[ Closed ] Raue Center Show

The show at the Raue Center last night was GREAT!!  I was really happy to see a very good turnout, the theater was pretty full, even in the balcony so thank you to anyone who helped spread the word-

What I didn't know was that our Joe was here in town all week, giving BITS performances to over 5,000 students, who I am sure, will never be the same after seeing him- he had already given 6 performances to kids before we saw him last night, and I have to say, (while trying not to get sappy) that Joe is one artist I am so proud to support-  never have I met an artist so commited giving of his knowledge and teaching our CHILDREN to love music. As a mother it touched my heart to find out he had quietly been here all week dedicating his days to them. It was apparent last night the impact he has on kids- I saw a number of them at the show. 

Dennis was nice enough to give my kids copies of the setlist, so here it is:

You Upset Me
Blues Deluxe  (OMG- incredible)
Mountain Time
Bridge To Better Days
New Day Yesterday
Miss You Hate You
Woke Up Dreaming  (saw many jaws drop to his newest version of it, VERY impressive)
Had To Cry Today 
encore
Walk In My Shadows  (with awesome vocals of the last line of the song by our own Bill S. here on the forum)
Asking Around For You  (all I can say here is S.O.U.L. baby!! Joe, you got it DOWN with that one)

All I kept thinking through the whole show was, "What the Hell has gotten into Joe?" The guy just keeps getting better every time.  And he seems So much happier and into what he's doing on stage the past few months- I don't know what it is, professional, personal, whatever- just keep it up because we were feelin' it last night!

After the show, Joe was so nice to my kids, they all made him birthday cards and he sat there and read every one of them, shook their hands, gave them autographs, picks, and handed them each a calendar for remembering his birthday.  My son Ricky froze a little meeting his idol, especialy after Joe recognized him as the kid who dressed up as him for Halloween, but now he can't stop talking about him- it was a memorable night.

So thank you Joe, for a great show, and for all you do!

So Joe is doing Walk In My Shadows during the encore, and towards the end of the song, he's playing and singing and then sings the line... "when I get you in my shadow, baby..." and then the whole band stops on a beat and Joe says, "Alright, who knows it?!"

There's a few seconds of silence, until people start quietly murmuring the last line, probably too embarassed to sing it out loud and solo, when all of a sudden you hear this guy in the audience start singing at the top of his lungs, "I'M GONNA GIIIVE YOU WHAT'S IN STOOOOOOORE!!!" It was awesome! It made Joe stop and laugh, then he said "Give that guy a round of applause!" and the whole place went nuts- then Joe said, "see, the way he sang it, he won't be able to talk for a week! (laugh)Well, here's the way I sing it-"  and then he fnished up the song.  It was a lot of fun, Bill sang that line GREAT!  It was a really good time-

I've got to disagree with you dknight.  What with some of the grumbling on the board over the last few months I was a little bit curious about Mark and Bogey's chops going into the show Saturday, but I had no questions after it.  Bogey and Mark are both great, accomplished musicians and they rocked out imo.  I enjoyed Kenny and Eric's abilities and contributions, too, but there were times when I thought Eric's bass work overwhelmed and didn't really complement Joe's guitar work.  No offense intended as he is a great talent, but there was a bit of an oil and water quality at times.  I think Mark and Bogey are fantastic complements to Joe's talents and am excited to see what's to come in the future.

Glad to hear the shows were great. I was supposed to attend but .... family calls ! Mom had an emergency surgery Fri night. Last year's show at the Raue was awesome... simply the best mix I have ever heard. See ya soon, Joe !

Joe sold out the Saturday night show at the Raue; and the Friday night one on the 5th had to be added. As a volunteer at the Raue, I can tell you that Joe's fans kept us busy opening up Coronas and Amstels Sat night!!!!  Caught Joe last year at the Raue for the first time and have been sold on him every since!  I tell everyone about him!! And, he absolutely rocked on the Bluescruise this past January!!!  I love the work he does getting music into the classrooms. He visited my daughter's classroom in Crystal Lake last year and she still talks about him!

Oh yeah....I left early last Sunday morning for a week in California, so I never got a chance to heap praise on Saturday night's show. With an absolutely packed house, Joe and the guys seemed to take it up a notch or two. Friday was outstanding, but Saturday was spectacular. Joe was nice enough to mix things up a bit. Friday night didn't include any slide guitar (no River or Burnin Hell), but Saturday did. I can't remember what got bumped on Saturday, but for those of us there both nights, it was nice to see different sets.
The final song from Saturday...and Friday (Asking Around for You) was awesome and really highlights Joes vocal capabilities as well as his guitar prowess. That song has been stuck in my head for over a week now, which is NOT a complaint.

Cool beans Bill!
Maybe we can get a repeat performance at Shank Hall...
Julie in Green Bay 

So Bill, great singing on "walk in my shadows", but come on man, who doesn't know the chorus to Cream's "Spoonful"???  LOL 
     --Alex K