George Canyon brought Charlie Major, Doc Walker, and Manny Blu along to blow the roof off the first ever concert at Dale Fisher Arena with Hit After Hit in Devon Alberta.

If you head to the show and are expecting the traditional line up and breaks between sets, the night MAY start out that way with Devon local Kym Simon taking the stage followed by tour opener Manny Blu … BUT …

Kym Simon, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

Manny Blu, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

… that’s the end of where the traditional concert experience ends … Instead what you’ll see is headliner George Canyon come out after the change over for Manny Blu, play a few songs, introduce Charlie Major, who’ll play a few songs before George comes back out for a few, then introduces Doc Walker … then it becomes a mish mash of all of them alternating either sharing the stage with one or all or performing solo.

 

George Canyon, Charlie Major, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

George Canyon, Doc Walker, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

As the name of the tour indicates, it’s Hit After Hit … and not just their originals but everything from Bruce Springsteen’s Glory Days to Crowded House’s Better Be Home Soon.  The encore brought all the artists back up on stage, including Manny Blu and his entire band for a cover of Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire.

 

George Canyon, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

Doc Walker, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

Charlie Major, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

What’s a George Canyon concert without The Hockey Song?  There was even a special shout out to the local favorites, the Edmonton Oilers, which the crowd erupted over!

George Canyon, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

Doc Walker, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

George Canyon, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

Manny Blu, Devon Arena, PhotoByEGO

 

It was not only the first concert held in the town’s hockey arena, but the biggest musical event this town of 6,500 has ever seen.  There were a lot of hoops to jump through but the community did an incredible job of pooling together to make the May 3rd concert an incredible success.  Young and old were in attendance and by the end of the night, even some of the VIP tables and chairs were getting pushed aside to make room for the dancing.  The town even hosted an official free After-Party for the concert at the community centre next door.  I, for one, would love to see more concerts held not just at this venue, but in this town.

 

For those in Edmonton and neighbouring communities, if you missed the show you have ONE more chance to catch them when all 21 people crammed into 2 tour buses roll back into town for a show at the Century Casino.  I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the attendees last night pop in for their own concert encore. Go get your tickets!