The popular amphitheater’s expanded summer series this past year boasted new faces – My Morning Jacket, Il Divo, Tower of Power –- along with a bevy of returning favorites who sold out most of their shows.
Frontman: My Morning Jacket’s Jim James led the dynamic, jam-filled charge in early July at Meijer Gardens. (Photo/Chelsea Whitaker)
EDITOR’S NOTE: The amphitheater at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park has not only long been popular with concertgoers for summer shows starring national touring acts, but also popular with Local Spins readers. Hence, our coverage of Meijer Gardens’ annual series lineup announcements and subsequent reviews of those summer concerts always rank high on our year-end countdown of top stories. Revisit the summer series, with links to our reviews and the full schedule of shows from the past year. What was your favorite Meijer Gardens concert of 2024? Leave your response in the comments below.
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When Art Garfunkel played the first official concert at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in June 2003, the fledgling amphitheater attracted a little more than 1,000 concertgoers as it braced for an inaugural 10-concert season.
By comparison for 2024, Meijer Gardens unfurled a 33-concert lineup for the 1,900-capacity amphitheater’s 2024 season, with My Morning Jacket, Black Pumas, Blues Traveler, Leslie Odom Jr., Boyz II Men and Charley Crockett joining returning favorites such as O.A.R., Trombone Shorty, Bonnie Raitt, Michael Franti and Amos Lee on the expanded docket.
The Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts series kicked off on June 5 with “outlaw cowboy” artist Orville Peck, who was forced to cancel his 2023 tour which initially had included a stop stop at Meijer Gardens. When he finally made his appearance at the amphitheater, his sold-out 2024 show was a big hit with fans, replete with cowboy hats, mask, glitter and quite a bit of giddy-up as this Local Spins review by writer Tricia Boot Woolfenden noted.
Black Pumas (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
Tower of Power, Jason Mraz, The Wallflowers, Il Divo, Gin Blossoms, Kansas, Grace Potter and Fitz & The Tantrums also garnered enthusiastic attention from concertgoers when discounted tickets went on sale to Meijer Gardens members in April. Indeed, despite some ticketing glitches, Meijer Gardens sold out 18 shows in its first day of ticket sales to members.
One of those quick sellouts? Legendary guitarist-singer Bonnie Raitt’s late June return to Meijer Gardens, which had Local Spins reviewer Lorilee Craker raving that “Bonnie Raitt can sing like an angel and play the slide guitar like nobody’s business.”
“I might be biased, but welcoming Bonnie Raitt back after a seven-year break is certainly hard to beat. She is just the best,” said Chris Mautz, who books the annual concert series for Meijer Gardens.
Mautz also described “the mix of the first-time acts hitting the Gardens” as “sweet”: from Tower of Power to the Black Pumas, Boys II Men to My Morning Jacket, Il Divo to Leslie Odom Jr., Orville Peck to Sierra Ferrell.
The summer’s series also once again featured guest stars joining the Grand Rapids Symphony on the amphitheater stage: Bruce Hornsby on July 11, Gov’t Mule’s Warren Haynes on July 22 and Black Violin on Aug. 1.
Other big shows of the summer included Los Lobos and Little Feat on June 21, The Temptations and The Four Tops on July 12, and Andrew Bird and Amadou & Mariam on Aug. 9. (Click on the links above for the Local Spins reviews.)
‘MAKING MUSICAL MEMORIES,’ BLUES TRAVELER TO KEB’ MO’
“Curating the Meijer Gardens Concert Series is such a blast for our entire team. It is a bit like going for a long walk in the Gardens. You begin with a bit of a plan and then you see where it takes you.,” Mautz insisted.
“Something might catch your eye so off you go down a new path. Then you are drawn to something familiar and you roll back to find that. This seems to repeat itself many times, and in the end, you have 33 nights of making musical memories at Meijer Gardens.”
On-Stage Passion: Grace Potter at Meijer Gardens in August. (Photo/Paul Jendrasiak)
The average public ticket price for Meijer Gardens concerts dropped slightly the past two years in a row. This year’s average price came in at $72.60, 30 cents less than the 2023 average of $72.90.
The most expensive concert? Boyz II Men on July 28 with tickets priced at $130 for members during the pre-sale; $135 for non-members.
Check out more Local Spins reviews of 2024 Meijer Gardens concerts — including some Tuesday Evening Music Club shows — online here.
Copyright 2024, Spins on Music LLC
