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 Saturday, November 21, 2009Spotlight 29 Casino Coachella, California By Denise Ortuno Neil Photos by Renee Vargas For more Renee Vargas photos of the Monsters of Classic Rock, click here. Spotlight 29 Casino, near Palm Springs, Calif., rocked out Saturday night. Nov. 21, when The Monsters of Classic Rock took the stage. Former members from classic rock bands like AC/DC, The Steve Miller Band and Huey Lewis and the News assembled to perform the best of the best songs from the groups’ glory days. Songs such as “Space Cowboy,” “Power of Love” and “Keep on Rockin' Me Baby,” were executed with harmonic precision. Just like the announcer said at the beginning of the show, “They are not a cover band,” which was plain to hear. A friend of mine made fun of me when she found out that I would be covering the show, as I have never completely embraced this genre of music. Nevertheless, with an open mind and eager ears, I let the music of the night saturate me with good old classic rock, and I liked it.  The members of the band consisted of Chris Slade from AC/DC on drums; Mario Cipollina from Huey Lewis and the News on bass; Greg Douglass from The Steve Miller Band on guitar; Terry Ilous from XYZ, Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath on lead vocals; and Sam McCaslin on keyboards. Douglass joked around when he tried to explain how the band got together, suggesting that the idea was hatched when they all resided at a nursing home, poking fun at their mature status. But if they came from a nursing home, it must have been the coolest one of its kind anywhere. It’s apparent that these guys love what they do, as Douglass surmised, ”You got to love the music business.” What was most impressive about the show was the amount of heart the band put forth. Most concerts play a program of songs, then have a finale number that seems extra long, kind of like the fireworks finale at the end of a Fourth of July celebration. But this band played every song that way, making their performance that much more awesome. Another highlight was the solos in which they engaged with one that earned drummer Slade a standing ovation.The crowd gathered towards the stage and sang along as the band rounded out the night with a generous encore belting out the ultra crowd pleaser, “All Right Now.” The Monsters of Classic Rock concert was highly entertaining and gave me a new found appreciation for Classic Rock. So cheers to the bands continued success and let’s hope that they keep “Rockin' On!" For more Renee Vargas photos of the Monsters of Classic Rock, click here. For more about the Monsters of Rock Band, click here. For more about Spotlight 29 Casino entertainment, click here. |
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