Bret Michaels Live!
March 22, 2009 at the Pickle Barrel in Killington, VT
by Deb Rao
Staff Writer
As the third season of Rock Of Love slowly winds down and the final three brunette girls are left vying for Bret’s attention, Bret takes his solo band on the road performing all of Poison hits with a few surprises along the way.
Bret Michaels and his solo band recently wrapped up a successful trek of the Northeast with stops that included The Chance in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Mulcaheys in Long Island, HOB at Atlantic City, N.J. and a sold out performance at the Pickle Barrel in Killington, Vt.
Bret Michaels and his band hit the stage at 10:30 P.M. at the historic Pickle Barrel in Killington, VT and performed a 75 – minute set that consisted of all the Poison hits, Rock Of Love hits, plus some of Bret’s favorite covers songs. Big John was the MC for the evening and also announced that Bret’s new autobiography will be released on June 23.
Opening with the Poison hit “Talk Dirty To Me,” Bret and company held the young ROL audience in the palm of his hand. The Pickle Barrel was one of the first nightclubs built on the mountain. It had a wooded decor and country ambiance to it. Although it was located in Killington, the club was packed early for a Sunday night. You would think that all off Bret’s fans would have been home watching Rock Of Love.
Bret’s solo bands consist of Pete Evick on guitar, Robi Wylde on keyboards, and Dirty Ray on bass, and Lucky Chucky on drums. Highlight of the evening included “Something To Believe In,” in which Bret dedicated this song to our troops in Iraq and told the audience how the band spent a month over in Iraq, and to pray for all the men and women fighting for our freedom get home safely. The young audience responded greatly to the Rock of Love hits, and Bret commented, “I want to thank all our fans for making the third season of Rock Of Love the top show on VH1. We have been returning to the northeast for the past 20 years. This is our sixth show straight in a row tonight. We have a night off on Monday and return to the road Tuesday night, so we will be keeping the party going all night tonight. Poison will be touring with Def Leppard and Cheap Trick this summer and returning to the area this summer. I hope everyone makes it out to the shows.”
The energy of the show was amazing. It doesn’t matter whether Bret is fronting Poison or doing a club show. You can always count on an energetic show. It was exciting how Bret mixed up his set with the Poison hits and also included the Dobie Gray hit,”Drift Away” in which guitarist Pete Evick and himself traded off vocal leads. Keyboard player Robi Wylde layed down the funky rhythms all night. Drummer Lucky Chucky was pretty cool twirling his drumsticks in the air with his mohawk hairdo. The last part of the show ended on a high note as Bret belted out one Poison hit after another including “Unskinny Bop”, “Fallen Angel”, and “Nothing But A Good Time.”
Don’t forget to tune into VH1 and the Rock Of Love Bus on Sunday nights. You have to admit, it is pretty entertaining and better than watching The Bachelor and Jason, agree? So will Bret find true love on the third season? If not the VH1 hit has at least made him a household name with fans coming as far as New York to see the Poison singer.
l. Talk Dirty To Me
2. Look What The Cat Dragged In
3. Go That Far
4. Knockin On Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan)
5. Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
6. Bittersweet
7. Something To Believe In
8. Driven
9. Drift Away (Dobie Gray)
10. Every Rose Has It’s Thorn
11.Unskinny Bop
12. Fallen Angel
13. Nothing But A Good Time ‘
Bret Michaels Solo dates:
Apr 1 2009 7:00P
Cancun Cantina (B*M*B) Hagerstown, Maryland
Apr 2 2009 7:00P
Cancun Cantina (B*M*B) Hanover, Maryland
Apr 3 2009 7:00P
Goodfella’s (B*M*B) Pottsville, Pennsylvania
Apr 4 2009 7:00P
Northern Lights (B*M*B) Clifton Park, New York
Apr 14 2009 7:00P
Belly Up (B*M*B) Aspen, Colorado
Apr 15 2009 7:00P
Grizzly Rose (B*M*B) Denver, Colorado
Apr 16 2009 7:00P
Mesa Theater & Club (B*M*B) Grand Junction, Colorado
Apr 17 2009 7:00P
First Council Casino (B*M*B) Newkirk, Oklahoma
Apr 18 2009 7:00P
Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino (B*M*B) Santa Fe, New Mexico
Apr 24 2009 7:00P
Club Nokia (B*M*B) Los Angeles, California
Apr 25 2009 7:00P
Pima County Fair (B*M*B) Tucson, Arizona
Apr 29 2009 7:00P
Showcase Live (B*M*B) Foxborough, Massachusetts
May 1 2009 7:00P
Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom (B*M*B) Hampton, New Hampshire
May 2 2009 7:00P
Belmont Complex (YMCA Benefit) (B*M*B) Kittanning, Pennsylvania
May 6 2009 7:00P
Roseland Theatre (B*M*B) Portland, Oregon
May 7 2009 7:00P
Wildhorse Resort Casino (B*M*B) Pendleton, Oregon
May 8 2009 7:00P
Emerald Queen Casino (B*M*B) Tacoma, Washington
May 9 2009 7:00P
Emerald Queen Casino (B*M*B) Tacoma, Washington
May 12 2009 7:00P
San Bernardino Fair (B*M*B) Victorville, California
May 22 2009 7:00P
Hard Rock Live (B*M*B) Biloxi, Mississippi
May 23 2009 7:00P
Rib America Festival (B*M*B) St Louis, Missouri
May 24 2009 7:00P
Fort Campbell Army Base (B*M*B) Fort Campbell, Kentucky
May 25 2009 7:00P
Great American Rib Cookoff (B*M*B) Cleveland, Ohio
May 27 2009 7:00P
Omni (B*M*B) Toledo, Ohio
Jun 5 2009 7:00P
Riverdome @ Horseshoe Bossier City (B*M*B) Bossier City, Louisiana
Jun 6 2009 7:00P
Bluesville @ Horseshoe Tunica Robinsonville, Mississippi
Jun 10 2009 7:00P
House of Blues (B*M*B) Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Jun 12 2009 7:00P
Riverfest, Coosa River Fairgrounds (B*M*B) Gadsden, Alabama
Jun 13 2009 7:00P
Lake of the Torches Resort Casino (B*M*B) Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin
Jun 17 2009 7:00P
Del Mar Fairgrounds (B*M*B) Del Mar, California
Jun 19 2009 7:00P
The Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino (B*M*B) Lemoore, California
Jun 20 2009 7:00P
Cache Creek Casino (B*M*B) Brooks, California