Jim Price
Moderator
Joined: 07 Dec 2002
Posts: 4817
Location: Altoona, PA
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 Posted: Wednesday Sep 28, 2005 |
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WEEK/WEEKEND RECAP 8/1/05
MAUREEN DUFFY @ THE KNICKERBOCKER, ALTOONA 7/27/05
Often on Wednesday nights during the summer months, I can hear the sounds of live acoustic music emanating from the outside courtyard at The Knickerbocker, located half a block from my workplace. I usually want to walk up to the Knick to check it out, but since Wednesday is my usual “hell night” at work, I’m confined to my workplace quarters until my duties are done.
This particular Wednesday, though, I was able to finish my duties relatively early. And hearing the sound of a female voice singing down the alley, I knew there was a live performer to be witnessed at the Knickerbocker courtyard.
That voice belonged to Maureen Duffy, as I discovered once I arrived at the Knickerbocker’s courtyard. It was a cool evening after a weather front blew through earlier in the day. But a good-sized audience populated the Knickerbocker’s courtyard as Maureen proceeded through her set of acoustic music.
As I’ve noted before about Maureen’s performance, she’s not afraid to dig deeper for the material she does. In fact, there were only a few songs in this particular set that I knew; Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” and “Rhiannon,” and, with Maureen back-announcing them, I know she did a Wilco number and closed the set with Sarah McLachlan’s “Dirty Little Secret.”
Maureen’s voice was in good form, as she sang her material with soulfulness and grit. Maureen also had a knack of making the cover material her own, interpreting her song selections in her own distinct style, cadence and phrasing. Her presentation was low-key and casual, and she good-naturedly bantered with audience members between songs.
Her final set started with a rendition of a Pretenders deep cut, “2,000 Miles.” Maureen again mixed a diverse variety of material, including an interesting female slant on Pearl Jam’s “Black,” Cracker’s “Low,” the Pretenders’ “Back On The Chain Gang,” her unique folksy slant on Santana’s “Evil Ways,” Fleetwood Mac’s “Gold Dust Woman” and Tom Petty’s “You Got Lucky.”
At this point, I departed The Knickerbocker to head across town for my weekly Wednesday Pellegrine’s pizza fix. But again I was impressed by Maureen’s presentation, from her bluesy style and sultry voice to her wide-ranging and intriguing song selection.
Maureen Duffy entertains in the Knickerbocker courtyard.
THE MICHAEL O’BRIAN BAND @ WING-OFF, LAKEMONT PARK, ALTOONA 7/28/05
After vacating the Lakemont Wing-Off for the Tussey Wing Challenge the week before, I was in the mood to get my Irish up this week, so I headed to Lakemont Park to feast on wings and take in the shenanigans of the Michael O’Brian Band.
Brian Anderson and Mike Zerbee were just under way as I arrived and procured my first batch of wings. The pair were getting their Irish up with happy-go-lucky Irish pub songs, laced with their witty and humorous banter. The duo didn’t wait too long into their first set to honor audience requests for the ever-popular “Unicorn Song.” Along the way, Brian and Mike also did songs such as the “Guinness Song” (even though Guinness wasn’t on tap at the Wing-Off, Yeungling had to suffice), “The Champer’s Wife,” the “Beer Song” (led off by a “Play That Funky Music” tease), “Mary Mack” and more. Both performers frequently quipped with the audience between songs, assessed “penalty drinks” against each other and more.
The pair’s second set kicked off with “Emerald Isle,” during which they did a tribute to our armed forces. I missed most of the duo’s middle set after having to run (err…hobble, I was still dealing with my knee injury incurred during Summer Jam to Benefit Easter Seals) back to my car – parked across Lakemont Park on the Park Avenue side – to resolve a camera problem. I did arrive back at the Wing-Off as the Michael O’Brian Band ended the set with their own Celtic rendering of U2’s “With Or Without You.”
With lines not too busy, I procured more wings, this time from Angela’s in Juniata. Angela’s hot wings had a peppery flavor to them that I liked; at least until the cumulative effects of the heat made them rough on the tongue and sides of my mouth – ouch!
Brian and Mike soon returned from their break; and with popular local television weatherman Tom Casey in the audience, sent “Black Velvet Band” out to him to commence their third set. With Mike strumming his acoustic guitar and Brian playing occasional flute, pennywhistle and Bodhran, the pair continued with more Irish merriment with such song as “The Music Man,” a requested repeat performance of “The Unicorn Song,” “Macintyre,” “Sara “Sara,” “The Night Paddy Murphy Died” and more; again playfully joking with the audience and encouraging crowd chants, callbacks, chicanery and more. The pair even had a few folks up and dancing; Brian jokingly dubbed them the ‘Michael Fat-ley Dancers.’ And just as their second set ended, The Michael O’Brian Band closed their nightcap set with another U2 number, “Where the Streets Have No Name.”
The Michael O’Brian Band once again provided the Lakemont Park Wing-Off with a different flavor, and gave a jovial, lighthearted performance. More wing-eating fans gathered as their show progressed, and a number of them were fans of the duo who knew the choruses and callbacks to many of the songs and were singing along.
In all, it was good wings, fun music and humor combining for a good time.
Getting their Irish up at the Lakemont Wing-Off, the Michael O'Brian Band.
Brian Anderson and Mike Zerbee, the Michael O'Brian Band.
Brian Anderson of the Michael O'Brian Band.
Mike Zerbee of the Michael O'Brian Band.
Even though thousands of his brethren are losing their wings for this event, this chicken is celebrating with the Michael O'Brian Band.
Once again, the chicken, doing a chicken dance in front of the Michael O'Brian Band.
Mike Zerbee of the Michael O'Brian Band, taking the Irish merriment to the people.
TOMMY WAREHAM & THE INTRIGUES @ CURTIN MALL, ALTOONA 7/29/05
It’s hard to believe, but there are still names on the area music scene I have not yet witnessed! And I’m not talking new names, I’m talking guys who have been at it for a while. Like Tommy Wareham.
If you know anything about the State College music scene, you’ve heard of Tommy Wareham. He was making music in Happy Valley back when I was a student at Penn State in the early 80’s. But I had never had the opportunity to see Tommy in action – either solo or with his group The Intrigues – until now.
The occasion was the Blair County Arts Foundation’s “Summer Sounds Of Jazz” concert series, being held select Fridays at the Curtin Mall in downtown Altoona. As was the case when I witnessed Blue Number Nine here two weeks before, the Curtin Mall was turned into an outdoor café setting, with Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues performing onstage, while Clem’s Ribs and adult beverages were available for purchase.
I arrived during the intermission between the group’s two sets. A good-sized, mostly older, crowd was present to take in the music, ribs and refreshments.
Soon, Tommy Wareham and his Intrigues bandmates took up position on their instruments, and opened their nightcap set with Bart Howard’s “Fly Me to the Moon,” featuring Tommy scatting along as he played a tasty guitar solo in mid song. The group continued with a wide variety of music, spanning jazz, early and classic rock and roll, R&B and more. After a jazzy instrumental, the group touched on reggae with Bob Marley’s “Stir It Up;” ventured into soul territory with Sam & Dave’s “Soul Man” and the Temptations’ “My Girl;” and jumped into early rock’n’roll with Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Great Balls Of Fire.” The group also did Lightnin’ Hopkins’ “Have You Ever Been Mistreated,” Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On,” the Beatles’ “Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da” into the “Beer Barrel Polka,” Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl,” Skylark’s “Wildflower” and more.
This band was very talented, and their execution was smooth. Tommy Wareham himself was very accomplished on the guitar, even though he is better known in Happy Valley as a solo piano player. The Intrigues’ sax player, Steve, also displayed nice skills on his instrument, and the bass player and drummer were solid and kept a good groove. Tommy and the band kept the mood pleasant and personable, and they held the audience’s attention through the duration of the set.
Overall, this was an enjoyable show, as Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues’ classy presentation and varied songlist made for an interesting evening. It was again encouraging to see strong attendance for this latest “Summer Sounds Of Jazz” series; again boding well for the future of this summertime live music event in the Altoona area.
Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues entertain at Altoona's Curtin Mall.
Sax player Steve with Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues.
The drummer for Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues.
Tommy Wareham.
Again, Tommy Wareham.
Again, Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues.
A good-sized crowd takes in Tommy Wareham & the Intrigues' performance at Altoona's Curtin Mall.
Once again, Tommy Wareham.
QUARTERSTICK @ THE ARENA, STATE COLLEGE 7/29/05
After Tommy Wareham’s performance ended, it was essentially a pretty quiet Friday night in the ‘Toona for live music. Felix & the Hurricanes were at the Victory Lane Saloon, but I would be seeing them at the following week’s Lakemont Park Wing-Off. Torn Black was rocking down Aldo’s, but I had just seen them not too long ago. And I wasn’t really in the mood for acoustic music this night, so I bypassed the acoustic options. I swung past Peter C’s and City Limits, but neither had bands this night. Wow, have Friday nights died in this town!
I stopped by a Sheetz and picked up a Centre Daily Times to see what the nightlife in Happy Valley was looking like this night, and was reminded that Quarterstick was performing at The Arena (formerly the Last Cowboy). Quarterstick had recently emailed me about catching one of their shows, and since The Arena was slightly closer to Altoona than the other State College options, I was there!
Unfortunately, for much of the night, I was about the only one there. Since The Arena is not located in downtown State College, it misses out on much of the downtown crowd – especially during the summer months, when the nearby apartment complexes are devoid of student populace until September. Compound this with the fact that Quarterstick – only making their second State College appearance – was up against Backstreet Law, also playing harder rock at The Saloon; and the result was an empty Arena.
But I would provide at least one body for the band to play to, so I took up position at a table near the stage front dance floor area, procured an initial foamy adult beverage and got ready to rock.
Quarterstick featured some familiar names I had seen before. Singer Dana Confer, in fact, was in one of the first local bands I had ever taken an interest in back in the early 80’s, Centre Hall heavy rockers Nitro. He and bassist Dave Coleman later played together a few years ago in Unchained. Guitarist Terry Cressman previously played with Gun Runnin’ Amish; Doug Wance plays drums.
Quarterstick mixed it up between hard-hitting current and classic rock and metal favorites. Their second set included numbers from Lenny Kravitz, Offspring, Jimmy Eats World, Lynyrd Skynyrd, AC/DC, Van Halen, Jackyl, Lit, Ozzy, Alice In Chains, Metallica and more. Highlights included high-flying fireworks from both Dana and Terry; Dana proved he still had the voice, and could take it to the stratosphere when needed, evidenced by his wild scream during the AC/DC double-shot of “TNT” into “Dirty Deeds.” Terry displayed his full-shred capabilities nicely, especially on Ozzy’s “Crazy Train.” Bassman Dave showed his lead vocal skills on the set-ending rendition of Metallica’s “Seek and Destroy.” Although The Arena remained empty, Quarterstick did manage to entice two couples onto the dance floor to slow dance during their rendition of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man.”
A few more folks arrived at the venue during the intermission, but the crowd was still sparse.
Quarterstick’s final set launched with Rage’s “Killing in the Name,” and continued with more explosive hard-hitting rock. After Velvet Revolver’s “Slither,” Dana introduced an original tune, “Hounds Of Hell.” The group continued with Drowning Pool’s “Bodies” and Godsmack’s “Keep Away,” before breaking out an 80’s chestnut, Accept’s “Balls to the Wall.” Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” drew some dancers onto the floor, and the group nicely segued the momentum over into Buckcherry’s “Lit Up.” Quarterstick then rode the night home with Audioslave’s “Be Yourself” and AC/DC’s “Sin City,” with Terry unleashing an all-out guitar display including some behind the neck soloing.
Although the crowd was minimal, Quarterstick still delivered a strong and powerful show to the few who were in the house. True to their credo, this band did provide ample doses of “dangerously explosive rock,” made more explosive by Terry’s incendiary guitar work and Dana’s powerful pipes. Although I thought their light show was a bit minimal and could have been stronger to bring more attention to the stage, I was overall satisfied with what Quarterstick brought to the Arena stage this night. In front of a sizable crowd ready to get rowdy on a Saturday night, I could see this band doing some serious damage.
Quarterstick rocks The Arena.
Dana Confer of Quarterstick. And yes, these days Dana sports a mullet.
Again, Dana Confer of Quarterstick.
Terry Cressman of Quarterstick.
Again, Terry Cressman of Quarterstick.
Once again, Quarterstick brings their explosive rock to The Arena.
THE AMPLIFIED HEET/BEYOND REASON @ CAMBRIA SUMMIT A.B.A.T.E. BENEFIT POKER RUN AFTER PARTY, “KOOK’S KAMP” near CHEST SPRINGS 7/30/05
For the second year in a row, I attended the after-party for Cambria Summit A.B.A.T.E.’s annual benefit poker run. This event saw a few changes this year, as it split off from another benefit run it was associated with in previous years. And the after-party changed location, too, to a remote rural site called “Kook’s Kamp,” located between Chest Springs and Syberton.
The original game plan was for me to show up at the after-party around 6- or 7-ish, but fishing got in the way. Yes, I spent most of Saturday drowning worms along the Juniata River in center-city Newton-Hamilton (near Mount Union), and had one of those good days where the fish were hitting everything I was throwing at them. Unfortunately, only one fish was big enough to consider keeping (a nice slab red-ear sunfish, caught late in the afternoon on a meal worm), but it was still fun fishing, nearly every cast resulted in some action!
Because of that, though, I didn’t vacate Newton-Hamilton until after 8 PM, and after driving back, unpacking my fishing gear and showering, didn’t arrive at the after-party until around 10:45, shortly after Amplified Heet had finished playing. Eyewitnesses said Amplified Heet did a good job; this was apparently their full electric line-up with drummer.
But I had arrived in plenty of time to see Beyond Reason. And because of smaller turnout this year, there was still plenty of food and beer left, so I partook in both.
Beyond Reason…was drunk. But it was a biker party, and everybody else was buzzed and drunk, so it was cool. There were train wrecks during their set, but a lot of fun moments as well. During the group’s rocking take on Dr. Hook’s “Cover of the Rolling Stone,” guitarist Tom “Urbs” Urbain had a pure Jed Clampett moment while he was mumbling out the song’s second verse, he sounded like he was singing the theme song from the Beverly Hillbillies; I was expecting to hear “Oil that is, black gold, Texas Tea…Y’all come back now, y’hear!” The nefarious Jules Bianchini from Amplified Heet stepped up to help shout out backing vocals during Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville,” and Amplified Heet harmonica man Adam Brown wailed some harp during Blues Traveler’s “Runaround.” Beyond Reason had several folks dancing during their two sets, and kept the fun vibes of the after-party going, giving attendees good background rock and roll to consume foamy adult beverages to.
The biggest highlight of the night, though, was seeing Heather Mallory. Heather, as you may recall, suffered serious spinal injuries in a car accident late last summer, and has been confined to a wheelchair. She has gotten some mobility back in her upper body, and even took part in a motorcycle run a few weeks prior (riding in a special passenger sidecar). Heather was in good spirits and having fun, and seems determined to someday be back on her feet again. It was heartening to see her there and having fun.
In all, the after-party was a good time. Attendance was down from the previous year, due to the split and the change of location. But monies were still raised for area children (the Ertwine and Prye children), and good times were had.
Jamie Smith of Beyond Reason. I don't know what brand of toothpaste Deathmaster Funk Jae used before the show, but it seems to bring a glow to his front teeth.
Beyond Reason rocks Kook's Kamp.
Wearing his cheap sunglasses, Deathmaster Funk Jae of Beyond Reason.
Again, Beyond Reason.
Chris Myers of Beyond Reason.
As you can see, I was enjoying life at Kook's Kamp while Beyond Reason performed.
GREEN EGGS @ PELLEGRINE’S, ALTOONA 7/31/05
After serving my weekly Sunday night “Backyard Rocker” duty, I headed to Pellegrine’s to close out the weekend, with Green Eggs providing the music.
It was an average night at Pelly’s, with a mid-sized crowd populating the bar and dance floor as Green Eggs was into their third set of nonstop tunage. As expected, the group kept the crowd on the floor with a high-octane presentation, frequently gearshifting between current and classic rock, rap/hip hop and more. This set, the group jumped between tunes from Beastie Boys, Joan Jett, Whitesnake, Guns’N’Roses, Jackson 5, Ice Cube; and finished with an 80’s triple-shot from Poison, Def Leppard and Bon Jovi. The dance floor crowd wanted one more, and Green Eggs responded with a Linkin Park number to close out the night.
It was a night at the office for Green Eggs; they saw the dance floor crowd, and they got that crowd to get wild and crazy over the course of their set. Green Eggs almost has this thing down to a science, being able to almost effortlessly read the crowd and respond to what they are into hearing and dancing to in a given night. The group’s formula worked, and the crowd left Pellegrine’s dance floor partied out and happy.
Closing in on a decade of partying thousands, Green Eggs again made it look easy, and are still a party band on top of their game.
Doug Black of Green Eggs.
Steve Nelson of Green Eggs.
Again, Doug Black of Green Eggs.
Brian Nicarry of Green Eggs.
Again, Steve Nelson of Green Eggs.
A familiar scene: Brian Nicarry and Green Eggs keep a crowded Pelly's dance floor happy.
Once again, Doug Black of Green Eggs.
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