Red Hot Chilli Pipers, Steve Forbert and Enter the Haggis
The Top 3 Lehigh Valley area concerts this week bring on a little pregaming excitement for the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day holiday. We’ve got one “bagrock” band, a Celtic rock group, and a little bit of Americana (cause why not?).
First up is Scotland’s Red Hot Chilli Pipers taking on well-known rock and pop hits with a touch of traditional Scottish music thrown in for a distinctive sound that helped them win BBC One’s “When Will I Be Famous” in 2007.
Next is Steve Forbert, a Billboard chart-topping, Grammy-nominated folk artist whose songs have been covered by Rosanne Cash and Keith Urban.
And last is Enter the Haggis, a Canadian Celtic group that mixes fiddles, bagpipes, and rock music, putting out albums funded by a dedicated fan base known as Haggis Heads.
RED HOT CHILLI PIPERS
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: State Theater, 453 Northampton St., Easton
How much: $39
Tickets: statetheatre.org/ 610-258-7766
Musical style: Celtic, rock, pop
Known for hits like: Unique covers of songs like, “Don’t Stop Believing,” “Everybody Dance Now,” “Wake Me Up,” “Thunderstruck” and “We Will Rock You.”
Meet the band: An 8-piece ensemble from Scotland consisting of pipers, guitarists, keyboards and drummers, the Red Hot Chilli Pipers formed in 2002 to bring “bagrock” to the masses (as the name of their album, “Bagrock to the Masses,” implies). They were the winners of the BBC One show “When Will I Be Famous” in 2007 and started selling out shows across Scotland and Germany less than a year later. The band fuses rock and pop hits with traditional Scottish music putting their own twists on well-known classics.
Check them out if you like:
The Royal Scots Dragoon Guard, Runrig, The Corries, Tide Lines, The Badpiper, Trail West, Manran
STEVE FORBERT
When: 4 p.m. & 7 p.m. Sunday
Where: Godfrey Daniels, 7 E. 4th St., Bethlehem
How much: $33.50-$38.50
Tickets: godfreydaniels. org/ 610-867-2390
Musical style: Americana, folk, singer-songwriter
Known for hits like:
“Romeo’s Tune,” “Cellophane City,” “I’m in Love with You,” “What Kinda Guy” and “Song for Katrina.”
Meet the band:
In 1979 his
hit, “Romeo’s Tune” hit
No. 11 on the US Billboard 100, and 13 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts. His album, “Jackrabbit Slim,” was certified gold, while his first four records all made the Billboard 200. He’s released 20 studio albums to date, and his 2004 release “Any Old Time,” was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Traditional Folk category. His songs have been covered by the likes of Rosanne Cash and Keith Urban, and he was the subject of a 2017 tribute album, “An American Troubadour: The Songs of Steve Forbert.” He released a memoir in 2017 called “Big City Cat: My Life in Folk Rock.”
Check him out if you like:
Jackson Browne, Paul Simon, Peter Wolf, Willie Nile, Chris Smither, Chuck Prophet, Nick Lowe
ENTER THE HAGGIS
When: 8 p.m. Sunday
Where: Sellersville Theater, 24 W. Temple Ave., Sellersville
How much: $29.50
Tickets: www.st94.com/ 215-2575808
Musical style: Celtic rock, indie rock, folk
Known for hits like: “One Last Drink,” “Donald Where’s Your Troosers?,” “Gasoline,” “The
Three Little Jigs” and “To the Quick.”
Meet the band: From Toronto, Canada, Enter the Haggis is known for their unique combination of bagpipes and fiddles with a rock rhythm section that creates an original sound complete with sing-along melodies. They’ve appeared on “Live with Regis and Kelly” and “A&E’s Breakfast With The Arts” and were featured on a PBS concert special which aired for months on over eighty affiliate stations across the US. Many of their albums have been crowdfunded by diehard fans calling themselves, “Haggis Heads”
Gaelic Storm, The Young Dubliners, Black 47, The High Kings, Jay The Chieftains, The Pogues, Seven Nations
Check them out if you like:
9