KEITH ST JOHN AND FRIENDS THE WHISKY 5/4/2012

KEITH ST JOHN- VOCALS

DOUG ALDRICH- GUITAR

MICHAEL DEVIN- BASS

BRIAN TICHY- DRUMS

This was a real rock-n-roll show! It was billed as either Keith St. John and Friends, Hard Rock Saints or LA Whisky Jam. The guys played songs by Led Zeppelin, Whitesnake, Montrose, Foreigner and Dio- and did a remarkable job. And they were funny and friendly, which seems to be somewhat of a rarity at concerts these days.

Michael sounded great on bass- what a great player he is. And he delivered the quote of the evening! Brian Tichy was an absolute madman. He had yellow tape wrapped around his kit and was wearing a hard hat with a construction-type uniform. He jumped over his kit a few times to interact with the crowd. He also threw out a fair share of drum sticks over the course of the set.

Doug is an absolute monster on guitar. I’ve seen him play in the 80s with Lion, once or twice with Hurricane in the 90s, in the 2000s with Whitesnake and, for the 2010s, in this very special jam. He continues to up his game. He played with a ferocity I haven’t seen from any other guitarist in quite some time. He is a true guitar god!

Keith completely nailed each and every vocal part, which is no small feat for the incredible singers’ material he was covering. I knew he was way up for the task with the commanding vocal performance he delivered with Montrose last September- that was fantastic.

“City workers are not supposed to drink on the job”- Michael Devin (in reference to Brian Tichy’s set-up and “costume” for the evening as he enjoyed a beer). Hilarious.

It was a treat to see what will be a good part of the “house band” (The Moby Dicks) for the John Bonham concert later this month at the House of Blues (that will be Keith, Michael, Brian… and hopefully Doug as well!).