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The bleachers at the Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard stage at Summerfest were filled with fans well before Better Than Ezra kicked off their Summerfest performance at 5:58 p.m. on June 20. And the loyal band of “Ezralites” only got larger as the band made its way through a 75-minute set on the opening night of the Big Gig.
I shouldn’t have been surprised. After all, the New Orleans quartet has made quite the mark on the music world over the past 35-plus years, from being named one of the “100 Greatist Alternative Artists of All Time” by Billboard, inspiring a classic “Saturday Night Live” skit and gleaning notoriety among a younger set thanks to Taylor Swift’s famous 2010 cover of their classic, “Breathless."
But I was both surprised and delighted by the band’s ability to – not only attract a crowd for such an early show – but keep the crowd thoroughly entertained for the duration of their performance with a mix of popular classics, creative medleys and songs from their new album “Super Magick," their first new release in a decade.
Three decades of music
The Milwaukee performance featured OG band members Kevin Griffin on vocals and guitar, bassist Tom Drummond on bass, Arthur Payne Jr. on guitar and keyboard and Jared Kneale who is filling in on drums while Michael Jerome accompanies Grammy-winning guitarist Slash on his North American S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Blues Festival tour.
They kicked off the show with the brand new “Mystified," before hauling out two crowd pleasers: their 1996 hit "King of New Orleans" and a rendition of “Sincerely, Me” augmented with an intro comprised of the Ramones’ “I Wanna Be Sedated.”
By the time lead singer Griffin made his inaugural introduction, the crowd was thoroughly engaged.
“Hey Milwaukee! It’s the first day of summer… and the longest day of the year!!” he shouted before offering up a self-deprecating intro for another new release. “It’s our first song in 20 years or something on Top 20 Radio,” he quipped, queuing the band to launch into “Live a Little,” an upbeat guitar-based tune about seizing the day.
From there, the show moved forward like a well-oiled machine, playing a fair number of songs from their new album (pop anthem “Super Magick," “Grateful”) along with a laundry list of classic crowd-pleasers.
“In 1988, we were students at Louisiana State,” Griffin waxed hyperbolic as he reminisced. “Little did we know that seven years later… we’d be on David Letterman and then fly out to [a music festival] where Pearl Jam was headlining with the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Presidents of the United States of America and this one band that had a #1 hit song and that was Better Than Ezra.”
The performance of “Good” that followed was more than good for the crowd, which roared in response to the tune that singlehandedly put Better Than Ezra on the map in 1995.
Throughout the show, Griffin drew the audience in with humorous quips (including one about being assigned such an early concert time) and personal stories. He also created an intimacy and sense of place by briefly reminiscing about past gigs in Milwaukee, including Summerfest in 2021 and playing “all two” floors at The Rave.
Meanwhile, Drummond called out a local restaurant at which they’d dined. Regrettably, I couldn’t make out the name of the specific venue, but the compliment was kind.
“Last night we had one of the best dinners we’ve had on tour,” he said. “We were surprised, but maybe we shouldn’t be. Milwaukee is brilliant.”
Masterful mash-ups
When introducing Australian-born Kneale to the crowd, Griffin directed the band to play an homage to something from an Australian band. After two false starts, including a few phrases from “Don’t Dream It’s Over” by Crowded House and the unmistakeable intro from AC/DC’s “Back in Black," the band got it together with a satisfying cover of INXS’ “Never Tear Us Apart” that got the crowd swaying in unison as if it were the '90s all over again (sans cigarette lighters).
In classic Better Than Ezra fashion, the band also gave the audience creative takes on classics. At one point they added flair to “Extra Ordinary” by blending it with snippets from “Can’t Feel My Face” by The Weeknd and “What I Got” by Sublime.
Meanwhile, in an homage to the Rolling Stones (who they played with two weeks ago at NOLA Jazz Fest), they performed “Miss You,” seamlessly transitioning from classic Stones tune into a nutzo version of “Juicy” complete with snippets of “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang and “O.P.P” by Naughty by Nature.
Before wrapping up the show, Griffin told a final tale about his colleague, Drummond.
“When Tom was just a teenager, he entered the John Lennon songwriting contest,” Griffin waxed, “You know, the one that’s in the back of Rolling Stone magazine. He submitted it and then promptly forgot about it ... until 1991. Someone with a thick accent called and said that a Scottish duo wanted to perform Tom’s song…”
What followed? A performance of “Better Than Ezra” – aka “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers, of course.
Setlist
"Mystified" (Super Magick)
"King of New Orleans" (Friction Baby)
"Sincerely, Me" (Closer)
"Live a Little" (Super Magick)
"A Lifetime" (Before the Robots)
"Extra Ordinary" (Closer)
"Grateful" (Super Magick)
"Super Magick" (Super Magick)
"Never Tear Us Apart" (INXS cover)
"Good" (Deluxe)
"Desperately Wanting" (Friction Baby)
"Laid" (James cover)
"Juicy" (Before the Robots)
"In the Blood" (Deluxe)
“I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” (The Proclaimers cover)
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with each and every dish. She’s had the privilege of chronicling these tales via numerous media, including OnMilwaukee and in her book “Milwaukee Food.” Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or recording the FoodCrush podcast, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
