\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPhoto by Janine LeGal<\/p>\n
The guys in Bed of Roses\/Renegade entertained a packed house at the Big A earlier this month.<\/p><\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n
We arrive at the Big A, the beverage room at the Assiniboine Gordon Inn on Portage Avenue. It’s 8:30 when we sit down and the venue is steadily filling up. My partner gets us our one and only beverage for the night and tells me as he hands me my glass of wine that the total for the two drinks came to $11. It’s happy hour until 9 o’clock, he tells me. Not a bad deal.<\/p>\n
I begin to feel old as I quickly realize that even though many of the patrons are over 40, some even over 50, there are only a few over 60, and I’m one of them. It’s been a heck of a long time since I’ve been inside this bar. Several decades, for sure. It has been renovated, likely more than once, and it’s lively and getting louder by the minute.<\/p>\n
It looks like it’s going to be a full house, which is about 200 people. Recorded music from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s plays as we sip our drinks in anticipation: He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother<\/em>, by the Hollies; America’s Sister Golden Hair<\/em>; David Bowie’s Let’s Dance<\/em>; Maggie May<\/em>, by Rod Stewart — so many of my favourites. Good music always makes me happy.<\/p>\n The evening felt like one giant and jubilant flashback to the past, when music was music. The excitement builds along with the volume. Flashing colourful lights, the band appears at 10 o’clock as promised. These musicians are used to playing to audiences of several thousand people, so to play in an intimate local venue for their friends and peers is a unique experience and a big treat for those of us in attendance.<\/p>\n First up is Renegade, and the great Styx hits of the ’70s and ’80s begin – Lady<\/em>, Lorelei<\/em>, Too Much Time on My Hands<\/em>.<\/p>\n Clayton is the charismatic front man, wearing the attire of an era when big hair and hats were the coolest thing since sliced bread. Getting on the dance floor with fans, he’s approachable, likable and downright captivating.<\/p>\n When people love what they do there’s a certain exuberance, an electrifying energy that permeates, and it’s contagious. You want to have what they’re having. That’s what this show felt like.<\/p>\n These six guys love what they do and everyone can feel that. They’ve got a great camaraderie and vibe. Who wouldn’t want to be around that kind of dynamic?<\/p>\n The band was really warming up, fans were singing along, cheering, applauding and dancing. We had to leave to get home, which meant missing the Bon Jovi half of the show but we would have loved to be able to stick around from beginning to end. The energy, the level of musical talent – both instrumentally and vocally – the memories, the sheer joy of it all. It felt so good to feel so good again.<\/p>\n