Mansfield, Ohio Show- July 15, 2006
I have been to alot of concerts in my day,both of Marks and other bands,but I must say this particular show was the most FUN.We had a blast!
It was a real pleasure meeting and rockin down with Deb,Suez and the rest of you.Youre all very wonderful people.Its been said that the show wasnt long enough,sound problems,etc..personally I felt it was a great show. The weather was hot and sunny which I see as a blessing when considering how rainy and stormy it was just the night before, I got to meet some of you wonderful folks.
They played TNUC in its entirety and We Gotta Get Out of This Place,which I havent seen performed in years, Ricky Farner performing with them I feel is definitely a good thing, I joined in the locomotion dance,they played a few off the new cd which I had hoped they would do,ended up with a slew of free t-shirts that were tossed out to the crowd throughout the day,(Lol), I finally got Marks cd which is everything I had hoped it would be,my friend Dave got to meet Mark again,it had been 17 years since his last Mark show and he left the show very pleased,I got to meet all the guys afterwards including Ricky which was a very special pleasure for me.
I got to give Mark my cd that was released earlier this year which was an honor of a lifetime for me.I really wanted them to do Inside Looking Out,but hey,we cant have everything.The opening act was great too,which I felt was a good thing.I attended an NRG show down near Cincinnati in 2004 where the opening act was absolutely crapolla.Slow dreary tear in my beer country dribble that put half the crowd to sleep.
Personally I feel rock n roll isnt supposed to be a competition thing anyways of who outjams who.Rock n Roll is just Rock n Roll!American Style of course! I really felt (feel) both Farner-ized and NRG-ized and really couldnt have asked for anything more.Thanks Mark and NRG for what was I feel a quite splendid show:-)I hope everyone else enjoyed it as much as me.
Peace, Chris
PHOTOS BY: CHRIS WEEKS - CLICK ON THUMBNAIL TO VIEW LARGER IMAGE.
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MARK AND N'RG PUT THE ROCKIN' IN THE ROCKn'RIBFEST!!
My husband Greg and I put the Road Dog shoes on for this one, leaving our New Hampshire home at O'Dark 30 to catch a plane out of Manchester for Cleveland and then the drive to Mansfield. And it was well worth the trip.
After seeing Mark and everyone at the hotel and exchanging warm greetings and hugs all around (honestly, it wasn't planned that way; we wanted to be as close to the place as we could), as well as bestowing the maple syrup "calling card" to everyone, we settled in, ate, and headed for the Ribfest. It was held on a college campus in Mansfield in a parking lot. The temperature in that parking lot had to get over 100 degrees; a Texas heat kind of day. We went back to the hotel to get some sunscreen and when we were returning to the Ribfest for the remaining soundcheck, we caught the beginning vocals of "Same Old Feeling." I can't explain it, but it went straight to my heart and soul. The rest of it was great - even heard parts of the song "8-6-7-5-3-0-9."
We stayed from this point on, and met up with Chris and his two friends, whom we had never met, and also Suez Thull, whom we had met in Youngstown a couple of years back. It's always great to travel to these shows and hook up with people you have corresponded with but never met, in some cases, or making this an annual event to hook up with old friends at a show somewhere outside of where we live, which we try to do once a year.
The opening band, Jimi Vincent and Stallion, was the best opening band we have ever seen open up for Mark. These guys could sing and play really well, and were a lot of fun to listen to. Greg made sure to get their CD, and Jimi signed it for him.
Then, just before 9:30, Mark and the guys took the stage. The opening song was "Rock N' Roll Soul," and this crowd had it, that's for sure. There was a huge group of people right up front in front of the seating area, and they remained there throughout the show, much to the dismay of the security guys standing off to the side. Anyone who was up front had plenty of opportunity to dance to some great music all evening - "Nothing Is the Same," "Heartbreaker," "Into the Sun," "NaDeane," "Same Old Feeling," "We're an American Band," "For the People," "T.N.U.C" in its entirety. When it came time for the "LocoMotion," Mark asked people to make a train, and of course, we had to get right in on that one!! We came up with a new name for it - the LocoMotion Conga Line.
Mark always amazes us with his playing and singing and how he moves around. He has more energy than people half his age! If he runs around at home the way he does at shows onstage, his kids and grandkids probably need roller skates to keep up with HIM!! He acknowledged that the humidity presented the need to retune his guitar, but hey - it was so hot, how all the instruments couldn't be affected is beyond me. Paul, Lawrence, Ricky, and Hubert, too - all of them gave it everything they had up there onstage. They are a tightly bound group, very well rehearsed, and it shows. And the more the audience showed their appreciation, the more they gave it back. The show was very enjoyable, and everyone was very well received.
Thank you to Mark, Ricky, Lawrence, Hubert, and Paul for a wonderful show. We are looking forward to seeing you in New Bedford. God bless you all.
--Debbie & Greg Wunsch.
PHOTOS BY DEB WUNSCH - CLICK ON THUMBNAIL TO VIEW LARGER IMAGE.
