Fresh off their second residency stint at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, legendary Sacramento rockers TESLA journeyed to southern Georgia on Tuesday, October 10th 2023, in support of the 34th Annual Georgia National Fair. Nestled in the hills of Perry, Georgia, the state-sponsored fair dates back to 1990 and offers a wide variety of activities and games, agricultural and livestock shows, along with a nightly live music concert series.
With the backdrop of Ferris wheels and funnel cake vendors, TESLA took to the outdoor stage at 7:30pm in front of a full field of fans, many of which staked out their spot early while enjoying the mild evening temperatures. Lead out by drummer Steve Brown, bandmates Frank Hannon (guitar), Brian Wheat (bass), and Dave Rude (guitar) then launched into “Lady Luck” from The Great Radio Controversy (1989) as Jeff Keith (vocals) appeared last before the screaming audience.
I have been a TESLA fan for decades, but the Fair experience on Tuesday night was a first for me. In fact, the show was technically free with Fair admission, which likely lead to not only a great turnout, but there were also a lot of families with younger rocker kids in attendance. I saw a few kids under the age of 10 signing along with every song. That is some great parenting. Check out TESLA’s official Instagram account to see what I mean.
As to the music, what can I say. Regardless of venue type or size, TESLA simply continues to deliver an energetic, authentic rock and roll show. Keith’s distinctive voice is aging gracefully, and I thoroughly enjoyed that they pounded through well-known catalog tunes early, including “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Hang Tough,” and “Gettin’ Better.”
While they didn’t perform the newer “Cold Blue Steel,” the band did layer in the more recent track “Time to Rock.” Hannon also introduced “Miles Away” with a reminder that the song was part of their Full Throttle Live release from earlier this year. The back half of their setlist was very similar to the last time I reviewed their performance here in Atlanta nearly two years ago, highlighted by their ever-popular tracks “Call It What You Want,” “What You Give,” and “Edison’s Medicine.” As expected, the field before them lit up bright with cellphones for “Love Song” before TESLA wrapped up their main set with “Little Suzi.”
Following a brief break, the band returned to the stage for their anticipated encore song. Wheat, joking that he was tired, thanked the fans for their 37-plus years of support and told them “we will keep playing as long as you keep coming out” before kicking off “Signs” to end their seemingly quick 90-minute night under the neon lights of amusement park rides.
TESLA is now off for a few weeks, with only a few posted shows left before the end of 2023. However, their early 2024 calendar is already beginning to fill up, with performances slotted to start after the turn of the year on January 11, 2024, at the Seminole Center in Immokalee, Florida.
TESLA
Jeff Keith – Lead vocals
Frank Hannon – Guitar, vocals
Brian Wheat – Bass, vocals
Dave Rude – Guitar, vocals
Steve Brown – Drums, vocals
Setlist
1.) Lady Luck
2.) Modern Day Cowboy
3.) Hang Tough
4.) Gettin’ Better
5.) Time to Rock
6.) Heaven’s Trail
7.) Miles Away
8.) Changes
9.) Love Me
10.) Call It What You Want
11.) What You Give
12.) Edison’s Medicine
13.) Love Song
14.) Little Suzi
Encore
15.) Signs
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Elliott is a music photographer covering shows in Atlanta, Georgia, and the surrounding area. The highlight of his photography career was back in the early ’90s, when he sold Neil Diamond the rights to his negatives from a show and then purchased a set of tires for his 1979 280ZX during college with the money.
