If you listen to any jukebox across the United States, chances are you’ll hear a few Foghat tunes. The English rock band rose to fame with hits such as “Slow Ride,” “Fool for the City” and “I Just Want to Make Love to You.” These tunes, now are played in bars all over the world and still get fans dancing. Foghat released their newest record, Sonic Mojo in 2023 and are currently out on the road supporting the album.
The Wolf Den at Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, and played host for the night’s rock and roll takeover. The Wolf Den, unlike the arena inside the casino, is a smaller more intimate, and opened-air venue. The concert venue sits at the center of the casino floor so high rollers and gamblers can take a break and watch the act on stage. At 8:00 p.m. sharp, the band jumped on the stage that has hosted some of the biggest names in music like Heart, Alice Cooper, and Ludacris.
Foghat played 16 total songs that spanned their entire career and were on stage for an hour and a half. In that hour and a half, the standing room only was dancing and boogying to the blues rock and roll music. The third song in the set was “She’s a Little Bit of Everything” off the previously mentioned Sonic Mojo. Sometimes when a veteran band plays a new song, it’s often seen as a bathroom break song. That’s not the case for Foghat. The crowd – if anything – was dancing even more than the two previous tunes of “Drivin’ Wheel” and “Road Fever.”
After Foghat’s singer, Charlie Huhn retired after 22 years with the band, they brought in Scott Holt to sing and play guitar. Holt did an excellent job handling lead vocals while adding an extra blues twang on the guitar. Sporting a denim jacket and tiger-colored sneakers, Holt mesmerized the audience with flare on guitar and on lead vocals. Every now and then in between songs, Holt would stop and ask the crowd how they were feeling which in turn got a thunderous roar from the audience which had their eyes locked on Holt.
This lineup of the band features, Roger Earl on drums, Bryan Bassett on guitar (to listen to Basset’s interview, click HERE), and Rodney O’Quinn on bass. The group’s showmanship plays off each other well and never does not smile while on stage. At times, Bassett and Holt would join together to solo on stage and bring smiles to the faces of the fans who immediately whipped out their phones to take videos and record. The band was able to play off each other to enhance the stage show.
While the stage setup was nothing more than a few amplifiers and lights, it certainly did not take away from the music that took center stage. Whether O’Quinn was singing the occasional song or Holt or Bassett soloed on their guitars, the fans were all in on the band’s performance. When they did a rendition of “Sweet Home Chicago,” fans were screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs. If you closed your eyes and listened, you would have thought that the band was in the arena down the hallway with how loud the band and the energy of the fans was.
The band threw in the best four songs for last. First, they started with “Fool for the City” off of the 1975 record with the same name. This brought out all the best air guitarists and air drummers in the crowd. The next song following “Fool for the City” was “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” off the band’s sophomore album titled Foghat. The fans immediately knew the back-and-forth guitar riffs from Holt and Bassett.
For the encore, fans were in for a treat as “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry was played by the band. Bassett was one of the members of Wild Cherry when they recorded that smash hit song. The song had fans belting out the chorus until the final song “Slow Ride” was played. If you ask any Foghat fan what their top 10 favorite songs from the band are, chances are “Slow Ride” is in that top 10. The barroom staple was the perfect song to end the show. From the catchy chorus to the memorable drum intro from Earl had fans wanting more.
Fans in the casino that missed out on the show truly missed out on one of the best shows at The Wolf Den, ever. The musicianship and fans brought the whole experience to another level leaving smiles on the faces on everyone as they either returned to the casino floor or headed to the merchandise table to meet the band after the show.
Foghat is:
Roger Earl – Drums
Bryan Bassett – Guitars
Rodney O’Quinn – Bass/Background Vocals/Lead Vocals
Scott Holt – Guitars/Background Vocals/Lead Vocals
Eddie Lefebvre – Percussion/Background Vocals
Setlist:
1.Drivin’ Wheel
2. Road Fever
3. She’s a Little Bit of Everything
4. Somebody’s Been Sleeping (In My Bed) (100 Proof (Aged in Soul) cover)
5. Black Days and Blue Nights
6. Stone Blue
7. It Hurts Me Too (Tampa Red cover)
8. Sweet Home Chicago (Robert Johnson cover)
9. Let Me Love You Baby
10. Slipped, Tripped and Fell in Love (Clarence Carter cover)
11. Drivin’ On
12. Home in My Hand
13. Fool for the City
14. I Just Want to Make Love to You (Willie Dixon cover)
15. Play That Funky Music (Wild Cherry cover)
16. Slow Ride
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My love for live music started with my first concert ever, Guns N’ Roses back in 2016. Since then, I’ve been able to capture photos of some amazing artists like Alice Cooper, Judas Priest, Ace Frehley, and Post Malone. I am based in New York/New Jersey and go to school in Connecticut majoring in Journalism and I am always looking for the next concert to attend.
