Orchestral Enclave

If you like your classic rock done classically, then this is the show for you.  It’s Billy McGuigan’s Pop Rock Orchestra currently running at SumTur Amphitheater under the auspices of Rave On Productions.

It was a beautiful night for an outdoor show and I was grateful for the cooler temperatures because Billy McGuigan and his orchestra truly heated up the night.  For those of you unfamiliar with the Pop Rock Orchestra show, Billy McGuigan and his musicians take you on a tour of music from the 50s to the 80s, but turn the traditional rock concert on its head by merging it with a big band orchestra of horns and strings to complement the standard guitars, basses, and percussion.  The end result is a dancing in the aisle, hand clapping, foot stomping good time.

I sometimes think Billy could create a new show based entirely around his storytelling.  He’s a raconteur without peer and never seems to lack a clever witticism, an off the cuff joke, or a poignant anecdote suitable for the moment or number.  This, combined with his stellar musicianship, is what makes him one of today’s premier acts.  McGuigan seemed extra energized tonight and used that juice to fuel a non-stop barrage of hits that the audience lapped up with a spoon.

Some highlights of McGuigan’s performance were his killer rendition of Elton John’s “Saturday Night’s All Right for Fighting”, a blazing take on Sinatra’s (Nancy, that is) “These Boots Were Made for Walking”, a haunting cover of the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” and a spot on version of Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World’.  McGuigan also featured numbers off his latest album, Together, including a version of “Little Metal Shed” rearranged by local sax legend, Darren Pettit, which tore the house down.

Aside from McGuigan’s powerful vocal chops, we were also treated to excellent featured performances from Matthew McGuigan who had a smooth and elegant interpretation of “My Girl” and Jay Hanson shone in one of my favorite numbers of the evening, George Harrison’s “I’ve Got My Mind Set on You”.  Steve Gomez’s musical direction always hit the mark and I thought the fingers of Omaha’s guitar guru, Max Meyer, would burst into flame with the speed and ferocity of some of his guitar solos.

A few instances of instruments overwhelming the voices of singers did little to stop the storm of this production and you’re going to have a beautiful weekend to take advantage of the final performances of this top flight production.  And I hope you will.

Billy McGuigan’s Pop Rock Orchestra runs at SumTur Amphitheater through August 15.  Remaining showtimes are Saturday at 7:30pm and Sunday at 7pm.  Tickets cost $35 for stadium seating and $20 for lawn seating and can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/billy-mcguigans-pop-rock-orchestra-tickets-153047839207.  SumTur Amphitheatre is located at 11691 S 108^th St in Papillion, NE.

A Melange of McGuigan

He’s been thrilling crowds since 2002.  Now the master maestro of Omaha, Billy McGuigan, is set to make his 500^th performance at the Omaha Community Playhouse and it will happen during his latest run of Billy McGuigan’s Rock Twist.

Billy McGuigan was ready to rock tonight and, believe me, that’s really saying something.  Attacking the music with a thunderous energy that never let up and actually increased to something cataclysmic, McGuigan and his Pop Rock Orchestra delivered a fiercely awesome 2+ hour concert that had the audience in the palm of their hands from the first note to the last clap.

If you have never seen Billy McGuigan’s Rock Twist before (and if you haven’t, what’s wrong with you?) what you get is a show that offers classic rock songs done with a big band flair.  Even if you have seen this show, you really need to see this incarnation as Billy and company have completely revamped the show with a new set, lights, set up, and an almost completely new set list.  Truthfully, I rank this as one of McGuigan’s best performances to date and I have seen plenty of them over the years.

Few connect with an audience the way McGuigan can with his charming wit and storytelling abilities and when you add in his phenomenal musical abilities, you’re really in for something special.

Versatile seems almost too small a word for a guy who makes everything he plays sound like his own creation.  McGuigan hit the ground running with ELO’s “Evil Woman” and ran through rockers such as The Doors’ “Touch Me” and Sly and the Family Stone’s “Dance to the Music” with his pulse pounding tenor and killed it in a guitar duel with Omaha’s personal Pete Townshend, Max Meyer, in the Everly Brothers’ “Bye Bye Love”.

McGuigan also slowed it down a notch with the Beatles’ beautiful “Yesterday” backed by the string trio of Melissa Holtmeier, Axelle Verboon, and Mindy Zimmerman.  And tears were a flowing when he teamed up with Tara Vaughan to perform an epic take on Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”.

Speaking of Tara Vaughan, the mistress of the keyboards also got a fair chance to shine throughout the night with her one of a kind tickling of the ivories and that dreamy alto serenading the crowd with Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Were Made for Walking”, the Supremes’ “Stop!  In the Name of Love”, and Lulu’s “To Sir, With Love”.

Featured performances were supplied by Natalie Thomas who practically had the audience purring with a throaty, sultry interpretation of Ike and Tina Turner’s version of “Proud Mary” that was further bolstered with the almighty tenor of Ryan McGuigan; Steve Gomez made his singing debut with The Champs’ “Tequila” which featured his singular bass playing and a stellar solo from Stan Harper on saxophone; Matthew McGuigan took a moment in the sun with The Temptations’ “My Girl”; Omaha’s legendary jazz musician, Doyle Tipler, soloed on his trademark trumpet as only he could; Patrick Peters and Willie Karpf solidly rounded out the horns while the Doctor, Tomm Roland, kept the beat going on his drums.

The volume of the microphones could have used some slight boosting on a couple of occasions, but the only real disappointment of the night was that it had to end at all.

If you haven’t had a chance to see a show with Billy McGuigan and his band, this is the one to see.  You’ll feel like a million bucks before the night is through and if you strike fast you may be able to snatch up a ticket to see that magical 500^th performance on August 17.  But any night of this run is going to be smoking good.

Billy McGuigan’s Rock Twist runs through August 18 at the Omaha Community Playhouse.  Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2pm.  Tickets start at $42 and can be obtained at www.omahaplayhouse.com, by calling 402-553-0800, or visiting the Box Office.  The Omaha Community Playhouse is located at 6915 Cass St in Omaha, NE.

Photo provided by Omaha Community Playhouse.