Friday, Mar. 21, 2008

Live! at hard Rock Park

Amusement venue offers up slate of old, new acts to kick off summer

The opening of the new Hard Rock Park is mere months away and its introduction will feature an extensive lineup of bands to satisfy fans of every musical genre. With country sounds, hard rock riffs and funky grooves, the current concert schedule features some classic bands, as well as some newer musicians on the scene. For most shows, the price of a ticket is included in the price of park admission, but check www.hardrockpark.com for further details. Exceptions are noted. Here’s a peek at who’s coming to town:

The Eagles Helping to kick off the opening of Hard Rock Park, the Eagles will perform June 2 at the grand opening event. Special tickets are required for the event and more information is available at www.hardrockpark.com. Since the 1970s, the band, currently consisting of Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmidt and Joe Walsh, has been known for its lyricism and hit-making sound. The band has had five No. 1 singles and six No. 1 albums. Several members have also had successful solo careers. The band has also won five Grammy awards. Noted albums include “Desperado,” “Eagles,” “On the Border,” “One of These Nights” “Hotel California” and the recently released “Long Road Out of Eden.”

The Moody Blues This British band formed in the 1960s, fusing progressive rock with classical undertones. The album “Days of Future Passed” is a noted record featuring the band’s signature sound and the hit song “Nights in White Satin.” In the ‘80s, the band scored a moderate hit “In Your Wildest Dreams.” The current lineup is Norda Mullen, Graeme Edge, John Lodge andJustin Hayward. The band will perform at Hard Rock Park’s opening event June 3. Special tickets are required, see www.hardrockpark.com for details.

George Clinton &Parliament Funkadelic The original “funk soul brother” will roll into town May 23 to bring some attitude to Grand Strand. Clinton was an architect behind the bands Parliament and Funkadelic in the ’70s, and helped bring funk into the mainstream along with James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone. The bands later merged, becoming P-Funk or Parliament Funkadelic. Clinton’s work has been seen on solo and group albums, as well as on albums by other artists, including Ice Cube. Clinton is considered to be one of the most sampled musicians ever. His most recent album, “How Late Do You Have 2BB4UR Absent?” was released in 2005.

.38 Special Named for the bullet of the same caliber, the Southern rock band was formed in 1975 by friends Dan Barnes and Donnie Van Zant, brother of late Lynyrd Skynyrd lead singer Ronnie Van Zant. The group, whose lineup now features guitarist and co-lead singer Barnes, guitarist and lead singer Van Zant guitarist Danny Chauncey, bassist Larry Junstrom, keyboardist Bobby Capps and drummer Gary Moffatt, will appear at Hard Rock Park May 13 with the Charlie Daniels Band and Shooter Jennings. In the early ‘80s, the band was scoring hits with the tunes “Hold on Loosely,” “Caught Up in You” and “I’d Been the One,” two of which hit the top spot on the Billboard album rock chart. Albums include “Wild Eyed Southern Boys,” “Special Forces” and “A Wild Eyed Christmas Night.” The band’s most recent album, “Drivetrain,” was released in 2004. Also, their music was featured in the movie “Super Troopers.”

Kid Rock Kid Rock (Bob Ritchie) grew out of the Detroit music scene and charged up the charts in the ’90s with songs like “Bawitaba” and “Cowboy” from the album “Devil Without a Cause.” Subsequent albums include the recent “Rock N’ Roll Jesus,” “History of Rock” and “Cocky.” That album showed off his softer side, featuring “Picture,” a duet with Sheryl Crow. Kid Rock’s music has been described as rap, hardcore, Southern rock and hard rock. Kid Rock will perform at Hard Rock Park on May 13 with a special appearance by Rev Run of Run DMC.

Sister Hazel Hitting the music scene in the ’90s, the band maintains an extensive touring schedule, expanding its fan base along the way. The group, making one of its frequent stops on the Grand Strand, will roll into town July 4 for a concert at Hard Rock Park. Sister Hazel is known for its alt rock sound and the singles “All For You” and “Change Your Mind.” The group’s most recent release was the album “Absolutely.” The band’s current lineup is Ken Block, Drew Copeland, Ryan Newell, Jett Beres and Mark Trojanowski.

Charlie Daniels Band With speedy fiddle playing to lure the country crowd and a solid rock undertone, the Charlie Daniels Band has been stirring up crowds since the early ’70s. The band will appear May 16 at Hard Rock Park. The band consists of Bruce Brown, Taz DiGregorio, Pat McDonald, Daniels, Charlie Hayward and Chris Wormer. In 1979, Daniels won a Grammy for Best Country Vocal Performance for “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” Noted albums include “Fire on the Mountain,” “ Saddle Tramp,” “Midnight Wind,” “Million Mile Reflections” “Simple Man” and “Windows.” In 2007, the band released a live album titled “Live In Iraq,” as well as the studio album “Deuces.”

One Republic With its song “Apologize” getting tons of radio airplay and its music featured on hit TV shows such as “Gossip Girl” and “Smallville,” the band has solidified a following begun on the Internet. One Republic has a large following within the MySpace community and has parlayed the interest into a national career, being named an MTV “Artist of the Week” and appearing on a recent Timbaland album. The band will play May 8 at Hard Rock Park in a show for annual pass holders only. The band’s current lineup is Ryan Tedder, vocals, guitar, piano; Zach Filkins, guitar, vocals; Eddie Fisher, drums, percussion; Brent Kutzle, bass guitar, cello, vocals, keyboards; Drew Brown, guitar.

Shooter Jennings What started as a rock career has morphed into a rock/country sound for country bad boy Shooter Jennings. Following in the footsteps of famous father Waylon, Jennings and his band, Ted Russell Kamp, Bryan Keeling, Ryan Wariner and Robby Turner, recently released “The Wolf.” The band has appeared on “Late Night with David Letterman” and “Last Call with Carson Daly.” Shooter and the gang will appear at Hard Rock Park on May 16 with .38 Special and the Charlie Daniels Band.