John Fogerty – Proud as Ever

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The litmus-paper test of a memorable concert?  For me, a show only really works if I make the walk home afterwards with a tune from it lodged firmly in my head.  It hasn’t happened for a while now, but tonight I was truly spoilt for choice.  How could you choose between two Rock classics like ‘Bad Moon Rising’ and ‘Proud Mary’?  Plans for a support slot were dropped, and truthfully,  anyone would have just been a distraction.  This was a trip firmly focussed on the past – 50 years to be approximate, August 1969 to be precise.  History was made, iconic moments captured on film forever, an era captured on videotape – excepting one particular performance.  Here at Kunstrasen, we have the chance to enjoy what landed on the cutting room floor – the best songs of CCR Front-man John Fogerty.

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BOB without Beethoven – Classic Picnic time at Kunstrasen

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“Welcome to Bonn’s most beautiful Concert Venue”.  Perhaps Beethoven Orchestra Bonn (BOB) Director/Conductor Dirk Kaftan was genuinely only making a point about the beautiful surroundings at Kunstrasen.  A few spectators at this year’s ‘Klassik Picknick’ might well have taken it as a sly ‘dig’ at the disastrous renovation plans of the Beethoven Hall just down the road, however.  Aside from the fact it would get a bit cold in December though it started me to thinking that perhaps they should keep the Kunstrasen stage where it is and just build a football stadium-style roof over the spectator area to make it all-weather friendly and give the Beethovenhalle up as the ‘bad job’ it has become?

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Walk Off The Earth in Bonn

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Walk Off The Earth?  Somewhere that name said something…  I was still wondering precisely what though as I watched the video screen at Kunstrasen.  It was 8.05 pm and the band were in their dressing room (the green room as they called it) but announcing their imminent arrival on the video screen of Kunstrasen’s stage.  Ah yes, the video screen jogged my memory, there was a video I’d seen once of five youngsters singing Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ Not unusual in itself, but they were all playing a single acoustic guitar at the same time. The eye-catching video garnered over 175 million views.  Suddenly I realized this could be an interesting evening, both musically and visually – and so it proved.

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Cynthia Nickschas – Playing in the Park

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Introducing Cynthia Nickschas to regular readers of this site would be a waste of words.  She’s appeared here in various guises and on various stages:  Stadtgarten, Harmonie, and this time around as part of Bad Godesberg’s ‘Musik im Park’ series. I’ll keep it short then for newcomers.  Nickschas made her mark as a street musician in the Bonn area, before being ‘discovered’ by top German singer-songwriter (Liedermacher)  Konstantin Wecker.  The lady has since put together her own (excellent) local band, played on ever bigger stages – and will move up to an even bigger one in August as support to Max Geissinger at Kunstrasen.  I last saw her play a fun set at Bonn Folk Club.

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Joan Baez Tickets

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Joan Baez at Kunstrasen in 2015

“When I  step onto a stage, I don’t make history anymore – I am history!”  That’s how Joan Baez once described her live appearances to the New York Times.

A few more tickets are now available to see this legendary singer at what will surely be one of her very last appearances in Europe. Baez herself has already announced this as her ‘fare Thee Well’ tour.   Venue: Insel Grafenwerth in Bad Honnef on Saturday (6 July).

Tickets via Bonnticket (and at the time of writing still via Mr Music in Bonn)

Little Hurricane in Cologne

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Here’s one for the diaries of all raw Blues lovers.  San Diego based Little Hurricane are a male/female duo with minimalist blues approach to a rocking, indie sound.

Anthony “Tone” Catalano and drummer Celeste “C.C.” Spina already have a major cult following so don’t delay grabbing tickets for their show at Luxor in Cologne on 25 September!