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March 13, 2022

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It was a double shot of classic rock on Saturday night at the newly renovated Kent Stage. The Pat Travers Band and the newly reformed Cactus featuring legendary drummer Carmine Appice took the stage for some hard rocking blues.

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This was the first show of this co-headlining tour and Pat Travers was up first.  Known for his bluesy, rock guitar playing, Travers did not disappoint his loyal fans.

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Opening the show with "Rock and Roll Susie," Travers and his tight two piece rhythm section, featuring David Pastorius on bass and Alex Petrodky on drums, were off and running. 

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Early in the set, Travers mentioned that he had written a new song for his long time friend, Ronnie Montrose titled "Ronnie."  That tune definitely has a "Rock Candy" vibe to it and the audience responded very well to the song.

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Travers has always been known for some of his cover tunes and Saturday night wass no exception.  "Green Eyed Lady" by Sugar Loaf and an extended bluesy jam of Albert King's "Born Under A Bad Sign" were highlights in the set.

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Another new song, "Art Of Time Travel" fit nicely with the other classic tunes.  Travers noted that he has a new record coming out this year.  It should have been out already but there is a shortage of vinyl so he hopes it will come out in July.

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He closed the set with his two biggest hits, "Snortin' Whiskey" and "Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights."

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After a short break, Carmine Appice took center stage to introduce his newly reformed band, Cactus.   This four-piece outfit now features original member Appice on drums, Jimmy Cuputo on bass, Ted Rondinelli on guitar and Jim Stapley on vocals, guitar and harmonica.

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Appice, the seventy-five year old drumming icon, never missed a beat during the bands ninety minute set.  Lead singer Jim Stapley brought a lot of energy and tried several times to get the audience to stand and dance.

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A couple of  times, he even went out into the audience to motivate the crowd.  He finally invited everyone to come to the front o! the stage to party and dance with the band and many of the audience members did.

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The band played several rockin' tunes from early in their career like "Let Me Swim," "One Way... Or Another" and "Bro. Bill."  However, most recent single "Tightrope" which was just released last year, got a great response from the crowd.

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Appice told the audience that they were working on a new cover tune and they decided to play it live for the first time that night.  It was a slowed down, funky version of the Everly Brothers "Bye, Bye Love" and the crowd loved it!

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Cactus closed the set with their version of "Evil" complete with an extended Appice drum solo.

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Instead of leaving the stage for an encore, the band stayed on and jammed on "Rock and Roll Children."

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Cactus is indeed back!

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Both bands proved that rock and roll is alive and well!

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Photos and review by Greg Drugan

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