Showing posts with label Concert Photos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Concert Photos. Show all posts

Sunday, January 14, 2018

#314 : Bob Dorr and the Blue Band - “The Last Goodbye” Tour


Bob Dorr and the Blue Band - “The Last Goodbye” Tour
w/ opening act Duke Tumatoe
Live @ Riverside Casino & Resort Show Lounge
Jan 13, 2018
Riverside, Iowa
By Phillip Smith; Jan. 14, 2018


Saturday, January 13th, Bob Dorr and the Blue Band performed their “Last Goodbye” show at Riverside Casino.  Following a couple of terrific sets from the wonderful Duke Tumatoe, who captivated the crowd with “Give Me Back My Wig”, “You Don’t Drink Enough” and “Tie You Up”, Bob Door and the Blue Band tore through three exhilarating sets of music to the largest audience I have ever seen at the Show Lounge. 

Bob Dorr kicked the first set off with the swinging “Don’t Sting, Bite or Bug Me” which was followed by slough of sweet tunes of which included “3 AM Backdoor Baby” and “Bottle in the Kitchen”.  To commemorate Bob’s sixty-sixth birthday which fell on January 12, the band played “Happy Birthday Blues” before working their way down the set list to hammer out splendid covers of Sam and Dave’s “Soul Man”, and Van Morrison’s “Domino”.

The second set broke open with a fabulous jam on “Not Fade Away”.  Cathy Henry gave a captivating performance singing Etta James’s “Blues is My Business”. One of the biggest highlights for me was hearing “Elvis in Paraguay”.  It was fabulous.  Ralph Stephens joined in on washboard and Bob broke out the zydeco tie for a rousing jamboree on “They All Asked For You”, which melted quite nicely into a medley of “Iko Iko” and “Jambalya”.  The set closed out with a riveting delivery of “Mustang Sally”. It was an instant crowd pleaser.


Set number three included fun songs like “Drugs Drugs Drugs” and the high energy horn-heavy ska tune “Arc Welded”.  It was absolutely wonderful.  Also included in this final set was “Nadine”, which was immediately followed by “The Last Goodbye”.  The performance was outstanding.   Bob Dorr and the Blue Band kept the electricity going through the night, winding down with “Bobby’s Blues”, and landing on “Mojo and the Say So” for a grand ending.  For the encore, they returned to play “Any Ordinary Man”, which brought the show to its final close.  It was a magical evening indeed.

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all photos by Phillip Smith


Duke Tumatoe

Duke Tumatoe

Duke Tumatoe


Bob Dorr and the Blue Band

Bob Dorr

Jeff Petersen

Cathy Henry, Doug Norton

Jeff Petersen

Jeff Petersen

Bob Dorr

Doug Norton

Doug Norton

Bob, Cathy, Doug, Jeff

Bob, Cathy, Doug

Nolan Schroeder, Bob Dorr

Bob Dorr, Doug Norton

Jeff Petersen

John Rohlf

Bob Dorr

Jeff Petersen

Bob Dorr

Bob Dorr

Ralph Stephens



Ralph Stephens




Sunday, December 10, 2017

#307 : Southern Avenue live at CSPS


Dec. 9, 2017
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
By Phillip Smith; Dec. 10, 2017


From Memphis, Tennessee, Southern Avenue is one of the newest bands to record for the iconic Stax Records label.  Saturday, December 9th, this magnificent quintet brought their illustrious brand of soul to a packed house at CSPS in Cedar Rapids amid their seemingly non-stop tour to promote their remarkable self-titled record.  Fronted by powerhouse lead singer Tierinii Jackson, the band also consists of her sister Tikyra Jackson on drums, guitarist Ori Naftaly, bassist Gage Markey, and keyboardist extraordinaire Jeremy Powell

Southern Avenue served up two delicious sets of music, covering mostly songs off their new album.  The soulful sweet vocals Tierinii delivers on “What Did I Do” was so right-on.  Her vocals on “It’s Gonna Be Alright” were angelic, and the keyboard performance from Powell was captivating.  I was so happy to hear them perform “Don’t Give Up”.  That’s such a terrific song.  It’s what drew me to the band in the first place this past spring.   

Their fabulous and funky take on the Beatles’ “Come Together” caught me entirely by surprise.  Naftaly’s guitar was smokin’.  It was a special treat to hear their covers of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition”, and Bill Withers’ “Use Me” too  They were both soul-dripping performances. I loved every bit of it. 


Southern Avenue ranks right up there among my favorite new bands this year, and I sure hope to see them again soon.

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* All Photos by Phillip Smith























Thursday, November 9, 2017

#301 : Crystal Bowersox live at CSPS


Nov. 8, 2017
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
By Phillip Smith; Nov. 9, 2017


Crystal Bowersox blessed CSPS with her third appearance on November 8th.  With an acoustic guitar strapped around her shoulder, the songstress was joined by drummer Derek Louis, and bassist Lucas Morton.  It was a perfect evening for music, as Bowersox belted out two fabulous sets, much of which can be found on her new Alive album. 

The Season 9 American Idol finalist initiated her show with a stellar cover of Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance”.  It was fantastic.  “Broken Wing” was s such a lovely song, being sung from the heart as effortlessly as Bowersox makes it seem.   She gave a terrific performance on “Staycation”, which teased Steve Miller’s “Fly Like an Eagle“, and suavely segued into Bob Marley’s “Everything Gonna Be Alright”.  Laying out a roadmap to her heart in song, Bowersox beautifully sung “He Calls Me Angel”.   “The Ride”, a tale of a gonzo off-the-cuff trip with a bad news scoundrel, co-written with Lance Carpenter, kept the audience in the palm of her hands.  In closing, she delivered a bodacious finale with a couple of striking covers, The Eagles’ “Desperado”, and Janis Joplin’s “Bobby McGee”.          
     


All photos by Phillip Smith








Sunday, June 18, 2017

Honey Island Swamp Band - Concert Photos : Irish District Music & Arts Festival (Cedar Rapids, IA 6/17/17)



Cedar Rapids, IA
By Phillip Smith; June 18, 2017


Photos by Phillip Smith



Honey Island Swamp Band


Aaron Wilkinson – mandolin, guitar,
harmonica, vocals
Chris MulĂ© – guitar, vocals
Sam Price – bass, vocals
Garland Paul – drums, vocals
Chris Spies - keyboards
 Rick King - Percussionist