By George Duchannes
Saturday December 10 music lovers gathered at the McCallum Theatre for Jimi Fitz and Friends a CV Christmas, which was an amazing experience. Hearing all around town how talented each and every single performer was going to be sure had me excited for what I was about to witness. Before the show everyone gathered around the lobby. The room was filled with great energy and excitement as everyone mingled while waiting to see some talented desert legends.
As we entered the theatre we were all greeted by the man of the night Jimi Fitz, host of FITZ IN THE MORNING on CV 104.3. Immediately he makes everyone feel comfortable. As big as the McCallum is Fitz made me feel like I was in an intimate live session in a tiny cafe. Once the music started and all these legends came out one after another I was extremely excited. The ease, talent, and presence each and every one of the performers had was unbelievable. A night not to be forgotten!
I spoke with an attendee of the event, Meagan Van Dyke, also a local musician and employee of the McCallum Theatre. Meagan: “The evening was definitely one to remember. There was simply too much music throughout the night to single out each amazing local artist, but each set brought a level of soul-stirring performances that left me and the audience around me moved to the core. Fitz brought an undeniable amount of talent to the stage. When you have artists like Steve Madaio, Will Donato and The King Brothers all on one stage, as an audience member, you could feel what these guys were laying down. True artists, true local talent and Fitz did not disappoint.”
All in all the night was a success and a very special evening. Special thank you to the amazing talent for putting on such a great show!
(Photos By George Duchannes)
From the Publisher: Tracy Dietlin
What an amazing show last Friday night at the McCallum. Congrats to jimi “Fitz” Fitzgerald for bringing together so many desert legends in different genres. I loved every performance, but I had a couple standout moments that were close to my heart: Jimi performing “Rockin in the Free World” with Jeff Bowman, Mike Pygmie and Jimmy Palmer was deserving of the standing ovation they received. And I loved watching John Stanley King and Ronnie King perform together; it was the first time I had ever witnessed these two multi-talented brothers perform together. Kal David and Lauri Bono are always awesome; the consummate professionals that even after all these years still ooze that authenticity. And Steve Madaio and Will Donato were something special.
I loved the way that even though this was supposed to be jimi’s night in the spotlight he still made sure to give all the musicians on that stage their opportunity to shine. And they all did! And Jimi did too, with a subtle kick in the rock n roll pants. All of jimi’s performances were stellar! And I must give a shout out to Jimmy Palmer, who makes guitars for other people, but that night was a beast playing the guitar!
jimi Fitz and Friends show at the McCallum was one for the books. I highly suggest he makes this an annual event. For those who didn’t attend- it was the show that got away.
