Castro always delivers
by VicsBurgh on 4/14/13State Theatre, Kalamazoo - KalamazooOver the last 15 years or so, I have seen Tommy Castro maybe a dozen times, and even though he hasn't had any new material for awhile, the show at the State Theater in Kalamazoo, MI, on April 12 was an amazing display of talent and showmanship. Tommy Castro never fails to satisy his audience, whether it's on one of the famous Blues Cruises, in a funky club like Skipper's Smokehouse in Tampa, FL, or at a handsome old theater like the State. Castro even mentioned at one point that over the years, the State Theater is his favorite venue, and it showed. The concert was scheduled for an 8 PM start, and it began at 8:05 - no opening act, just Tommy Castro & the Painkillers. The first set ran until 9:30 PM, and covered the entire catalog, from old to new. At 9"30 the band took about a halk-hour break, during which time Tommy came out to the lobby and worked the souvenir table, greeting fans, autographing CDs and shirts, and he is a most pleasurable guy to talk to, and really seems like the guy you'd like to hang with . At about 10PM, the band returned to the stage, and played another 45 minute set, focusing more on the older and more familiar stuff in the catalog, although he surprised the crwod with a really tasty cover of Wet Wiklklie's "Keep On Smilin'". After the band took its bows, they returned for a single encore. 2-1/2 hours of stage time to see a favorite band at the top of their game, for a $14.00 ticket. Not bad these days!