Rockin' on the Riverfront - Steppenwolf

Upcoming ROTR Concerts:
March 3: Starship, featuring Micky Thomas
August 10: Survivor
August 17: War
For more information, go to
http://gmrencen.com/rockinontheriverfront/

DMM went to Rockin' on the Riverfront in Detroit at the GM Renaissance Center on Friday July 27, 2018 to see Steppenwolf. Our photos of the event are on our "Events Page" for the concert. These concerts are sponsored every year by Chevrolet, promoted and managed by 94.7 WCSX FM and, undoubtedly, engender a lot of good will because they are very well attended.

We were disappointed there was to be a "warm up" band, until we heard them. Slowfoot is a band hailing from Waterford, MI and seems to specialize in (sort of) heavy and intense slow rock, covers and originals, interspersed with some rocked out faster tunes. They do some covers that we have all heard, but not the songs that have been worn out by repetitive abuse at the hands of other bands. The lead singer has an amazing voice and, during a Beatles cover, you would have sworn John Lennon was on the stage if you closed your eyes. But it wasn't just the singer; every piece of this band, including the instrumentals and the backup vocals fit together into a great musical experience. 

Highly Recommended! You can find them at https://www.facebook.com/slowfootband/

Steppenwolf took the Stage at about 9:00 and the audience went ballistic. John Kay, the legendary singer, began with Sookie Sookie Sue and ended at about 10:20 or so with The Pusher. In between these two songs were amazing hits from this iconic band's long career. This year is, in fact, the 50th Anniversary of Steppenwolf. It seems impossible, but it is.

A shocker was that John Kay announced that this is the last time Steppenwolf will be performing in Detroit; he said 50 years was long enough. He thanked his fans for their years of support and told everyone that he would spend his time working to support our biosphere and the numerous endangered and threatened species that mankind is driving to extinction. He and his wife have a foundation for this cause, The Maue Kay Foundation (https://mauekay.org). The mission statement is, "The Maue Kay Foundation is a non profit 501(c) (3) charitable foundation formed in 2004 by John Kay and Jutta Maue Kay which supports individuals and organizations engaged in the protection of WILDLIFE, THE ENVIRONMENT and HUMAN RIGHTS."

The concert was awesome, the crowd was fired up, and the evening was a lot of fun. John Kay's voice hasn't lost anything; he still sounds like he did in 1968, possibly better. It was a good time and we strongly recommend that you get down to Detroit for the next three Friday nights and see the remaining concerts (listed above). In addition to the concert, there is a lot of great food and drink in the area to make your evening even more enjoyable.