Howard Jones, ABC & Haircut One Hundred

    There has never been an 80's show like this before!!! It's true. And lucky you, in the NYC region, you have 3-chances to attend. The first performance, for our convenience, will be over Labor Day weekend, Sunday, September 1st at The Paramount Theater in Huntington, great place to see a show, full bar, full menu. 

    The musicians have the next two days off, Labor Day and the day after. Hopefully they will get to enjoy their time off and go visit one of the beautiful beaches on Long Island or down the Jersey shore or maybe they will get to go sailing or have a nice 'Boat Party' on the Long Island sound. There are a few surprises with the line-up, bands that are never on the 80's music circuit, will be making their triumphant return to the touring scene. 

    Headlining will be the much loved Howard Jones. Even if you have already seen him perform, he is worth checking out again. You already know how good he is. His huge hits include 'No One Is To Blame', 'What Is Love?' 'Like To Get To Know You Well', 'New Song', 'Things Could Only Get Better', etc... Plus that hair, Howard Jones was the eighties (and still is).

    One surprise, joining Howard on tour will be ABC! They have not toured the US since 2009, 15-years. There has been an occasional show in Vegas but no set tour. They had numerous hits, they were everywhere from the radio to MTV: 'Poison Arrow', 'The Look Of Love', 'Tears Are Not Enough', 'How To Be A (Millionaire)', 'Ocean Blue', 'Be Near Me', etc... 

    ABC has been keeping busy rerecording 'Lexicon Of Love-40th Anniversary' at Sheffield  City Hall. In 2023, they were invited to perform at the Cruel World Festival in Pasadena. That gig went so well talks of a full tour were immediate and well here we are. It will be nice having them visit us for the next few months. 

    The other huge surprise of the night will be the opening band, Haircut One Hundred. This will be their first time performing here in the states in 40-years! They came together in 1981, in London, by 1982 they released their debut album, Pelican West, which contained 4 hits: Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)', 'Fantastic Day', 'Nobody's Fool', 'Love Plus One'. Fame came quick, hit songs, tv appearances soon artistic differences, the singer, Nick Heyward, wanted to go solo and the Haircut One Hundred sophomore album 'Paint and Paint' was not well received, the party crashed by 1984. 

    Twenty years after the break up, 2004, VH1 invited Haircut One Hundred on the show 'Bands Reunited' to play a medley of songs. After that the band reconnected on Facebook over the years. Nick Heyward did go on to have a successful career, 'Whistle Down The Wind'. By 2009, he was inviting the other band mates to his shows and to join him on stage. They slowly started playing together again and it has blossomed into a reunion. 

Les, Nick & Graham, the three originals.

    In 1981, 6-young lads entered Chalk Farm's Roadhouse Studios in London to record their debut single, 'Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)'. It was a worldwide smash hit! The ride began, forty-three years later the band is getting ready to embark upon a full coast to coast North American tour with old friends, lucky us. Now it is our duty to keep the love going, relive those timeless eighties memories, by turning up and hearing them perform all those great tunes live again (or for the first time).

Welcome back to all of our friends from across the pond, love USA.

Here is a fun, short, classic clip, 2:39, of when Haircut One Hundred was being introduced on American Bandstand, by the legend himself, Dick Clark, (RIP) in 1982.

For Tickets-Live Nation: Live Nation- Tickets

September 1st- Paramount Theater, Huntington, N.Y.   
September 4th- The Wellmont, Montclair, N.J. SOLD-OUT
September 5th- The Capital Theater, Port Chester, N.Y. 
September 6th- Paramount Theater, Huntington, NY. 

Social Distortion & Bad Religion- The Rooftop at Pier 17

     Phenomenal. The entire experience was superb; great bands, great venue, great weather. It was a perfect night. History was made, it was the first time, in their 40+ year history, that both bands, BAD RELIGION & SOCIAL DISTORTION were co-headlining. And there they were, back in NYC. 

Load in

   Billed as "NYC's most scenic stage", The Rooftop at Pier 17 certainly lives up to that claim. WOW!!! Who needs the sphere? Video screens in a 360 degrees circle? Nah, we got that live right here. Located at the very tip of Manhattan, at the world famous South Street Seaport, every direction is a different picturesque scene. When you are looking at the stage, you're facing north and you can see the three bridges, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg. A couple dozen people stood and watched the concert from the Brooklyn Bridge. 

    Look to your right over the East River and you see DUMBO then keep going and you're looking at the Brooklyn Navy Yards and further south. Next you're looking at Governor's Island, then the Statue Of Liberty. You get to see everything! Keep going to the right you're looking at all the buildings in lower Manhattan, the two that really stuck out were City Hall and The Woolworth Building. Then to complete the circle you're looking forward again and you see the Empire State building through the stage. 

    2024 is the seventh season of The Rooftop at Pier 17 so it is a relative newcomer to the live music scene. This is a perfect place to bring someone if you really wanted to dazzle them; date, friends, co-workers, etc... When you do go, this place is fun to get there as soon as the doors open so you can enjoy the view while the sun is out, watch the sunset, then watch the city come alive at night. Fashionably late, no. Here's a link to the schedule:
The Rooftop at Pier 17 website 

    On to the music. They were the very first acts of the new season. I saw them on night 2 of 2 and I am glad I did. Night 1 there could always be some glitch somewhere along the way. And there was. The bass player, Jay, didn't even make it to night 1. That is so perfect, so punk rock. I don't know if someone filled in for him or if one of the guitarist played bass that night, we never found out. Night 1 was a Saturday and sold-out, night 2 was a Wednesday and not sold-out being a school night. It was still really packed but there was enough elbow room to make it enjoyable. 

    Standing room only because Pier 17 knew what they were doing. There was no way they were going to set up 4,000 folding chairs for this crowd! Everyone was on their absolute best behavior and there was no instances anywhere throughout the evening, but you still have to take precautions. If anything went sideways at anytime the chairs could be used as projectiles, from the rooftop. 

The Brooklyn Bridge, from a side view, looks like string art. 

    My friend, Rich Rickaby (filmmaker/ artist/ tonight's photographer) and I arrive. A band had already taken the stage. We immediately stopped to see who they were. I say "This can't be Social Distortion or Bad Religion, these guys don't look like they're over 30." Lovecrimes was the name written on the drum kit. They jammed! We caught about 20-minutes of their set and these dudes really impressed. The singer/ lead guitarist did a great solo as did the drummer. Definitely look them up. 

    Social Distortion took the stage as the sun started setting. The audience went wild like they were seeing old friends. The band had to postpone their summer tour the year prior due to the fact that the much loved vocalist, Mike Ness, had surgery for tonsil cancer. They're here tonight and they look great! 'Bad Luck' was the opening number, which was very well received. Following with 'Through These Eyes'. I loved 'I Wasn't Born to Follow'. The lyrics: 

"When I grow up, gonna be a star 
Gonna sing my songs and play my guitar."

MIKE NESS

    The plan was to play heavily from 'Mommy's Little Monster' as they recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its release. Goal accomplished; 'Mommy's Little Monster', 'The Creeps' and 'Hours of Darkness' were the cuts we got to hear that night. Mike was telling little stories, anecdotes even, in between songs and they were funny! He had the place laughing each time. The stories were only about a minute long so everyone was fine with them. One story was about how they are from Southern Cal and their first time in NYC was in 1980. Another story was about his high school days in alternative high school. Hilarious because it was relatable. 

    '1945' got the crowd jumping. (Still, at our age.) They performed a handful more songs and encored with the Merle Kilgore written 'Ring of Fire'. As Social Distortion was leaving the stage they waved and said "We'll see you next year." And we hope so, we hope so. Next up Bad Religion. 

BAD RELIGION on stage, Empire State Building in the background. 

    Bad Religion was awesome. Fronted by vocalist, Greg Graffin, only consistent member since 1980, they looked great and sounded even better. They were all present and accounted for, meaning the bassist, Jay Bentley, another founding member, was there that night. Drummer Jamie Miller got the party started with a fast, hard pounding beat from the moment  they took the stage.

    Their energy level was high, the audience loved it gave it right back. Guitarist Brian Baker performed an incredible solo. And with the sun now set and the spotlight directed on him, he had everyone's focus. The fifth member in the band is 'The Serb', Mike Dimkich, the rhythm guitarist. He was in the band 'The Cult' for 20-years before he joined Bad Religion in 2013. Mike kept the rhythm going. 

    The mosh pit started moshing. Crowd surfing started surfing, people getting passed around in the air. It was full on. Stage diving, no. There was a wide gap between the stage and the audience to prevent any of that. And thank goodness, nobody wants to get dove on, dived on?

    It was a great show from beginning to end, very entertaining. As of today,     13 May 24, there is still 5-dates left before the spring tour concludes. Check out the schedule here.

Load out

        ***I looked up Lovecrimes when I got home, the front man for Lovecrimes is Julian Ness, Mike Ness' son. Generational talent! I think we will see big things from them in the near future.

On the road again. The buses lined up, ready to go, parked on the South Street Seaport with the historic sailing ship (1885) Wavertree in the background. 

MORRISSEY- United Palace

     '40-Years of Morrissey' Fall Tour, 18 shows, 14 cities, with 4-nights in the big apple at The United Palace, all sold-out. 

    "Come on, ride the train, train, and ride it." We are going uptown tonight, get on the train. 

"One of Manhattan's Largest, Most Spectacular Theaters"

    Art Deco galore! This place is majestic, absolute beautiful and fully restored. If architecture and design is your thing, you have to see this place at least once in your life. Originally opened in 1930, construction started the same year as the Empire State Building, the 100th birthday is fast approaching. The historical and preservation committee has granted landmark status. Starting out, the venue was the premier vaudeville and movie house in Manhattan. 

Photos by Rich Rickaby

    It has survived everything from one fad to the next, The United Palace has rolled with the changes from vaudeville fading in popularity to the invention of television, where people left their houses less. Next wave was movie popularity when people went out every weekend to VHS and DVD's where it kept them inside again. This place has seen it all and it is still standing. Thank goodness.          Check out their website for full concert schedule and tour info here.

    

    Morrissey's back! Yay! His full name is Steven Patrick Morrissey. He is Irish, born in England hence the song 'Irish Blood, English Heart', which we did get to hear that night. He became well known as the lyricist for the 80's new wave/ rock band The Smiths. Guitarist Johnny Marr was the other half of their great songwriting team. They wrote emotional, melancholy, dark stuff yet relatable and danceable, which is the most important thing. If they can dance to it they'll love it.  

    Our tickets were in the very last row, the very last two seats, stage left on the very last night of the tour and we were thrilled to be there. We made it. He's been a solo act for over 30-years and tonight he is going to perform a selection from both his solo career and from his time he spent with The Smiths. He opened with 'We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful'. And it's true, we do. We all like to think we are 100% supportive of our friends and we are up until... Then that little green monster known as envy rears its head.

    The backing band Morrissey put together was made up of some really gifted, talented  musicians that he hand selected. All of them had great charisma and stage presence as well. Most, are newer to the band as it looks like there was a major personnel change during the pandemic down time. One constant member, lead guitarist Jesse Tobias, has been with Morrissey since 2005, 18-years now. Other than that every one else is relatively new; Brendan Buckley on drums, Juan Galeano on bass, Camila Grey on keys and Carmen Vandenberg on rhythm guitar. They each did a phenomenal job, tip of the hat to them all, kudos even. 

    A few more tunes from his solo career, 'Suedehead' and 'Alma Matters' before he got to the first The Smiths song 'Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before'. The audience was loving everything he was doing. One of the more memorable ditties from the evening is from his solo work, 'I Wish You Lonely.' Then a few more The Smith songs 'How Soon Is Now?', 'Girlfriend In A Coma'. The evening was sailing along greatly.

    One song he/they did perform was 'The Loop'. Coincidentally, the first time I ever heard of The Smiths was at a club called The Loop. It was in Lido Beach on Long Island. The name of the club was the Malibu, but on Tuesday nights they changed the name to The Loop for the alternative radio station, WLIR, and all of its listeners. (Us weird ones.) Donna Donna used to host the weekly spotlight dance, Larry The Duck guest DJ'd sometimes as did Malibu Sue and Savo ran the lights. Good times. 

    Next up was 'Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want' watch it here.

He had great energy throughout and was engaging. The encore was another The Smiths classic 'Sweet And Tender Hooligan.' The entire performance was just shy of 2-hours, no opening band. I would definitely recommend checking out his website here to find out when the next tour starts. 

Culture Club, Howard Jones & Berlin- PNC Arts Center

    

David Diamond

    It's entitled 'The Letting It Go Tour', it's another '80's night. Why? Because that music is timeless. Here it is 2023 and we are still listening to music and going to shows of bands from 40-years ago. Funny when it was the 80's, there were no performers from the 40's that were still touring and filling up arenas. That's why, another 80's night. Because we love them and we show up for them. That was a special time we can never go back to but at least we can relive a few great memories. 

    Speaking of '80's concerts, have any of you reading this heard of 'The Darker Waves' music fest in Huntington, Ca. in November? It is the inaugural, it is like the grand daddy of all 80's shows. Tears for Fears and New Order are co-headlining. It is already sold-out so that means only one thing... You have to go! That's in the future, tonight we are visiting 'The Garden State' of New Jersey.

BERLIN

    Berlin is the act I am here to see most. I have never seen them. The other two I have seen (and loved) before. The song I want to hear live, at least once in my life, is 'Sex (I'm a...)'. I first heard it in the clubs when I was 19-years old in Kaiserslautern, Germany. I rode the metro throughout Europe to other clubs in London, Paris, Barcelona, etc... where I danced to that jam. It was really interesting to see their career go from a band known only throughout the clubs in 1983 to a band being known by everyone after winning the Academy Award in 1987, taking home the Oscar for the tune 'Take My Breath Away' from Tom Cruise's movie 'Top Gun'. 

    They took the stage with great enthusiasm. Their latest drummer, Ric "ROCC" Roccapriore was sitting there behind the drum kit, ready to keep the beat, which he did very well all night long. His timing was impeccable. The keyboard player, Dave Schulz, a prodigy, comes from a family of super talented musicians, by 11-years old he mastered Mozart's C Sonata. Dave's on a whole other level, he was in place. The rhythm guitarist, Carlton Bost, had great rhythm and great stage presence. He's a rock star. He was up there ready to show his chops as the last three of them came out. The three that have been there pretty much since the start. 

Terri

    First came the lead-guitarist, David Diamond. This guy has got swagger. He looks like he could be on the cover of shaved-head daddies magazine. And he can play guitar. Next to make their appearance was the incredible bass player, John Crawford, he was a driving force all night. Then she came out. And that she is the magnificent Terri Nunn. She was blinging. Her earrings were dazzling as was her necklace. She was wearing a black cocktail dress with a black see through long, flowing, overcoat. It gave a nice 'layered' effect. 'Masquerade' was the opener. It was great, the crowd loved it. 

    'No More Words' followed that. I was so embarrassed that I thought this song was performed by Missing Persons all these years. I am still learning everyday. Apparently I was mixing this song up with 'What Are Words For'. Now I know, it was a great surprise. It would not be the only surprise of their set. When this song finished Terri spoke to the crowd and said "Welcome to The Letting It Go Tour, and what that means to me is, Terri let that shit go!' And they cheered, as they can relate. She went on to say that "she is finally starting to have some fun in her life, better late than never". You got that right girl!

    Hey I just came up with a riddle right now. I'm a writer, that's what I do. 
"If Terri Nunn, of Berlin, and Dale Bozzio, of Missing Persons, were to perform a duet, what would it be titled? 

A: 'What Are No More Words For?'  

Yes? No? Please let me know in the comments. Anyway... I will see myself out. 

Carlton & Terri 

    Terri took off her overcoat revealing the black dress. Turns out she wasn't wearing a necklace after all. The bling stretched across the top of her dress. Berlin went on to do a few more songs, all of which have had some radio airplay, shown on MTV, or spun in the clubs, including 'The Metro' before they got to the big hits. The first one they got to was the biggest, 'Take My Breath Away'. Everyone knew this one and they wanted to sing along. She kindly obliged their request and pointed the mic in their direction and they sang! PNC Arts Center is an outdoor venue, when they sang they sang to the sky! What a great memory for them.

    Band intro- 

    The surprise of the night came next, it was filled with mixed emotions. Earlier in the day, the world lost the great Irish singer Sinead O'Connor. Terri said "We lost a great one today, this song is for Sinead O'Connor, if you know it, sing it." The band then launched into a cover of The Cult's classic 'She Sells Sanctuary'. What happened next was just... The placed erupted (with John's bass line pounding away) and then Terri (I want to say jumped into the audience, but she's a lady, she did not jump, she was escorted by security into the audience.) went about 20-rows deep and sang. 

    Some of the people near her were dancing but then they came to a stop and got their phones out to film her. Instead of living in the moment and dancing with the great Terri Nunn, the only opportunity they will ever have in their lives to dance with her, they filmed her instead. If it were me, I would have danced with her the entire song and danced with her all the way back to the stage and try to get myself up front because I knew what was coming. It will be the last tune of their set. 

Ric "Rocc" Roccapriore

    She gets back to the stage and the song starts. This is it and it was so great, better than I expected. I never knew 'man voice' was performed by bass player John. Very entertaining, the band members didn't just stand there and sing into the mic, they added some flair with the theatrics. John and Terri acted the song out, simply phenomenal. It really brought to mind the question "did those two date at one time?" Then shaved-head daddy comes in with his big solo. It was so perfect. 

    The band was perfect, how often do you go to a show and you know every song that the opening act plays? That just doesn't happen, 9-songs, 40-minutes, perfect. I want to see them again at an inside venue now, preferably a big club. I hope they keep 'She Sells Sanctuary' in their set list. And I know, if I ever get the chance to dance with Terri that would... take my breath away. 

Oh, Howard and George were there too. 

    

Tears for Fears- Madison Square Garden

     Tears for Fears performed at Madison Square Garden Monday night as their triumphant return to the NYC area and what a return it was. Last time they were here, in NYC, was over five years ago when they performed with Hall & Oates and Allen Stone at Forest Hills Stadium in June of 2017. They took to the stage, didn't say a word and just started playing and singing. The audience cheered their arrival.

The gang's all here.

    The band opened with 'No Small Thing' which was no small thing to open with a new one off the new album, 'The Tipping Point'. The new number was well received, I liked it. The band went on to play the title track 'The Tipping Point' another new one off the new album, which could get risky, could be a tipping point even, but the people enjoyed it. Then Tears for Fears went into their third song, a smash, 'Everybody Wants To Rule The World'. The crowd went wild! Still not one word has been spoken by any band members.

     When that tune came to an end it was time to get chatty. Roland Orzabal, the co-lead singer and lead guitarist and the only constant band member thanked everyone for coming out on a Monday night and said "Hopefully this is the beginning of a great week." He told a story how after 40-years in the business this is their very first time ever performing at Madison Square Garden, The Most Famous Arena in the World. 

A great, quick (1:34) recap video of the entire night

    They have performed a few times at The Beacon, they've been at Hammerstein, they played at Radio City Music Hall, 2-night sold-out stand, (back in the day) they've also appeared at all the summer hot spots in the New York area: Jones Beach, PNC Arts Center, etc... He went on to present everyone on stage, he introduced Curt Smith, bass player, (the other half of Tears for Fears.) Next, their drummer who has been with them since 2010, Jamie Wollam was spotlighted. 

    Roland went on to emphasize that the three of them, himself, Curt and Jamie are the members of Tears for Fears and they have never been on this stage before in their life! People were like, o.k. we got it. He then went on to introduce their backing musicians, all 3 of them, who have been on this stage before. And everybody laughed. It was hysterical, comedy gold, even, gold, Jerry, gold. Sometimes life is funnier than anything written.

Roland on guitar, Doug on keys and Curt on bass

    Doug Petty is a classically trained sessions keyboardist who is currently touring with them. He has played with the likes of Enrique Iglesias on this very stage. Doug stood up and waved so everyone could get a good look at him. They responded by showing their love. Next to be recognized was the back-up singer with the powerful voice, Laura Evans. She has appeared here with Natasha Bedingfield. The people showed her love too. 

    Charlton Pettus, the rhythm guitarist, was the final musician to be introduced. He played guitar for Sinead O'Connor during the Bob Dylan's 30th anniversary special, 1992. 

A VIP Backstage Pass. I need to get more of these. 

      So the fourth song was 'Secret World' and while they performed they also threw in a snippet of 'Let 'em in' by Wings. That was an unexpected treat. I remember buying that 45 in the bicentennial year. (true story, second one I ever bought) Yep, I'm old, funny how...time flies. (see what I did there?) 'Sowing the Seeds of Love' was after that, terrific rendition. The entire show was terrific, it did not lag anywhere throughout. 

    The set design was fantastic. In the center above the stage was a huge, round screen projecting different images all night. Surrounding the screen was a ring of lights, then there was another larger ring of lights in front of that and yet another third ring of lights in front of that one. When you sat in your chair and looked forward it appeared that you were looking into a circle of lights that got smaller and smaller until you got to the screen where the images ranged from nature with running horses to funky kaleidoscope action which give for a psychedelic, trippy effect. The entire set was phenomenal, kudos to set design person/people. 

Great lighting, the place is packed.

    It was now Curt's turn to chat a bit into the mic. He said "It was nice to be home." Then went on to tell the story how he lived in NYC for a few years and after you lived here once you kind of feel like it is always home. They went on to play a few more tracks from the new album. It appeared, by the reaction of the 20,000 plus in attendance, that it was well liked. The entire concert was. 

    A look of surprise was on a lot of faces when they played 'Mad World'. Curt sang lead on this one. Seemed like some in the crowd were wondering "Why are they doing this cover?" But, in reality, it is a Tears for Fears song from 1982. It was covered in 2010, by Michael Andrews and Gary Jules for the movie Donnie Darko. 

Photo from stage left: Roland, Laura and Curt

    The ditty that followed was 'Suffer The Children'. This was Laura Evans big solo number and it was beautiful, she really belted it out of the arena. Following her solo she sang a duet with Roland 'Woman in Chains'. They had great harmony. TFF went on to perform a handful of more songs including 'Head Over Heels' and 'Change' before getting to the encores. They closed out their show with, you know which one. The big one, from the summer of 1985, the one that put them on top of the world, 'Shout'. The Garden erupted, the fans were grateful.

    One song I wanted to see live was 'Please Be Happy' from the new album. It may have been too heavy for Roland to play on tour. This is the song he and Curt wrote about Roland's wife, Caroline, whom he lost in 2017 after almost 40-years of marriage, due to alcoholism and depression. Roland would get emotional and would have to leave the studio when they were mixing the masters. 

    It sounds so simplistic but they really are the perfect words to say to a loved one going through any depression or sadness "Please be happy".

The Cure- Madison Square Garden

           

He's looking directly at you, or through you. 

            "This is the end" was the very first words out of Robert Smith's mouth when he and his band, The Cure, took the stage Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. This is their first New York visit in 7-years, since 2016. They were here for three sold-out nights at The Most Famous Arena in The World! In fact, the entire U.S. tour is sold-out for all 30-cities! Rolling Stone magazine said that "The Cure is the Hottest Rock Tour of Summer 2023!"  

            Of course he was singing the first line of the opening number, 'Alone' from the upcoming new album, 'Songs From A Lost World' which, according to Robert himself, should be released any day now. The tune was quite somber, I do love the line "We toast to our emptiness." The band was letting us know, from the very first song, that tonight was going to be as melancholy as we wanted it, and expected it.

 

This fan's name is Francesca Kennedy. She loved the show and got the poster, check out that Robert Smith dress she wore to The Garden! That is a "You go girl!" moment right there. 

            Quite noticeable were a couple of things when you arrived; first was that there were paper signs crudely printed up, taped to the columns, that read "The use of strobe lights will be in effect tonight" and second, that there was no music playing. Usually music is playing at every concert from the time the doors open right up until the opening act, but not tonight. The stage was darkened. Every few minutes you would hear, over the loud speakers, roaring, crackling thunder which, accompanied with the strobe lights gave a lightning effect. The set design was giving off a gloomy rainstorm vibe as the anticipation was growing. It was absolutely perfect! 

The Twilight Sad in front of the Poseidon statue or is that Neptune? 

            8:00 PM promptly the support act, The Twilight Sad, began. With no music playing, wherever you were in the arena; the bathroom, the merch table or getting a beer you knew the concert had started. The five lads were from Scotland and they sounded really good. They did a great job, had excellent stage presence, interacted well with the few dancing fans that did know their music. The Twilight Sad has been in the game since 2003, all they need is one big hit and they'll be the ones headlining next. They were quite entertaining. One thing that the lead singer, James Graham, said "Opening for my favorite band is a dream come true" showed a human side to him. It endeared him to the audience. Yeah,... New York liked them. Definitely give them a listen here: The Twilight Sad's website

5 out of 6 of them

            The Cure took the stage at 9:00 PM and played 29 songs for just shy of 3-hours, WOW! The music started and there were five members of the band on stage performing. On the far points of both stage left and stage right were keyboards. Stage left keyboard duties were being handled by Roger O'Donnell and stage right keyboard was being played by Perry Bamonte. Perry is a multi-instrumentalist who also plays guitar and bass. He went back and forth between the guitar and keyboard throughout the concert. Reeves Gabrels phenomenally riffed lead guitar all night. On drums was Jason Cooper keeping the beat going and on bass was Simon Gallup. (The second longest member. They have had their dust-ups, but Simon was best man at Robert's wedding.) 
            Two minutes of music before he takes the stage, eye liner with red lipstick tonight. Immediately he noticed a fan, upfront, who was trying to give him a single rose. Robert walked over to the corner of the stage (stage right) bent down and accepted the flower. He took a moment and waved to everyone on that side. They went crazy. He lingered for a minute, gave them time to get their pictures while he was up close. (It has been 7-years.) After a good minute he meandered to the other corner of the stage and waved to the people on that side. They loved it too. He gave them a solid minute as well and at the 4-minute mark he began singing.

Section 116

            He sounded superb and the band sounded terrific. Halfway through the song, he picked up a guitar and started playing, just outstanding. From an electric guitar to an acoustic electric, he strummed on about half the tunes that evening. It was all really good. And since the first number was a new one, delightfully the second one was a hit, 'Pictures Of You'. That's a nice balance. The older we get, the harder that song hits. Track three 'A Fragile Thing' was also a new one, which was well received by the crowd. 

            After that a deep cut from 1985's 'The Head on the Door', 'Kyoto Song' was next. Two hits followed then another new one: 'A Night Like This' and 'Lovesong' then 'And Nothing is Forever'. The strobe light came on at certain times, during 'Plan for Today' and 'Shake Dog Shake' to mention a few. The last official ditty of the set list, before the encores, is another new one, a perfect song to end the set on, Endsong. I love this one too. It's an instrumental that just draws you in. 
            They encored for an hour! Encore number one was five-songs long, they continued doing what they were doing during the main set, hit, new one, hit, everyone loved it. Encore number two is where they brought down the house. It was like nine smashes in a row! The big ones that got the most radio airplay and the most rotations in the clubs: 'Lullaby', 'The Walk', 'Friday I'm In Love', 'Why Can't I Be You?', 'Boys Don't Cry', etc...
               If you are a true fan, do whatever you can to get a ticket to this tour. If you are able to pull that off and see this show, I can guarantee you, this concert will be...

(wait for it)...
Just. Like. Heaven.  

BLONDIE- The Paramount-Huntington N.Y.

     Fall of 2011 is when the Paramount Theater opened it's doors. It has been around for a dozen years already and has fast become the premier venue on the north shore of Nassau County, Long Island. The place is nice. The town is nice, quaint, rustic. The theater is located on main street, New York Avenue, surrounded by dozens of outdoor restaurants, al fresco even, to choose from if you'd like to have a nice sit down dinner (fancy, tablecloths) before the show.

    The Spotlight Club at The Paramount is a fun, funky bar, with food, located directly next door. There is a stage with live music on weekends, they have cool art on the walls highlighting different artists, there's also a high-tech radio station where some of the musicians and rock stars go to do an interview before or after sound check. And most importantly they have a full bar and a scrumptious menu right here.

The fun, funky bar next door

    Capacity is 1500+. Website for the Paramount is right here. In addition to having concerts there is a vast array of other highly cultural events to select from; boxing matches, comedy nights, plays, International DJ's for dance nights, you name it.

    WBAB had a ticket contest giveaway, thank you again WBAB, and for the last 30-years, special shout-out to the morning show's Roger & JP, love you guys. My friend Shawn and I really enjoyed it all, the venue and Blondie. We took a train out from Manhattan because Debbie and the band are worth it. We left from Penn Station for a 75-minute ride. The time just flew by. 

    The train station is located on New York Avenue as well, only 1.5 miles from the theater. Cabs were in abundance waiting, but we opted to hoof it because the weather was perfect and we could smoke a cigarette before we get there. At the halfway point was a deli, we got beer and a new lighter. The walk was cool; hilly as it was the north shore, but not too hilly. We passed a rural cemetery. Shawn got spooked "What is this SAW shit you're dragging me out to?" "How much further is this place?" We kept walking. 

F*&% your walk. Get to the music. 

    We get into town, he's breathing easier now. Entry was a breeze. The staff was so super nice, very hospitable, everyone we came in contact with was. The showroom was beautiful and the music was grooving. Acoustics sounded terrific wherever you stood. This show was general admission standing but there were also rows of seats available, if anyone wanted to sit. You had your choice. You want to get up and dance, have at it. You want to sit and chill a bit, there's that option too. We take seats after the walk. 

    Blondie takes the stage. Half of the originals are still present. Some personnel changes have taken place along the way but for the most part, they're still together. There was Debbie and Chris Stein, the lead guitarist and Clem Burke, the drummer, all originals and then on bass was/is Leigh Foxx, who has been the bassist for 20-years now. On keyboards was/is Matt Katz-Bohen, who has been with them since the Squeezbox days (if you know, you know) and on rhythm guitar is a cat named Tommy Kessler, who moved to NYC in 2005 and has been hustling ever since and now here he is. They were all great together. First song to kick off the set was their debut single, from 1976, X Offender and it sounded terrific.

Since the beginning- Chris, Deborah & Clem

      Following that, Debbie had wrapped herself in a cape that read "F*&^ War" in various sizes all over the cape. She held her fist in the air. This was her protest song, she still has the rebel, punk spirit. 'Hanging On The Telephone' started playing. Watch that here if you'd like. 

    The show kept rolling on with a few more lesser known and a few more radio hits like 'The Tide is High' & 'Atomic'. She tossed the cape, this was their crowd. Everything they were doing, we were loving. She is 75 and coincidentally that is how long they performed for, 75-minutes. Most of the musicians are in their 70's and their energy level is still so great. 

Blondie-Now L-R Chris, Tommy, Leigh, Matt, Deborah & Clem

    The crowd really went ballistic when Blondie played 'Rapture'. 'Maria' followed. I remember when 'Maria' was released, in 1999. Blondie played the Today Show concert series at 30 Rock. I got up early and went over to the plaza to see that. And then they finished strong. Pounding out smash hit after hit first 'Heart Of Glass', then encoring with 'Call Me'. You knew the 80's arrived with that jam, from the soundtrack of the movie 'American Gigolo' starring Richard Gere. The finale was the ultimate stalker song 'One Way Or Another.' 

    Check out Blondie's website here for any upcoming tour info.      

Shawn & I, on the train back, with our tickets from WBAB. Walking passed the cemetery after midnight hit different. 

reUnion of the Snake- Madison Square Garden

    Duran Duran w/ Nile Rodgers and CHIC and a shout out to DJ Mad Marj

The Wild Boys themselves. 

     

Written by Mr. Rich 

Before the show, I meet Nancy, Jean & Kathy at The Motto on 24th St. We've known each other since middle school. We head to Tacombi, just across the avenue. 

Tacombi is a great mark your own menu Mexican restaurant. I probably saw Nancy 3-weeks ago, Jean, about 2/3-years? Covid timing. And Kathy 10 or more years ago. 

Si!, there were margaritas. We're a joyful troupe and share stuff and laugh and shake off whatever's in the shadows. Kathy offers "You can do it! and this is how," Jean offers wonderful enthusiasm and Nancy and I listen eagerly, having recently launched a business where Kathy has been successfully running one, or more, for a bit. The waitress takes our reunion photo, yes, we're that table for a moment and start walking to the Garden, MSG.

The Garden is Under Destruction so it's a sorry sight to enter. I mean DDuran shot on to the scene with Planet Earth and Girls on Film but their fame really started with glamorous videos from Antigua and Sri Lanka, and now we're walking through a construction site of blue plywood and scaffolding.

If you don't know scaffolding on a city level, it's a jungle gym with construction above you and it feels like a weight overhead, where anything could come folding down. Hence, the word fold should not be in the word scaffolding. 

But we made it, cell phone ticketing, security pass-thru and on to the escalators and the 226 section, which is a lot more escalators that you might expect. But I've been there before, many, many times. 

We take our seats and hang. Our personal reunion of school friends is complete but I let on that a friend of mine, Cindy, is going to be in 227, the section next to us. I just learned that the day before. We're entirely early, but DJ Mad Marj is great and we even wind up standing up and dancing to some of her selections. She knew her audience. Blondie, ...

It's during the DJ dancing that the row behind us is engaged. People do want to have fun. They share that they are from England. How cool! They're here at MSG and seeing their hometown boys. They're ecstatic that we're already dancing when they know they will be later. They are behind us though, so dance away. 

Nile Rodgers and Chic. These are the good times.

The lights dim and Nile Rodgers/Chic command the stage.

You know what you know of Chic and then you learn that Nile wrote/produced all these other songs that are part of the world music-scape. 'I'm Stepping Out', 'We Are Family', 'Let's Dance', 'Original Sin', 'Modern Love', 'Material Girl', 'Like A Virgin', 'Notorious', 'Get Lucky' and many, many more. 

They opened with the Chic Cheer to rouse the crowd and then kicked it off with 'Dance, Dance, Dance' (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah) and if that didn't get you on your feet, 'Everybody Dance' followed to make sure everybody was dancing. 'I Want Your Love' kept the disco-flashback enthusiasm going. The majority in attendance appeared old enough to know these songs and what, "Come on down to fifty-four" means. 

"Are you here?" I text Cindy, "I'm dancing, in the red shirt."

"I'm at the merch table."  

I was surprised she was missing Chic but I think they feed the music throughout the arena. 

CHIC Rodgers then launched into songs Nile had written/produced, starting with 'I'm Coming Out', made famous by Diana Ross. 

And the singing ladies! I'm going with Kimberly Davies and Audrey Martells (wiki search) I don't remember from the announcement and in the 226 section, not everything was crystal clear. But they took you there. By Took you there I mean that I leaned into Kathy to say, "Some people are born to sing and that's what an artist is, they just can't help it. They're great."

It was a joyous ride on Route '80s and then we took exit 2013 for 'Get Lucky' by Daft Punk, Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers.  

They circled back to Chic central after Bowie's 'Let's Dance' with 'Le Freak'. 'Good Times' closed out the NileChic set, leaving the crowd properly warmed up. Many in the band were from Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn and made plenty of noise regarding playing their home town in the most famous arena in the world, Madison Square Garden. 

Section 226

The lights came up, the usual commotion of heading to the bathroom or concession stand to drop $18 for a tall beer came into play while others were just finding their seats for the first time. 

The lights dim and the stage lights rise. 'Wild Boys' opens the show, backed with live screen projections mixed with tracking graphics. 'Hungry Like The Wolf' follows and so they've set everyone on their feet. Duran Duran was born of the video era. 

They are energetic, they move around and they let each other shine. Simon LeBon talks to the crowd, "When we were just kids in England, we dreamed of playing here, in New York City at Madison Square Garden and here we are. It's great to be back." 

Now, I'm not familiar with 'Invisible and Anniversary', but that did seem to settle things down until Nile Rodgers reunited with Duran Duran on stage for 'Notorious', which he produced. 

'A View To A Kill', had the telescopic iris from the Bond opening on the screens with a live high-contrast feed; Instead of Bond, you had Rhodes, Taylor, Taylor, Taylor and LeBon rocking their parts.

They continued to walk, strut and show their stuff, spanning their catalog with a surprise entry of 'White Lines' (Don't Do It) by Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five. The light show was ecstatic until it all went dark at the end only to bounce back with flashbulbs going off until, of course, 'Girls On Film', which closed out the set.

Obligatory waiting time for encore. 

'Save A Prayer', had all of the cell phone lights waving in the air, as encouraged, and the arena was happy to sing along. 

'Rio' closed out the show and everyone was happy until they got to the stairs to leave. It's a drag coming down from 226 but because of it, "Cindy," I call, seeing her enter the fray, going the other way. 

"Oh, hey." 

"Good to see you," but we had to keep walking. 

Which we do, Nancy, Kathy, Jean and myself walk 7th Avenue to 24th and bid adieu. 

Certainly a fun time, what with the reunion of friends and the Union of the Snake but I thought they could have cut a third out and have another band in there, maybe Howard Jones perhaps. 

The Next Day-

I texted my opinion to Cindy, "How'd you like the show? I thought a third of it..."

"It was fkng amazing. One of the best in the last 12 months." 

And there you have it, a casual observer and a fkng fan!

Duran Duran setlist

NileChic setlist