What a spectacular night in Skaneateles! The Mere Mortals drew over 1,000 celebratory fans to the gazebo in Clift Park on July 1st to officially kick-off the summer of 2012, with a stunning concert and performance at “SKARTS ‘N the Park.” With four highly successful free concerts in five years, this event has quickly become an annual summer celebration for the community. This year’s concert was sponsored by Cowleyweb.com, Sherwood Inn, and Skaneateles Press, and is presented by the Skaneateles Area Arts Council (SKARTS) as a gift to the community.
The music included fabulous covers of classics written by Adele, B-52′s, Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, James Taylor, Van Morrison, and Steve Wonder, along with original music by the Mere Mortals that included beautiful melodies, compelling lyrics and an inspiration to simply get up and move. Maureen Henesey’s outstanding vocal performance, inspired by Bonnie Raitt, totally wowed the crowd. Skaneateles natives Dave Allyn and Win Price gave the audience all that they asked for on solid rhythm guitar and keyboard respectively, as well as on vocals. Paul Becerra added excitement on guitar and vocals together with Kristin Peenstra, who’s fine percussion kicked up the back beat. Becerra’s exceptional cover of James Taylor’s “Mexico” quickly became a huge audience sing-along.
Special guest John (JT) Torrens brought the house down with rousing horn work that inspired many to jump non-stop, during a crowd-pleasing rendition of the Springsteen’s “Rosalita.” Dan Finn’s vocals and layered percussion added smooth textures to the Mere Mortals tight and sophisticated sound. Mark “Kernal” Kearns solid riffs on bass were spot on. The audience begged for more and the Mere Mortals were more than willing to respond, offering several encores. They closed the show with U2′s “Sunday Bloody Sunday” interspersed with “Cecelia” by Paul Simon, which brought the audience to a dancing and celebratory peak.
Multiple generations dance, sang, smiled and generally had a ball. The Mere Mortals music, combined with the perfect weather and the lakeside setting created a magical evening in the moonlight. “The confluence of the great creative energies of the musicians, the perfect weather, and the stunning venue by one of the most pristine lakes in the U.S., all came together for an evening of pure joy with the Mere Mortals” stated Joe Strodel, Jr., President, Skaneateles Area Arts Council.
What a night in beautiful Skaneateles!
