Boston with Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, Tinley Park, IL, USA July 7, 2017
by Anita Maree Brodersen

Joan Jett + Boston= Cyber Space Touchdown!

The pairing of these two iconic bands was a match made for a night of pure, raw, rock-n-roll energy. Why have these

Joan Jett

Joan Jett

bands lasted for all these years?  They are the real deal. Really great music – really great musicians, and they deliver really great live shows.  As Joan Jett took the stage one has to smile and give her the thumbs up.  Her years of performing live around the world and delivering hit after hit earned her status into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame a few years ago.

While she had challenges within the business at her early start in getting a record deal, she was never the one who knocked on doors instead she crushed them down and laid out the pavers for all female rock musicians.  Joan has never disappointed anyone with her live shows.  Unrated Magazine has been covering The Blackhearts for years and on this warm July night she pounded out her hits with the crowd singing along.  Joan opened with “Victim of Circumstance” that fell right into her first band The Runaways hit, “Cherry Bomb”.  Then the crowd started chanting “Yeah, Oh Yeah” as she performed “Do You Wanna Touch Me”.  Years back Joan Jett made her feature debut movie alongside actor Michael J. Fox shot right here (Chicagoland area) in a few IL towns, and she performed the soundtrack hit/movie title “Light of Day”.  Kenny Laguna, keyboardist, background vocalist, songwriter, manager, and more seemed in fine spirits as he was driving out all his parts to each song.  Other songs performed included “Bad Reputation”; “I Hate Myself For Loving You”, “Crimson and Clover” and her biggest hit “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”.  She ended the show with Sly & The Family Stone’s “Everyday People”.  Thunderous applause from her fans as Joan and her band gave their wave as they left the stage.  The Blackheart’s are Dougie Needles – guitar, Hal B. Selzer – bass, and Michael McDermott – drums.

While the crowd cheered for more from the Blackhearts, the stage hands started setting up for the band Boston.

Boston

Boston

After a short wait the band Boston took stage.  Smirking with guitar, founding member Tom Scholz started out with heavy guitar riffs and the show began with “Rock & Roll Band”, followed by “Feelin’ Satisfied”.  Lead singer Tommy DeCarlo who took over as lead vocalist in 2007 did a tremendous job song after song along with other bandmates, drummer Jeff Neal , bassist Tracy Ferrie, keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist, Beth Cohen, and Scholz’s right-hand wonder guitarist/singer Gary Pihl.

During the show Boston displayed a range of songs including “To Be A Man”, “Cool the Engines”, “Amanda”, “Smokin”, “Peace of Mind”, “Don’t Look Back”, and “Foreplay/Long Time. The nearly two hour set showcased an array of unique videos with each song.  The band’s last song of the night was “Party”.  Boston fans did not want this party to end.

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