What A Finale Summerfest 2022 Turned Out to Be
Taking A Slow Ride
July 2022 is the 50th Anniversary of the release of Foghat, which naturally means I could not miss Foghat’s Summerfest appearance to celebrate with Roger Earl, the original drummer, and the rest of the band. In case you missed Foghat’s announcement earlier this year: Scott Holt is now front and center because Charlie Huhn left Foghat. I had to give Scott a chance and must say I wasn’t disappointed, even though there’s only one Charlie Huhn and I sure hope he’s doing well. Bryan Bassett (guitar) and Rodney O’Quinn (bass) also added to quite a well-received performance on the BMO Harris Pavilion stage. Everyone knew exactly what was next as soon as Rodney’s bass began the first few notes of the Willie Dixon cover from Foghat’s “I Just Want To Make Love To You.” Happy 50th Anniversary to Foghat and their vintage album which is on my turntable as I write!
Amy Lowe & King Katz
Singer-songwriter Amy Lowe and her husband, King Katz, made their annual Summerfest performance to an audience of children and adults at the Northwestern Mutual Community Park stage. What makes this community park stage so nice is the acoustics easily travel to the playground area, which makes it enjoyable for parents and children alike to hear the performers. Amy Lowe is an incredible songwriter with a keen sense of knowing how to turn things we enjoy every day into lyrics that are both meaningful and fun while she also adds catchy music. She treated her Summerfest crowd to “Chocolate is Good,” from her Brighter than Fireflies album, which placed grins on many faces in her audience.
Christopher’s Project
It’s always a pleasure to see Milwaukee’s Christopher Pipkins perform with Christopher’s Project band, because of their musical depth and an always changing setlist of songs that provoke fond memories for everyone, especially when they perform Motown classics including “Brick House.”
http://christophersprojectonline.com/
She gave us goosebumps within just a few notes
Corinne Bailey Rae instantly gave us goosebumps when she sang her first few notes, and she quickly hypnotized the audience with her incredible voice and the way she moves her arms while she sings. My goodness, I really cannot think of anyone with such a beautiful voice as Corinne Bailey Rae, and I am far from alone with this opinion as several other fans said the exact same. Corinne explained to us how she wrote “Breathless” about someone falling in love with their best friend, which caused even more goosebumps and looks of amazement in others as she sang. Do not pass the opportunity to see her live.
https://www.corrinebaileyrae.com/
There was absolutely no chance I was going to miss Ayron Jones
This was a show I was looking forward to from the moment I saw him on the lineup because I was not able to see him last fall when he routed through Southeast Wisconsin. I really enjoy how he blends genres from Seattle while making it his music, which he plays with incredible depth of passion. I believe the future is wide open for him and he is a name rock’n’roll music lovers need to know. Even his cover of Nirvana’s “Breed” is supercharged with passion from every band member. Child Of The State, which already has a backorder for vinyl, was released in the spring of 2021 on Big Machine Label Group/John Varvatos Records, and it is an excellent album. As good as that album is, Ayron and his band are even better live, and please don’t take it from me, ask the hundreds of new fans he made at Summerfest! I look forward to his return to Southeast Wisconsin, and from looking at his tour schedule, that may not be until 2023.
https://www.ayronjonesmusic.com/
Singer, Songwriter, Icon
I enjoy listening to John Fogerty, from the 1960s to the present, which is why I could not be happier to have this opportunity to photograph him during Summerfest. It did not matter to me what songs he would perform during the photography window of the first three songs because there isn’t any song of his that I dislike. He opened with “Up Around the Bend,” followed by “Green River,” and “Born on the Bayou,” all of which were incredible. This was a soundboard shoot and there is absolutely no reason to complain because the opportunity to photograph John Fogerty hardly ever presents itself. This was literally one of my greatest highlights of Summerfest 2022, not only because I have literally enjoyed listening to every song by John Fogerty for my entire life, also because I stood between two of my long-time photographer mentors during this amazing performance by such a tremendous icon. People who were in the audience of this show continue to talk about how it was one of the best shows for all of Summerfest 2022.
A Whole Lot of Harmony
Boyz II Men was one of the most crowd-hyped shows of Summerfest, as people continued to express excitement, including talking about how they were making sure they would not miss this show. This was one of the most attended Uline Warehouse shows I witnessed for the entire Summerfest, as not only were the stadium seats and pit area packed, there were a sea of people overflowing alongside the seating area to the back walkway area. These fans weren’t just standing by, they were moving and singing along with the divine harmony of Nathan Morris, Shawn Stockman, and Wanya Morris, including a fun Lenny Kravitz medley. I have to admit I was fascinated with the beautiful changing colorful lights on Nathan Morris’ bass.
I had to follow my heart straight to Michael Franti & Spearhead
We are so fortunate to have Summerfest bring Michael Franti & Spearhead back every few years. It does not matter what kind of disposition anyone has stepping into a Michael Franti & Spearhead show because during the show, and definitely by the end of the show, a transformation occurs which includes hearts filled with hope and love. Fresh off the release of their new album, Follow Your Heart, it was clear fans were here to enjoy their “Human” experience with Michael and his band and a set list that included classics “The Sound Of Sunshine,” “Life Is Better With You,” and “Say Hey (I Love You),” along with “No Makeup,” and “Brighter Day” from Follow Your Heart. Another favorite part of attending Micheal Franti & Spearhead is where he climbs down from the stage and performs in the audience, soaking up the love his fans so freely give back to him, and this night he seemed to be in the audience longer than I ever remembered before, which was absolutely wonderful for all of us.
https://www.michaelfranti.com/
You better believe I would not miss Wisconsin’s Trapper Schoepp!
One never knows exactly what Trapper has in store for any show while I am forever pleased with his “The Scat” song about the ride from hell where you are supposed to stick to the walls while the floor drops out – in fact, I would have worn my “This Isn’t Fun Anymore” shirt that he sells along with the song, had this been my only show of the day. It was great to see Trapper switch from guitar to keyboard and back to guitar and his early slot had decent attendance on this second to the final day of Summerfest 2022.
Time to relive my college days with A Flock of Seagulls!
They had fun and the audience had even more fun with this ageless band which features the original founder, Mike Score (keys, lead vocals), along with Pando (bass), Kevin Rankin (drums), and Gordon Deppe (guitar). Absolutely nobody felt like forty years had passed since we first packed dancefloors to “I Ran.” This was such a fun show that many of us were left wondering where in the heck A Flock of Seagulls has been because we would easily see them when they make a return to Milwaukee!
https://www.aflockofseagulls.org/
Greg Koch Marshall Trio
When it comes to who the best person and his band would be to open for one of the hottest Summerfest ground stage 2022 shows, The Black Crowes, there is nobody that could pull off balancing entertaining a giant crowd with extreme professionalism, chops, and musicianship as Milwaukee’s Greg Koch. If you don’t know Greg Koch, or his podcast “Chewing the Gristle!” then I hope you check him out just as soon as you finish reading this. Greg is most famously known for his time as an international ambassador for Fender guitars, and he has also mentored a slew of local musicians over the years. This opening trio had Matt Turner on bass and Dylan Koch on drums, while missing was B3 player Toby Lee Marshall – reportedly due to illness (I never confirmed this). This show was an outstanding show, which says a lot because he has never had a bad performance. Absolutely we noticed an improvement in Dylan and we sure dug what Matt Turner brought to the stage, leaving fans on our feet during what seemed like a twenty-minute long Led Zeppelin medley.
The Black Crowes
I first purchased Shake Your Money Maker thirty-two years ago, and at no time since then have I not been a fan of The Black Crowes. I’ve seen them as a fan in Chicago during the nineties and again ten years after that in Lake Havasu, AZ. I prayed for recovery, healing, and reunion, and was as excited as the next person for the reunion tour to kick off to only get pushed back due to COVID. And now we finally have them as a ground stage headliner at Summerfest on the Generac Power Stage which has an improved sound system.
This was such a spectacular show for them, for the audience, and for me, as they opened with “No Speak No Slave,” followed by “Sting Me,” and “Twice As Hard.” This was definitely the largest and happiest crowd of all of the shows on the Generac Power Stage, from the moment Chris and Rich Robinson appeared on stage until the end of their show. Several long-time fans discussed how this was the best Black Crowes show they have ever seen and I easily agreed.
Gilberto Santa Rosa, aka The Gentleman of Salsa
There was no way I was going to miss this six-time Grammy winner who is one of the most successful Latin music vocalists in the world and a fantastic Salsa band leader, all of which easily explains how incredibly popular he is with his fans. I noticed how proud his fans were to wave their respective flags from their countries of origin while singing along with Gilberto and his amazing Salsa band. The Latin pride was as contagious as was enjoying Gilberto and his Salsa band.
https://www.gilbertosantarosa.com/
The final day exceeded expectations!
Champagne High with Sister Hazel Band
What a treat to have Summerfest as one of the summer tour stops for Sister Hazel Band. This band has such a fun playful interaction within each member and with their audience, including lead singer Ken Block sharing how it was the makeup used for the “Champagne High” video that made his eyes pop, as he explained why he doesn’t look like himself in the video. Of course, they included their most famous of all songs, “All For You” during their show, and fans sang along.
Happy 50th Anniversary Marshall Tucker Band!
Doug Gray has much to celebrate as the sole original member of this band who released The Marshall Tucker Band with the hit that forever defined their sound, “Can’t You See” in 1973. Oh, the fun stories Doug shared with the Summerfest crowd during the band’s performance. They opened with “This Ol’ Cowboy,” followed by “Dog Eat Dog World” and “Heard It in a Love Song.”
https://www.marshalltucker.com/
An audience full of women could mean only one thing
It was time to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Working Class Dog with Rick Springfield, and a few hardcore fans were even dressed to match the album cover. For many Rick Springfield fans of a certain age, this is the album, released in 1981, that introduced us to him through his hit songs “Jessie’s Girl” and “ I’ve Done Everything for You.” Rick Springfield is just as entertaining now as he was 40 years ago, as he showed us he hasn’t slowed down over the years. He is surrounded by an equally energetic and talented band. Rick also told his audience about his “Beach Bar Rum” partnership with Sammy Hagar, just as he sang “Party At The Beach Bar.”
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
It seems like forever since Black Rebel Motorcycle Club played in Milwaukee, which is why their Summerfest show was heavily attended. They opened with “Red Eyes and Tears,” followed by “King of Bones,” and “Beat the Devil’s Tattoo.” It sure was beyond great to enjoy one of the most uniquely creative bands in rock’n’roll.
The Cult
There’s no better way I can think to conclude Summerfest 2022 than with Ian Astbury, Billy Duffy, John Tempesta, Grant Fitzpatrick, and Damon Fox performing their classics including “Sweet Soul Sister,” “Edie (Ciao Baby),” “Fire Woman,” and “She Sells Sanctuary.” There’s cool and there’s Ian Astbury singing “Give Me Mercy,” from Under The Midnight Sun cool. The Cult’s new album has a release date of 10/7/2022.
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