Beech Tree News Network

I was listening to Sirius XM’s 60’s on 6 on the way to Owensboro the other day-bet you never thought you’d read that sentence from me.  Pat St. John was the DJ at this particular hour.  He played a song by one of my favorite ‘60’s groups Blood, Sweat and Tears.  In the lead-in, he said something that sparked a column idea.  I actually had learned this previously but it’s still an interesting bit of trivia.  Blood, Sweat & Tears’ new lead singer is none other than past American Idol winner Bo Bice.
Bo is not the only Idol alum to be lead singer of a classic rock band, whether it be just for a time or permanently.  One of the most popular, if not most talked about, Idol finalists Adam Lambert actually hooked up with Queen as their lead singer.  Let me tell you, Freddie Mercury would be proud I think. 
Tommy DeCarlo, who sounds more like a mob boss than a lead singer, is the new lead singer of the classic band Boston.  He says don’t hold your breath for a new album.  That makes me think that maybe there will never be a new album.  Or maybe they just want to get things as perfect as possible.  Word is the new guy is a perfectionist as far as his sound and music is concerned.  As long as he doesn’t make the band sleep with the fishes.  Come on, you knew that line was coming. 
One of the most notable, perhaps, is Arnel Pineda.  He is the new lead singer of the classic rock band Journey.  I say most notable not only because he was discovered on YouTube.  It’s that he sounds exactly like former lead singer Steve Perry.  Perry left for what he thought was going to be a very bright solo career.  That lasted one song, I believe. 
A friend of mine mentioned that she’d soon be seeing Blood, Sweat and Tears in concert.  That made me think of seeing INXS-the JD Fortune version.  I believe I’ve mentioned this before.  That show I saw them perform in Nashville was pretty much an embarrassment, at least for me.  Not surprisingly, INXS was soon Fortune-less.  I only listen the Michael Huthence version of that group.  The other just makes me sad. 
I encourage you to look some of these performances up online.  At the moment of writing this, I’m listening to Arnel Pineda’s Journey performing “Lights”.  The vocal resemblance is uncanny.  I believe they played the Kentucky State Fair last year. 
Whenever a group hires a new lead singer, they’re taking a big chance.  How will faithful fans react to a brand new lead singer? Will they be just as good? It’s a gamble that I say paid off for Queen and Journey, not so much for INXS.  Usually a band will audition new leads.  Sometimes when it doesn’t work with their chosen one, they’ll go back to fill-in singers, as I believe INXS has done.  I know they released an album of today’s popular singers vocalizing on INXS classics.  Either way, the beat goes on.  Some beats are just smoother than others.