The Family & Friends Band Concert--November 10, 2004

The Boomer Coalition Concert
featuring The Family & Friends Band
Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY
November 10, 2004

Review

...as posted at Columnatedruins.com:

It wasn't really an Al show. It was a group effort to raise awareness about Cardio-vascular disease, which they say is our generation's disease...and it kills more women than men, and more people yearly in this counrty than drunk driving accidents, cancer, and AIDS combined.

Patti LaBelle opened with less voice than usual, she said, tho to these ears the sister can still *sing*!!! Then Taj Mahal - and really, who is cooler than he is??? Then Los Lobos, who were also really excellent, and Taj came out and did "Sweet Home Chicago" with them. Then Jonny Lang, and i was really impressed with his set. He scorches! I turned to the friend i was with and commented that he is one of those people who *must* be a musician....he just HAS to get the music out of him. I was very, very impressed with his performance, and highly recommend him to anybody looking for a good show!

Then came the Family and Friends band, but first Owen Elliot came out and told us about how her mom had really died - not the ham sandwich, obviously, but from a massive haart attack. She brought Denny Doherety out, and he told how he nearly died of an aneurism last year - and the way he tells it, he literally could have gone at any second. But he'd gone in to have his heart checked, and they found it and dealt with it immediately, so he was there tonight to tell us to get our hearts checked. That was the recurring theme, from Henry Winkler [erstwhile MC] on down. I was left admiring the hell out of Owen, who is a very classy lady.

Al was not the headliner of that group - Denny was, if anybody was - and they did four songs - Monday, Monday, California Dreamin', Do You Believe in Magic [Sebastian's voice is gone...], and Rhonda. I was very pleased to see that Rhonda had 'em up and dancin', and everybody was singing along - the only song of the night that got just about everybody! ANd it was nice to see Billy Hinsche and Richie Canata up there, too!

Michelle Phillips is still gorgeous; tonight was Mackenzie's b'day, and she was there; Carnie was there and came out to sing on Rhonda [and earlier, came out to hand Patti LaBelle some water - Patti said that she was going to be the godmother of Carnie's baby - anybody else heard anything about that?!], and she looked good. Starting to show a bit, but then, she's pregnant. She SHOULD start to show a bit.

The lady behind me was heard to ask her companion who Al Jardine was. I turned around and told her he was a founding member of the Beach Boys - the guy down there with the red guitar.

"Is he deceased?" she asked.

I hope i was in as much control of my facial muscles as i think i was. "No," i said, "he's the one down there with the red guitar in his hands."

*sigh*

I didn't stay for the Doobie Brothers, because i wanted to catch the 11:52 train - which i did - so i don't know if they sang more than the three songs that everybody else did or not; i'm sure they rocked the place, tho!

It wasn't a great show, but it was very good. I thought the Brian tribute had better stars, but then, this seems to be a new organization - at least, i'd never heard of them before - so...whatever that means. If it means anything. I'm too tired to finish that thought...sorry.

Anyway...go get your heart checked. If you have one.

Contributed by: Susan Lang


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