Not in the scheezy sort of way, but in the Cheers sort of way. You know "Where Everybody Knows Your Name!..." sort of way.
In the-"The bartender and I are cool" sort of way.
And most importantly in the -"I spend more time talking to the off duty police officer that works here, than the other patrons, because he's cool and carries around a gun"-sort of way.
I mean these watering holes are cool, you can unwind, get a bite to eat, grab some refreshment, play a hand of cards, some pool, some darts, catch a little Sports Center, play some Wii...in some places, and catch Great Live Bands...And Vinyl at Center Stage in Midtown Atlanta, is no different.
This performing arts venue is perfect for local acts to entertaining an intimate crowd, with a stage perfectly sized to fit no more than seven musicians on it -safely. You could fit more if you take off the drum set or if you care nothing for your safety...but I digress.
The bartender is friendly, drinks are cheap, and most importantly the main act is checking the setup of their equipment to make sure that their show goes off without a hitch. It's "I Love 80's Rock", and the lineup of songs brings me back to a time when my own parents thought that there were no such things as musicians in the 80's. To them Tainted Love and Jessie's Girl was just noise....now they're classics.
And I can't WAIT for the show!
The costumes of the main act is dead on, getting the feel of the neon colored, teased out hair, sunglasses wearing rockers down to a tee. Chucks are everywhere, and most importantly the beginning riffs of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" rises above the din of patrons. Earplugs are passed out in anticipation of even greater noise to come, I take a pair and pop them in. I've been warned by one of the Mom's of one of the performers that it can get pretty loud.
The only other person wearing these earplugs at the moment is her son, and he's eight, but he's a seasoned professional. He has his own personal video game with him to entertain him while waiting for his twelve year old sister to finish her five song set....
Yep, you heard me right. I'm at Vinyl a place that only moments before I thought was a bar, full of teens, preteens and their supportive parents, cousins, grandparents, uncles, aunts, siblings and friends at two o'clock....in the afternoon.
I've come to see the first Lance Tilton Foundation sponsored event by the School of Rock. Additionally I've come to support my friend, Vandreena Cotton -who is VNC Photography, as she is a supporter of the Lance Tilton Foundation....
But I STAY because the School of Rock is Rocking my Socks OFF!!! The performers ranging in age from 8-18 have me and most of the audience dancing from the opening note of the Soft Cell version of Tainted Love to the final note of Michael Jackson's Beat It. For anyone who thinks that just because some of the performers are shorter than their guitars, when standing on their end, that the music is going to be amateurish and "simple" sounding most certainly has never been to one of these events.
There is nothing short of Amazing...AMAZING music coming from the stage and out of the guitars, bass guitars, acoustic guitars, electric pianos, drums, and mouths of the sometimes pintsized individuals rocking them. Have I mention that the music is GREAT?...Because if it is, and my mind is still sort of in Awe of everything even after 36 hours.
Of course there are some performances that shine a bit brighter for me, and I write this list only as a sort of Thank You to the ensembles who performed these songs so well!
- Tainted Love -Wonderful vocals, cool start to the show, and an ultra cool Beatles Guitar Strap
- Don't Stand So Close To Me --Soulful Vocals and perhaps the coolest Bassist dance EVER....
- Jump -The entire ensemble went neon/ sunglasses and pig tails...The head to toe purple guy and the neon green shorts wearing soloist....amazin' :-)
- Let's Dance -Husky cool vocals and the cool dancing Bassist again
- Take It On The Run - Acoustic Guitar player was cool, confident...and did I mention had an amazing VOICE
- Stone In Love - I kept getting amazed by the vocals...and Journey was done proud by perhaps the biggest voice coming out of the smallest bodies on the stage
- 1999 -Prince would have been proud by this cover and the voice...well you'd have
- Girls Just Want To Have Fun -
- Beat It - Great guitar solo....GREAT GUITAR SOLO and Vocals to match
Only the musicians themselves and possibly their parents, knew when they've messed up. The professional and efficient manner in which each act move from one to another is, in and of itself a feat of masterful proportions....I mean I've been apart of plays and stage productions with grown folk with much fewer props, that didn't even compare to this production. With close to thirty performers in 25 rock and roll acts, one would think that somewhere along the way that the guy over the "backstage area" would have to come out on stage and ask if anyone's seen Jimmy, because he's supposed to be up next.
Of other importance to this observer is the amount of endless praise I hear about the organization for giving these kids from mostly North Georgia a stage to gain confidence. There's Karen N., the mother of the "Let's Dance" lead singer, Athieno N.. She tells me how her daughter is more introverted naturally, but since beginning her guitar lessons has gained confidence and a voice for the first time. Athieno is the older sister of the kid with the earplugs Yosef, and attends Renfroe Middle School student in Decatur, GA.
She, along with her Mom, brother and grandparents have been in Midtown since at least nine in the morning for the FIRST Lego League, or FLL, Georgia State Championships at Georgia Tech just down the street. Dressed in black from head to toe, which manages to come off as whimsical instead of scary, the twelve year old does not speak often but her smile is quick to appear when offered congratulations for a job well done on any of the songs that she has performed on. She started playing Guitar Hero and wanted to learn the real thing, so her mother contacted the School of Rock in Atlanta to get her enrolled.
Her mother is most impressed that the music director of the Atlanta branch, Greg Lee, encourages each student to try new instruments, and I become aware of the many hats that most of the students wear over the course of the concert. Athieno, for instance, played an electric guitar, a bass guitar, sang backup on one song and was the lead on another during her four song set.
Another mother I speak to, has a son who is the lead singer of Tainted Love, who with his sunglasses, Beatles guitar strap, and cool hat, owned the stage in that song. She has been driving him in from Mableton, GA every Saturday for his three hour School of Rock practices for three years now. In addition to these, his younger sister hears him practicing at home for at least 45 minutes everyday on his own. His red and black guitar is almost taller than he is, but he handles it like a seasoned pro, knowing each part as well as one would know the back of their own hand. Both he and his mother are looking forward to finding finger covers so that he can practice for as long as long as he wants everyday.
The camaraderie between the staff, the parents and students is very apparent to anyone who knows the key personnel. And this may be the reason for the mountains of accolades that the parents are quick to offer the program and staff.
I for one, have seen nothing but the utmost respect for the talents and gifts that surround me in both the parents and children by the organizations there who wish to positively influence the next generation of live musicians. So visit their websites to further learn how to help these worthy organizations or to get your own child involved.
To learn more about the Atlanta chapter of the School of Rock click here
Check out performances on their YouTube channel here...
To learn more about the local chapter of School of Rock in your neck of the woods click here
To learn more about The Lance Tilton Foundation click here
In honor of all that I've seen....Love, Peace and Rock 'N Roll!!!!!
Originally posted on www.becomingalifeleader.blogspot.com
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