By Kylie Phillips
Many sons were embarrassed by their mothers’ attempts at rock ‘n’roll war cries last Wednesday night (March 20) as Joan Jett and The Blackhearts took fans at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood back to an era of rock in which leopard vests and red-stitched leather pants were everyday wear.
With eight platinum and gold records and nine Top 40 hits, Jett was not short of material to play. Yet, the concert was relatively short, ending just after an hour and a half. Usually, this would be a point of complaint, but one has to appreciate a band that sticks to what they know the fans want. And the fans that night certainly heard every song that might’ve crossed the radio sometime back in their college years.
Jett and the Blackhearts swiftly came on stage and transitioned from pre-set music blaring through the speakers into Bad Reputation. There was barely an infinitesimal change between when the recorded music stopped and when the live music began. Jett’s voice still has the youthful rasp and spark and The Blackhearts still have the sound of the clear, raw power that made their pairing so compelling.
In her tight leather ensemble, Jett worked the crowd with a laudable charm. Every guitar solo led her to the edge of the stage, where she showed off the talent that first declared itself when the Runaways stomped onto stages in 1975.
In the middle of the Runaways hit Cherry Bomb, Jett’s guitar cord got caught. With a flick of her wrist, she had it fixed before a stage guy could scamper across to fix it. During the show, Jett mentioned that Runaways guitarist Lita Ford was in the house, which begs one to wonder why the two couldn’t share the stage for one surprise song. Not that guitarist Dougie Needles wasn’t doing a hell of a job himself.
Following Cherry Bomb, Jett and the Blackhearts blasted into Do You Want to Touch Me, which sent the crowd into ecstasies. Every woman in the room, from the S&M styled chicks to grandmothers, “Oh yeah!” on Jett’s command. Women gave her the same spellbound reaction only once more, when the band played I Hate Myself for Loving You.
These days, Jett attracts an older crowd of mostly parents. Many veterans were in attendance too, as made obvious by the copious amount of men in suspenders and veteran hats joyously pumping their fists to I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll. Jett’s 20 years of touring with the USO probably has something to do with that.
“So, uh, we’re working on a new record,” Jett proclaimed before delving into some new material, “Album, CD, file, mp3, whatever. ‘Record’ still sounds good to me.”
The new material was no different or surprising than the Joan Jett and the Blackhearts of the 1980s. The lyrics may be rooted in modern concepts, but the songs still have that same feel. They also played Reality Mentality, a bonus track off of their Greatest Hits compilation that’s being re-released in Australia. (Note to Australian readers: It’s a shame that The Darkness had to cancel their tour of your country. Jett, who was going to open for them, canceled too.)
Jett and her band exited the stage after playing their last song, only to walk back on less than five minutes later for an encore. Two songs from their 2006 album, Sinner, and a cover of Sly and the Family Stone’s Everyday People left fans with an endearing impression. They played their greatest hits, they played new songs, and then followed with an innovative interpretation of a timeless soul song. This kind of rock doesn’t mix often with classic soul, but in this case the truth behind Sly Stone’s lyrics shone through Jett’s command of her voice and her guitar.
It was this command, and chemistry with her long-running bandmates, that made Joan Jett and the Blackhearts a pleasure to watch on stage.