Big Shot kicked off their set with “Movin’ Out” and it was followed by “My Life.” “Good evening, everybody,” DelGuidice said, prior to wishing everybody a “Happy St. Patty’s Day.”
He continued with two powerhouse tunes, “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant,” where everybody was waving their hands up in the air, and reciting the lyrics verbatim, and “New York State of Mind,” with John Scarpulla on saxophone. It was funny watching keyboard player Carmine Giglio and Scarpulla interact and poke fun with each other during this song.
DelGuidice showed his vocal chops on Aerosmith’s “Dream On,” where he belted out the high notes, as well as his original recording, the love ballad “Mona Lisa,” prior to killing it with Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love,” where he was joined with Chuck Burgi on drums, Nick Dimichino on bass, and Ken Cino on guitar.
In honor of St. Patty’s Day and for the men and women serving overseas, DelGuidice serenaded them to a stirring version of “Goodnight Saigon.”
They picked up the pace with “Keeping the Faith,” while Ken Cino gave everybody a history lesson on the guitar driven “We Didn’t Start The Fire.” “Sometimes a Fantasy” had infectious hooks to it, and equally fun was “A Matter of Trust.” The acoustic, solo portion of the show included DelGuidice playing “She’s Always a Woman,” “Your Song” and “Tiny Dancer,” thus tipping his hat to one of his biggest musical influences, Elton John, in the latter two songs. “Mulcahy’s, show me what you’ve got,” he said, encouraging everybody to sing along with him.
Another moving tribute was “Free Fallin’,” in memory of Tom Petty, and the inclusion of “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me” was an added bonus. Steven Fileti joined him on harmonica for the Billy Joel signature song “Piano Man.”
The Verdict
One can always count on Mike DelGuidice and Big Shot to put on a top-notch Billy Joel and classic rock tribute show on Long Island, no matter what holiday it is. Yesterday night, they were able to pack out Mulcahy’s Pub and Concert Hall in Wantagh for St. Patrick’s Day, and DelGuidice’s lead vocals were powerful and remarkable. Their live show garnered an A rating.
