Barenaked Ladies, Howard Jones & OMD at the Caboose – June 3rd. This Minneapolis gig is the first leg of the “Last Summer on Earth” tour. Early afternoon was raining. Communications were unclear on my photo pass so over lunch hour I drove down to the gig – about a mile from work. I was told go see the guys unloading the bus, got the confirmation & all is good. Back to work & looking forward to the night & hanging out with 2 old high school friends. As I drove home after work to get my camera gear I discovered a dead battery that should have been fully charged-damn. On my way to the gig I was thinking how are these 80’s bands going to sound tonight? They were great in the 80’s. Late to this show & did not get good shots of OMD.
BNL has gone through big changes since Steven Page left in 2009. This is the 1st time I’ve seen the Canadians live, I would loved to have seen them 10 years ago this evening they did not disappoint. Ed Robertson is clearly leading the action & still loves playing pinball when not on the road. Friday late afternoon the rain stopped & the sun came out, BNL did many of their old hits including my favorite “Pinch Me”.
Howard Jones still has that very British synth-rock sound he pioneered in 1983. He did several favorites including “What is Love”, Things Can only get Better”. It was nice to see Howard come back up & do several songs with BNL. Howard Jones & BNL exceeded my expectations tonight, as artists they are as relevant now as in 1985. Their music will be remembered for a long time but then so will my old high school friend Kevin who did a hand stand as the night closed down – its only Rock & Roll.
