The Union Jack was flying high at Harper’s Bar & Grille on Saturday, July 28th, when a trio of tributes to classic English rockers hit the stage on the “British Invasion Night” of All Access Magazine’s Summer Concert Series, bringing to life the sights and sounds of a bygone era in rock-’n’-roll. Bridge of Sighs gave props to the guitar greatness of Robin Trower, The Who Show recreated the magic of you-know-Who, and Led Zepplica carried the torch of – surprise! – the mighty Led Zeppelin.
Bridge of Sighs took the stage first, three solid musicians assuming the same classic “power-trio” configuration as Trower’s band. Background notes on the “Tribute City” website refer to Bridge of Sighs as a revival, rather than a tribute, and some good yet neglected music was certainly revived for the occasion. Trent Stroh played six-string bass and sang, and Mike Taylor drove the drums, backing guitarist Tom Neely through a tight set of Trower tunes from the Seventies. During an instrumental opening, Tom’s tone emulated the well-sustained and phase-shifted character Trower is known for, and the guitar also got good and crunchy during a set that included familiar tunes such as “Lady Love,” “Sweet Thing” (Trent said the band would be taking a tip from Tina Turner, by playing the song “nice and rough”), and “Day of the Eagle.” Tom’s fingerwork was fluid throughout, while Trent, who served for the most part as a low-end anchor for the guitarist’s leads, was glad to strut his considerable bass ability in a jam during “Sympathy.” Finally, Bridge of Sighs closed with a departure from Trower’s catalogue, choosing to play the heavy intro to Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” before bidding farewell.
It has been almost three decades now since madman drummer Keith Moon met his untimely end, and of course bassist John Entwhistle is gone as well, but the surviving half of The Who, Pete Townsend and Roger Daltry, still carry on somehow – backed by a boatload of session players. So now it’s up to tribute acts such as The Who Show to attempt to re-kindle some of the original
fire that was felt when the original four misfit Brits were modly rocking back in the Sixties and Seventies. Normally, The Who Show consists of France DiCarlo as Keith Moon, Chris Propper as guitarist Pete Townsend, Joel Pelletier as bassist John Entwhistle, and Mike Harris as singer Roger Daltry. But on this particular evening, Mike was absent, and in his place was Stephen Shareaux, who has been playing the character Jimmy in an off-Broadway production of The Who’s “Quadrophenia.” Stephen’s lanky, theatrical demeanor worked quite well for the hard-hitting “Godfather Meets the Punk” from that rock opera, and his voice did fine through the entire set-list, but he wasn’t quite “practiced up” for all the lyrics, and he was also minus the bushy blond mane that Mike would have brought to the role. Still, Stephen gave a trouper’s best effort, reading from song-sheets where necessary, through a song-list that covered most of The Who’s career, and he thought it was a good joke to be singing “Substitute” in Mike’s place, a substitute himself.
France provided non-stop percussive mayhem on the skins, with gangly, flying arms that had evidently undergone much practice at Moon’s manic technique. Despite being beardless, sharp-faced Chis made a good Townsend, frequently leaping in the air like Pete, and flailing windmill-style at his guitar. And Joel, portraying the late Entwhistle, was suitably steady, solid, and expert at his post, quiet in his demeanor yet loud on his bass. The Who Show jammed ably on basic rockers such as “Pinball Wizard” and “My Generation,” and brought on the canned keyboard loops for more complex cuts, including “Who Are You?” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” Towards the end, the band displayed just a hint of the rough-housing antics The Who were known for, such as kicked amps and tossed microphone stands, but they refrained from any really serious damage, and ultimately, The Who Show left the house smiling.
Like his friendly rival Keith Moon, legendary drummer John “Bonzo” Bonham perished many years ago, but Bonzo’s legacy also still burns bright, continuing to inspire young skin-bashers year after year. And like The Who, Led Zeppelin is still in constant classic-rock rotation, and both old-timers and whippersnappers yearn back to the arena-playing heyday of the mighty Zep, so of course there’s a market for tributes to these rock-’n’-roll giants. Led Zepplica does a good job of holding the torch, with Joe Retta as vocalist Robert Plant, Lenny Mann as guitarist Jimmy 
Page, Stan Taylor as bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and Darryl Johnson as drummer John Bonham. Slender Lenny wore a silky dragon-embroidered suit, and Joe looked like a big-haired rock god in tight jeans and a loose open shirt, as the set commenced with “We’re Gonna Groove.” The band rocked righteously on “Out on the Tiles” and “Black Dog,” with killer leads from Lenny, and then Stan showed his competence by handling both the electric piano and keyboard-bass lines during “Misty Mountain Hop.” Keyboards were also superb during “Since of I’ve Been Loving You” and “Kashmir.”
A highlight of Led Zepplica’s set was when veteran drummer Kurt Levee took his place behind the kit to pound out the signature beat on “The Ocean.” Energetic as well as enigmatic, Kurt helped to bring the classic cut alive for the crowd, earning enthusiastic applause in the process. Through the rest of the show, Darryl maintained Bonham’s powerful signature beats, with that slightly off-kilter delivery that makes Bonzo a percussionist’s icon to this day.
As it turned out, “Stairway to Heaven” was omitted this time, so Lenny’s double-neck guitar stayed on its stand, but overall, the degree to which Led Zepplica’s tribute performance replicated the sight and sound of a real Led Zeppelin show was worthy and satisfying. So at the end of the evening, following this “British Invasion” of Harper’s Bar & Grille for All Access Magazine’s Summer Concert Series, one could say that the crowd gladly surrendered to the good music of Led Zepplica, The Who Show, and Bridge of Sighs, giving up plenty of appreciation and applause for the rocking sonic conquest.
