Chalk up another win for The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. Country music legend Hank Williams Jr., perhaps you know him better as Bocephus, took fans through a more than hour and a half trip down memory lane Saturday night in what he proclaimed was his first show since October, 2010.
“I play when I want, and where I want,” he told fans during a break in his set. He won over the audience while telling them of being pitched the idea of new shows to do in 2011. He passed up shows in other parts of the country, but when someone asked him “how about Tulsa, Oklahoma?” his response was “hell yes!”
Williams, the face of Monday Night Football for 22-seasons, took the stage wearing an ESPN baseball cap and a black New Orleans Saints jersey which displayed the number 58 and the name ‘Bocephus’ across the shoulders. He immediately took off into the bluesy sounding “My Name is Bocephus” and the show was underway.
The veteran singer was perfect throughout the duration of his set, which could best be described as one giant jam session. A full band joined him on stage, including drums, several guitars including his own beautiful pearl-white Les Paul, bass, steel guitar, saxophone, harmonica, piano and more. Bocephus himself picked up the fiddle and playfully strummed through a cover of his father’s popular hit “Kaw-Liga” to the delight of the crowd.
He took over the piano to play the Jerry Lee Lewis hit “Whole Lotta Shaking,” while telling the crowd of all of the personalities that came through his home early in his life. He cited such influences as Lewis, Fats Domino, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins among others.
Highlights of the night included his renditions of “All My Rowdy Friends,” “Born To Boogy,” and “A Country Boy Can Survive.”
With his band taking a break, Williams took a seat center stage and picked his way through a medley of “All My Rowdy Friends Have Settled Down,” Waylon Jennings’ “Good ‘Ol Boys,” and Cash’s “I Walk The Line.” He continued with “There’s A Tear In My Beer” before the band returned to the stage. And that is where things got interesting.
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Photos by: Kevin Pyle
Taking a lesson from his friend Kid Rock, Williams blew through “Born To Boogie” while rapping the lyrics.
Closing out with “Family Tradition,” Bocephus and crew ran through a rather lengthy medley that included teasers of Ted Nugent’s “Cat Scratch Fever,” ZZ Top’s “La Grange,” and the Run DMC version of Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way” in the middle. You guessed it, he rapped on that one too.
By the end of the show the entire audience had came to their feet to show their approval. This show was yet another huge hit for The Joint, but then again would anyone expect anything less from Hank and his rowdy friends?