By Danny Coleman
originally published: 06/19/2014

We've all had various themes, songs, or movies which represent defining moments in life and for many, the music which accompanies these moments is as much a part of them as is the moment itself.
There are certain decades of music which evoke memories or even mental time travel as we are transported back to youth or a certain someone, maybe even a place in which we haven't been in years or hope to be once again. Whatever the case, the possibilities are endless, limited only by our own minds.
"Soundtrack of Summer" is one of these time travel moments as the combined talents and forces of Styx, Foreigner and Don Felder have taken to the road to bring their most revered material back to the masses. "This is one exciting tour!," exclaimed Foreigner bassist Jeff Pilson. "The songs from all of these bands, bringing back memories to people; I am crazy proud of it. This is fabulous and promises to be a fabulous summer!"
Pilson rose to prominence in part due to his years of service with the heavy metal band Dokken but being introduced to Foreigner was a matter of fate. "I've been with them for ten years now," he explained. "I wound up joining them because I was working with Jason Bonham on the movie "Rockstar," and we had a blast. Jason is an extremely musical guy and we just clicked; it's like we read each others minds and he introduced me to Mick Jones."
"I really didn't want to do this," said veteran rocker and guitarist Don Felder with a laugh. "At first I didn't know who was involved; one thing I've learned over the years is to balance life, loved ones and golf partners with my music. So when I heard it was Styx and Foreigner, I said, "Sign me up!" Working with Styx is a delight and I had met the guys in Foreigner before so I knew this was going to be good. These shows are four hour rock-a-thons with a lot of people who are really nice. The other twenty hours spent off stage are great. I have a golf partner in Ricky (Phillips) and there are no egos and no drama unlike past situations I've been in; there's a great balance."
Styx bassist Ricky Phillips, in his eleventh year with the band, echoes the sentiments of his touring partners and seems rather amused at his good fortunes. "I joined Styx in 2003. I come from a heavier handed place; it's one of those things you know, I mean with all of the things that I've done, I never thought that I'd end up here," he chuckled. "I always wanted Tommy (Shaw) and I to play together so I am very happy with the way things have turned out. This is a real special combination of musicians."
The tour to this point has been a boost for all involved says Phillips, "There's a little something different every night; I'm kind of excited about it. I like Don (Felder) a lot, his songs, things like "Victim of Love" and "Hotel California," these songs are great! He is so talented and his band is smokin'. Foreigner? I have a couple of close friends in that band. I turned them onto Kelly Hansen and it's one of the reasons that they stay as good as they are. I've known Tom Gimbel for 25 years, we go way back."
Along those very lines, Pilson was a fan of the very band he now is a part of; a turn of events that he is quite happy about. "It's fabulous! It makes music a natural thing playing with these guys. We show such respect and care in our performance for our own music; it is part of the reason this band is so acclaimed. We love the music and we try and play it with love. I've always viewed Foreigner as a hard rock band with great vocals and melodies and now that I'm a part of them, it's great."
All of the bands and their members are very anxious to be doing this together; realizing their longevity and status still appeal to mass audiences, be it through nostalgia or legions of new fans. "I think we now appeal to a broader pallet," says Phillips. "I see 6,7,8 and 10 to 12 year old kids liking our music and singing along with their parents; it's a good feeling."
Felder loves the camaraderie between the bands and the reaction of the audiences as well; even tailoring his set list a bit to reflect his tour mates. "I re-released a CD, "Road to Forever" and I sat down with twenty seven songs; I took the best sixteen and I can honestly say there are no duds in the bunch. The one song, "You Don't Have Me" is a bit heavier and quite appropriate to play on this tour. I can't wait to get out there and be part of this every night we take the stage; the fans are great, I mean who doesn't love Styx and Foreigner?"

Pilson and Phillips both say that fans of their respective bands will not be disappointed when they come to the show. "We change things up every tour. We try to make things different," said Phillips. "We've been doing some material for twenty or thirty years but we also like to throw in a tune such as "Light Up" which die hard Styx fans will know." "As long as Kelly's voice holds out we can keep doing this," says Pilson. "The quality is still there as evident by the crowd reaction so we'll keep bringing our old and new material out."

Felder, who says, "I do this because I love to play music," loves being the lone "solo act" on the bill; allowing him the autonomy that makes it worthwhile. "Being my own act is great! I am my own decision maker, I get to say I will do this or I won't do that; it's not an ego thing, it's just that I value my personal time and what I present to the audiences. I've achieved a nice balance of both and I feel it shows whenever we take the stage."

The "Soundtrack of Summer Tour" will be allowing time travel in a town near you soon. To learn more about the tour, ticket information and the bands, please go to www.soundtrackofsummer.com .

This space welcomes any suggestions and/or comments. Please send them to: [email protected]

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That's it for this week! Please continue to support live and original music and until next week....ROCK ON!
THIS WEEKS CALENDAR LISTINGS

Alchemist & Barrister

28 Witherspoon Street Princeton
(609) 924-5555
Thurs. 10 p.m. Arnie Baird

Sun. 10 p.m. Spanky's Garage

Wed. 10 p.m. Open mic. night Hosted by Eric Puliti

All shows 21+
Amarones Windsor Inn

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29 Church St. Windsor
(609) 448-714
Thurs. (6:30 p.m.)Pizza Night w/Scott Gager & Debbie (7:30 p.m.) Texas Hold'em

Sat. 8 p.m. Larry D

Tues. 7:30 p.m. Texas Hold'em
Big Shots Bar and Grill/Hebe Music Lounge

835 E Rte. 130 South, Burlington

(609) 267-1200
Fri. 8 p.m. Solus Rex, Alright Junior, Strange Heat, Revolution I Love You

Sat. 8 p.m. Soraia, Foley McKenna Band, Knuckle Puck Time, Gulps

Wed. 8 p.m. Open Mic.

Blend

911 Rte. 33 Hamilton

(609) 245-8887
Mon. 9 p.m. Karaoke

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Tues. 8 p.m. Trivia Jam
Candlelight Lounge
24 Passaic St. Trenton
(609) 695-9612

Sat. 3 p.m. Orrin Evans Quartet (No cover-$10 minimum)
Chambers Walk Cafe
2667 Main St. Lawrenceville
(609) 896-5995

Fri./Sat. 6 p.m. Dick Gratton
Dubh Linn Square
167 Rte. 130 North Bordentown
(609) 298-7100
Sun. 4 p.m.Billy O'neal

Tues. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night hosted by Shaun Ruymen
Fran's Pub

116 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.

(215)862-5539

Fri. 9 p.m. DJ Night

Sat. 8 p.m. Flatleaver & Friends

Mon. 8 p.m. Open Mic Blues Jam

All shows 21+
Halo Pub

4617 Nottingham Way, Hamilton

(609) 586-1811
Sat. 7 p.m. Deb & Mike
Havana New Hope
105 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-9897

Thurs. 8 p.m. Sammy Flow. $5

Fri. 8 p.m. The Billy Walton Band. $7

Sat. (10 a.m.) The New Hope Liberty Festival (8:30 p.m.) Bigg Romeo

Sun. (4:30 p.m.) Rocky and His Friends (8 p.m.) Local Original Series feat. Colorado Youth

Mon. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron Sherr and Bridge

Wed. 8 p.m. Local Original Series feat. Pat Foran, Russell Norkevich, Jerry Feiss

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All shows 21+
Ivy Tavern
3108 S. Broad Street, Hamilton
(609) 888-1435
Fri. 10 p.m. The Ernie White Band

Sat. 10 p.m. Tangled
All shows 21+

John & Peter's
96 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-5981

Fri. 8 p.m. Weird Hot

Sat. (3 p.m.) Chowder (9:30 p.m.) The Young Werewolves w/ The Atomic Age

Mon. Open Mic.

Tues. 9 p.m. DJ Agresschen

Wed. The Invitational (Featuring John & Peter's House Band)
All shows 21+
JoJo's Tavern

2677 Nottingham Way Hamilton

(609) 586-2678

Sat. 10 p.m. Mike & Karly

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke
Palermo's Of Hamilton
310 Klockner Rd. Hamilton
(609) 838-7979

Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke

All shows 21+
Patriot's Crossing

1339 River Rd. Titusville

(609) 737-2780
Sat. 7:30 p.m. Blues in Disguise

Pete's Steak House
523 Whitehorse Ave. Hamilton
(609) 585-8008

Fri. 9:30 p.m. Kindred Spirit
RHO Waterfront

50 Riverview Plaza Trenton

(609) 393-7300
Thurs. 9 p.m. College Night w/ DJ Jeff Scott

Fri. (4:30 p.m.) Rob Silvers (8:30 p.m.) The Verdict (10 p.m.) DJ Jimmie Palumbo

All Shows 21+
Sunsets at Cream Ridge

181 Rte. 539 Cream Ridge

(609) 208-2500
Thurs. 7 p.m. Joe Kaplow

Fri. (6 p.m.) Jayded John (9 p.m.) Out of The Red

Sat. 9:30 p.m. Slippery Kool

Mon. 7 p.m. Open Mic. and Karaoke w/ Rich Barry

Wed. 5:30 p.m. Car Show for Prevention

Tavern On The Lake

101 Main St. Hightstown
(609) 426-9345

Fri. 9 p.m. Lynchburg Renegade

Sat. 9 p.m. Steve (the band)

Wed. 8 p.m. Karaoke Night
The Cool Cricket

216 4th St. Fieldsboro

(609) 291-9110
Fri. 9 p.m. Karaoke

Sat. 9 p.m. Karma Train
The Ivy Inn

248 Nassau St. Princeton

(609) 921-8555
Thurs. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ Ron Sherr

Fri. 10 p.m. Jam Lab

Sat. 10 p.m. DJ Fatha Ramzee

Tues. 8 p.m. Quizzo w/ Bob E Luv

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ Ron Sherr
The Sticky Wicket
2465 South Broad St. Hamilton
(609) 439-0007
Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke

Fri. 9 p.m. Catch 22

Sat. 9:30 p.m. Out of The Red

All shows 21+
The Sun National Bank Center
81 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 656-3200
Please check web site for upcoming events
Tir Na Nog
1324 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 392-2554

Fri. 9 p.m. Seamus Kelleher

Sat. 9 p.m. Alright Alright

All shows 21+
Trenton Social

449 South Broad Street Trenton

(609) 989-7777
Thurs. 8 p.m. Cinema Thursdays

Fri. 10 p.m. Friday night w/ Jay Kountree & Jaxx

Mon. 10 p.m. Service Industry Night w/ DJ-Jay Kountree

Tues. 9 p.m. LiveMusic/Open Mic.
Triumph Brewing Company (New Hope, Pa. Location)
400 Union Square New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-8300

Thurs. 10 p.m. Dan Lavoie

Fri. 10 p.m. The Paper Jets. $5 (cover charge)

Sat. (1 p.m.) Jerry Feiss & The Hosey Brothers (10 p.m.) Universal Rebel. $5 (cover charge)

Sun. (2 p.m.) Lynn Flick Trio (7 p.m.) Open Jam Night

All shows 21+
Wildflowers Inn

2572 Pennington Rd. Pennington

Sat. 9 p.m. Live Acoustic Rock
Mon. 9 p.m. Karaoke

All shows 21+

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Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled 'Rock On Radio' airing Sunday evenings at 7:00pm EST on ThePenguinRocks.com where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.

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