June is Jumping at the Showboat Stage

The Sizzlin’ Summer Concerts are back.

As has been said by people who know, “We are the originator, not the imitator.” With a season off for COVID (yuck), this summer is our 24th year of bringing family-friendly local and regional musical shows to the Riverwalk.

This year we have some old friends returning to the stage and some hot new acts. The concerts are almost every Thursday at 7 pm on the Showboat stage.

Here’s a preview of what June will bring.

June 12: The Accidentals

The year kicks off with The Accidentals on June 12th. They are based in Nashville, and we are darn lucky to get them in one of their few Michigan appearances this summer.

Sav Buist and Katie Larson formed the band in Traverse City in 2012. They both truly put the “multi” in “multi-instrumentalists” as well as write and sing. Both are musicians of the highest order. Larson graduated from Interlochen in 2014, and Buist was darn near born and raised on a touring bus in Nashville to musical parents.

Meanwhile, Katelynn Corll mostly plays the drums, but she can handle a bass and guitar when she needs to. Her CV on the drums is too big to print here.

This one by The Accidentals is on my playlist at the store.

June 19: The Insiders

On June 19th, we will once again enjoy a journey through the catalog of Tom Petty with The Insiders: A Tribute to Tom Petty.

Hearing this band, you will probably find yourself thinking, “Oh yeah, I forgot Tom Petty did that one.” Max Lockwood, who fronts the band, grew up listening to Petty’s music because his mom loved to work out to his Greatest Hits album.

The Insiders are a talented group of Grand Rapidians who started out covering Petty for a fundraiser in 2017. That show was an amazing hit, and these days, The Insiders are in demand all over Michigan and the midwest. Lockwood is joined by drummer Daine Hammerle, Mike Lynch on keys, Joe VanAcker plays bass, Phil Barry is lead guitar, and Eric O’Daly plays a variety of instruments. Every one of them sings when needed.

The Un-official Official record of concerts past tells us that one of the largest, if not The Largest, crowds to fill up the Riverwalk happened one night when The Insiders were playing. Close your eyes, and it will not take much imagination to put yourself at a Heartbreakers show.

Here is a peek at them.

June 26: Kait Rose & Co

The last show of the month features Kait Rose and Company doing a magic show. On June 26th, you can enjoy a little Fleetwood magic thanks to Kait and her bandmates. Her Band of Thorns took Fleetwood covers on a test drive in 2018, and the response has been off the charts.

Ms. Rose is a seasoned professional singer and song writer in her own right. Her list of recordings over the past decade is a little too long to list. Over the years, she has surrounded herself with an amazing crew of musicians who are more than able and willing to provide an evening of Mac Magic.

Here is a sample.

Covers vs. Original Tunes

For those readers who are quick to note that the summer concerts seem to host more cover or tribute bands, let me reward you with a pat on the back. The reasoning behind this can be explained.

Admittedly, one of the original goals of the Music Commitee was to bring local bands playing original music to the Showboat Stage. We would drop in a cover band here and there, and we began to take notice of the popularity of bands playing music that more of the audience was familiar with.

This fact, combined with the opening of SoundCheck in Lowell, gave us more reason and motivation to focus on summer concerts geared toward a bigger audience. SoundCheck is a great place to hear local, original music in a setting just made for music.

In the summer, we have one of the best venues in the Mitten for outdoor concerts, and we love to see as many people as we can enjoying themselves and getting a peek at everything Lowell has to offer. This two-stage set up allows area residents the best opportunities to experience live music. The summer concerts skew toward the music you love and know while the SoundCheck series allows you to discover the latest new local talent.

See you at the shows!