Concert Review: The Mahoney Brothers

Concert Review: The Mahoney Brothers "Long Live the Beatles" - Free Concert Series at Village Green, Summit , NJ
For a free concert by a tribute band, this group was actually quite good! The voice of John Lennon on this band in particular was spot on! He really actually did sound a lot like Lennon.

The costumes were cool, also, and enhanced the show. The first part featured the famous matching gray suits during the early days of the Beatles, as seen on the Ed Sullivan Show clips. The middle part of the show saw them in the Sgt. Pepper's outfits, and the latter part of the show saw them in their Abbey Road , late era Beatles look, with much longer hair, as well as facial hair.

They played well, and sounded good, all told. Whenever you hear Beatles music, it takes you away to another place, and you just want to keep listening. This show was over much too soon, but I do understand the time constraints involved. It was a Tuesday evening in a public square in an otherwise quiet, suburban town, after all. Of course they have to wrap it up relatively early. Maybe it would have been good to get a slightly earlier start?

According to the band's website, this band is, at least allegedly, the longest continuously running Beatles show in the world. Now, I am not sure how to prove that, but they are celebrating thirty years, so that's something! Nor are they restricted to merely covering Beatles material. They have another act called "Juke Box Heroes", where they cover chart toppers throughout the years, including Elvis, the Beatles (again), Buddy Holly, the Beach Boys, Willie Nelson, and Neil Diamond, among other acts. All that, and the band has their own, original music as well – they are a country act. Pretty impressive credentials.

I enjoy all of those free concerts that are offered during the summer season. Many towns seem to offer these types of things, usually for a four or five week stretch during the peak of the summer season. At the end of this blog entry will be posted a couple of websites that I have used and personally recommend, if you live in the New York/New Jersey area, and are interested in such things. The concerts tend to cover older acts. If you are a teenage girl and want to see, let's say, a Justin Bieber cover band, well, that's not likely to happen. Also, frankly, if you are a teenage girl that enjoys Justin Bieber, you have some bigger problems to worry about. Over the years, I have seen numerous acts that were actually really cool shows, and cheap alternatives to high priced concerts these days (although I enjoy seeing major acts as well). Some of the most notable cover acts included Strawberry Fields (which is another Beatles tribute band), Bobby and the Jets (Elton John Tribute band), Big Shot (Billy Joel tribute band, and they also do some Journey material), the Machine (Pink Floyd cover band), as well as the New York Philharmonic (not a cover act, but they do offer free concerts in the park on occasion).

Overall, though, this is a nice location for the show, as well. Everyone there seemed to be having a good time. I was not all that familiar with Summit , but having heard about a free Beatles tribute act coming to town for a free concert allowed me the opportunity to pay a visit, and it was a nice setting for such an event.

Again, these concerts are a cool way to spend an evening, and all at the best price – free! Can't beat that! So, get your picnic stuff ready, choose an act that sounds interesting, and give these shows a shot. Maybe I'll see you there!

Below, please find the links that I mentioned earlier, for some information via websites offering information on free concerts:

New Jersey :

http://www.njfreesummerconcerts.com/index.html

New York City :

http://www.nycgo.com/free?i=098_freeconcerts_75x75

New York Philharmonic:

http://nyphil.org/concertsTicks/parks.cfm


New Yorkers used to be able to look forward to the Siren Music Festival, but that was yanked from Coney Island last year, although it is still available in another part of New York City (although I could not find any information on this year's show – yet!