I said it last year, and I’ll say it again, want to feel better about life? Go see a Michael Franti and Spearhead show. Part sing-a-long, part story telling, part memorial, part audience participation, this is not your regular concert experience. Let’s start by talking a little about the venue, which is one of the nicest places to see a concert anywhere. Humphreys Concerts By The Bay, an outdoor courtyard venue with a 1,400 seat capacity was completely sold out for this show. Humphreys sits on Shelter island in San Diego, California and is actually right up against the water, which allows for people to enjoy the music from their small boats and kayaks.
First up were Tropidelic, a really fun band out of Cleveland Ohio. I had never heard of them before, and I saw that they were opening for Michael Frantic and Spearhead. I wasn’t surprised to find their mix of rock, funk, reggae and hip-hop to fit right in. It’s always fun when a band has a tight horn section and it was even better when members sat in with Michael Franti & Spearhead later on in the show. Actually there a few photos of the band in their gallery that were actually taken during the Spearhead set.
Band:
Matthew Roads – Vocals/Guitar
James Begin – Vocals/Trombone
Bobby “Chronic” Markouc – Guitar
David “Pags” Paglisotti – Bass
Derek McBryde – Trumpet
Rex Larkman – Drums
There used to be a saying that there was nothing like a Grateful Dead show, and I went to a lot of those. I can now honestly say that there is nothing quite like a Michael Franti and Spearhead show. Let’s just put aside the great music, the feel good vibes, and the great music for a minute. Some of the other highlights of the show including a moving tribute to the late, great, Bill Russell, the center for the Boston Celtics. There was a shout out to the great, live-and-in-the-audience Bill Walton, another basketball great and fellow Greatful Dead fan. Also, to audience members (mostly kids) invited up on stage to sing along with Michael and the band. There were stories from the stage of love and loss and heartbreak and joy. Michael spent parts of various songs wondering around the audience and at one point, Carl Young took his bass out for a walk in the crowd. I did my best to capture all the action and ended up with way too many photos…. maybe the most difficult part of this shoot was narrowing the images down to just these…. enjoy.
And if you get a chance to go see Michael Franti and Spearhead, GO, it will brighten your whole week.
Band:
Michael Franti – Vocals
Carl Young – Bass
J Bowman – Guitar
Mike Blankenship – Keyboard
Manas Itiene – Drums
SetList:
1.) This Is How We Living
2.) I’m Alive
3.) Yell Fire
4.) Sound Of Sunshine
5.) Let Your Soulshine
6.) Sun and Moon
7.) Good Shit Happens
8.) Reggae
9.) Tequila
10.) Life is Amazing
11.) Best at Loving You
12.) Follow Your Heart
13.) I’m On Your Side / Better
14.) People Need People
15.) I Got You
16.) Good Day
17.) No Makeup
18.) Brighter Day
19.) Say Hey
20.) Say Hey Remix
Alan Hess is a photographer based in San Diego, where he lives with his wife and two rescued boxers.
Alan is currently the house photographer for a large concert and event venue in Southern California where he photographs everything from major musical acts to ice hockey. When he isn’t out taking photographs, he spends his time writing books and is an accomplished photography educator and trainer.
Alan’s images have been published in a variety of places including news papers, magazines, websites, promotional materials, album artwork, and press releases. His clients include The Associated Press, Fox Television, FX Network, USA Network, Hasbro, Framus Guitars, Gibson, The Dead, Picture Group, Photoshop User Magazine, Steel Pulse, Ziggy Marley, and many more.
He is the author of sixteen photography and technology books covering everything from night and low light photography to multiple shot techniques. His books are sold around the world and have been translated in other languages including: Chinese, French, Polish, Japanese, Thai, and Italian.
