|
The Gary Hoey Band Webster Theatre- 03/30/07 Words and photos by Stacey McCarthy ©2007
Who is Gary Hoey? Several people asked that very question when I told them I was going to see his band play at the Webster Theatre. To be honest, I didn’t have a clue either. I was going because a friend that works at WCCC mentioned the show.
After doing a little research on the internet, I found out that Gary Hoey is an extremely talented and well respected guitarist in the music community. I went to the show with my expectations set pretty high which usually means I leave the show very disappointed. Not this time. The Gary Hoey Band blew my expectations away!
Through the first three songs, I was taking photos and wasn’t giving
the music my full attention. I was having too much fun taking the
photos. You could tell that Hoey, the bassist, Erik Kondz, and
drummer, Matt Scurfield were comfortable around a camera. The fourth
song started as I was leaving the photo pit. It was immediately
recognizable. It was a cover of Red Rider’s most popular hit,
“Lunatic Fringe”. “Lunatic Fringe” is the first single from Hoey’s
newest album, “American Made”.
Hoey alternated his older songs with the new ones. “Reaction”, off the new album, was reminiscent of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s style. I loved "Shed My Skin". The lyrics were just as powerful as the music. In between songs, Hoey kept the crowd amused with personal stories about the songs. Hoey’s humor came to light with his instrumental version of “Low Rider”. The horn and vocal parts were all done with a guitar! Hoey’s version of “Linus and Lucy” starts off like a Hendrix song before flowing into the familiar jazzy arrangement of the original Vince Guaraldi version. A combination of guitar and drum mimic the staccato notes of the piano. One of the highlights of the night was Hoey’s version of Dick Dale’s “Misirlou”. A definite rock edge was given to this surfer classic. In addition to the rock edge, Hoey made sure to give his respect to Dick Dale and “Misirlou”. Whether they were playing surfer music from the 60's or rock from '07, The Gary Hoey Band did not disappoint.
|
