Live - Strand Theater 3/12/2012, First Show - Dress Rehearsal Celebration!! Options

[OutToDry]

All pics and reviews here folks......It's a celebration ___________!!!!

[FishOutaWater]

Oh boy. Where to begin.

I arrived at the Strand Theater at 6:00 in time for the reception in the lobby. The band and the sponsors and whomever else was responsible for the hospitality at this special event spared no expense in providing ample delicious food for the attendees. Little hand carved flank steak sandwiches. Vegatables. Meatballs. Mac and Cheese. And extavagant desert table. The room was packed full of local dignitaries, politicians, friends and family of the band and fans. Everybody was in a peak state of mind. It was pretty high energy. Maybe that was because there was 50 people in line at the bar at all times and everyone wanted a drink. But I think it was because the city, the friends, the family and especially the fans were all there to honor this band and celebrate Live.

I immediately saw the FOL crew, hanging around close to the theater doors, with Zman at the center of it all. Everyone was hoping that The Thrill would remember to come usher the fans into the theater early to get front row seats. Never to be doubted as a man of his word, The Thrill (who was very busy rushing around taking care of things as a sponsor) broke from his duties 15minutes before the doors opened to the general public to greet all of the fans and usher us into the theater so we could get our prime position. I met some cool people and found a seat in the second row center. To this point, I had no camera with me.

The media credentials were on tight lock down and I didn't think that I would get to shoot the show.

First up was Adam Taylor. An awesome show! That was my first time seeing him and he is really terrific. After Adam's set, I decided to talk to the nice people at the front of the venue and see if I could get my camera from my car. Fortunately, I was able to get it in, and I got myself all set up for what was about to happen.

Kevin Martin and Sean Hennessy played an acoustic set of some Candlebox songs. That was simply awesome. Memphis is a joy to watch perform and Kevin's vocals are just insane. I saw him perform with TGF, which was loud and high energy. To see this guy sing with two acoustic guitars gives you a new appreciation for his vocal talent. They opened with Cover me. Just wow. Kevin is huge when he lets into this song. He was soulful, with huge range and emotion. Their rendition of Far Behind was incredible. What may have possibly been one of the best aspects of the night was Kevin Martin as story teller. He sat on that seat and told stories about the 1990's, when he first met the members of Live and their families. How Chad Taylor's dad went into his dressing room at Woodstock and took his beers and said "It's OK, I'm Chad's dad" and Kevin was like "Chad who? Who is this guy?" He talked about what great people CCP are and how much he approves of their soon-to-be announced lead singer. He complimented Sean Hennesy. He spoke of the meaning of Far Behind. He talked about York and the community. He was really gracious, personable, funny and charning. I have never met Kevin, but I am a bigger fan after this performance.

By the way, Kevin said "It is my dream for Candlebox, The Gracious few and live to tour together".







There is a gallery with more photos here:

Kevin Martin and Sean Hennessy Gallery



This review is to be continued...

This post has been edited by FishOutaWater: Mar 13 2012, 4:21 pm