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A group of folks got together from work and decided to head out to the 80s retro fest
of the Pretenders and B52s, neither band was one that I was crazy about, but I felt it
might be a good time and a nice evening. I was right. The evening
started out with the swing sounds of Royal Crown Revue, who provided a jumping start to
the evening.
The Pretenders were next, but they could have easily been the headliner. I was
most impressed by the fact that song after song, I was unaware of the huge body of
material that the Pretenders have amassed during their career. Headed by Chrissie Hynde on
lead guitar, the Pretenders delivered a strong set of great hits, like Brass in Pocket,
Chain Gang, My City Was Gone (Ohio, Chrissie is from Toledo), I'll Stand By You, Night in
My Veins, Talk of the Town, Middle of the Road, Don't Get Me Wrong. Chrissie has a
distinctive voice and a stark presence on stage with her dark hair and clothing. She
had a few choice comments for the crowd, including a stab at meat eaters. The
Pretenders have been playing together since 1980 and are still as tight and tuneful as
they have ever been, proving that a band can maintain their integrity over the course of
two decades and still make a living making good music.
The B52s, grand poohbas of 80s party music, got the crowd grooving right off the bat
with old favorites like Rock Lobster, Party Out of Bounds, Planet Claire, Private Idaho,
Quiche Lorraine, Deadbeat Club, Roam, and of course, their big hit, Love Shack, all off of
their new greatest hits CD, Time Capsule. For the most part, the B52s still
had all the old energy and stage presence, with Fred Schneider making a scene in pink
pants and a tank top and Kate Pierson in her standard mini. The hairstyles were a
bit more modern, so I longed for the days of the beehive. While Kate's voice was
still stellar, it was hard to miss that she was overcompensating for Cindy Wilson, whose
voice seems to have weakened over the years. The crowd ranged from teens to teens at
heart more in the middle age arena, but everyone was having a grand time. The
obligatory new song, "Debbie", from the CD was revealed, but was received rather
cooly, as everyone was here for to reminisce on the old stuff. The B52s are another
band that has managed to keep it together for such a long time and fill a very narrow
musical niche most successfully.
On That Note, I'm outta here......
C
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