Photos and Review by: Michelle Cucchiaro
Show photos: HERE
Once again I was making my way up to Salisbury Beach and the Blue Ocean Music Hall. The Gary Hoey Band was headlining and I just had to see wåahat all the fuss was about. Hoey’s name seems to be on the tip of everyone’s tongue lately. It doesn’t matter whom I happened to be talking to or where I am, the name “Gary Hoey” finds its way into the conversation. So when I was asked to cover the Ho Ho Hoey Christmas show, I was totally up for it.
The Blue Ocean Music Hall is just a short drive up the road so I hopped on up there and arrived just as the opener was getting ready to go on. I never know what to expect from the first act but these guys turned out to be good. They call themselves “Mickey Kanan’s All-Star Jam”. Band members are rooted in a variety of local bands (Cold As Ice, RIPT, Jet City) and they all come together with Mickey Kanan to rock the roof off and rock it they did. The talented group includes Mickey Kanan on vocals, Bruce Bennett on guitar, Joe McMahon on drums and J Bryan on bass. Check theÅåm out, it’s worth it.
After a quick stage change the man of the hour springs onto the stage. The first thing I noticed about Gary Hoey is that he’s a pretty happy guy. Smiley you might say, even while he’s playing, like he’s getting pure satisfaction from every note he expertly plays. One thing is for sure—the sold-out-show-standing- room- only crowd was definitely getting nothing but satisfaction! The crowd was pumped for this show and they were dancing in the aisles and cheering every chance they got. Gary Hoey is amazing and like any musician worth his salt, he makes it look so easy.
As expected, he had a holiday themed set list and each tune he played had a special Hoey twist on the typical interpretation to keep it interesting. It wasn’t all ho-ho-ho and jingle bells, he did take the opportunity to wow his adoring fans with homegrown Hoey tunes so it was a great night with great music all the way around. The highlight of the evening for many was when Gary proudly welcomed his son Ian to the stage. The crowd went nuts and rightly so, the kid was good! As they say, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! The show was awesome so catch it if you can.
Gary Hoey's Ho Ho Hoey Christmas Show at The Blue Ocean Music Hall – MA
