It’ll be a double bill in Port Moody next month when acts paying tribute to two 1980s mega bands hit the Inlet Theatre stage.
Bad Medicine, which covers Bon Jovi tunes, will open the all-ages show for headliners Gunz N’ Fn’ Rosez on Friday, May 31.
Tickets starting at $40 are now on sale.
Started by Al Gilmer in Ontario, Gunz N’ Fn’ Rosez came to the Vancouver scene more than a dozen years ago and now includes:
- Gilmer as Axl Rose
- lead vocals
- Dave Shannon as Slash
- guitar
- Jeff Garrett as Dizzy Reed
- keyboards
- Rob Paterson as Gilby Clarke
- guitar
- Matt “Animal” Stadler as Steven Adler
- drums
Shannon, a Coquitlam resident, told the Tri-City News that he joined the tribute group after Gilmer landed in B.C. and, since its début at Sun Peaks, it’s performed Guns N’ Roses hits at Metro Vancouver and Interior venues.
And although he plays the same guitars and style as Slash, Shannon said he had to work on his dark and brooding look.
“I’ve got pale skin and strawberry-blond hair so, for completion, I have to put on the leather pants, a black wig, hat, sunglasses and a fake cigarette to get into the role. It’s quite theatrical.”
Still, when Gilmer sports his kilt on to portray Axl Rose, “he puts on a persona that’s hard to beat. He really channels his energy," said Shannon.
Gilmer, who also has a Deep Purple tribute band, said Gunz N’ Fn’ Rosez’ one-hour show — following Bad Medicine’s hour-long gig — will include such songs as “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Sweet Child of Mine” and “November Rain.”
Bad Medicine is made up of:
- Jeff Blair as Jon Bon Jovi
- vocals
- Blaine St. Arnault as Richie Sambora
- guitar, vocals
- Marshall Fishwick as Alec John Such
- bass
- Jeff Garrett as David Bryan
- keyboards
- Milton Skaalrud as Tico Torres
- percussion
The Port Moody concert will be the bands’ first in the city.
“I thought that partnering these two bands would be lots of fun because they’re a great combination, but they also contrast,” Gilmer said.
“Axl and Bon Jovi never got along and they never appeared on the same stage. They’re like oil and water. But I like both of their music catalogues. They are quite unique.”
Gilmer said the aim of the concert is to take ticket-holders back to a time when Bon Jovi’s and Guns N’ Roses’ anthems were heard on mainstream radio. Their music, he said, often played a lot into people’s lives.
Today, he said, when the tribute band performs a few notes, like for the opening of “Welcome to the Jungle,” “people just go crazy.”
“It’s giving them a slice of their past back and re-living memories. The music is more than 30 years old now and I never get bored of it.”
Tickets to see Bad Medicine and Gunz N’ Fn’ Rosez at the Inlet Theatre (inside Port Moody City Hall, 100 Newport Dr.) on Friday, May 31, are available through PromoTix. The show starts at 7:30 p.m.
