Happy Trails: Ronny Elliot Wraps Up His U.S. Residency
Ronny Elliot, in blue suede shoes and LeClair guitar plays one of his last U.S concerts before moving to England.
I got to see a bittersweet concert last night with Ronny Elliot and friends playing at the New World Brewery Music Hall in Tampa. Bitter because it was one of Elliot’s last concerts here as a resident as he prepares to move to England. After a long career of playing with national acts, cutting several albums, and becoming a local legend, he is permanently relocating. Sweet because, well, it was Ronny Elliot. The show opened with Walt Bucklin, a self-deprecating, dressed-in-black musician who was quick to downplay his talent while filling the room with brilliant guitar playing and singing. Steve Connelly was next, playing tunes on his large Gibson acoustic interspersed with comical quips about his life. Rebekah Pulley and Rob Pastore, both talented multi-instrumentalists, then took the stage and surrounded us with Rebekah’s buttery vocals and Rob’s perfect harmony. She played acoustic and sampled licks and keyboard while he was on stand-up bass and pedal steel guitar, and the mix was a masterful blend.
Ronny joined the pair on stage wearing blue suede shoes (reverence to Elvis), playing a twangy LeClair electric while adding a smattering tremolo with the whammy bar. What followed was a church meeting in Elliot style. His irreverent observational protests of a wide gamut of things like love, the government, and pop music (to name a few) speak to his years of songwriting, rockabilly style, and rebel-ish outlook. Cheers, Ronny, and bon voyage. Thanks for the decades of music and storytelling. Don’t forget to visit!
