tired of playing the same songs. We say “Are you kidding me? Nobody gets to have this kind of life.
KS: Well again I want to commend you on what you did for those folks. The following year after this project you were once again out on the road together with the band Chicago. Talk to me a little about that tour.
ND: That’s probably the most fun I’ve ever had on stage. Chicago and REO started the same year, in Illinois, and until then we had never played together. Right when our band first started, their first album came out and it was a masterpiece. While living in Los Angeles, Robert Lamm, who is a songwriter, keyboard player, and one of the singers lived only two houses away from me. We used to come over to each other house and we had still never played together. We were neighbors thirty years ago and finally had a chance to play together recently. The promoters were wondering if the two groups would be able to mesh up correctly, and it just turned out so well. We each did our own shorter set, then we came out for an encore where we did three of each bands biggest hits with everybody on stage.
KS: Wow that must have been so spectacular with the horns accompanying you on your songs too.
ND: Someone asked me what it sounded like when REO and Chicago played together? I said…like Chicago, (as he laughs). Because those horns are such a distinctive part of their sound. Playing “Keep On Lovin’ You” with a horn section or “Roll With The Changes” with all the horn mix playing…well by the second or third night of that tour I was laughing out loud on stage because it sounded so good. They are all great guys and and wonderful musicians and we had such respect for each other that we just hit it right off instantly and I really hope we get to do that again. They felt the same, that we gotta do this again. We don’t want to do it exactly the same the next year, so we’ll wait a few years but we definitely want to do that again. Because that worked out way better than any of us thought. I think every show was virtually a sell out.
KS: I want to truly thank you Neal for doing this interview with NYS Music. As I mentioned to you before, I’ve been a huge fan for so many years, and this truly has been a highlight in my career.
As I basked in an afterglow of “Wow, I just interviewed Neal Doughty, one of the founding members of the my favorite band of all time”. If you were to ask me who was my favorite band of all time was, I would hands down say REO Speedwagon. They represented so much more to me than just a musical group. The immediately bring me back to my school days, with dear friends, and a place I hold dear to my heart, Illinois. Their earlier music was compelling and audioritoially moving. A huge keyboard lover, their keyboard solos paired with guitar riffs captured my heart and from “157 Riverside Avenue” to “Time For Me To Fly”, to “In Your Letter”, they had my complete and total attention and dedication for the moment I first heard them.
Written in 1968 by Kevin Cronin, “Ballad of Illinois Opry” would not be recorded until 1996 on their Building The Bridge album. This song emulates everything special about REO Speedwagon; how they continue to pay homage to their Midwest roots, how they saw their dreams of one day being on the big stage and never lost focus of that dream, and of course that classic rock and roll sound of guitar solos, strong keyboards, and stellar vocals, that we all fell in love all those years ago while standing in a horrific Midwest storm cheering for them to return to the stage.
The humility this man possessed still today when talking about his career, totally touched my heart. My favorite musicians are those that connect with their audience. Whether it’s on stage…a gesture to a fan who wants a meet & greet, or how they engage the audience and their fans while performing. Truly he didn’t think of himself as a superstar of any sort, and my clearly unprofessional means of gushing had to be apparent throughout the interview. And the fact he was touch and bewildered by reactions of others to him and his band mates was refreshing. To me it was a sign he was in it for the music, not for the fame. Fame came and stays because of the other. To him REO still was a group of friends from college in rural Champaign, Illinois just jamming and making the music they loved.
Ending our conversation as we could have continued to talk for a good long time past what we had, I was nervous and didn’t want to over stay my welcome. It was okay because I knew that although I didn’t get to cover one show here locally, I would be traveling to the beautiful Niagara Falls area to take in the show there, and once again relive all those wonderful moments I had shared with family, friends, and days gone by.
Lockn’ Festival is upon us. The third year festival is all set for launch on Friday, September 11 in Arrington, Virginia and features some of the biggest names in the jamband world. Originally scheduled to begin September 10, a destructive storm passing through decided to parlay activities for the first day’s events. Thankfully no one was injured, and festival crew are now busily cleaning up and getting ready for the upcoming events. Delays shouldn’t discourage attendees as that gives festival goers more time to ready for a stellar weekend of camping in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Preparing for an overload of interlocking musical sets to draw the summer to a close.
The festival has become a haven for jambands that span decades of influence and performance across the country. Classic jambands such as Strangefolk, Soulive, Little Feat, North Mississippi Allstars, Hot Tuna, and Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will all be on hand for hour-long sets on the Oak/Ridge stage. Some of the larger jam acts include String Cheese Incident (two stand alone sets, along with a set featuring The Doobie Brothers, aka, The Doobie Incident), Widespread Panic (one stand alone set, one set with reggae legend Jimmy Cliff), and Umphrey’s McGee (late night).
Two very special sets take place on Friday night – Jorma & Jack, aka Hot Tuna, will celebrate 50 years of Jefferson Airplane alongside Rachel Price, GE Smith, Larry Campbell, Teresa Williams, Jeff Pehrson, Justin Guip and Bill Kreutzmann. Mad Dogs and Englishmen will pay tribute to the late Joe Cocker with an all-star lineup that includes Tedeschi Trucks Band, Leon Russell, Dave Mason, Rita Coolidge, Chris Robinson, John Bell, Claudia Lennear and many more. Both of these sets are MUST SEE once in a lifetime events.
Lastly, Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant brings his Sensational Space Shifters for two completely different sets on Saturday and Sunday, a wonderful end to a weekend packed with music.
Still need tickets? Pick them up and don’t miss out. Stay tuned to Lockn’ Festival’s Facebook Page for continued updates on campground openings and for all the latest news and events for the festival.
Check out the schedule here. As updates come in, we’ll be sure to update all attendees.
As the summer series of concerts winds down at CMAC, I can’t help but reflect on some of the most memorable performances. As live bands go, the evening with Peter Frampton and Cheap Trick was definitely high on that list. One of the most famous live albums ever was Frampton Comes Alive, which was released in 1976, by Peter Frampton. This double album sold more than 11 million copies worldwide, and stayed at number one on the billboards for more than 10 weeks.
Recorded live in San Francisco, California, Long Island, NY and SUNY Plattsburgh, in NY, its appeal seemed karmic for this [then] teenage girl to be drawn to. With his use of the Talkbox throughout the songs, this unique method together with his amazing shredding abilities and vocals, made the world stand up and take notice. Needless to say, it was one of my personal favorites of all times, and still is today. So when I heard that Peter Frampton was touring this year and would make a pit stop at CMAC, I had to be there. With Cheap Trick opening for him, what wasn’t to love?
Cheap Trick is another one of those iconic bands from the 1970’s and ’80s that resonate rock and roll, guitar solos, and amazing fun lyrics. It was their live album as well, Cheap Trick at Budokan, that made caught my attention. Needless to say, I was in for a treat as both groups are “live” bands. You know, the ones that sound great on vinyl, but sound even better live.
As Cheap Trick took the stage, the first thing I noticed was Rick Nielsen’s mic stand and it’s adornment of pics from top to bottom on both sides. Either he was all thumbs, or he liked to share. Soon to find out, he was a kind sharing individual, who as he played threw the pics into the crowd for souvenirs. That is the kind of artists that really capture my attention, the ones that do it all for their audiences, and it was crystal clear that was the case here. I also would be remiss if I didn’t mention his amazing collection of guitars. They were as fun and amazing to me as this entire set of music. Playing all of my favorites and a few surprises, Cheap Trick had that audience at hello and had them out of their seats and dancing in the isles in no time flat.
Cheap Trick Set List:Hello There; Come On, Come On; Big Eyes; Lookout; Downed; Anytime; On Top of the World; Voices; Magical Mystery Tour (The Beatles cover); The Ballad of T.V. Violence (I’m Not The Only Boy); Baby Loves to Rock; I’m Waiting for the Man (The Velvet Underground cover); The Flame; I Want You to Want Me; Dream Police; Ain’t That a Shame (Fats Domino cover); Surrender; Goodnight
As Peter took the stage the anticipation of whether he would live up to my memories of him actually had me nervous. It’s difficult living up to a mental image someone has created, and when they don’t live up to that expectation, they end up falling down off of the pedestal they once ruled. I’m happy to report that not only did he live up to the hype, I had to raise that pedestal up for him to jump up even higher. Playing all of my favorite tunes, and performing some of the most spectacular guitar solos and duels, Frampton and his band left me memorized. Peter Frampton is clearly one of the most talented iconic rock and rollers and I was super impressed with his professionalism and the relationship he developed immediately with the audience. If I had to pick a highlight of this performance, it would definitely be the guitar duel between Peter and lead guitarist Adam Lester.
One of my favorite things about this particular show was the fact that Frampton insisted on a strict “no cell phone” rule. Like the professional photographers, audience members were allowed to shoot photos and videos for only the first three songs. After that time, all cell phones had to be put away or else they would be confiscated. Frampton’s explanation was stellar. He explained to the audience that he was very excited to play for them, was so happy they paid to come and see him, and he wanted to not only give them the best Peter Frampton experience that he could, but also for them to enjoy it in the moment and not through a digital screen. He wanted them present in the moment. What a wonderful concept, and that the audience did just that, thanks to Peter Frampton’s rule. Personally think more artists should enforce this rule. I believe people would relish these moments even more.
Peter Frampton Set List: Something’s Happening; Doobie Wah; Show Me the Way; Lines on My Face; Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours (Stevie Wonder cover); (I’ll Give You) Money; Baby I Love Your Way; Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover); Do You Feel Like We Do Encore: Four Day Creep (Humble Pie song); While My Guitar Gently Weeps
With Labor Day weekend just behind us, everyone seems to be scratching their heads as to where the summer went. The good news is that it’s not quite over yet and there’s another chance coming up to enjoy some great music indoors and outdoors before the leaves start to change. The Paramount Hudson Valley in Downtown Peekskill is throwing their first End of Summer Jam Festival on September 12.
The new music festival is free with music on the streets and inside the theater throughout the afternoon and evening. The festival is all about NY, bringing acts from around town and around the state.
Hitting the stage inside the Paramount will be DJ Logic (The Bronx), Gedeon Luke and The People (NYC), Yard Sale (New Paltz), and TAUK (Long Island). TAUK is hitting a handful of other spots around NY, and for more information on their shows check out NYS Music’s preview of those shows here.
Although End of Summer Jam Festival is free, there is a $5 suggested donation which will support the Paramount’s non-profit Paramount Hudson Valley Arts.
Linup:
Outside
1pm – Rufus Rufasu
2pm – Andy Revkin
3pm – Phineas & the Lonely Leaves
4pm – Chloe Cannon
5pm – Trifecta
6pm – The Godfather Johnny Giovanni
7pm – The New Resistants
Inside
2pm – Yardsale
4pm – Gedeon Luke & The People
6pm – DJ Logic
8pm – TAUK
Parish Public House in Albany will hold A Celebration of the Life and Music of Pat Tiernan on Saturday, Sept. 12. The NYS Music-sponsored show will be hosted by Brian LaPoint & The Joints.
As part of the $5 cover charge for the show, fans will receive a master copy of Tiernan’s original songs upon entry. The disc will include 10 original tracks and one cover track.
Two acts performing at this years event, Brian Lapoint & The Joints and Erin Harkes, also took part in a benefit show shortly after Tiernan’s passing.
Harkes shared memories in an interview after Tiernan’s death:
Because I have no boundaries, I got up and said, ‘Can I sing with you? He nodded, smiled and said go ahead… I apologized for being so bold and went to creep away after the song. He grabbed my arm and said, ‘No, you’re staying.
He told me a joke one time before I went onstage and I could barely perform because I was laughing so hard. He just looked at me, smug and smiling. He knew he had completely ruined the first song for me. I wasn’t even mad because the joke was so funny.
The show will also include the rapidly growing jazz/funk/electro band Formula 5 and the high-energy dance trio Lord Electro.
Tiernan died suddenly at his home on July 24, 2012, at the age of 29. Tiernan as born in Albany and lived in East Greenbush. Pat’s first live stage performance was at 7 years old when he played with his father’s band. Tiernan was focusing on furthering his musical career that fall with a move to Texas before he passed.
Entertainer of the year Luke Bryan showed fans there was more than One Direction to go Thursday night for an evening great music. Luke Bryan brought his Kick The Dust Up tour and friends to Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, as one of the final concerts of their season. Bryan, clad in a tight-fitting T-shirt and black jeans and shook his hips like a reincarnated Elvis. He was constantly taking in every bit of energy from his fans all across the venue.
While plenty of artists put on a strong show, how many of them toss beers into the crowd as they sing? Or catch a fan’s cellphone mid-song, snap a selfie and toss it back without missing a note? Bryan did it all, including rounding up his talented band and pouring tequila shots on top of his piano to toast the crowd.
Opening up the show was Dustin Lynch. The stage chemistry between Lynch and his band is one of a kind — delivering a breathtaking performance every time. While Dustin performed “Halo” and “Mindreader” off his iTunes #1 debut sophomore album Where It’s At. He kept the energy high straight through to the end, and finished things up with his hit “Cowboys and Angels” inspiring a sing along, making all the young women in the room swoon. This talented young man has charisma coming out of his ears and he really knows how to work a crowd.
After a short intermission, it was time to “Go Out With My Boots On” as Randy Houser fiercely entered the stage belting the party tune. Title track from his sophomore album “How Country Feels” stole the show as Randy cleverly performed it as a sing along, involving an eager crowd. Beginning with an acoustic version of the chorus, the #1 single “Goodnight Kiss” permeated the venue as his wildly talented band joined in and kicked it into high gear. He closed out with his latest hit single, “Like A Cowboy.”
From the lawn seats to the pit of the stage, every seat in the house for Luke Bryan and Friends Darien Lake was provided a unique view with a custom concert experience. With three of country music’s most adept stars on one ticket, you will definitely want to catch a ride on the final leg of Kick the Dust Up Tour.
It’s hard to believe that it was thirty-years ago that Bryan Adam’s fourth studio album, Reckless was released. This certified five times platinum album brought Adams around the world on his original tour in 1984-85. Unhappy with the original version, Bryan Adams actually took a month off in 1984 to recut several of its final tracks, including his duet with touring partner Tina Turner, on “It’s Only Love.” Happy with the final version, this perfectionist found that the final version brought him six songs off this album charting and earning a nomination for a Grammy in 1986 for “It’s Only Love.”
Bryan Adams – Reckless Tour 2015
Fast forward thirty-years, a total of 13 hit albums, raising a family, and a side career in photography, Adams re-releases this album and brings all the Bryan Adams‘ fans back to those moments to once again relive times long forgotten. Including even more of Adams’ hits on the newly released version, Adams hit the road once again to celebrate the music that lives iconically in our memories forever.
Bryan Adams – Reckless Tour 2015
Celebrating this reunion at CMAC during their summer concert series, I knew that this would be my chance to finally see one of my most favorite performers, and he didn’t disappoint. Playing all of my favorites from this entire album in addition to several of his others, Adams brought his “A” game. In fact, his ability to engage the audience was epic. My favorite moments, his serenading Christina, a girl from the audience that danced along with his version of “If Ya Wanna Be Bad Ya Gotta Be Good ” and his acoustic version of “Straight From the Heart”. The videography that accompanied this show was spectacular as it mixed videos of yesterday together with today and brought a visual treat to that auditory excellence.
Bryan Adams – Reckless Tour 2015Bryan Adams – Reckless Tour 2015
Once again CMAC hit another show right out of the ballpark with this one as those in attendance from lawn to pit danced the night away and sang all night to their favorites.
Setlist: Reckless; One Night Love Affair; She’s Only Happy When She’s Dancin’; Run to You; The Boys; Night Out; Heaven; Kids Wanna Rock; It’s Only Love; Long Gone; Somebody; Ain’t Gonna Cry; Summer of ’69; Let Me Down Easy (Roger Daltrey cover); (Everything I Do) I Do It for You; If Ya Wanna Be Bad Ya Gotta Be Good; This Time; Can’t Stop This Thing We Started; Please Forgive Me; 18 til I Die; Cuts Like a Knife; The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You Encore:; You’ve Been a Friend to Me; C’mon Everybody (Eddie Cochran cover); Fits Ya Good; She Knows Me; Straight from the Heart; All for Love (Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart & Sting cover)
While plenty of artists put on a strong show, how many of them toss beers into the crowd as they sing? Or catch a fan’s cellphone mid-song, snap a selfie and toss it back without missing a note? Bryan did it all, including rounding up his talented band and pouring tequila shots on top of his piano to toast the crowd.
