Glorious Sons rock Whoop Up Days with Steve Keenan band

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 I didn’t catch a lot of whoop Up Days this year, but made a point of catching the glorious return of Kingston rockers the Glorious Sons, Friday, Aug 25. The Glorious Sons rocking Whoop Up Days, Aug. 25. Photo by Richard Amery

The Glorious Sons’ Brett Emmons and bassist Chris Huot rocking Whoop Up Days, Aug. 25. Photo by Richard Amery
 But first, I got a chance to be blown away again by hot local blues rockers the Steve Keenan Band, who happily jammed on older Steve Keenan songs like  one of my favourites “ Whiskey Drinking Blues” as well as some new , more country inspired originals inspired by Keenan’s experience raising his daughter.


 They also cut their musical jobs with some inspired jams on blues classics like Eric Clapton’s “Lay Down Sally” and BB King’s ”The Thrill is Gone,” for which, Keenan and lead guitarist Pete Watson effortlessly traded guitar solos as if they shared on brain and four sets of fleet fingered hands.

Rhythm section,  drummer Darwin Romanchuk and bassist David Popovich played completely in synch as if they too shared a single brain.


 By the end, rambunctious  Glorious Sons fans had gathered up close to the fence separating the Gas King stage and the audience to get a closer look and listen to the long awaited, rare performance from the local bluesmen, as a cadre of cops gathered backstage to keep an eye on the stage, and the bustling crowd.


 The Steve Keenan band ended their set with a hot version of the driving blues rocker “Going Down,” one of my favourite blues classics, done by everybody from Govt. Mule to Colin James.


 The police presence ended up being necessary  as the Glorious Sons started their high energy set. Security admonished them to step back from the fence as a couple idiots started throwing cans at the band, which lead lead singer Brett Emmons, brandishing a mic stand and a bottle of whiskey to admonish them about  throwing things at the band. He ended up throwing his mic stand at them, though it never cleared the fence.

The Steve Keenan band rocking Whoop Up Days, Aug. 25. Photo by Richard Amery
In the meantime, the Glorious Sons delivered a hot, sweltering set of uptempo rockers including hits like Heavy” “Lightning” and “ The Union” which had everybody singing along and a couple of others I didn’t recognize, but which many of the people in the front row sang along with. The new single “Everything is All Right” was a laid back highlight.


More introspective, piano powered newer songs like the new singles were counterbalanced by new harder edged rockers like “Sometimes The Devil Is all You’ve Got,” and another outstanding, heart-wrenching rocker  “Shotgun.”
Emmons played a hot harp solo during “Mama,” conducted a crowd in the sing along of the chorus and and eventually sat on the edge of the stage, whiskey bottle in hand, and ended up wandering up to the fence to get the audience to help sing along with the more popular numbers like “Heavy”.
 They wound down their set with the single from earlier this year “Kill the Lights” and “ I’m Your Wrecking Ball.”

— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 19 September 2017 08:34 )