Ringo in Nashville: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly and The Sublime

[MaryO]

What a great show Ringo puts on and last night was no exception wiht a few extra surprises thrown in :)

The Good: Every performer on the roster was fabulous...perhaps the best lineup we have seen so far. Todd Rundgren, Gregg Rolie, Stever Lukather, Richard Page, Mark Rivera, Gregg Bissonette and, of course, Ringo all hit it out of the park. Lukather's Hold the Line and Rundgren's Bang the Drum got the crowd rocking on their feet and you could tell everyone on stage was having a ball. Richard Page's voice is as good as ever and he was definitely the vocal highlight of the night. Rolie's Santana numbers and keyboard playing were anthemic (is that a word?) .

The Bad: Our seats, while surprisingly close to the stage even though we were in the balcony (the Ryman is a small venue over all and at no spot are you really very far from the stage) our angle didn't allow me to see Bissonette's set at all and I had to strain to see Ringo when he was on his own kit. Ironic, since with everyone else I almost felt I could reach out and touch them. From what I could hear, Bissonette's playing was superb as always.

The Ugly: The rednecks sitting directly behind us ("Ringo don't need to do this...he made millions off that game-boy game where you play the drums" - say this in the most stereotypcial southern accent you can imagine and you'll have a small taste of what we heard behind us all night); the idiots in the merchandise line who shoved and pushed and cut in front of everyone and then still complained and moaned; and Todd Rundgren's hair and outfit (although his performances made up for that) lol.

The Sublime: Joe Walsh's "surprise" appearance (most of us kind of figured he would show up for his brother in law's birthday) and his performace of Rocky Mountain Way. Man, that was amazing!

There were a few other guests who showed up on stage for the finale "With a Little Help from My Friends" which included Vince Gill, Kix Brooks, Richard Marx, and Brad Paisley but it was a group sing free for all and while fun to see, no real "performances" took place. Nice way to honor Ringo's birthday, though.

It's my 3rd All-Starr tour and I would gladly make the effort to see the next one. I"m not sure who else could put on such a show with so many legendary acts that all work together, get equal time and all seem to genuinely enjoy their time on stage with each other.

And that's my review :)

[Mad About Drums]

Originally Posted by MaryO

And that's my review :)

And it's a good one, the best review considering I haven't seen the show, I feel almost like I was there, with all the good and bad bits (you always get the one that's a pain in the...)

Shame you couldn't see Gregg, he's such an amazing player and a pleasure to watch, but at least you managed to see the Starr of the show :)

Sounds like a very good concert, with interesting and iconic musicians, I do envy you Mary, perhaps one day...

[Florian]

I met Gregg Rolie - and had the opportunity to party with him one night many moons ago. He is such a humble, talented cat. I was just thrilled to be able to listen to the stories he told of his Santana days...will never forget that night. I also had a chance to hang with Michael Carabello that same night. He actually left me a pair of autographed sticks and a personal invitation to hang with him in LA. Another humble, very cool cat.

F

[GRUNTERSDAD]

Glad you got to see him. He was here on the 1st of July but has priced me out of the audience. I saw him 4 years ago so I will live with that memory. Great review