The Grammy Award-winning blues/rock/soul/R&B guitarist headlined an evening of scorching temps and searing solos at Meijer Gardens after an Interlochen tour stop. The Local Spins review and photos.
Bright Lights, Searing Heat: Gary Clark Jr. played a lengthy Sunday set despite the sultry conditions. (Photo/Jamie Geysbeek)
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A music-packed West Michigan weekend — dominated both by numerous live shows and an unrelenting, early-summer heat wave — ended on a high/hot note with Texas-born Gary Clark Jr. melting the stage Sunday evening at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.
The multi-Grammy-Award-winning guitarist/singer last performed at Meijer Gardens in 2015, and has since hit the stage twice at GLC Live at 20 Monroe; once in 2017 and again in 2018. In the intervening years, the blues virtuoso kept plenty busy collecting additional industry accolades, recording and further honing his already sharp craft.
Touring in support of his 2024 album, “JPEG RAW,” Clark hit Kresge Auditorium at Interlochen Center for the Arts earlier in the weekend, before heading south with his phenomenal band to share the love with Grand Rapids.
On Sunday, one of the longest days of the year, oppressive heat, humidity and sun kept many folks fused to their seats in a sweaty, rapidly dehydrating show of defeat.
Wrapping up a nearly two-hour set, Clark’s crowd-pleasing encore of the hit, “Bright Lights,” seemed to renew a clearly interested-but-struggling audience. Perhaps it was the familiarity of the 2012 track; perhaps it was the faint relief of a nearly-set sun. Likely both, but no doubt in large part to show opener Lamont Landers’ return to the stage to accompany Clark for the closer.
The Alabama-born Landers and his band started the evening with a well-received 45-minute set of roaring soul/rock.
Landers, who has an incredible and powerful voice, will be one to watch. To paraphrase Clark, speaking of his opener; “(Landers is) keeping us on our toes.”
Early in his set, Landers shared that the aforementioned “Bright Lights” was the first song he ever performed publicly so opening for Clark has been “a full-circle” moment. That connection — and Lamont’s considerable talent — only sweetened the response to the driving song. [Watch video of that long-ago, first-time performance, here.]
While there were no weak notes to speak of throughout Clark’s gripping set, “What About Us” stands out among the evening’s highlights, in addition to every scintillating solo (of which there were many). To quote a fellow concert-goer, referring to Clark’s meditative, head-thrown-back, solo stance: “When (Clark) closes his eyes, you know something good is about to happen.”
Clark returns to Michigan on Aug. 21 when he performs at Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston.
UP NEXT AT MEIJER GARDENS: Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit perform at 7:30 p.m. Monday (June 23). Tickets are $118 to $120. Tickets available here.
PHOTO GALLERY: Gary Clark Jr., Lamont Landers at Meijer Gardens
Photos by Jamie Geysbeek
