The Heart Of Rock & Roll Is Still Beating In LA: Huey Lewis And The News At Club Nokia

If you closed your eyes, it could have been 1985…
After 30 million albums sold worldwide, 19 Top Ten Billboard singles and a legacy of entertaining music videos that helped establish MTV in the 80’s, Huey Lewis And The News can still bring it. Lewis and his long-standing band took an adoring crowd at Club Nokia on a nostalgic trip through the 80’s, sharing the power of love and their music.

There is just something about Huey Lewis that makes you joyful. It’s his voice, his smile, his classic harmonica sound and just the unbridled fun that he brings to a live show. There is a comraderie between his band members that is contageous. The songs… well, it is difficult to quantify the power of a song that can take you back to that certain memory from your youth. The memory of love, won or lost, or that certain someone. Songs like, “Heart and Soul,” and “If This Is It,” took Lewis’ fans to that place on Thursday night. You could see couples laughing, flirting and gazing into each other’s eyes as the music swept them away.
Highlights of the concert were the opening, “The Heart of Rock & Roll” and two songs from 1985’s Back To The Future, “The Power of Love,” and “Back in Time.” The excited crowd ranged in age from 20’s to their 60’s and were looking around for Marty McFly or Doc. Something that this band does at every show and definitely showed their vocal mastery was a two song acapella section of the night. Included was a stripped down do-wop version of “It’s Allright.”
“I Want a New Drug” is one of the great catchy hits of our generation and always makes you sing the words to the controversial Ghostbuster’s single- “Who you gonna’ call, Ghostbusters!”. An extended version of “Workin’ for a Livin’” closed the set. It was part of a 3-song encore that the fans demanded as they wouldn’t let Lewis leave. Ah, yes, the heart of Huey Lewis And The News is still beating.

If you are looking for a great place to catch a show in Los Angeles, and want great music at an amazing venue, it has to be Club Nokia. The state of the art sound and atmosphere definitely adds to the experience. The size of the venue is ideal as you get the intimacy of a club mixed with a good sized venue, complete with VIP services. Even Lewis commented on the difference between the band’s early days in Los Angeles, playing the Sunset Strip and the Whiskey A Go-Go and LA Live’s new venue. LA nightlife definitely has a new scene at LA Live, including Katsuya, Flemings and the ESPN Zone.
Huey Lewis And The News will be appearing tonight (Friday November 13th) on The Jimmy Kimmel Live Show on ABC. There will also be an outdoor mini concert following the taping.
They will appear on The Bonnie Hunt show on Thursday, November 19.