Cedar Rapids, Iowa
By Phillip Smith; June 19,
2016
Blue skies and warm weather
set the perfect stage for a day of music and relaxation at the seventh annual
Irish District Music and Arts Festival, which took place on June 18th. The Voice
of Cedar Lake, composed of guitarist Craig
Erickson, vocalist Alicia Strong,
bassist John Hall, keyboardist Tom “T-Bone” Giblin, and drummer Jon
Wilson took the stage first, opening up for the great Eric Gales.
Erickson
kicked things off with one of my favorite songs from his Sky Train Galaxy album, “Mojo in Memphis”. Soon afterwards the band broke out the funk
and tore into a groovy performance of Rufus
and Chaka Kahn’s “Tell Me Something Good”.
Strong’s vocals were powerful
and perfect. Strong belted out more sweet and soulful vocals as the band doled
out a rousing cover of Buddy Mile’s “Them
Changes”. I loved the bluesy spin they
put on the Bob Marley classic “No
Woman No Cry”, as well as the clever mash-up with the Five Stairsteps’ 1970 top-ten hit “O-o-h Child”. Delbert
McClinton’s “Standing on Shaky Ground” was a real treat, highlighted by an
outstanding performance by Hall on
his seven string bass, and Giblin on
organ. Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” immediately followed, keeping the
groove afloat and the audience on cloud nine.
Watching these musicians in
action makes me proud to live in a community which not only has a wealth of
great talent, but through appreciation of live music, is able to retain these
talented artists we get so much enjoyment from.
All Photos by Phillip Smith
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| Craig Erickson |
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| Craig Erickson / John Hall |
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| John Hall |
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| Craig Erickson |
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| John Hall / Tom 'T-Bone' Giblin |
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| Alicia Strong |
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| Alicia Strong |
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| Jon Wilson |
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| Voice of Cedar Lake |
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| Alicia Strong |
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| Craig Erickson |
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| Craig Erickson / Alicia Strong |
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| John Hall |
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