Red Bank, New Jersey was the place to be on Friday, February 23, 2024! Blues Rock Titan, Joe Bonamassa and his crew rolled in to town to put on an unforgettable performance at the Count Basie Theater. Now known as Hackensack Meridian Health Theatre, Joe joked about this fact while telling an anecdote about opening for the late B.B. King here in the Summer of ’91. This historic venue was sold out and packed to the gills with blues devotees from all over. Several concert goes I spoke with prior to the show starting drove anywhere from 3 to 5 hours away to see Joe live in action. The room was buzzing with anticipation and then the house light went dark.
Dressed to the nines in a sharp blue suit and his iconic TAG Heuer sunglasses, Joe took to the stage and launched right in to one of my personal favorites, Hope You Realize It (Goodbye Again), off of his latest release Blues Deluxe Vol. 2. A true master of his craft, Joe had the crowd completely mesmerized from the first notes that rang out to each dazzling solo mixed in along the way! Twenty-Four Hour Blues (Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland cover) and Well, I Done Got Over It (Guitar Slim cover) had everyone fired up and ready for more and there were no signs of slowing down.
Joe Bonamassa‘s band is comprised of some of the most talented musicians in the world. The legendary Reese Wynans (B3/Keyboards) is a treasure to the music world with his immense talent and smile. delivered during every song. Blues rock heavy hitters, Lemar Carter (Drums), Calvin Turner (Bass Guitar) and Josh Smith (Guitar) were locked in all night rounding out the bands powerful sound. Last, but certainly not least, is Joe’s amazing background singers consisting of Jade MacRae, Ms. Monet, and Dannielle De Andrea, who add loads of heart and soul with their angelic vocals.
In addition to being a brilliant musician, Joe is also known for his wildly impressive guitar and amp collection (affectionately known as Nerdville) and several of those pieces were played loud and proud. There was tone for days coming from his vintage Fender amps and I was excited to see one of my all time favorites, his Gibson ’63 Cherry Red 335 which was played on several songs. His signature Epiphone ’63 SG Custom (available in his webstore FYI) was used for several songs at the start of the set and let me tell you, that guitar completely blew me out of the water! Would it really be a Joe Bonamassa concert without an iconic and stunning Gibson burst? His sunburst Les Paul was a beauty the behold from any seat in the house. These were just a few of the instruments Joe masterfully played throughout the evening.
Joe and his band received numerous, well-deserved standing ovations, which ultimately lead to an encore performance of Mountain Time, which has been a staple in his repertoire for many years. It’s hard to fathom that the world is billions of years old, but somehow we’re lucky enough to be here at the same time as Joe Bonamassa and all of these incredible musicians. Thank you for keeping the Blues alive and well!
Couldn’t make it to Red Bank? Don’t worry! There are still many more tour dates to choose from on his website!
