The Revivalists – June 10th – Red Rocks Amphitheatre

The Red Rocks faithful were treated to a NOLA take-over of sorts Friday night. After a limited capacity show last summer, The Revivalists made their triumphant return to live music’s greatest playground, and they brought Preservation Hall Jazz Band with them! The big easy was in full representation! Rounding out the bill was The Ghosts of Paul Revere who got to make their Red Rocks debut as they crisscross the county on what appears to be their final tour as a band.

It was a hot day but as show time came the temperature was perfect for a concert.  After a rowdy set of harmony heavy folk tunes the The Ghosts of Paul Revere, Preservation Hall delivered a fun set as the sun was setting. They had the audience engaged and singing along with call and response songs between stunning solos from some of the best trad Jazz players in the business. It was a perfect start for what was to come.  

The Revivalists hit the stage with their pair of drummers thundering on the set opening tune “Criminal.” [Listen Here!] Front man David Shaw shed his jacket early and kept the energy raging as he paraded around monster stage. While the band served up a healthy dose of tracks from their most recent record, they scattered a few older tunes into the set, covered the Bee Gees and even treated the audience to a couple of new songs making for a very well rounded show.  Shaw is a powerful presence, bringing dynamic energy to the stage and seemingly making eye contact with every single audience member.  The man works as hard as the very best in the biz at bringing it all to the stage, and making the audience feel like he came to see them!  Judging by the double encore it wasn’t just the audience that was pleased with their performance, the band was too as they gave the fans a triple shot during their first trip back to the stage followed by a second encore in which Shaw channeled Roger Daltrey as they melted faces with a thrilling rendition of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley!”  

The Revivalists at Red Rocks has become an annual treat I look forward to every year!