Camp Freddy Night 2 of 4
December 20, 2013 Roxy Theater
Every year, around the world, people look forward to December. Whether they look forward to Winter Break or Christmas, December is one of the happiest times of the year. But us concert goers in Los Angeles, CA look forward to December because of the annual Camp Freddy & Friends, Roxy Theater Residency shows.
Camp Freddy, simply put, is a jam band, covering good ol’ Rock N’ Roll. But why does this show sell out within minutes if it’s just a cover/ jam band? Because they not only have an all star line up which consists of Billy Morrison (The Cult); Matt Sorum (Guns N Roses); Donovan Leitch; Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), and Chris Chaney (Jane’s Addiction) but it’s called Campy Freddy & Friends for a reason. This show is the best jam session you will ever see, because of the many surprise guests who perform songs with the all star band. Previous years held some of the biggest names in music including Rob Zombie, Billie Joe Armstrong, Slash, Chester Bennington, Steven Tyler, Chad Smith and countless amounts more.
Not knowing who will come out during each night makes the whole experience a once in a lifetime thing. December 20, 2013 was night 2 of 4 Camp Freddy Shows and the venue could not possibly be more packed than it already was, following the opening band, Picture me Broken. Fans packed in like sardines, gearing up, with anticipation for who was to come out this time around. A little past 11:00pm, the curtains finally rose up. The all star band came onto the stage and went right into Song 2, by Blur. It was the perfect party song to get the night started. By the third song, the band introduced Franky Perez, former guitarist of Scars on Broadway, who sang Firewoman by The Cult and Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin.
Every couple of songs, a new guest was introduced and the band ended up performing 16 songs with Gilby Clarke formerly of Guns N’ Roses; Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray; Billy Ray Cyrus; Austin Winkler formerlyof Hinder and Courtney Love. The crowd sang along to every hit, including Vasoline by Stone Temple Pilots, Killing in the Name of by Rage Against the Machine; Fight For Your Right by The Beastie Boys and many more. Each surprise guest pleased the audience more than the other and each performer looked as if they were having the time of their lives, singing and performing the songs that they grew up listening to.
It was around 12:15 when the band was getting ready to introduce their final guest of the evening. But drummer, Matt Sorum wasn’t pleased. He came around from his drum set, took the microphone and told the crowd that they were spoiled. “We sound-checked for 4 hours today and this is all you got!?” He demanded more energy. “I’m 53 years old, what’s your excuse?!” He then proceeded to bang the microphone stand on the ground until it broke and then moved on to Morrsion’s stand, launching it into the air. “This is Rock N’ Roll” he exclaimed! The audience cheered and were finally worthy of the final guest, and they truly did, “save the best for last”. The one and only Billy Idol came onto the small Roxy stage and made the last 3 songs the best ones yet. They performed, Dancin’ with Myself; White Wedding and of course, Rebel Yell which was the best and only way to end a Camp Freddy show.
The fans got far more than what they bargained for, but isn’t that every night of Camp Freddy? Following Friday’s performance, the band will conclude their three night streak on Saturday, December 21, 2013 and come back for a final show on New Years Eve. Christmas, Hannukah and New Years are the same every year; Camp Freddy is different each night of each year, with the biggest names in music, playing rock n’ roll, so yes… we choose Camp Freddy over any other Holiday any day.
Camp Freddy
Billy Idol
Austin Winkler
Billy Ray Cyrus
Courtney Love
Franky Perez
Gilby Clarke
Mark McGrath
