Coming back for a return engagement following last summer's popular area appearance, The Pete Best Band were sounding even stronger than their previous visit. The PBB headlined at Jammin' Java in Vienna, Virginia, on Wednesday, August 2, 2006, before an ecstatic audience.

     Pete Best and brother Roag Best are a dual drumming team for the PBB. Chris Cavanagh is their extroverted lead vocalist. Sharing lead vocals and backing vocals are guitarists Tony Flynn and Phil Melia and bassist Paul Parry. Coaxing Pete to sing remains an elusive endeavor at best.

     The PBB repertoire featured many memorable covers from the early Beatles era. "Slow Down" by Larry Williams, "Long Tall Sally" by Little Richard and "Roll Over Beethoven" are prime examples of the wide variety in musical tastes of John, Paul and George who each took their turns as lead singer.

     The PBB weave in several early Lennon-McCartney composition that Best participated in as their drummer many moons ago. "One After 909", "P.S. I Love You", "Hello Little Girl" and the Harrison-Lennon instrumental, "Cry For A Shadow", are all stage favorites at PBB performances.

     During the concert, Pete Best was introduced and stepped forward behind the mike to recall and reminisce about his tenure as a Fab. Best spoke about "My Bonnie", a 1961 German single featuring Tony Sheridan on lead vocals with The Beatles providing the musicianship, that was the first spark to ignite interest in The Beatles in Liverpool.

     Beatles fans were hooked by the musical explosion of The Fabs on Sunday night television in February 1964. Pete Best, original drummer for The Beatles, toiled away scads of hours over a two year period as the one who kept the beat in the band. Best was drafted to join the lads in August 1960 as their drummer for several stints in Hamburg. The Best of The Beatles takes fans back to that embryonic burst of sound from the Cavern Club.

     The Pete Best Band have been busy at work at the Casbah Coffee Club recording studio back in West Derby, a suburb of Liverpool. The new PBB studio album is coming together as a teamwork effort with group compositions that are reported to be well worth the wait once the new album is released commercially.

Vienna setlist: Slow Down * What I'd Say * One After 909 * Please Mister Postman * PS I Love You * Roll Over Beethoven * Besame Mucho * Hello Little Girl * Till There Was You * Long Tall Sally * Rock And Roll Music * Cry For A Shadow * My Bonnie * Sweet Georgia Brown * I Saw Her Standing There * Twist And Shout * Encore: Kansas City/Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey * Johnny B. Goode

RockonTour   Issue #59
Concert Fan   Concertphile@yahoo.com

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Have you seen Pete Best's band?
The Pete Best Band is roadtested and ready for action

by Timothy Tilghman