Rant #1,949: Old Time Rock and Roll

After a grueling week, my family prepared for the weekend by going to a concert on Friday night.

It was at what used to be called the Westbury Music Fair, now called the NYCB Theater at Westbury, and it featured the "Summer of Love" tour, headlined by Mark Lindsay of Paul Revere and the Raiders and Micky Dolenz of the Monkees.

Fifty years ago, you probably would not have been able to get a ticket to this show, as Lindsay and Dolenz were two of the top rock and rollers on the planet back then, with a multitude of hit records, appearances on television and coverage by the then teen media in such publications as 16 and Tiger Beat.

Today, it is different. With a complete lack of promotion for this concert--the local papers completely ignored it, as far as I could see--you could have walked up to the box office five minutes before the show started, and you would have been able to get a good seat to the show.

The place was probably half full, but it did not deter either the audience or the performers from having a good time.

The night's festivities opened with the Fab Four, a talented quartet of musicians who portrayed the Beatles on stage.

The did note-by-note live renditions of many of the real Fab Four's hits, and I must say that they were surprisingly good, a nice beginning to the rest of the evening.

After a brief intermission, Lindsay and Dolenz came on, started with "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"--a song that they both recorded, the Raiders first and the Monkees second, but garnering the hit--and for the next nearly hour and a half, all present were transported back to the 1965-1970 era, not just the "Summer of Love" in 1967, but an era when the music truly mattered.

Sure, when most people think about the "Summer of Love," they think about 1967, when the establishment was turned topsy turvy by a major sea change in not just music, but culture and the way we, as a society, looked at things, but if you really want to look back with an open eye, music in 1967 was still being spearheaded by acts like the Raiders and the Monkees, very corporate entities who were putting out incredible music.

And that music was heard on Friday night, everything from "I'm a Believer," to "Him or Me, What's It Gonna Be," to "Kicks" to "A Little Bit You, A Little Bit Me."

Lindsay is a little long in the tooth, but he delivered his hits with a lot of energy, and Dolenz continues to be a marvel, sounding the same as he did 50 years ago, with almost as much energy as he had way back when.

It was just disappointing that they were playing to a half empty house, but those who were there were into the moment, and we all seemed to have a good time.

And with such a small crowd, it was easy to get out of the venue, which as anyone who has seen a show there can attest to, can be highly problematic at times.

So, all in all, it was a good show on Friday night, one that brought us back to a different time and place in our lives.

For me--having seen probably at least 100 or 150 shows at the venue, going back to when it was merely a tent--every time I go back to Westbury--notice, I avoid using the current name, because to me, the place will always be the Westbury Music Fair--it is like I am coming home.

And being 20 minutes away from where I live makes it even better.

The "Summer of Love" tour is playing around the country this summer. If it comes to your area, I urge you to go and see it. You will not be disappointed.