The Joe Perry Project Blew the Roof Off the Tampa Hard Rock
Sarasota’s own Joe Perry and his Project owned the Hard Rock Event Center on the opening of his much anticipated tour! The Aerosmith guitarist rounded up a great cast of pro musical characters with The Black Crowes lead singer Chris Robinson on vocals, Joe’s Aerosmith brother Brad Whitford on guitar, Aerosmith touring member Buck Johnson on keys and backing harmonies, Stone Temple Pilots bassist Robert DeLeo and drummer Jason Sutter who has played with Joe over the years and also an array of artists including Cher. The Hard Rock’s Event Center is a great room for a small show of 1,500, which makes it so personal for fans. Nothing flashy here, no graphics, just some great rock lighting and the star of the show, the music!
Opening with “Let the Music Do the Talking” a Joe Perry written recorded joint that was later recorded by Aerosmith. A perfect opener because at this show, the music did all the talking! There was a good number of Aerosmith tunes on the setlist. Chris Robinson might not be Steven Tyler but he paid homage well to Aerosmith’s lead singer. Robinson is a force and one of the best lead singers in rock and roll. A brilliant mix of Aerosmith, The Black Crowes and Stone Temple Pilots was something we didn’t know we needed but it made for a magical night of rock! The cover of STP’s “Interstate Love Song” was beautifully haunting with Robinson’s vocals and DeLeo’s bass. Our fearless leader Joe switched guitars frequently and mostly effortlessly from his vast ax collection.
The band paid tribute to the recent passing of the great British vocalist and songwriter Terry Reid, performing Joe’s song, “Won’t Let Me Go” from Joe’s “Sweetzerland Manifesto” album. Chris got the house up on their feet dancing and rockin’ to The Black Crowes hit, “Jealous Again” Joe killed it on slide on “Mama Kin/Get It Up.” A Blue Army favorite was the Richie Supa written “Chip Away the Stone. The Stone Temple Pilots “Vaseline” led Chris Robinson to say, “You shouldn’t have left the Vaseline in your room”, which got a laugh from the crowd. 1977’s “Draw the Line” closed out the set with Joe beating his guitar with a red scarf and Robinson jumping around the stage! The band was polished and tight after a couple of weeks of rehearsals. “Last Child” was down and gritty with everyone on their game. Whitford was a silent beast throughout. Both he and Perry are a great guitar team
Coming back for the encore they gave us the classic “Train Kept A Rollin” and closed it out with that Aerosmith iconic hit “Walk this Way” There are a couple of deep cut treats for the diehards. Joe needs to add more shows to this amazing show for all the rock fans out there! Concert dates are at www.joeperry.com
Opening the show for Joe was blues-rock guitarist, James Jared Nichols. An accomplished high energy electric guitar player, he lead a three piece band in a series of guitar antics warming the crowd up for JPP. Check him out at www.jamesjarednichols.com
Vicky Sullivan Photos for The Suncoast Post