Flat Rock – The Rolling Stones get their turn for a musical tribute at Flat Rock Playhouse, as the band Jumping Jack Flash plays there on April 13-15.
This is the third of three Music on the Rock® tribute acts on the FRP Leiman Mainstage, leading off the official state theater’s new season. First, The Here Comes the Sun Band played Beatles songs Feb. 23-26.
The usual lineup of Dustin Brayley, Ryan Dunn, Ryan Guerra, Eric Anthony, and Paul Babelay was joined by zany Nat Zegree. They were spectacular as usual, and added new twists. For instance, three of them took turns singing lead on the very soulful ballad “Darling.”
They do not pretend to be The Beatles, and do not mimic their vocals or Liverpool accents. In contrast, Jumping Jack Flash and Rumours impersonate famous band members in looks and behavior as well as vocals and musicianship.
Jumping and Flashy
Figure that Joey “Jagger” Infante will entertain by gyrating and prancing about the stage like ageless bad boy Mick Jagger, and singing with a similarly punk rock voice. Infante fronts Jumping Jack Flash: The Tribute to The Rolling Stones, which debuted in 2005, with much swagger. The act plays at FRP on April 13-15.
They play many hits by the Stones, who first took the stage 61 years ago in mid-1962. Their hits include “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “Jumping Jack Flash,” “Let’s Spend the Night Together,” “Start Me Up,” “Get Off of My Cloud,” “Paint it, Black,” “Street Fighting Man,” “Midnight Rambler,” “Gimme Shelter,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Honky Tonk Women,” “Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’,” “Heartbreaker,” “It’s Only Rock and Roll,” “Miss You,” “She’s a Rainbow,” “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”; and ballads “Angie,” “Wild Horses,” and “Ruby Tuesday.”
Joey Infante also plays with the recording group Roxanne. That band regularly played in the Whiskey A-Go-Go, the Roxy Theatre, and other hot spots along Hollywood’s Sunset Strip in the late Eighties. Infante has been a singer and bassist with A Perfect World, for more than 20 years.
“Mick ‘n Keith” is the foundation of the actual Stones. Young Hutchinson portrays lead guitarist Keith Richards. Hutchinson founded Jumping Jack Flash. He has played with one-time Stones’ saxophonist Bobby Keys.
Rumours a Hit
Rumours was outstanding in playing Fleetwood Mac hits of peak years 1975-1987 for two hours and in impersonating the band members, when playing at FRP on March 16-18. The shows sold out. The packed crowds were very responsive. The group like Fleetwood Mac formed in Los Angeles, and did so 11 years ago. The tribute act was part of AXS TV’s World’s Greatest Tribute Bands special.
Rumours is named after Fleetwood Mac’s chart-topping album from 1977 which catapulted Fleetwood Mac to the pinnacle of the pop and rock world. Its long-lasting appeal is evidenced by the fact that it was the sole album in the top ten in sales last year not released in 2021 or 2022. Rumours is the 12th best-selling album ever, sixth-best in the Seventies, and sold more than 40 million copies as of last month.
Jesika Miller did Stevie Nicks’ mystical twirling, with a flowing shawl. That made the visual illusion of Fleetwood Mac performing seem all the more real. She gestured vividly to act out songs as she sang them. Miller delivered the throaty vocal goods on hit ballads “Sara,” “Rhiannon” (tacking on a soulful flourish), “Gypsy,” “Landslide,” “Gold Dust Woman,” and “Dreams.”
Miller commanded the stage best as she energetically sang Nicks’ solo smash “Edge of Seventeen.”
Taylor Locke was animated as Lindsey Buckingham. He led the way vocally on signature hits “Go Your Own Way” and “Don’t Stop,” on “Second Hand News,” and Buckingham’s solo hits “Big Love” and also “Holiday Road” from the 1983 comic film National Lampoon’s Vacation starring Chevy Chase.
Ned Brower was as daffy as tall, bearded drummer Mick Fleetwood. Brower sang the Tom Petty part well in the rock duet “Stop Draggin’ My Heart” with Miller. His brisk drumming set the tone for “Tusk.” Nic Johns played it low-key as John McVie. Johns was spot on with the famous bass riffs in the opening song “The Chain.”
A bonus was Tuzy Ellis’ vocals and characterization as English-raised Christine McVie, and her keyboard playing. She was impressively shy and self-effacing in off-the-cuff remarks, serious-faced and did not smile once.
Ellis sang with more oomph than the late Mrs. McVie did on soft, flowing hits ‘You Make Loving Fun,” “Say You Love Me,” “Over My Head,” “Little Lies,” and “Everywhere.” A tearful moment was when Ellis closed the first set alone on stage, singing the sentimental ballad “Songbird.” The song is the flip side of “Dreams” from 1977. It served as a tender spotlight tribute to Christine McVie, who died Nov. 30 at age 79. Fleetwood Mac’s other four members from its peak period are still alive.
Jumping Jack Flash show times are 7:30 p.m. nightly, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Saturday, April 15. Tickets’ base prices are each $45, $55, or $65. To purchase tickets, call the box office at (828) 693-0731 or check www.flatrockplayhouse.org/jumpin-jack-flash.