On this Friday night in June, 2006, The Cars, with Todd Rundgren taking over the role as frontman, played the Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre, with Blondie opening. I do not recall how or why, but somehow I had a seat up front, center orchestra about 7 rows from the stage. I had never before had a great seat for Blondie, having only seen them at one of the NYC concert series, maybe in the late 1970’s; unfortunately I never saw the band in their downtown club days. Deborah Harry looked older than I anticipated and, if I recall correctly, she was wearing a long dress/ gown giving her a Mae West vibe. The Cars were kind of lost as an entity after the passing of founder Ric Ocasek and for this tour the band enlisted the multi-talented legend in his own right, Todd Rundgren, who I am a huge fan of. The Cars sounded fine and played the hits, but while the audience seemed to enjoy the group, for me it seemed a bit forced without Ocasek leading the way. Rundgren could sing all the songs capably, but this experiment which might have looked good in theory, did not really work completely. I do not recall if the reconstituted band stayed together for long after this show and tour, but the evening was otherwise enjoyable for what it was worth.

Check out a great interview with Todd Rundgren by Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins on YouTube.

Just What I Needed

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GQ

Two long time arena staples, Styx and Foreigner, played the Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre on a Friday night in May, 2006. Both bands are still touring and playing the Jones Beach venue this summer; Styx with Chicago, and Foreigner with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Juke Box Hero

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GQ

The band Chicago is down to one original touring member and their most recent lead vocalist has very recently been jettisoned for reasons unclear. If Neil Donell thought he was going to win a staring contest with the original members on the verge of a summer tour with Styx, he quickly found out how fast a Chicago hired hand can be replaced.

Chicago will be appearing at the Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theatre in July and have already begun booking a solo fall tour without Styx in tow; for Chicago, the road truly goes on forever.

Beginnings

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GQ

The Gregg Allman documentary is playing in movie theaters this Wednesday, June 17, 2026; twenty years plus since I attended this Allman Brothers Band concert at the Beacon Theatre on a Saturday evening in March of 2006. My wife and I will check out the doc in Farmingdale, Long Island tomorrow night. While our musical obsessions sometimes differ, our love of all things Allman is something we can both agree on.

Check out the Cameron Crowe memoir “The Uncool” which contains some wild Gregg Allman stories; well worth the read.

I’m No Angel

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GQ

Leon Russell is one of the all time greats in the history of rock and roll, so when I saw an opportunity to see him perform at the now defunct B.B. King’s Blues Club in the heart of Times Square , I grabbed my buddy, Mr. Nut, and we headed into Manhattan on a Tuesday night in March, 2006 to catch a legend.

Mr. Russell was a unique talent who had performed as a sideman to some of rock and roll’s greatest acts, as well as recording extraordinary solo works that stand up to this day. Mr. Nut and I had a table to the right of the stage and when Leon Russell carefully entered the room, cane in hand, he appeared heavy yet frail. I had read somewhere that Leon was pretty much broke in those days and needed to perform for the money. Russell, apparently not in the best of health, did not move through the crowd very fast but once he sat in front of the piano he showed that he could still play. I remember thinking at the time that it was somewhat of a short set, but to see him perform live in a club setting was a privilege. I believe I had attended another Leon Russell performance at Westbury Music Fair at some point in the past, and sometime after the B.B. King Blues Club performance, my wife and I caught a show at the Beacon Theatre where Elton John and Leon Russell performed a set together. Russell was a hero of Elton John and when John heard that Leon was down on his luck, Sir Elton made an album with Leon to help him get back on his feet; the appearance at the Beacon was part of that strategy. The collaboration was memorable and the last time that I would see Leon Russell perform in concert.

Tight Rope

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Ok, so let’s get out of the way; we have all seen the YouTube videos of recent David Lee Roth performances and they are a train wreck. My wife and I had gotten ourselves sucked into the David Lee Roth YouTube vortex on numerous occasions and it is borderline addictive. The voice is shot but the band is competent, while the all male background singers carrying the classic Van Halen tunes for Roth were serviceable and oddly comical at the same time. The online videos portrayed an iconic rock god who refuses to see the end of the line and hang it up; we decided we had to see it live.

On Sunday, June 7, 2026 The Roth Show pulled into Huntington and we had 4th row left center seats at the Paramount. The concert was not sold out; I think Roth has played there somewhat recently and I believe the YouTube videos scared many away from making an investment on what was already a tough sell being that it was a Sunday night. It was advertised as an 8 o’clock start and at 7:45 the place looked about half empty. The stage was set up very heavy metal rock and roll with a big drum riser and no indication that there might be an opening act. At approximately 8:25 Roth and the band hit the stage; David Lee looking fit in a rockin’ vest that showed off his elaborate tattoos. The tight band tore through the early Van Halen catalog (LOUD), Roth’s voice was not as bad as I was expecting (my expectations were very low) but his energy was high. You would be hard pressed to find any front man work a stage as hard as Roth, and it was extremely entertaining (and LOUD) from beginning to “Jump”. It was an extraordinary performance by an aging superstar who clearly still loves to be center stage. A buddy of mine sent me a text from a friend of his who said he left early and that it was one of the worst ten concerts that he had ever attended. I emphatically disagree as the performance was thoroughly mesmerizing.

David Lee Roth gave the audience everything he had for two hours, and for me, that was more than enough on this night.

Speaking of “worst shows”, three that came immediately to mind when I saw that text: Stevie Nicks solo at Nassau Coliseum (endless stories between songs had the crowd around us screaming “sing the song” and we left early), Kansas at Westbury (I talked my son into going with me and it was so bad that I apologized to him afterward), and the Genesis final tour at Madison Square Garden (which was like a progressive rock Spinal Tap with bad smoke machine effects, we left early and effectively ate the expensive tickets that evening).

Unchained

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GQ

I first saw Glen Hansard perform a few years ago in Kilkenny, Ireland opening for Bob Dylan and Neil Young. I did not know who he was at the time, but I remember him saying that there were interesting things happening back stage (Neil Young would join Dylan during Bob’s set later on) and that Hansard would not return unless he was headlining. I was impressed by the bravado. Next, this past July, 2025 Glen Hansard performed at the Newport Folk Festival with Swell Season. We go to the Folk Festival every year and I told my son that Hansard was a “must see”. We were rewarded with a phenomenal set after which we headed over to the second stage to catch Jeff Tweedy. My son tells me “your boy Hansard is right behind us” and sure enough there he was standing in the walkway behind us checking out the Tweedy set. I turned around, shook Hansard’s hand and told him that his was a great set and that I had seen him in Kilkenny with Neil and Bob, Hansard smiled and said that it was special day. Coincidently my son and I had just returned from a week in Ireland the day before Hansard’s show at the Bowery Ballroom; I was jet lagged and almost bailed but refused to miss this concert and persevered, driving into Manhattan to find a parking space right in front of of the venue. I was off to a good start. The ticket said it was an 8 pm tip off; I was tired and hopeful it would be close to true, but reality stepped in and the opener Margaret Glaspy walked onstage with just an acoustic guitar. Ordinarily I am up for opening acts and new music, but I was fading and Glaspy’s folky tunes were not doing it for me; I could not wait for her set to end. Thankfully, Glen Hansard was there to kick ass with guitar, bass and drum back up and he delivered. Hansard has become one of my favorite artists. He is an Irish Bruce Springsteen before Bruce sold his catalog, cashed in, and became a self righteous liberal road warrior coming to save us all with his thoughts and opinions. With a guest appearance from his colleague from Roller Skate Skinny (very cool) doing two really good songs including “ I’m Not Drinking”, and Rachel Ziegler coming down from the Bowery balcony to duet on the Swell Season song “Falling Slowly”, Hansard proved it all night that he was truly the real deal, an under-appreciated rock star performing at the legendary Bowery Ballroom in New York City.

Fairytale of New York

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Jim Messina is performing tonight at the very intimate Landmark on Main Street in Port Washington. My wife and I were at the 425 seat venue a few weeks ago to see Josh Ritter, and we attended a North Mississippi All Stars show there some time ago. The Jeanne Rimsky Theatre is an odd venue as if dropped in from a time long ago and is always a unique concert experience. Messina’s performance is scheduled from 7 to 9 PM which, I have to admit, we are not hating on this Sunday evening with work on the horizon tomorrow morning.

Your Mama Don’t Dance

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GQ

This Friday, September 5, 1980 Yes show is one of the many Yes concerts I have attended since the “Going for the One” tour, and the return of Rick Wakeman to the lineup, in 1977 (with opener Donovan).

Don’t Kill the Whale

Mr. Wakeman and Son will play the Paramount in Huntington in March, 2026 with plenty of tickets still available.

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GQ

Tonight my wife and I will venture into the Long Island thaw to catch Josh Ritter perform at the Landmark on Main Street in Port Washington. I know nothing about Josh Ritter, my wife is a fan, but this quaint theatre, where we attended a North Mississippi All Stars show some time back, is a bit of an unusual venue that has the feel of an old church basement; it is also unusual that the venue sells its own tickets thus eliminating exorbitant Ticketmaster fees, which is a nice bonus.

The Newport Folk Festival sold out immediately as usual and has begun its annual slow roll out of performers attending the July event held at Fort Adams in Rhode Island. Three stages; three days, many surprises, and one of my all time favorite events to attend each year.

Getting Ready to Get Down

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GQ