In what has been a Thanksgiving Eve tradition in the storied careers of the Hooters and Tommy Conwell, both bands played to a packed Electric Factory for what was billed as WMMR GOBBLAROO 2008. It was Thanksgiving Eve in 2007 that the Hooters shared the very same stage with the A’s, another classicPhilly rock band from the 80’s. For the $39.50 price of admission everyonein attendance received a copy of the Hooters new double live album,
appropriately titled “Both Sides Live”, featuring highlights from last year’s show as well as a private unplugged recording session done at Rob Hyman’s Conshohocken studio earlier this year. Tommy Conwell and the Young Rumblers, featuring original members Rob Miller, Paul Slivka, Jimmy Hannum and Chris Day, opened the evening’s festivities playing an electrifying set of many of their standards, which included “I’m Not Your Man”, “Do You Still Believe in Me”, “Walkin’ on the Water” and “Loves on Fire”. Time has certainly not diminished the guitar skills and stage presence of Conwell as he can still captivate an audience with his brash in your face showmanship, which has become a staple for Conwell the moment he walks on a stage. The
band played for nearly ninety minutes getting a charged crowd ready for the night’s headliners the Hooters.

The Hooters, which includes Eric Bazilian, Rob Hyman, John Lilley, Dave Uosikkinen and Fran Smith, Jr., have evolved into the elder statesman of the Philly rock scene garnering iconic status as the last intact group from the infamous Philly rock scene of the eighties. There is no arguing that they have stood the test of time on every level, producing great songs and offering up a live show that has never gone stale and sounds as fresh and alive as it did at the peak of their career, when they owned Philadelphia. Having released their first studio album “Time Stand Still” earlier this year, the Hooters have again offered up another impressive album with “Both
Sides Live”, which is only available through the Hooters website at www.thehooters.net with an anticipated commercial release of spring 2009.

Hooter fans both young and old will not be disappointed by this collection of live recordings of all the hits and beyond. The first CD includes highlights of the two concerts they did one year ago at this very venue. The second disc features the best of two private recording sessions they
did in an MTV unplugged format to a live audience of friends and family. Following a lengthy intermission, the Hooters hit the stage to a thunderous ovation from an audience that has never grown tired of their Hooters. The set appropriately opened with their most recent single “I’m Alive”, setting the tone for a high energy performance of one great Hooters song after another. Crowd favorites included “And We Danced”, “South Ferry Road”, “All You Zombies”, “Hanging on a Heartbeat” and “Where Do The Children Go”. They also played some more obscure songs from the early days, which included “Amore” and “Man in the Street”. As a part of their lengthy encore they did an impressive rendition of the late Robert Hazard’s “Escalator of Life”.
With any luck the Hooters on Thanksgiving Eve will continue to be an annual event.

Photo by Rob Nagy

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Rob Nagy