Music lovers dodge the raindrops this Wednesday, May 15, 2024 afternoon as they make their way into Holmdel, NJ’s PNC Bank Arts Center amphitheater for a concert by The Texas Tenors.
The Texas Tenors is a classical crossover trio formed in 2009 by JC Fisher, John Hagen, and Marcus Collins. The group was a top-four finalist on Season Four of TV’s America’s Got Talent, making them the highest ranking vocal ensemble in the show’s history. Since then, the group has gone on to produce a triple Emmy award-winning PBS television special and three albums which all debuted at #1 on the Billboard Classical Music chart — 2017’s Rise, 2018’s A Collection of Broadway & American Classics, and 2021’s Outside the Lines.
This afternoon’s performance by The Texas Tenors at the PNC Bank Arts Center is the second in a series of 2024 concerts presented to New Jersey residents aged 55 and older. The first show, which took place on May 8, 2024, featured a Sinatra Forever tribute concert by Las Vegas entertainer Rick Michel. All performances are presented by the Garden State Arts Foundation under the direction of VP Ron Gravino, who is ably assisted by Cookie Santiago and Bob O’Brian.
Inside the PNC Bank Arts Center amphitheater, Gravino welcomes the audience and introduces them to GSAF Executive Director Cookie Santiago.
He also tells concertgoers about another free upcoming GSAF performance which takes place here on May 30 entitled Cousin Brucie Presents Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap, and Lala Brooks.
Following a recording of The Texas Tenors singing the national anthem, guitarist Larry Hanson, keyboardist Josh Hanlon, and drummer Pete Generous take their places on stage. As the instrumentalists begin to play, Tenors JC Fisher and John Hagen enter performing Queen’s “The Show Must Go On.” Blending perfectly, the singers croon, “The show must go on/The show must go on/Inside my heart is breaking/My makeup may be flaking/But my smile, still, stays on.”
Following an upbeat rendition of Alabama’s “Mountain Music,” Fisher addresses the crowd announcing, “It’s been six years since we’ve been here,” and Hagen laments, “Our third Tenor, Marcus Collins, is missing today,” explaining that Collins is recuperating from a medical issue which precludes him from traveling.
After Hagen asks the crowd, “Do you like country music?” Fisher jokes, “This is from the country of Italy,” and Hagen launches into the Italian aria, “O sole mio.”
After Fisher joins in and the Tenors attempt to out-sing one another, Fisher follows up by singing from his heart on the traditional Irish melody, “Danny Boy.”
Hagen joins him and the two finish up the number prior to dedicating their next song — Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up” — to everyday heroes including teachers and first responders.
When the Tenors dedicate a powerful rendition of Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” to veterans and their families, audience members respond by spontaneously standing and singing, “And I’m proud to be an American/Where at least I know I’m free.”
Fisher exclaims, “This is an absolutely beautiful venue!” and Hagen acknowledges, “I love coming back here!” explaining that, while studying voice in New York City, he used to live in Hoboken and work in Morristown, NJ.
After talking about performing at the Andy Williams Theater in Branson, MO, Hagen and Fisher each take a seat to perform their arrangement of Andy Williams’ “Moon River” which features an acoustic guitar solo by Larry Hanson and a piano solo by Josh Hanlon.
Via the “magic of technology,” legendary singer Bill Medley joins the Tenors on their version of The Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” where Hagen and Fisher sing live to a recording featuring Medley’s voice, leaving the crowd cheering and applauding.
Following a short intermission, the Tenors invite the crowd to join them in singing a rousing rendition of “God Bless America.”
The duo picks up the tempo performing their original song, “Boot Daddy,” a twangy country tune which has concertgoers tapping along to the infectious rhythm.
Fisher starts off singing and playing electric guitar on Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” and Hagen continues the arrangement by making his way into the audience and performing the song in Italian. After Hagen returns to the stage, keyboardist Josh Hanlon leads the audience in a sing-along version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”
Fisher surprises the crowd by performing a short snippet of Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman,” after which Hagen jokes, “He’ll learn the whole song the next time we’re here.” Then, in a tribute to the music of Broadway, Hanlon’s resonant voice is featured on “Some Enchanted Evening” from South Pacific and Fisher follows up by singing “Bring Him Home” from Les Misérables on his knees.
Concertgoers cheer, and the Tenors’ instrumentalists follow up with a medley featuring Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5” and Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.” After guitarist Larry Hanson is featured on an electric guitar solo, Hagen sings Hanson’s original country ballad, “The Sound of Your Goodbye.” Hagen also starts off the beloved Puccini aria, “Nessun dorma,” where he’s joined by Fisher as the music swells and the Tenors vocalize with power and conviction to whistles, cheers, and applause.
Fisher reacts by promising, “We’ll come back anytime and, next time, we’ll have Marcus with us,” as he takes out his camera phone to videorecord the entire PNC audience saying, “Get well, Marcus, from New Jersey!”
To conclude the show, Marcus Collins’ prerecorded voice is heard throughout the venue as the Tenors present a dynamic interpretation of Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” in three-part harmony which culminates with an enthusiastic audience standing ovation.
As music lovers make their way out of the PNC Bank Arts amphitheater, several comment on today’s performance by The Texas Tenors. Exclaims Nancy from Woodbridge, “I thought The Texas Tenors were fantastic! This was my first time seeing them and they put on a really good show.”
Continuing, “Their voices were fantastic and they performed every style of music you could want — opera, country, Broadway,” Nancy concludes by noting, “They also did such a great job honoring America that they got us all up standing and singing and showing we’re proud to be Americans.”
Robert from Old Bridge asserts, “I thought the show was great! I saw The Texas Tenors when they were here last time with all three Tenors, and they were still good today with just two of them.” Carmela from Edison declares, “The Texas Tenors were great! I loved their big voices and really enjoyed their show — they were very versatile and very entertaining!”
Marilyn from Monroe acknowledges, “I didn’t know what to expect today, but I was pleasantly surprised and thought their show was great,” prior to revealing, “I’ve been coming to the Garden State Arts Foundation shows for three years now and they’re always good.” Larry from Monroe concurs, before concluding, “I was very happy with today’s show and thought the singers and their band were over-the-top fantastic!”
To learn more about The Texas Tenors, please go to thetexastenors.com. For info on free upcoming Garden State Arts Foundation shows at the PNC Bank Arts Center — including Cousin Brucie Presents: Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap, and Lala Brooks on May 30 — please click on gsafoundation.org.
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