At the 9:30 PM concert, Hair cast members Allison Guinn (On the Town, Hair) and Brandon Pearson (Hair) will reunite with Lauren Elder (Side Show, Hair), Maya Sharpe (Hair), Brianna Carlson-Goodman (Hair, Les Misérables, Dr. Zhivago), Larkin Bogan (Wicked, Hair), Shannon Conley (Hedwig, lead singer of Lez Zeppelin) and Adam Enright (God Hates This Show, Good Bitch Goes Down).
Mike Greco of Damn The Light Productions provides music direction.
According to press notes, "Broadway luminaries including Shannon Conley of Hedwig and world-renowned cover band Lez Zeppelin, gather for a one-night-only evening of pure unadulterated rock classics from Bad Company, The Allman Brothers, The Doobie Brothers, Humble Pie, Aerosmith, The Eagles, ZZ Top, and more!"
The evening will benefit Broadway Impact, which funds and assists grassroots support of marriage equality.
54 Below is located at 254 West 54th Street. There is a $35-$50 cover charge plus a $25 food and beverage minimum. For more information and tickets, call (646) 476-3551 or visit 54Below.com.
Allison Guinn: I could spend a whole playlist on such bands as Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones, and I can't pick just two. Instead of covering the obvious 60s and 70s classic rock, I'll try to shine some light on a few 70s gems.
Suzy Quatro's "Your Mama Won’t Like Me." The gutsy vocal combined with the catchy hook is so fun and wonderful! Suzy was such a boss! Suzy Quatro (the "Glycerine Queen") paved the way for such great girl rockers as The Runaways and Joan Jett. She's an important part of female rock HERstory (see what I did there?).
Allison Guinn: Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon." Okay, okay, this song is a classic rock standard, but it's the performance that's worth mentioning. It really heats up around 4:30, where Stevie just lets loose and blows you away! It gives me goose bumps every time I see it. When one thinks of Stevie Nicks, one usually thinks of a willowy lilting woman with sultry vocals, but BOY, she really sings this from the bottom of her toes! She seems taken over by the power of what she's feeling! I just love it!
Adam Enright: The Runaways' "Cherry Bomb." I remember my brother playing this song for me off of the "Dazed and Confused" soundtrack my freshman year of high school and thinking "WHAT. IS. THIS?!" I would play it over and over again. I've always been drawn to cool, tough women.
Adam Enright: Spencer Davis Group's "I'm A Man." I love all of their stuff, but I'm particularly obsessed with "I'm A Man." Check out the awesome and effortlessly cool vocals of a very young Steve Winwood.
Brandon Pearson: Heart's "Magic Man." I consider this song to be the rebellious Rock and Roll twin sister of the song "Meadowlark"! Heart is one of my favorite bands.
Brandon Pearson: Queen's "Killer Queen." This song is on constant repeat on my iPod. There will never be another singer like Freddie Mercury; he and Queen are Rock and Roll royalty.
Lauren Elder: Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Bad Moon Rising." I have always loved this song. It sounds so cheerful, but if you pay attention to the lyrics, it's very foreboding. I love dark songs that hide in happy melodies.
Lauren Elder: "Foreplay/Longtime" by Boston. This is, hands down, the best song to play/sing on Rock Band. My friends and I end every game with it. I also have an incredible memory of my best friend, Meabh, doing an impromptu performance of it in our living room long before Rock Band. Oh, you wish you were there.
Maya Sharpe: The Doors' "The End." Riding the waves of the guitar riffs while I get drunk off of how deliciously wild Jim Morrison is.
Maya Sharpe: Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." That's right… It's just epically amazing.
