Donna Vickroy: Tribute to the tribute troubadours who help us stay forever young

Chicago Tribune

a day ago

Bravo!
An evening of 'almost' Linda Ronstadt, 'practically' Warren Zevon and 'as good as' Jackson Browne had me on my feet, singing, dancing, fist-bumping the memory of my 20-year-old self.
'Desert Rock Show: A Tribute to the Laurel Canyon Music Scene' at The Lyric Theater in Blue Island featured the work of more than a dozen top-tier artists performed by the tribute band Soundtracks of a Generation.
The evening was a musical explosion of nostalgia, all for about what it had cost us to park a few months earlier at a concert by the 'real' Four Tops.
Don't get me wrong, the Four Tops, who were joined by The Temptations, put on a great show, a veritable time travel back to my mom's Motown record-spinning days. There's something very special about seeing your musical heroes in the flesh.
But at more than $300 for a pair of tickets, it was not the kind of event one can spring for every weekend. Plus, we had to travel almost an hour both ways, wait in line to drop $50 on parking and be understanding when the 80-year-old performers needed to be seated on stage.
Of course, as fellow aging Boomers, we're a forgiving lot.
Which may be why tribute shows have become a growing trend.
They give us the heart-pounding bass, the emotionally-charged lyrics, the incredible guitar riffs and, perhaps most of all, the sensation of being 25 or even 50 again.
At the Lyric, which offers a steady flow of tribute music in addition to other kinds of entertainment, we can roll into the free parking lot 10 minutes before showtime, be escorted to our seats, signal for our preordered dinner to be delivered, select a cocktail and then jam to some of our favorite music — performed by the next best thing, which often enough sounds like the real thing.
Is it compromising on authenticity?
We prefer to call it getting all the feels of our favorite music when all of us were at our best.
It's not just affordability driving the growing popularity of tribute bands. It's convenience, atmosphere and the acceptance that while music may be larger than life, its superstars are only human.
Tribute artists keep us all forever young.
Pat Disabato, live events manager for the Lyric, said tapping into feelings is exactly what the Lyric is all about.
'What helps us stand out from the crowd is our unique spot. We offer a 1930s-'40s cabaret feel, with servers and a state-of-the-art sound system. The look is cool. The service is fantastic,' he said.
The Lyric books both national tribute acts as well as original acts, he said. 'All of that plays into a good experience. There's nothing else quite like it. The acts are good. There's free parking and our price point is good.'
It is not just Boomers selling the place out, he said. It's also teens and families and young couples who, after feeling closed off from the world during COVID, just want to get out and clap along.
Tribute musicians are not a new thing. Just ask Elvis and Beatles fans. Today, some of the most popular tribute bands pay homage to Pink Floyd, Queen, Grateful Dead and Bon Jovi, according to Slingo.com, but the pool is growing.
'There's never been a better time to be a musician,' said Ron Onesti, founder of Onesti Entertainment, which provides live entertainment at Arcada Theatre in St. Charles and Des Plaines Theatre in Des Plaines.
And there's never been a better time to be a fan of live music.
'People hunger for it these days,' Onesti said.
The challenge for venues, he added, is in differentiating yourself from a growing field of locales, which vary in atmosphere as much as they vary in price.
Like the Lyric, the Arcada and Des Plaines venues are iconic theaters that exude atmosphere.
'We strive for quality, value and ambience,' Onesti said.
'The responsibility is heightened to make these events more experiential because expectations are different,' he said. 'Lighting has to be different, there needs a lot more multimedia, such as videos of the band and psychedelic backgrounds. We're doing more lasers. It's more experiential and it's more festival style,' meaning the music of two or three groups is presented in the same show.
Even with growing demand, Onesti said, competition is fierce, especially when towns such as Elk Grove Village, Addison, Hillside and Tinley Park are offering concerts in the park for free.
Disabato said, within a few miles of the Lyric are several venues competing for the same audience, from Gaelic Park in Oak Forest and CD&ME in Frankfort to City Winery in Chicago.
The Lyric pulls in acts from across the country, including a Jimmy Buffett/Neil Diamond performer from Las Vegas, a Stevie Ray Vaughn act from Texas and a Motown group from Ohio. Tribute acts, Disabato said, are not necessarily cheap. Some command $4,000 to $6,000 a show, he said.
Popularity, Onesti added, crosses all genres. 'Country is huge. Rock is huge, Disco is becoming huge.'
Bands playing original music are also finding their niche, he said. 'Open the papers any weekend and there are a hundred options to see live music.'
The biggest winners in the battle of the bands are the fans, of course, who for a brief moment in time, get to relive their glory days.