July’s “Sounds of the Strand”
A busy month coming up for the Grand Strand concert scene. Let's get it rolling:
Poison with Ratt and Vains of Jenna - Tues., July 3, 8 p.m., House of Blues (Heavy Metal). Poison was a staple of the '80s and '90s hair metal scene with such mega-hits as "Unskinny Bop," "Nothin' But a Good Time," "Fallen Angel" and the obligatory, uberpowercheese ballad of the era, "Every Rose Has Its Thorn." Ratt's "Round and Round" certainly stayed true to the genre:
Vains of Jenna? They're a few years old, from Sweden, and apparently fit the "sleaze rock" mold.
Little River Band - Thurs., July 5, 9 p.m., House of Blues (Rock/Adult Contemporary). You'd think that tickets for this accomplished Australian supergroup would be pretty high - not the $19.50 to $21.50 they're going for right now at the HOB box office. What gives? It might have something to do with the fact that many of LRB's original members who helped vault the group to stardom have long since departed. They do, however, retain American bass player Wayne Nelson as their current lead vocalist (you'll remember Nelson's LRB lead debut on such early '80s top 10 hits as "The Night Owls" and "Take It Easy On Me").
Maybe the best acid test is a quick then/now comparison, with the "now" versions coming from LRB's recent "Rearranged" CD. (Listen to the "now" samples played in their computer-version "iPod"; just scroll and click.)
- "Take It Easy On Me" - 1981, and today. Pretty good.
- "Help Is On Its Way" - 1977 and now. Eh.
- "Lonesome Loser" - 1979 and now. Ugh.
Edwin McCain with Sam Thacker - Fri., July 6, 9 p.m., House of Blues (Adult Contemporary/Pop/Rock). An old friend to the Strand, McCain returns to HOB just weeks after his April visit.
Kenny Rogers - July 12-13, 7 p.m., Alabama Theatre. The rotisserie chicken magnate has released a country hit or two.
KC & the Sunshine Band with Sleeping Booty Band - Wed., July 18, 8:30 p.m., House of Blues (Disco). It's a bell-bottomed blitz!
B.B. King - Sun., July 22, 8:30 p.m., House of Blues (Blues/Soul). There are blues greats, and then are legends. He may be in his 80s now, but don't tell B.B. and his longtime companion "Lucille" that "The Thrill is Gone":
The Four Tops & The Temptations - Fri., July 27, 7 p.m., Alabama Theatre (Oldies). Ending the month with two of Motown's legendary groups is never a bad way to go. Heck, they might even throw down like this.
Don't forget, the Toxic Audio Dinner Show continues its limited engagement at HOB through July 15th.
The B-52's, Hootie & the Blowfish, Taylor Hicks and Peter Frampton are among the headliners for August. Check back next month for more on those shows!
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