At Busch Gardens in Tampa a few months ago, I noticed that Herman’s Hermits were playing. More precisely, Herman’s Hermits Starring Peter Noone, the sort of band name that screams of interminable lawsuits. But since Peter Noone had been the singer in the original band, I figured this should at least be an above-average version of Herman’s Hermits.
No one in my extended family was interested, so I left them at the queue for the Rhino Rally ride. I was able to walk halfway across the park, catch the show, walk back, and rejoin the family about 3/4 of the way through the line.
I expected the show to be either maudlin and/or boring. In fact, it was quite good, despite the fact that they played few of their own hits, instead relying on others from bands similar to themselves. Even the ten-minute version of “Henry the Eighth” (which was their biggest hit, but actually a cover of a song from 1911 or so) was entertaining. I guess this proves again how even the most fabricated music from 1967 beats almost everything that has come since. Why this is, I’m not completely sure, since the 58-year old women in the audience have displayed a lifetime of bad taste ever since.
Anyway, the city of Albany just announced its free summer concert series and the top headliner is none other than Herman’s Hermits Starring Peter Noone! (Granted, others would argue this distinction should go to Dennis DeYoung: The Music of Styx). This time I’m going to bring Keenan.
Jack Silbert, curator