His other son, Adrian Perry clearly shined on many tunes, especially "Secretary's Day" (from TAB's recent debut CD Pulling Out Just Enough To Win), where he wailed away on vocals. As one rabid fan put it, "That was f**kin' hot, man!" Another Pulling Out track, the warm and sunny "CYT" also killed. These tunes had the swagger and vigor of early Stones and, wait for it…Aerosmith.
As far as the elder Perry's vocals are concerned, it's not that he can't sing, because clearly he does an adequate job in the studio. But his passion for singing and vocal range, live or in studio are weak compared to his electrifying guitar skills. "Hold On Me," the heavy hard rocker from his 2005 self-titled solo CD kicked butt, but his vocals on this and some others were okay but uninspiring. Joe sounded best when his two sons sang with him on tracks like the title track of the Joe Perry Project's (1980) debut album "Let The Music Do The Talking," and the more recent slide-dominant blues number "Shakin' My Cage."
Aerosmith fans are well aware that Joe Perry can shred a guitar with his fingers or with a slide. It was doubly cool to see him and his son Tony engaging in dueling slide solos on tracks like "Talk Talking" and "Shakin' My Cage." The "Perry Ave." street sign replica on the back portion of the stage was a nice touch as well, though the closest to it, ironically was Tileston, the drummer (who actually lives near the Perrys).
Overall, much like Joe Perry's sparkling black shoes, TAB The Band shined and delighted the capacity crowd of about 350. This rare performance on a rare night pretty much lived up to my expectations, even if the band wasn't flawless. There were no tense moments or train wrecks, just a bunch of highly skilled musicians having a lot of fun. It was a loud, raw, rock and roll evening. Who could've asked for more?
For more info on TAB The Band, visit their Myspace page.
To see photos from the show, go to the Joe Perry fan site Justinsphotos.com.
Article comments