Monday, March 22, 2010

Classic Rock Fiesta!





One of the great things about being a self employed musician is the lack of routine. You know you'll be playing somewhere for someone .... you just don't know the specifics a lot of the time. That's okay - it keeps you young. Routine is not really my thing ......
Another great thing about being a self employed musician are the surprises that life throws at you. Take for example a call I received in February 2010 from Loverboy vocalist Mike Reno and his girlfriend vocalist Catherine St. Germain. "Hey Mike, do you wanna go to St. Maarten in the Caribbean for a gig?". The answer of course is yes. "Great - you'll be playing with four singers whose music you grew up on as a youngster." Cool ..... wha???
I knew music was my career path at age 14. It became clear to me when I heard Duke Ellington, Errol Gardner, and Count Basie from my Mom's record collection. It became really clear as my palette expanded - bands like Chilliwack, Skywalk and Steely Dan crept into my awareness and inspired me to no end. From there I was hooked. Allow me to focus in on four acts during that time.
Survivor - led by former Ides Of March singer Jim Peterik - consistently provided rock anthems that were staples on rock radio during the 80's. 'Burning Heart', 'The Search Is Over' and 'I Can't Hold Back' were among their biggest hits and featured the thick soulful vocals of Jimi Jamison.
Toto - some of Los Angeles' finest session musicians formed this supergroup which featured great songs executed with perfect musicianship. The keyboard section of David Paich and Steve Porcaro influenced me greatly - as did the soaring vocals of Bobby Kimball (BTW - check out the great Tubes' song 'She's A Beauty' - that's Bobby on BG's - amazing). Their record '4' won a truckload of Grammys. 'Hold The Line', 'Rosanna' and 'Africa' are classics.
John Cafferty And The Beaver Brown Band - timeless rock and roll performed by a true rock and roll band. With great songs written by leader John Cafferty - they hit the big time when they were featured on the soundtrack to the movie 'Eddie And The Cruisers'. Their "overnight success" was 11 years in the making. 'On The Dark Side' and 'Tender Years' are timeless.
Loverboy - Five SOLID musicians, great rock songs, great vocals, great performances - a TEXTBOOK example of a great rock band. Loverboy were the arguably one of the biggest bands of the 1980's and continue to rock venues to this day. On a personal note (while they all influenced my playing style) let me say keyboardist Doug Johnson is one of the finest synth players ever. His endless creativity, tastefully crafted parts and fine technique should be held in the same regard of Keith Emerson, Rick Wakeman etc. Simply brilliant. Along the same lines - vocalist Mike Reno is brilliant and sounds as good today as he did thirty years ago. 'Working For The Weekend' is routinely played on radio stations everywhere at 5PM on Fridays.
SO - back to the gig: a few sets in St. Maarten playing the hits of the aforementioned bands with vocalists Bobby Kimball, Jimi Jamison, Mike Reno and John Cafferty. Let me try and articulate how strange this is for me. The opportunity to play songs which contributed to the soundtrack of your younger life with the people who created these hits is .... well .... wonderfully strange. These people who, up to this point, were nothing more than images on a TV screen or magnetized cassette tapes were now real. You knew they existed, but seeing then, HEARING them, therefore confirming they're real people .... just plain strange. And WONDERFUL.
Our set: On The Dark Side, Tough All Over, CITY, High On You, The Search Is Over, I Can't Hold Back, Hold The Line, Africa, Rosanna, The Kid Is Hot Tonight, Almost Paradise, Turn Me Loose, Eye Of The Tiger, Working For The Weekend, Tush
The band (Shane Hendrickson, Marc LaFrance, Ian Cameron and Cathy St. Germain) did a great job. The songs are great. Excellent people. St. Maarten is beautiful. My wife even came down! Thank you Charlie, Betsy, Mike, Ralph, and the many other folks who made this a perfect week,

2 comments:

Unknown said...

HI Mike. I'm a friend of Aaron's and I know of you through him mentioning the benefit show just a few weeks ago. I found your blog by accident, while googling for info on Aaron's past festival dates.

I too have battled with this disease and am in my 4th yr of health. I just wanted to say that I'm keeping you in my prayers until I hear you are doing better again.

Mike Norman said...

Thanks Donna! Much appreciated!