Live: The Penny Knight Band @ Savannah’s, 11/10/10

Wow!

Playing their first gig together in more than a quarter century – really, no foolin’ – the Penny Knight Band sounded as though they’ve never been away from the spotlight.

Knight was up front leading the band, leaving the drum duties to Tony Genevive, which was a bit of a disappointment. Not that Genevive wasn’t up to the task (he certainly was), but it was always a real treat to watch Knight wallop those drums.

With the band members now spread out across the country – Penny Knight in Cooperstown, bassist Tony Jones in Connecticut, guitarist Richard Parks in Kansas City – they reconvened this week for a string of reunion dates, which continues at 9pm tonight (Friday) at Eccentric Studio in Ravena and the Tony Perrino benefit bash at Jay’s Bar & Grill in Ballston Spa on Sunday afternoon.

At Savannah’s – where they were the lead-off band for Ralph Renna’s weekly Capital Underground Live show – they pulled most of their comeback repertoire from their lone 1984, Broadway Blotto-produced album, “Title Shot,” which also featured the Sharks’ horn section.

The stand-out performance of the night was a rip through “Blue Angel,” with Knight dishing out powerhouse vocals, ala Heart’s Nancy Wilson, while guitarist Bob Boyer ripped up a squealing solo that culminated in a big, black cloud of feedback that filled the room and hovered in the air – until Knight slammed the band back into the song with expert timing.

Catch ’em while you can this weekend. But I’ll bet that you won’t have to wait another 25 years to hear them again.

As Jones crowed from the bandstand, “It might sound like shit out there, but we’re having a gooood time.”

THE PENNY KNIGHT BAND SET LIST
Faker
Dream Machine
Dancin’ With the White Girls
Like in the Movies
Blue Angel
For My Heart
ENCORE
Jump Start My Heart (Blotto)