STYX, Ted Nugent and REO Speedwagon Take Us On A Rock And Roll Nostalgia Show

Styx, REO Speedwagon and Ted Nugent brought their nostalgia filled Midwest Rock and Roll Express to the civic center in Roanoke, VA recently. The rock and roll resume of this tour includes over a century of classic rocking and countless hits solidifying these bands contributions to the history of rock. Although the turnout for the show was somewhat light, less than 4000 in attendance, that didn’t discourage the band from giving the fans their money’s worth.

The Motor City Madman opened the show and quickly made an impact on the crowd. Ted is an artist who tends to make more headlines by what he says off-stage rather than what he does on-stage. He proved on this night that his Gibson guitar is like another appendage when he hits the stage. It becomes a piece of him and he just bleeds rock and roll. There were a few familiar faces joining him on-stage including Mick Brown of Dokken fame on drums and original Ted Nugent Band rhythm guitarist Derek St. Holmes.

Uncle Ted let the music do the talking on this night as he put most of his outspoken views on hold. He may not pack as many “hits” as the other two bands on board, but songs such as “Wang Dang Sweet Poontang”, “Stranglehold” and his signature song “Cat Scratch Fever” definitely fired up the mostly 40something crowd. He definitely knows how to get a crowd out of their seats and fired up at a show.

Styx took the stage next and displayed an infectious youthful exuberance that many bands half their age don’t have on-stage these days. There were some in attendance who shockingly did not know that Lawrence Gowan was handling lead vocal duties for the band. He’s been doing so for fourteen years now as founding member Dennis DeYoung has been out of the band since 1999. Gowan definitely has a style of his own as you don’t see many keyboardists who actually climb on top of their keyboards and use them as a perch to sing to the audience.

Long time members Tommy Shaw and James “J.Y.” Young really do shine when they hit the stage, especially Shaw. He is like a little kid jacked up on Mountain Dew as he is constantly running around the stage and entertaining the crowd. The band cranked out hit after hit including such staples as “Too Much Time on My Hands”, “Come Sail Away” and “Renegade”. Bassist Chuck Panozzo, who has limited stage time due to health issues after being diagnosed HIV positive in 1998, did join the band for a few numbers.

REO Speedwagon closed out the night’s festivities as front man Kevin Cronin took the stage dressed in all black and sporting shades and a fluffy white hair-do that many commented on. The band was also missing several original members, but that did not seem to bother most in attendance as Cronin’s vocals sounded stronger than ever. The hits began to flow with such favorites as “Take It On The Run”, “Riding The Storm Out” and ”Don’t Let Him Go”  blasted from the speakers.

The band also proved that they still had the whole power ballad thing down pat. “I Can’t Fight This Feeling” and smash “Keep on Loving You” saw couples embrace and lighters raised high in the air. Although REO played a set that was a balance of ballads and rockers, they didn’t seem to pack the punch that Styx and Nugent did. I think it would have been a better balance by sandwiching them in the middle of the lineup rather than closing the night.

Overall, it was a great night of music from all three bands. Yes, it was a night of nostalgia as many in attendance exchanged “I can remember when” stories that revolved around the bands. There was an abundance of air guitar being played on this night as well as swooning and drooling over Tommy Shaw’s mane of flowing hair and his tight leather pants. It may be called dinosaur rock by many in the industry, but the fun that the evening provided for all in attendance was far from prehistoric.

Halestorm Proves Overnight Sensations Can Take A Long Time

How many times have you heard the first single from a band and thought the band was an overnight sensation? Now, some bands do get lucky and break it big right out of the box. In the case of Pennsylvania’s Halestorm, this is the furthest thing from the truth. I was fortunate enough to see the band on their tour with Shinedown, Chevelle and Staind a while back and caught up with lead singer Lzzy Hale as the band was traveling on the road .

“Yeah, most people don’t realize how long we have been at this. We’ve been doing this for like 15 years now. I was 13 and my brother Arejay, who is our drummer, was 10 when we first started the band. We would play wherever they would let us,” said Lzzy.

Now, most girls that age are not thinking about being the next Lita Ford or Joan Jett. Most are having slumber parties and talking about boys. “You’re right, it was very hard finding young kids that shared our passion for music and succeeding at it. Most didn’t want a career in it or they lacked the drive or parental support that is needed,” replied Lzzy.

The band’s leadoff single from their debut self titled CD is entitled “I Get Off” and about the time I saw the band back in July, it had just begun to blowup. “Oh my god, it has just been amazing. We have the opening slot on the tour and a lot of people have not gotten to the arenas when we are playing our set. I have noticed though, that the crowds are getting a little bigger for our set. I can look out and see people with our t shirts on and they are singing our songs word for word. It’s a very humbling experience,” stated Lzzy.

“I also like the different reactions that “I Get Off” is having with guys and girls. It’s funny because the guys see it as a very sexy and naughty song. On the other hand, girls see it as a very powerful song for them. It’s like they are saying ‘I’m in control here and I am calling the shots”, so it’s pretty funny. I guess it’s great that a song can have different interpretations like that,” stated Lzzy.

So, who does Lzzy draw her influences from? “Well, it’s very flattering to me because I have been compared to some of the greats. I mean Joan Jett, Heart, Janis Joplin, it’s amazing. I have to say that some of the girls from my generation, no offense to any of them, but they just didn’t do it for me. They didn’t have enough power for me. In this gendra today, it shouldn’t be seen as a gimmick when a woman is in front of a band. It’s not a rock band fronted by a girl, it’s a girl fronting a rock band,” said Lzzy.
The band’s CD has a definite old school 80s metal feel to it. The catchy hooks on songs like “What Were You Thinking” and “Dirty Work” show elements of that. There’s even the 80s staple power ballads in songs such as “Bet You Wish U Had Me Back” and “Familiar Taste Of Poison”, on which the aqua net just radiates from your speakers!

The second single, as of the conducting of this interview, had yet to be determined. The CD is very deep in material and probably could go at least 4 singles deep if not further. That kind of feat is almost unheard of given the state of the music industry today. Just recently, the second single and video were chosen for the song “Love/Hate Heartbreak”.

So, does Lzzy have any guilty pleasures that may surprise her fans? “I actually am a pretty good seamstress. I like to make out stage outfits. I take different articles of clothing and try to see how many different outfits that I can make it into. So, yeah, I spend my free time sewing,” said Lzzy. My last question was my question for all bands/artists that I interview. If you were trapped on a desert island with only one store bought CD, what would you want there with you? “It would definitely have to be some Black Sabbath. I seem to be going through this re-appreciation of their music. It’s some powerful stuff,” stated Lzzy.

Check out their debut self titled CD and you will not be disappointed. It is a little retro 80s but still modern sounding. I told Lzzy in our interview that she had a great mix of sexuality and innocence. She can look at you and make you think she wants to jump your bones and then give you a look like she is going to rip your throat out. She is a multitalented front person and she and the boys are serious about their rock. They are still burning up the road and show no signs of letting up. Brave the storm and see what all the fuss is all about. You will not be disappointed!!!

Elliott Yamin Wows Roanoke,Virginia

“Play That Funky Music White boy” was a huge hit for Wild Cherry back in the seventies and still gets major airplay today. Little did we know how appropriate of a song it would turn out to be for Richmond’s Elliott Yamin. Most of you know Elliott from American Idol Season Five where he came in third place. He recently released his sophomore CD, not counting his holiday CDs, entitled “Fight For Love”.

Elliott was in Roanoke,VA on July 17 to perform a special concert at the opening ceremonies for the Coventry Commonwealth Games of Virginia. The games are for male and female athletes of all ages and is similar to an Olympics type competition. I was fortunate to sit down with Elliott backstage before the show to ask him a few questions.

“It’s been a lot of fun so far. I love coming back to Virginia to perform. I have met a lot of great kids here too. I’m a diabetic and I met several kids who are also. It was great to share stories with them since we have that in common. Exercise definitely helps out with your diabetes. I love playing basketball myself,” said Elliott.

I asked him how the reaction has been to his new CD “Fight For Love”? “We’ve been very happy so far, given the landscape of the whole industry and the economy itself from the release of my first CD, we have been very pleased. It’s harder in the market being an independent artist, but I’m very satisfied with the response from radio and the fans.”

It has to be tough figuring out what songs to release to radio. How do you determine which ones? “We do a lot of testing at radio and we also listen to what the fans have to say on the websites. In Japan we released “You Say” as the first single because it tested so well, where here in the states we released “Fight for Love” as the first. I think we’re going to release “Can’t Keep on Loving You” as the next single here. We’ll send it to AC (adult contemporary) radio and see how it does,” responded Elliott.

Speaking of singles, I asked Elliott what happened to a song that I viewed on YouTube of he and Jermaine Dupree called “When I’m Gone”? “That is actually on the Japanese version of my new CD as a bonus track. I loved working with Jermaine. We got along great and the chemistry was awesome. To me, it’s an honor to be able to say that I actually got to work with him.
You know, Jermaine and I actually started working on a second song together but we never finished it. So, I can’t wait to get be able to work with him again.”

Elliott is a very busy man these days promoting his new CD. He had a gig in Modesto, California the day after his appearance in Virginia. He will be singing the national anthem at the WNBA All Star game. He also told me that he will be heading out on tour the day after Labor Day for six weeks with the band Thriving Ivory. “Their lead singer Clayton has the most amazing voice. It’s so unique. I’m looking forward to going out on the road with them,” said Elliott.

I always like to ask two questions of all artists that I interview to give a little insight to their fans. I asked Elliott if he had any “guilty pleasures”, if printable, that would surprise his fans? “Well, I don’t get a lot of down time, but when I do I just like to lay around and do nothing. I have a Shitzu named Buster and I like to spoon with him on the couch.” My other question was if you were trapped on a desert island with only one store bought CD, what would you want to have there with you? “Only one? Oh, without a doubt, it would have to be “These Songs For You Live” by Donnie Hathaway. I have worn that one out so many times. I love it!”

Elliott’s show that night was an acoustic set with his keyboardist Joonie and Russell Ali on guitar. He played a mixture off of his two CDs. Newer songs such as Can’t Keep on Loving You” and “You” and “You Say” translated so well acoustically. Elliott also mentioned that that show was the first time that they had performed “You Say” here. The stripped down arrangement combined with Elliott’s emotional vocals actually gave me goose bumps several times. An artist who is willing to play acoustically is very brave for it exposing one’s vulnerability. Elliott pulled it off flawlessly in Roanoke that night.

For those wanting to know, the set list consisted of : “Free”, “Know Better”, “Find a Way”, “One Word”, “Can’t Keep on Loving You”, “You”, “You Say”, “Fight for Love”, “Wait For You” and “Movin’ On”.

Elliott hung around after the show and signed autographs and posed for pictures with his fans. Being accessible like this really has a big impact on his fans. He’s such an amazing performer and human being. He listens to his fans and loves communicating with them. He is genuine and sincere and it shows. Elliott may play the N Club in Greensboro, NC on his tour. He is definitely worth the short drive down to check out. My thanks go out to all of his people who were so nice to me and the people involved with the games. A special thanks to all of the Etrain members that have contacted me and shown so much love and support. Thank you for welcoming me to you family. Thanks Covie for the amazing clip that I included on here from Roanoke.