Saw the Cruisin' the Circuit show at the Paramount Theater in Asbury Park, NJ. on 8/26/17. Very historic venue for music at the Jersey shore!
POSITIVE:
1. Great to see the Crystals, Drifters, Coasters, Shirley Reeves from the Shirelles and of course, Ronnie Spector! Still at it after all these years bringing back great teenage memories!
2. Ronnie Spector had some awesome videos and slides projected on a very large screen while she sang. Her song dedicated to her late sister was quite touching. She was a joy to listen to. Her band was MUCH BETTER than the house band.
3. MC Big Joe Henry from NJ101.5FM radio was his usual funny self! Always a pleasure to have him host the shows!
NEGATIVE:
1. Tickets said 6:00pm DRS - we thought the show STARTED At 6pm so we (party of 4) adjusted our afternoon and dinner plans to be at the theater by 5:30. WRONG! "DRS" obviously means DOORS open at 6:00 because the show was slated to start at 7:00! 90 minutes of hanging around was totally avoidable if it said "7:00 curtain."
2. Having the opening singer was a waste of time - his vocals were good but his comments in between songs were inaudible (see #3)
3. The sound system was absolutely horrible! HORRIBLE! If you did not know the words to the songs you really struggled. Most of the singing was muffled. Now, I'm an audiologist and I know that I have very good hearing and I struggled. People around us wearing hearing aids (including my wife) also commented on the horrible sound - the back-up band for all the performers (except the Ronettes) was too bassy and at times overpowered the singers.
4. The lighting was the WORST I had ever seen at a professional event in 50 years. THE WORST! EVER!!! No spotlights on the performers?! Really? And it didn't get any better after the intermission. Totally amateurish and a great disappointment! Ronnie Spector told some great "back stories" in between songs but she was sitting in the dark!
5. Did I mention that the lighting and sound were horrible?
SUMMARY: Great collection of oldies groups performing in an historic great venue but absolutely terrible sound and lighting. The sound and lighting issues really put a damper on the entire event.