A Touch of Class

On Friday night, Feburary 9th ,2007, I had the opportunity to catch the band, “A Touch of Class”. To see a live band in the city among all the acoustic acts, duos, or two pieces as they are more commonly called, along with the karaoke and D.J’s is indeed a treat. Not knowing what to expect, I went to the bar, got a beer and took a seat.I realized that it should be an interesting night,just by looking at the equipment on the stage. I have never seen a bass drum quite like this one…….it was huge. I recognized the name on one of the amps…..Marshall.I see this name in videos on tv all the time.
The band arrived shortly after and proceeded to finish with the set-up. A girl with blonde hair and wearing an evening dress turned out to be the singer. Three guys, dressed in suits and tuxedoes made up the rest of the band. They looked like they were going to perform for a wedding or private party. Instead, they were getting ready to perform at “The Player’s Cue”…a small club on Commonwealth Avenue in the heart of Mt. Pearl.The band grabs a quick drink, tune up their guitars, and the familiar “Check…..One, Two, Three” is heard as the singer checks her microphone. As minor adjustments are made, the drummer starts to check his drums as well by randomly hitting them as the bass player joins in. Nothing in particular is being played, just random drum beats and sounds from the guitars as the volume levels are adjusted. Both the singer and drummer check their mics as the random music is being played and then it hits me…..they are actually doing a sound check.
I have seen other bands do sound checks before….they actually play two or three songs to get the sound right. The guitar player starts playing some very fast and impressive guitar work and plays with the volume controls on his amp to the point of controlled feedback. As the drums and bass come into full form and volumes are once again balanced out, everything stops DEAD!!!! (the sound check took less than a minute). The drummer says….”One, Two, Three, Four and the guitar player cuts into the beginning of a Carlene Carter song called “Every Little Thing” and the entire band takes off like a 747 jet. A couple of quick adjustments to the sound as the guitar player runs around the club listening to the sound as he is playing is something I have never seen before. After the song is over, a big round of applause is heard along with cheers and whistles. Then they jump into a Robert Palmer song called “Bad Case Of Lovin’ You” and proceed to perform some of the best pop, country and rock and roll I have not heard in quite some time. This is party music at it’s best and it was being preformed by the best musicians I have ever seen. They even have their own original songs, which are just as good or better than the cover tunes they perform. The fog machine puts a nice effect to the atmosphere of the night as the band continues to play such cover tunes by The Animals, (this song you have got to hear), Donna Summer, Brooks and Dunn, Rod Stewart and even Shaina Twain. I have never seen a four piece band with just guitar, bass and drums do Shaina Twain, and the singer had it down pat. She did requests for AC/DC, ZZ Top, Pat Benatar, Guns and Roses and old sixties rock and roll. I have never seen or heard a female singer sing with a range like this before. The band was simply amazing. And to my amazement…..there was no cover charge.The band made the audience feel like they were part of the show. The singer had the audience up dancing and singing along with her all night. The audience was being entertained in a way that I have never seen before by four of the best musicians I have ever seen. I will most definitely have to check this band out again for they truly are “A Touch of Class”.

A very, very, very impressed fan