Rockin'
at Kempfest
— 1997
"It's
always great to be 15 for a few hours again! Thanks."
Danielle, Barrie
"When
you do Orbison why don't you do "Cryin'? I do"
John, Waubaushene
"Fantastic
- Memorable. You all give the feeling like we are part of
your family. Much love - God bless during the next year!"
Ron & Edna, Newmarket
"Speechless!!"
Dave & Liz, Etobicoke
"My
Dad said if I don't go he won't let me use the car again. Since
then I will not miss a show. Love it. - The Next Generation"
Doug, Midland
"Wonderful
as usual! Great to see and hear such talent"
Marie, Penetanguishene
"Excellent
performance. Really enjoyed ourselves tonight. Thanks"
James, Mississauga
"I
love Elvis"
Kevin, Barrie
"Saw
you in Barrie at Kempenfest - had to attend the Midland dance."
Fred & Darlene, Toronto
"Best
part of the vacation!"
Len, Weston
"Always
liked it. Only missed the first 2 dances. A fan for 19 years."
Glenelda & Gord, Midland
Martels
a musical feast
By John Swartz
Orillia
Packet and Times,
April
1999
The
Community Foundation of Orillia and Area had its first fundraising
effort on Saturday night at the Opera House. The main, and only,
attraction was the Martels. Going into this, I had some reservations.
Their appearance here was preceded by lots of plugs made toward
me.
They
have a reputation in Huronia for being a good draw at 50's and
60's dances. Their advance promo material makes much of their
early years as a back-up band for just about everybody, especially
Bobby Curtola. Many people said how good they were. One person
couldn't figure out how their performance would translate from
the arenas they normally play to the stage in Gord's [Lightfoot]
room.
I
didn't know what to expect. For the most part, I've counted
myself lucky to have been too young to remember any part of
the 50's - at least the part Hollywood and K-Tel would have
us believe existed. Every once in a while something comes along
to remind me that there was some valuable music made then.
The 10 people who make up the Martels live within spitting distance
(OK, on a windy day). It's quite clear they spend a lot of time
writing their show and perfecting it. There is no pandering
to the audience for applause. They are slick, but not in the
aforementioned Hollywood or Vegas way.
The
slick I refer to is in the way their show flows from beginning
to end; the arrangements, which generally follow the originals,
have the band's personality up front; the dead on and creative
vocal harmonies fill the room; the shear display of craftsmanship
from every member of the band can't escape notice; the incredibly
great mix of sounds and notes provided by the 11th member of
the group, soundman Rick Horbiachuk, treats our ears; the understated
light show 12th member, Paul Edwards, can just be there, and
then really be there. This band is genuine, no doubt about that.
Guitarist Larry French told me earlier in the week about the
Roy Orbison tribute that stoped here a few months back. He was
saying he thought it was good. The band did a five-tune segment
of Orbison's stuff in the second set that got one of the most
enthusiastic and spontaneous standing ovations I've seen in
quite a while.
In
comparison, these guys were way better (think Mustang Mach 1's
vs. Pintos). They also did segments, in costume, of tunes by
the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, and Elvis. In the Elvis bit,
the stage went dark and the band did Thus Spake Zarathustra
(Elvis' opening fanfare), which sounded like an orchestra of
50. The impersonation by Gary French was not tacky (and I've
seen tacky Elvis impersonations), but very much just a part
of the overall show in a matter-of-fact way. Their take on the
Everly's Cryin' in the Rain was a vocal feast. As a matter of
fact, with eight of the nine musicians singing, the whole show
was a vocal feast. Quite often there were some unexpected harmonies
used, which added a lot to the whole experience.
The
other thing I noticed is the older generation (gray hair, blue
hair, no hair which was a sizeable portion of the 500 at this
show) hasn't got a lot of room to complain about the way teenagers
act at concerts - if what I saw is any yard stick. They may
be a little bit slower to react and a little less fluid with
the toe tapping and bopping in their seats, but the sight remains
the same. They even got into the freshest of the tunes, Bob
Seeger's Old Time Rock and Roll and Grand Funk Railroad's Some
Kind of Wonderful, both of which came way after Let Zeppelin.
The Martels will be back in the fall at ODAS Park for the Fire
Fighters annual dance and I recommend them highly, particularly
to the young musically inclined (working or otherwise) people
around here. The Martels give a textbook lesson on how to put
a show together.
