The Joe Perry Project Rocks Arcada Theatre

Rob Grabowski caught The Joe Perry Project In The Act during show at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, Ill. on Friday, April 21, 2023. Check out Rob's photos and Rom Antonson's review!

This past Friday, the Arcada Theatre stage was graced by the presence of yet another Rock-N-Roll hall of Famer. This time, Joe Perry brought his solo project, The Joe Perry Project, on a six-date excursion of musical goodness. While Perry is primarily known for his work with Aerosmith, the legendary guitar god takes the reigns himself.

The Joe Perry Project Rocks Arcada Theatre

The show started with a bombastic set from Ricky James. James warmed the crowd by combining the styles of Luke Spiller of The Struts, David Bowie, Steven Tyler and more all into one glamorous package.

Joe Perry then took the stage in a cloud of fog and Rock-N-Roll. While Perry could have easily handled the nearly 1000 die-hard fans, he brought along a village of music legends to add to his show. Vocals were covered by none other than legendary Extreme and Van Halen vocalist, Gary Cherone. Cherone was fresh off the release of two new, and highly anticipated Extreme songs. If there is anyone on this planet that can come close to replicating Steven Tyler's bombastic onstage antics, Cherone is the perfect fit. Joe was also backed by Buck Johnson on keyboards and vocals, Jason Sutter (Cher, Chris Cornell) on drums and David Hull on bass. The band's energy was unmatched, and audiences got the show of a lifetime.

The band was dialed in throughout the entire 21 song set of Aerosmith classics, blues covers, and even some of Joe Perry's solo material. The band immediately jumped into "I've Got the Rock N Rolls Again", one of Joe's popular solo songs. The band also played songs from the new record, Sweetzerland Manifesto MKII, which is set to release on May 26th. Perry was able to demonstrate some amazing guitar tricks through wild solos and slide guitar. In honor of the late and great Jeff Beck, the band went into a chilling cover of "Beck's Bolero". Fans were also treated to Aerosmith hits such as "Let the Music Do the Talking", "Chip Away the Stone", "The Train Keep A-Rollin'", and of course "Walk This Way". One of the highlights was when he played a cover of Billy Lee Riley's "Flying Saucer" with such a cool 50's Rock-N-Roll vibe to it, Joe confessed how much he loved that song and after they played it, he asked the audience if he could play it again. With thunderous applause, Perry and crew ripped into it for a second time.

The 72-year-old guitar legend treated fans to intimate stories from his Aerosmith adventures, unmatched energy, and guitar goodness that left ears ringing for hours. While this was one of only a few stops on this tour, rumor has it we may get the chance to see him in his full glory with Aerosmith soon!