Whether you’re in the mood for rock, blues, or reggae, Big Sugar is sure to appeal to your musical tastes. This past Friday at The Rapids Theatre, they shared the stage with reggae legend Willi Williams. Gordie Johnson came out on stage with his hair styled in braids and sporting a red bandana, reminding me of the legendary Willie Nelson. After opening with “Roads Ahead,” Johnson slung his double neck guitar over his shoulder, to play one the bands most popular songs, “Diggin A Hole.”
Willi Williams would make his way up to the front of the stage, from time to time, to sing. Johnson would slide back, and as he played it looked as if he was enjoying Williams’ performance just as much as the crowd. Williams blended in perfectly with Big Sugar’s reggae groove. It seemed as though they had been performing together for some time.
Known more for their songs that get radio play, which mostly consist of their blues based rock music, Big Sugar’s fans know what to expect from their live shows. Besides this and the aforementioned, fans alike are shown an array of musical displays by the band. Those that have never been to a Big Sugar show, are in for a real treat.
At the end of their set, Johnson played both “The Star Spangled Banner,” and “Oh Canada,” on his double necked Gibson. We share a special bond with our Canadian neighbors, and is was evident as everyone sang together during both National Anthems. When he finished, he held his guitar up over his head, revealing a Canadian flag on the back of it. The crowd cheered as they exited the stage, begging for more. They returned to play a two song encore of “Red Rover,” and “The Scene.”
Being so close to the Canadian border allows us to enjoy bands like Big Sugar on a regular basis. In this writers case, hopefully this would be sooner than later!
Set List:
Roads Ahead
Diggin A Hole
Cop A Plea
Open Up Baby
If I Had My Way
Eliminate Ya (Al Tuck cover)
Armagiddeon Time (Willi Williams cover)
Gone For Good
Joe Louis
Real Rock (Sound Dimension cover)
Little Bit A All Right
No Guns (Willi Williams cover)
Kensington/ Ganjaman/ Nicotina
Better Get Used To It/ I Thank You (Led Zeppelin cover)
I’m A Ram (Al Green cover)
Rastaman (Bob Marley cover)
Turn The Lights On All Hell For A Basement
Star Spangled Banner/ Oh Canada
Encore:
Red Rover
The Scene
We would like to thank Debbie Murphy for the credentials so BackstageAxxess could review the show.
