Welcome to the Joe Bouchard Solo Gig Reviews page!! Here I'll be gathering together all the Joe Bouchard Solo-related gig reviews, reports, images, clips - anything - that I've been sent to date.
So - have you got anything to contribute to this page? Reviews, missing gig support band/venue information, ticket stubs, posters, handbills etc etc - if so, let me .
The (March 29) Thursday night show was solo acoustic at the Sidewalk Cafe. This was part of the Feast of Friends concert sponsored by my good friend Chris Laubis who runs Poptown Records...
First, Jynx played. She is a singer/songwriter/keyboardist who has a very cool attitude reminiscent of the moody side of Patti Smith. She had a Theremin player who joined in for several songs. I liked the songs and the vibe.
Next up was me. I played my new 12 string guitar and played two new original songs, Wolves and Runnin' Out of Time. Next came a dark and moody version of Paint It Black followed by my version of a BOC song Death Valley Nights. Death Valley is a song that really has fallen through the cracks of the BOC catalog. It deserves to be reinterpreted, and this one connected with the crowd.
A few more songs followed including Carnival Toy from the Back From Hell CD, Astronomy, Blood and Roses (a Smithereens cover). My version of the always topical Eve of Destruction followed by One More Song (another new song) and Reaper. For Reaper brother Albert came up and played a drum kit sans cymbals, and Jimmy Cacala, my drummer from X Brothers, played the cowbell. The effect was great and the crowd really felt part of a special event.
Tonight, May 21, I'm and the Cutting Room NYC for a party with a widely eclectic gang of musicians including Mary Wilson of the Supremes, pop singer Taylor Dane, Lou Christie (Lightning Strikes) and many more.
The occasion is the release of a new Billy Joel book.
Richie Canatta, ex-Billy Joel saxman, will be playing for the late show.
Wednesday, May 23 I'm back in NYC for another SOLO gig this time at a new venue called the Highline Ballroom. I'm the opening act for Tommy Ramone's bluegrass duo - it's a benefit for Question Mark of "96 Tears" fame. He lost his house in a fire in January and I'm glad to help him out in this small way.
The show will feature performances by:
Guest of Honor performs @10pm:
Set list for Joes show at Doyles 7-15-07
Great show. got to meet Joe afterword and took a couple of photos with him.
This was a great gig. It was the first time I played a Sunday afternoon matinee and in spite of my trepidations, it turned out great. It was a small club near a lake and every seat was filled with many fans.
Steve was the soundman who also plays bass. He plays in a very popular local Jimmy Buffett tribute band called Changes in Latitudes. They play at steady gigs at the casinos in Connecticut.
The show was from 3 to 5 PM and, since the club was near a public beach, a thunderstorm drew people inside for some entertainment and liquid refreshment. With my years of experience I can play for hours by myself, but the question is: can my two hour show be entertaining and complete without a full back up band. I saw Roger McGuinn do solo recently and he did just that. I didn't miss the Byrds at all. Well . . . It was a great show for a Sunday afternoon, and I plan more shows like that.
Solo shows at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland are coming up on Aug 4 and 5. I would be playing these type of shows with Patty G but her severe back problem has caused her to drop out of our duo. So when I'm not with The X Brothers or TreeTop, I'm on my own.
One of the real reasons I did this show was the promoter of the show is also a video producer. He is producing a full length DVD of my solo performances. There is an excellent TV studio in Palmer MA that he gets for free on Sundays, so we shot a pro video of 16 of my songs on the morning before the show. It was a four camera shoot and I expect the final product will look great, and will be available in several different formats, i.e. Youtube, commercial DVD and Myspace Videos.
It all adds up to more gigs.
Wednesday night Aug 1, I'm playing a short acoustic set at the Shadow Lounge in Pittsburgh PA. It's just an open mic deal and gives me a break on the drive to Cleveland.
I'm sure it will be fun.
This was the first of two free solo shows on consecutive days performed by Joe as part of Goldmine Magazine's National Record Show in the plaza in front of the Cleveland Hall of Fame. As it turned out, it was too rainy on the Sunday for an outdoor gig and they took it indoors.
There's a clip of Death Valley Nights from this Saturday show contained within the Metal Fanzine 20 min Interview here:
What a honor to finally meet Joe, truly one of the nicest people I have ever met. Just like his brother Albert. His kindness is only surpassed by his musical ability.
Saturday show was outside on a beautiful sunny day. I will leave the review and set list to Midvid. It was so cool to meet and talk with Martin Popoff and his interview with Dennis Dunaway was really cool too.
Midvid had to work so he took off after Joe's set we left shortly after to go home and get ready for the DDP show at the beachland.
Much to my chagrin as we were driving away from the parking garage we noticed Joe back up on stage with Pooba playing a few more songs for the crowd.
The show at the beachland was excellent. The new DDP Cd 'Bones In The Yard' sounds great. It was a extra treat to have Joe join DDP for a few songs at the end.
Me and Dora were really nervous to have Joe Bouchard sitting at our table enjoying the show.
Joe Bouchard (acoustic)
Cleveland, Ohio
Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame (outside)
August 4, 2007
Poobah played after Joe and Joe did some songs with them, however, I left after Joe and don't have any info on what songs were played.
Sunday was another special day. Had to get up early to get to the rock hall as Joe was to take the stage around noon or so. Fortunately it rained like hell :umbrella: so the band could not play... outside... so they moved them inside the hall to the theater how cool was that?
The only draw back was the free concert turned into a price of admission to the rock hall concert!! This I was not prepared for. Not only didn't I have the extra funds on me I vowed to not go to the hall until BOC was in it.
As we stand there trying to figure out how the hell we are gonna get inside Midvid tells us "Don't worry, you guys are not going to miss this. I got it covered".
Wow, what a Bro. That is only one of the reasons why we love you John. I could not allow him to do that. Just to know my Bro had my back is a great feeling.
As luck would have it, Dora spotted Mitch Barnes (He helped set up the DDP gig at the beachland and is a good friend of Joe and Dennis). He scored her 3 comp. tickets for the hall. The Rock Gods Were Looking Down On Us along with John and Mitch.
As for the show could not of ask for anything more. As we entered the theater we were greeted by Joe as he sat and strummed his ax!! He sat casually sat and talked to us and answered questions and told stories and even took the time to do a impromptu interview with Metal Fanzine a myspace thingy.
Joe put on another great show.
Next was the DDP whod kicked major ass again. Then we got to watch Joe set in with Pooba which we had missed the previous day. The guys from Pooba were really cool and actually pretty good.
It is easy to see why Joe choose them. All in all, it was a weekend we shall keep and cherish forever.
Joe Bouchard (acoustic)
Cleveland, Ohio
Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame (inside)
4th floor stage
August 5, 2007
Performance order for August 5, 2007:
Here's the Dennis Dunaway Project setlist August 5, 2007 (venue same as Joe's):
Joe did these songs with Poobah during their set:
Here's a clip of "Which Road is Mine" from this show:
Below is a link to a youTube clip of Joe singing an acoustic DFTR with Jim Gustafson and Poobah - presumably this was at the end of Joe's set:
Actually, this was very inconsiderate of Poobah - don't they realise if they come on during a "solo Joe" performance, they risk turning it into a "Joe Bouchard and Friends" gig? Then I won't know in which site section to document the show...
By the way, here's a clip of Joe taking Jim Gustafson through the basics of Godzilla on 3rd August, presumably to allow Joe to perform it with them during their set on the 5th:
And here's a link to an interview which also contains some footage from this event:
We played some great shows. The band Roktapus is a three piece group of young BOC fanatics. The drummer calls him self Chadzilla so you know he's into it. They are virtuoso players with a deep funky vibe. They've done tributes to the Meters, Led Zep, the Police and Spinal Tap in the past. I think that a BOC tribute was definitely appropriate.
What I did was book this as Joe Bouchard Solo Shows with Roktapus doing a tribute to BOC which I was glad to be a part of. It was nice to do a little of both.
Here's the set lists.
Denver Oriental Theater Solo Set List (Sept 20 2007):
Denver BOC Tribute Set List:
Rollinsville Stage Stop Inn Acoustic Set List (Sept 22 2007):
Rollinsville Stage Stop Inn BOC tribute with Roktapus Set List:
SAME AS DENVER except only Hot Rails as the encore.
The Set in Carbondale Colorado at Steve's Guitars was just me solo:
Steve's Guitars, Carbondale Colorado Set List (Sept 23 2007):
It was a very interesting tour. I had not been to Colorado in over 20 years. The fans were very receptive and I plan to go back possibly in December for more shows.
I got to see Savoy Brown on my night off. Boy, did that bring back memories! BOC played many gigs with Savoy in the very early days. Kim Simmons is the singer now and he's playing guitar better than ever.
It was great to renew old friendships.
Joe
Benefit with Joe Bouchard (formerly of Blue Oyster Cult), Frank Carillo and the Bandoleros, Nuts in a Blender, Chowder Head, Bottoms-Up, Gregg & the All Stars, Tramp Stamp, Westchester Firefighters Emerald Society Pipes and Drums.
Auction with sports memorabilia and more. All proceeds go toward Local 596's Good and Welfare Fund, 1 pm
The ad for this show described it thusly:
A Night at Folk City
OLD SAYBROOK - Traditional and other folk music, featuring songs made famous by Bob Dylan, Dave Van Ronk, Peter, Paul & Mary, Judy Collins, Ian & Sylvia, Judy Henske and more fills the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center Friday, April 9, 8 p.m., 300 Main Street.
For tickets, call 877-503-1286, or visit KatharineHepburnTheater.org. Produced by the Small Town Concert Series, tickets are $25, refreshments available.
Performers include
My gig in Salt Lake City with Abraxas, a Santana tribute band, went over very well.
Their band learned a half dozen BOC tunes and I played on several of their Latin rock songs. A great time was had by all.
Unfortunately the gig in Plant City (near Tampa) has been canceled. No reason given by the promoter, but it's complicated by the fact the my friend Jami Jamison (Survivor) was supposed to be on the bill, but had to drop out because of a cruise booking starting on Sunday.
Dang, I was dying to do my first real gig with Derek in years. I had practiced Hey Baby and Cat Scratch and more. I actually jammed with Derek in a club in Myrtle Beach during the Cult Brothers days.
But it's been a long time since the Foghat/BOC days. Derek is still a great singer.
Hopefully the date will be rescheduled. I got a lot of emails from fans that were planning to go.
Made the drive up to Pawling, NY last night to see Joe with Steve Katz at the Town Crier Cafe. A legendary venue that has hosted so many great artists. The Town Crier is in it's final month of shows before a move to a new location in Beacon, NY.
Got a chance to say hi to Joe just before he went on. Talked briefly and he mentioned he had a cdr copy of the new Blue Coupe record for me if I stuck around after the show. Are you kidding me! I would have washed all the dishes of the dining patrons in the audience and then some. But that is Joe; super gracious to his fans and friends, but I don't have to tell you that if you've met him.
Joe opened up withy my favorite song off of his latest solo record, Heart of Wine. The song translated beautifully to Joe's acoustic arangement. He played his acoustic 12 string the whole night and sounded great.
Here's Joe's set, but I think I forgot one.
Steve Katz is a very talented musician, and also a Great storyteller. I got a big kick of him sharing some fantastic tales of his amazing career in music. I don't know his music well enough to give any details, but he is a fantastic guitar player and fine harmonica player.
Joe came back up and did six or seven tunes with Steve including Kickin' A Can, Sweet Jane and Cheryl's Going Home. Joe playing a lot of slide fills while with Steve and he played his twelve string acoustic on all songs last night. Joe mentioned that before he joined BOC, Albert and Buck used to play the entire Blue's Project record Projections live.
Steve Katz said he had not played that song live in many years. Glad Joe coaxed that one out of Steve, it sounded great.
Joe and Steve also mentioned that they are working on a revival of the Blues Project with Joe on bass. That is definitely something to watch out for.
Joe also mentioned that Blue Coupe will be playing Infinity Hall in Norfolk, CT on July 5th.
Here's the complete set list, minus Steve's tunes. His set was nearly a complete anthology starting from his jug band in 1962, playing with The Blues Project in 1965-66, founding Blood Sweat and Tears with Al Kooper in 1967, to producing Lou Reed's Rock and Roll Animal.
Here's the songs I played on:
Set 1 All solo with acoustic 12 string (9 songs - 45:18):
Set 3 Songs with Steve Katz (6 songs - 27:11):
Here are some clips: