Cherryfest On

July 5, 2009

get your CherryFest On
three shows you don’t want to miss

By Rick Coates 7/6/09
 
The Bay Side Entertainment Stage at the National Cherry Festival has long
been the best musical entertainment value in Northern Michigan. For years
festival goers were granted access to all concerts for the week for the
price of the $1 Cherry Festival Pin. A few years back they raised the
price to $3 for the week. Last year they introduced the V-Pass for $15 as
the Festival faced a tougher operating budget needed to help subsidize the
national acts they bring to the Open Space.
Still, at $15 for the whole week, this remains the best bargain for music
in Northern Michigan. The Bayside Entertainment Stage features eight
nights of quality music acts from rock legends to up-and-coming country
artists to great cover bands. The final three nights of the festival
feature Southside Johnny (the grandfather of the New Jersey Sound) & The
Asbury Jukes, country star Sammy Kershaw, and Pink Floyd cover band Think
Floyd. 


Southside Johnny &
The Asbury Jukes
 While Bruce Springsteen made the “New Jersey Sound” famous, it is
Southside Johnny who is credited with developing the genre. During the
’70s he and his Asbury Jukes along with Springsteen and his E Street Band
dominated the Jersey Shore music scene. In fact, members of both groups
played interchangeably between the two bands. Guitarist  “Miami  or Little
Steven” Van Zandt helped to co-found the Asbury Jukes and was co-leader of
the band until eventually joining Springsteen full time.
While Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes never enjoyed the commercial
success of Springsteen, the band remains popular today. Their 1978 release
Hearts of Stone was selected by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the Top
100 best albums of the ’70s and ’80s. In all, more than 100 musicians may
lay claim to being alums of Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, including
Clarence Clemons and Max Weinberg of the E Street Band. Even Jon Bon Jovi,
who toured with the band in 1990, considers himself a member.
“Southside Johnny is the whole reason why I became a singer,” said Bon
Jovi. “Anyone growing up in Jersey in the ’70s who wanted to be a singer
wanted to be like him.”
Despite never having a major hit, Southside Johnny has continued to have a
major, cult-like fan following after nearly 35 years.
“I am always reminded in interviews about the fact that I have never had a
hit, but I tend not to reflect, but rather concentrate on the future,”
said Southside Johnny. “I guess better to not have a hit and still be here
after 30 years than be a one hit wonder.”
Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes with the Miami Horns will perform
Thursday night at the National Cherry Festival Bayside Entertainment
Stage. They will perform a host of tunes from the Jersey shore including
several Springsteen covers.
 
Sammy Kershaw
 The Cherry Festival has had a history of bringing several great country
acts to Traverse City before they were household names. A few years back
they booked a little known Trick Pony in early winter; by the time the
band came to Traverse City they were the number-one country band in North
America and their show at the Open Space is among the largest ever.
Sammy Kershaw is not an up-and-coming country artist, but the seasoned
veteran of 20 years on the music scene who remains popular.
Kershaw is fresh off a break from the music business. He ran
unsuccessfully for the lieutenant governor of Louisiana two years ago and
is back recording and hitting the road. He comes to the Cherry Festival
Friday night with 25 Top 40 country hits, including his number one hit
“She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful” and Top 10 hits such as “Love of My
Life,” “Cadillac  Style” and “Anywhere But Here.”
In many ways Kershaw’s life seems right out of a country song. He started
out as a teenager opening for several country acts, but his youth and
early success led to a life of drugs and alcohol abuse. He quit music,
drugs and alcohol in 1988 and took a supervisor position at Walmart.
During his Walmart days, one of his demo tapes made its way to Mercury
Records. Label execs were impressed with Kershaw’s honky-tonk sound and
signed him in 1991.
He was a fixture on the country charts and toured extensively during the
’90s. In 2001 he married country superstar Lorrie Morgan; the couple
divorced in 2007. While it has been several years since Kershaw has
enjoyed commercial success atop the music charts, he remains popular with
legions of fans and will definitely be the highlight for thousands of
country music lovers at this year’s Festival.
 
Think Floyd USA
One of the highlights of last year’s National Cherry Festival was Think
Floyd on closing night with the fireworks. The last night of the National
Cherry Festival is one of the great summertime spectacles in Northern
Michigan.
Think Floyd USA (not the same band traveling under the same name in
Europe) will cover material from Piper at the Gates of Dawn through
Division Bell (essentially the whole Floyd catalogue from 1967 to 1994).
They will perform plenty of material from Floyd’s most commercially
productive years of 1972-79 when the band released their albums Dark Side
Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals and The Wall. Their album Dark
Side Of The Moon spent 1,500 weeks (29 years) on the Billboard album
charts - an obvious all-time record.
In a press release, the band Think Floyd made this statement: “The evening
will include dynamic sound effects, original video projections, dazzling
choreographed lighting design, full laser production and nine of USA’s
finest musicians. You will ‘Think’ Floyd was right there playing in front
of you.”
Think Floyd USA will perform Saturday, July 11 at the Bay Side
Entertainment Stage with fireworks following. For details, visit
cherryfestival.org.