Vol. 4, No. 8, August 2007
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Life’s Been Good
Here’s a double bill you won’t want to miss. Guitar legend and Montclair High School graduate Joe Walsh makes an appearance alongside fellow Jersey boy Bruce Willis at Borgata on August 4.
A rock and roll prankster, Walsh scored his first success as lead guitarist for the James Gang, a power trio that relied on his crunching guitar rhythms and inventive leads (“Funk 49” contains one of the most memorable guitar riffs of all time).
He left the band in 1971 to embark on a solo career, releasing his debut album Barnstorm the following year. His major breakthrough came in 1973 with the album
The Smoker You Drink,
the Player You Get, including the hit single “Rocky Mountain Way,” which became an instant classic and a song that Walsh likes to play in his live shows.
After releasing the live album
You Can't Argue with a Sick Mind, Walsh put his solo career on hold and joined the legendary Eagles. By adding a hard-rock edge to the band’s laid-back California sound, Walsh went on to help the Eagles become one of the greatest rock bands of all time.
Following the release of the Eagles’
Hotel California, Walsh reignited his solo career with the 1978 success of
But Seriously Folks, an album that produced the hit single “Life’s Been Good.”
After leaving the Eagles in 1980, Walsh continued his solo work, playing not only guitar but keyboards, bass, harmonica, bagpipes, oboe and clarinet.
Opening for Walsh will be the award-winning actor and Penns Grove native Bruce Willis, best known for his roles in the
Die Hard series, along with memorable turns in
The Sixth Sense,
Armageddon,
Pulp Fiction and others. Willis, who just scored a box-office hit with
Live Free or Die Hard, is no stranger to the musical stage. He picked up his love for the blues while working as a bartender in New York, and showed his chops on harmonica on
The Return of Bruno, which generated the hit single “Respect Yourself.” Willis has played with legends like B.B. King and has recorded two other CDs. This is a rare appearance for this Hollywood heavy-hitter.
Joe Walsh and the Bruce Willis Blues Band perform 8 p.m. August 4 at Borgata Event Center. Tickets are $55 (standing) and $65.
