Tag: David Bowie

Remember the Time — The Brothers Harrington Return With “Experience the Music of 1971” Show in Canton

Amy Petty and Jason Briggs perform as part of “Experience the Music of 1971” at the Canton Village Theater in 2025. Courtesy photo.

The Brothers Harrington are musical time travelers.

The Ann Arbor, Michigan, musicians and siblings are building a metaphorical portal to 1971, a year that featured era-defining music from iconic artists like Led Zeppelin, The Who, Carole King, Marvin Gaye, and David Bowie.

That portal is in the form of a live revue-style show called Experience the Music of 1971. After debuting at the Canton Village Theater last fall, the show is back for a two-night run—October 1-2—at the same venue.

“It will be a completely organic performance, and that’s in the spirit of the music,” said Billy Harrington, a drummer who’s co-producing the show with his younger brother, guitarist Michael Harrington.

“We’re doing it the way that people did in the early ‘70s, given the tech that we have. It’s live instruments and live music in a room, and hopefully, we’re connecting with the audience and reminding them, or introducing them to this music.”

The Brothers Harrington developed the concept for the show after discussing a shared love of songs and albums from that transformative year with friend Mark Jay, owner-engineer of Immersifi Recording Services in Ann Arbor, and a sponsor of Experience the Music of 1971. (Immersifi Recording Services specializes in live recording, audio preservation and restoration, and noise and vibration consultancy services.)

“It kept coming up, and Mark was one of the inspirations to push it into the show world,” said Billy Harrington, who’s also performed and toured nationally with different tribute shows.

Last year’s inaugural show sold out and featured a roster of Michigan musicians performing songs like “Stairway to Heaven,” “What’s Going On,” “Roundabout,” and “Baba O’Riley.”

“It’s a lot of really challenging music, and it’s on our shoulders [again] to perform and do it right,” said Michael Harrington. “I think it will be fun, but it will be a lot of hard work and really rewarding.”

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Back in Time — “Experience the Music of 1971” Show Pays Tribute to Songs From a Definitive Year

In high school, Billy Harrington started compiling iTunes playlists of his favorite music.

Those playlists included music recorded at Motown and Stax Records as well as songs and albums released in 1971.

“I became someone who was really interested in the liner notes, and I was making my own custom columns of [music] being done in [different] studios,” said Harrington, a drummer-producer based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

“I also had playlists based on different years, and I kept noticing all of these great records that were happening in 1971. [That year] kept popping up, and it wasn’t just albums that I knew were famous and popular, but they happened to be my favorite albums. They were my cherished recordings, and they all kept coming out in 1971.”

Years later, Harrington and his brother, guitarist Michael Harrington, met Mark Jay, owner-engineer of Ann Arbor-based Immerisfi Recording Services. They would often discuss music while hanging out at the bar, and many of those conversations led to a love of music from the 1970s.

“We’re air-drumming to all of these songs, and it became a laughable inside joke,” said Harrington, who’s produced several artists and performed and toured nationally with different tribute shows. “We’d say ‘This is ’71 again.’ It kept coming up, and Mark was one of the inspirations to push it into the show world.”

What resulted is “Experience the Music of 1971,” a revue-style show that takes place October 11 at the Canton Village Theater and pays tribute to music recorded and released that year. 

It’s a time when Carole King, James Taylor, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Marvin Gaye, David Bowie, and others released era-defining music.

“We had done a James Taylor show, and we had done a Beatles-themed show,” said Harrington, who’s co-producing Experience the Music of 1971 with Michael Harrington and working with Jay as one of the show’s sponsors.

“Both of those shows were at the Canton Village Theater, and we thought, ‘Maybe it’s time to do something new.’ And 1971 was highly requested by Mark, and I thought, ‘There’s so much great music that I want to play on stage with people.’”

I recently spoke to Billy Harrington, Michael Harrington, and Mark Jay about the show ahead of its debut at the Canton Village Theater.

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Dearly Departed – Emily Rose Honors Late Singer-Songwriters Through ‘Ghost Night at Ghost Light’ Monthly Concert Series

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Emily Rose performs with Dan “Ozzie” Andrews during a “Ghost Night at Ghost Light” show. Photo – Jeff Spisak

Six years ago, Emily Rose tested out a new concept for a live show.

The Detroit indie-folk singer-songwriter hosted a tribute night honoring a late artist at Ghost Light Bar in Hamtramck, Michigan.

“One of the bartenders at Ghost Light is a close friend and he said, ‘Emily, you could have a regular show here if you wanted.’ He planted that seed, and I did a Jim Croce tribute night in 2017 because he’s a songwriter that I love,” Rose said.

“It was a great show and it was so much fun. In the back of my head, I thought, ‘Well, maybe someday I’ll do a monthly show where I learn a bunch of songs by a different artist.’”

At the time, Rose laid the foundation for what would become “Ghost Night at Ghost Light,” a monthly tribute show featuring local artists performing the music of departed singer-songwriters as well as sharing their own material.

“Last year I was in a position where I realized I needed something to focus my energy on,” said Rose, who launched the concert series last June. “I needed a project to throw myself into … and a lot of my favorite songwriters are dead. The idea to do a different departed songwriter every month just made sense.”

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Musical Dichotomy – Jonathan Something Explores Conflicts of Human Psyche on ‘Outlandish Poetica’

Jonathan Something

Deep beneath Jonathan Something’s vintage-inspired rock lies the complexity and beauty of the human psyche.

The Brooklyn, Conn., singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer explores the dichotomy between a person’s emotionally turbulent interior and their serene façade on his latest release, “Outlandish Poetica,” which dropped last week via Solitaire Recordings.

Throughout “Outlandish Poetica’s” honest, eclectic and thought-provoking nine tracks, Something, aka Jon Searles, purposefully mixes upbeat, electrified ‘60s-fueled music with ironic, contemplative lyrics. It’s a clever and humorous way to musically and lyrically characterize the growing conflict most people experience when they mask their true self.

“I think I’m sort of a self-deprecating human being as a whole, and I think it’s an interesting vibe. I think a lot of people take themselves a little too seriously when it comes to music,” Searles said. “I like stuff that I can get a good laugh out of, especially stuff with dry humor, and on the surface level, wouldn’t necessarily be funny, but when you take it into the context of how they’re saying and what they’re saying, it packs a little punch.”

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Celebrating David Bowie — Musicians, Friends Commemorate Thin White Duke at Royal Oak Music Theatre

The Stratton Setlist caught the Feb. 19 Celebrating David Bowie tribute show at Royal Oak Music Theatre in Royal Oak, Mich.