Tady: Hawkeyes call it quits; Denver show delights Beaver Falls audience

The Hawkeyes called it quits.

That ends a decade of impressive achievements by the Western Pennsylvania rock band whose Ellwood City frontman, Jay Wiley, now forges ahead solo.

Wiley says the breakup had been coming for months, and having a band member move to Nashville was just an added factor.

In recent years, Pittsburgh radio stations WDVE and WXDX gave the Hawkeyes regular airtime, and in 2015-16 the group often warmed audiences for popular Pittsburgh rockers The Clarks. Wiley hopes to continue collaborating with Clarks members, especially Beaver guitarist Rob James, feeling that tandem would pack places like Pittsburgh Winery and Club Cafe on the city's South Side.

Wiley also hopes to headline Beaver Valley spots like Kelly's Riverside Saloon in Bridgewater and the Front Door Tavern in South Beaver Township.

Asked to name his top Hawkeyes highlights, Wiley starts with opening for Lynyrd Skynyrd at the legendary Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

"They treated us very nicely," Wiley said.

Playing the famed Rocklahoma music festival in Oklahoma was a letdown, but an all-indie showcase in Appleton, Wisc., was a delight.

Touring with Indianapolis rockers Hero Jr. stretched the Hawkeyes' fan base into the Midwest.

"The stadium show was super cool," Wiley says of the Hawkeyes' Heinz Field performance during the nationally televised Pittsburgh Penguins-Philadelphia Flyers Winter Classic. I witnessed that performance and was proud of how the Hawkeyes looked and sounded on the stadium's jumbo scoreboard.

For an absolute highlight, Wiley picks the Stage AE gig opening for the Robert Randolph Band "when there were 300 people in the inner bowl there wearing Hawkeyes shirts."

I wore mine until it shrunk.

Now Wiley will go it alone, recording originals with The Clarks' producer Sean McDonald. Wiley plans a return to his alternative-rock style influenced by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Drive-by Truckers, which I believe is a better fit than the arena rock the Hawkeyes tried reaching in their most recent incarnation.

The Hawkeyes original lineup might someday reconvene for a special reunion show.

"That might be the end of next year, that might be 10 years from now," Wiley said.

He filled up their senses

You can have fun at a concert while wearing a mask for safety.

I saw hundreds of Beaver Falls Middle School spectators do exactly that last Sunday, masked and having a blast, watching international touring act Ted Vigil perform his John Denver tribute.

Vigil looked the splitting image of Denver, and marvelously sang and shared stories from the esteemed songwriter's career.

Vigil went for the gusto early, scaling the vocal and emotional heights of "Rocky Mountain High," followed by "Take Me Home, Country Roads" where he asked the crowd to sing along. Signs outside the auditorium said "We ask that you wear a mask," a safety-minded request the vast majority of audience members heeded — God bless them — but even with facial masks, they sang along loudly with the "I belong in West Virginia" chorus.

That impressed Vigil, who later had the crowd enthusiastically shouting "Yoo Hoo!" when prompted during John Prine's "Spanish Pipedream (Blow Up Your TV)," which Denver covered in 1971.

Throughout Denver's "Grandma's Feathered Bed," the Beaver Falls crowd relished its assignment of providing the chicken, hound and piggy sound effects Vigil requested. Vigil burst into laughter at all their improvised howling, clucks and oinks.

When Vigil busted a string on his acoustic guitar, he rushed off stage for a replacement instrument, leaving his electric guitarist alone on stage to entertain the audience. That guitarist offered to tell a joke that would knock the hair off everyone's heads, "though I see many of you already have heard it."

If a drummer had been there, they'd have added a rimshot.

Vigil sang a lovely version of "Sunshine on My Shoulders" and a rousing "Calypso." It wasn't on the setlist, but he tossed in "This Old Guitar," too, dedicated to Judy, the backstage caterer, who had requested that overlooked Denver gem.

Vigil said he and his bandmate enjoyed dinner the night before at Z Pub in Chippewa Township after a round of golf at Fox Run in North Sewickley Township.

Their newfound Beaver Falls fans eagerly awaited the obvious encore pick, "Thank God I'm a Country Boy," which brought two final bits of audience participation. As encouraged by Vigil, the crowd gave a loud "YEE HAW!" then clapped along joyfully with the beat.

I applaud the Beaver Valley Community Concert Association for booking such an enjoyable show, and cultivating such a fun audience.

Jergel's concert for the ages: Christone "Kingfish" Ingram amazes with guitar prowess in Warrendale

Pittsburgh concert to see: Chvrches to highlight 'Screen Violence' in tour playing Stage AE

Glad to Barge in

Looking for a fun time Thanksgiving Eve?

Go see Tony Barge & The Honkytonk Heroes at the Rochester VFW Post on Nov. 24.

I caught Barge & The Honkytonk Heroes last weekend at Spanky D's Restaurant in Bridgewater, where the band's classic country covers got fans and bartenders dancing.

Barge sings Willie Nelson songs as good as the originals, and with Freedom guitar ace Tony Lang doing the string bending, the band shined on tunes by Buck Owens, Hank Williams Jr. and Creedence Clearwater Revival. The quintet kept the crowd feeling good with James Brown's "Try Me," and surf-rock classic "Wipeout" ending the first set thrillingly with Chicago-raised, Monaca-dwelling drummer Stefan Rodriguez pounding the fleet beat on a drum perched in the audience.

Jaggerz @ The Turners

Beaver County chart-toppers The Jaggerz entertain Nov. 27 at the Monaca Turners club. Tickets are $20.

It's no coincidence that show happens on Thanksgiving weekend.

"It's a great time for people living out of town coming home to be with their families for the holiday to see and hear the band they grew up with," Jaggerz frontman Jimmie Ross says.

The Jaggerz will play two shows starting at 8 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with DJ Uncle Al spinning tunes.

For tickets, call 724-774-7007.

"Get your tickets now," Ross said. "Last time we were there, it was sold out. There's no place like home."

Cool jams in New Brighton

"The life of a repo man is always intense," Harry Dean Stanton says in the 1984 sci-fi comedy "Repo Man."

That cult classic, and its stellar punk-rock soundtrack, influenced a new band, Repo Man, fronted by New Brighton's Shawn Hickman.

From The Clash to Johnny Cash; Dead Kennedys to Dead Milkmen; The Jam to The Circle Jerks, and Fugazi to Bad Religion, the Repo Man repertoire is standout.

See Repo Man on Nov. 19 at Wooley Bullys in New Brighton.

Scott Tady is the local Entertainment Reporter for The Beaver County Times and Ellwood City Ledger. He's easy to reach at stady@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Tady: Hawkeyes call it quits; Denver show delights Beaver Falls crowd