The Pine Mountain Music Jam is an annual three day rock festival set on the sides of one of the ski slopes so everybody had a great view. Considering the line-up, I was amazed to discover that it was another FREE concert! I got totally lost getting there as the Yahoo directions don't account for a road being closed and no diversion signs being posted! Eventually I pulled into an off-licence (liquor store) and asked for directions only to be told that I'd drifted into Michigan! Thankfully there were some locals there who were heading that way so they told me to follow them!

I arrived at Pine Mountain (which is just beside Iron Mountain) at about 6.00pm and walked up the hill to where the festival was being held. Most people took their own fold-up garden chairs to sit on so, after wandering around to look at the various stalls, I just sat on the grass for the first couple of bands.

First off was a local band called Mudslide who played a mixture of cover tunes and were very good. While the stage was being set up I watched an acoustic group on a small stage further up the hill before another acoustic duo took the main stage for two songs (an acoustic version of Pinball Wizard was quite an experience!). Next Toto were on stage for their first gig in US for a number of years. They played for about an hour and actually included a few cover songs as well as their own hits. Unfortunately they were really booed at one point as their lead singer spoke about them playing tonight in Michigan and we were in Wisconsin!

While the stage hands were switching the set around (they certainly earn their money!) I wandered down the hill to where one could stand in front of the stage so that by the end of the evening, I got as close to the front as I feel comfortable standing. Unfortunately it also meant that I was close enough to be hit on the head by a plastic bottle and then to have the other side of my head hit by a Frisbee from one of the DJs on the stage!

(A warning that if you are going to one of the concerts on this tour and don't want to know what happens, stop reading now! This will also probably be one of the longest concert reviews ever but I'm typing this on a seven hour flight!)

There was a brief firework display from behind the hill and then at about 10.30pm, the lights dimmed and a tape of some quiet drumming and maracas was played. Without any ado Meat Loaf walked on stage and just stood there before he started pacing from one side of the stage to the other working the audience up into quite a frenzy. To be frank, I'm not personally over keen on Meat's on-stage theatrics but this was certainly effective! The majority of the people around me standing at the front were in their teens or early 20s (the wrinkles were seated in their garden chairs further up the hill!) and I wasn't sure what sort of reaction they would give to him as that age group is hardly his core audience but this almost five minute pacing session filled them with anticipation!

Eventually Meat Loaf hit one of the stand alone drums that were placed on the stage and this started the band playing Life Is A Lemon, although at first it was hard to tell which song they were playing as the music was very different from the album track (they even started with some classical music!). By this point Meat Loaf was doing more pacing and John Miceli had taken his place behind the drums and Patti and Pearl were playing a drum each on their podiums.

I could see both Damon and the new guy John Golden at the sides of the stage but I was unable to locate the star of the band, Kasim, until suddenly (it seemed!) he appeared right at the front of the stage playing a great bass intro into the song. I was even more taken aback as he was wearing a stunning white tight shirt which really stood out as Meat and all the rest of the band were in black (as Kasim usually wears too) - he certainly made a dramatic entrance!

After a few bars, Kasim moved to stand in front of the drum kit and John Golden took his place at the front of the stage to showcase his guitar playing. Next it was Damon's turn on the other side of the stage before they started singing the "I want my money back" part of the song! As on previous tours they used the pre-recorded "ooh"s (either that or Pearl was managing to make her voice sound like six different people as she was the only person even at a microphone pretending to sing!) before singing the rest of the song live. It was virtually the same arrangement of the song as on both the Very Best Of Tour and the StoryTellers Tour other than when they got to the part when Kasim sings "And I want", Meat sings "And I want" and then Kasim sings "And I want" again, as this time Kasim sang the next line with Meat Loaf which he hasn't done before. I also noticed that they didn't darken the stage when they got to the "Fade to black" line which they have done on previous tours. Meat Loaf joined in on his guitar at the front of the stage at one point and, as he was standing beside Kasim, he felt his bicep! Kasim then clenched his arm to show it more fully! Phew!

Next they played the first of the new songs from Meat's forthcoming Testify album, Mad About A Mercury. For a first hearing personally I quite liked it, especially as Kasim sings a lot of the song - the majority of it is just him and Meat Loaf singing!

After that they performed Lawyers, Guns and Money before the second song from Testify, Tear Me Down. I found it surprising that Meat made the choice that the first four songs of his set were all ones that were or will be album tracks rather than any hits but obviously nobody else in the audience was bothered by it! Hopefully the recorded version of Tear Me Down is better as I wasn't too impressed by the live version of the song because it just sounded like any number of other songs, although halfway through it, Patti and Pearl came to the front of the stage with large yellow post-it type pads! A recording of Patti’s voice was then played telling us the history of Texas ending in the fact that Meat Loaf was born in the state!

The fifth song was a known one, All Revved Up from Bat Out Of Hell! They played the long intro into the song and, as Kasim used to do when he held that position, John Golden played the intro on guitar being playing the rest of the song on keyboards. There was a nice photo opportunity during that song (except that I was too close to security to take pics!) when Kasim moved across to Damon's side of the stage and played the music part facing him. They were also talking to each other so that Kasim missed the next part of singing because he was away from his microphone!

The stage then darkened and Damon started the long intro into Anything For Love. Kasim was missing off stage at this point but when he returned I realised that he had switched guitars from a red one to his black one (I don't know the models - sorry!). This was the usual arrangement of the song with the long pause after Patti's "screwing around" line which signals a cigarette break for most of the band!

Next they played Rock and Roll Dreams. Again it was the same arrangement as on previous tours other than blue lighting was used instead of the usual green. I always find it fascinating during this song to see the rest of the band looking to Kasim to decide how many more times they'll sing before the guitar players move to the front of the stage! On this tour though, Patti and Pearl joined them there too and Meat shared his mike with each of them to sing a line starting with Kasim!

Paradise By The Dashboard Light was next but (thankfully!) was more of the shorter Night Of The Proms variety than a loooong version!

Immediately after that, they produced some stools and the band were introduced by Meat Loaf - he also made a comment about Kasim's shirt and called it "hip"! Plus Meat told us that he KNEW we were in Wisconsin and not Michigan! They started off by singing Two Outta Three Ain't Bad before Meat Loaf reckoned that he'd heard a woman in the audience ask for a song that wasn't one of his! He actually pointed out the woman and either she was a stooge or she must have been a very surprised lady as (supposedly) she just happened to say the song that John Golden knew and that they had played at most of the concerts so far on this tour - Mony Mony! Before they played it Meat Loaf turned to where Kasim had been sitting (supposedly to work out which key they were going to play it in) but Kasim was walking towards the soundboard to which Meat asked him "Where the f*%k are you going??"! Bearing in mind what Kasim had said on stage earlier this afternoon it was funny that he just sat back on his stool and said "I'm sorry"!

After Mony Mony, they played Honky Tonk Woman with Kasim singing lead for the first verse and Patti for the second (Kasim's voice sounded strong compared to Sheboygan) and then You Took The Words Right Outta My Mouth, with the audience singing part of the second verse. Unfortunately they then had to stop the song as Meat Loaf had removed his earplugs and couldn't get them back in until Kasim had handed them to him!

As this was the first concert that I've seen on this Summer Tour, I can't remember where in the set this happened but Meat Loaf got the audience oohing and the band playing in competition with each other and then in a mini battle between the two sides of the audience (he decided that Kasim's side of the stage was loudest but that was mainly because few of the VIPs in their plastic white chairs were singing!). He's done this numerous times on other tours and while I'd personally prefer that he spent the time singing another song, most of the audience seem to really enjoy it!

Finally they performed my favourite Bat Out Of Hell! Of course it was the same arrangement as they've played year after year but, after going to 44 of the Night Of The Proms concerts and only hearing it the once, it made a brilliant finale! At the end though Meat lead the audience into some more "oohs" before all the band lined up for their bow!

This is the seventh Meat Loaf tour that I've seen Kasim play on and, for entertainment value, I think this is one of the better ones (certainly far better than all that talk in StoryTellers!). No matter what people say about Meat, he really is a true entertainer and knows his audience (and how to play them) really well. As the tour has been already going for a month, his voice is holding up pretty well too.

I think that there would have been few people at the concert tonight who would have realised that Kasim had already played a full gig earlier today and then driven the four hours up here as he was bounding around the stage like a two year old (he even had the energy after the show to jump on Patti and tickle her!)! I'm sure that even all the Meat Loaf fans would have to concede that Kasim holds the band together really well, plus he's often at the sound desk to sort out things too.

IMO John Golden is a great addition to the band as not only is he a great guitarist but he has a good stage presence too. When Kasim was "the utility guy" he made that role his own but now John is also adding something different too.

Pearl seems to be getting more and more confident each time she's on stage - I was at her first ever performance with the band in Germany back in 1996 and she's virtually unrecognisable from that today! She certainly bashes that drum at the beginning of the set too!

Talking of drummers, personally I'd find it very hard to imagine Meat taking the stage without John Miceli there as he just seems to be so strong and dependable! During one part of the set, Meat highlighted John's drumming and he received a well deserved round of applause.

Patti looked good on stage tonight (she seemed slimmer and happier than she had at the NOTP concerts) but, obviously, most of my attention was focused on the left side of the stage!

Their set tonight lasted over two hours and, as I walked back up the hill, everybody was saying about how much they enjoyed it!

Roll on Cadott tomorrow......!

Last weekend spent 3 days enjoying R & R in the Upper Peninsula of MI. A bit of a drive, 6+ hours, but well worth it. If anyone is within a reasonable distance I would certainly recommend this Jam. For 3 days of good music it was $30, we went with the VIP seating which was $50 extra, with 18 groups not too bad. You got $10 back in food and drink tickets and we ended up in the 3rd row center seats, great spot.

A lot of the groups are the best of local bands. Each night 3 headliners are on the main stage, maybe a big local band to start, but they had some big names there too...Southern Rock All-Stars (former members of Molly Hachet and Blackfoot), Kansas, Beach Boys all played first 2 days.

Third night, got there, way excited about seeing Meat, Kas and company. Don't have a clue who the group was when we got there. Talked to the people around us, we'd seen most of them for the last 2 days. Jules had a pic of her and Meat she hoped to get autographed. The locals told us who to talk to to get an autograph, the head of security over to our right. We went over and he said wait here at 9, you might have a chance.

Toto came on and they were great. But we were distracted. Had no idea it would be possible to see Meat. Went to wait by the spot and who walked by but Kasim!

Had a nice chat with him, he is really a very nice guy. He'd played earlier that day at an Arts Festival in Sheboygan. Said it went well, nice intimate venue. He really does love his fans, said they make what he loves to do that much more enjoyable. Check out his CD, Quid Pro Quo, it comes out in Aug. Heard "Sacrifice" in Chicago, it is great! He is a sincere person, really dedicated to his work.

Turned out most of the Meet & Greet passes were for sponsors of the Music Jam. Apparently Jules charmed the security guy because she got the last available pass. Got her photo signed and a nice short chat with Meat. We enjoyed the rest of Toto and eagerly awaited Meat and crew.

Show started as has been reported with Meat glaring at the audience and eventually beating drums placed strategically about the stage. He beats them with these big sticks, then tosses them into the audience. Tossed one right at J (did he see her in the 3rd row?). She had her hands on it but the crazy gal in front of us got it.

Right after that J swears Kas looked right at her and smiled. I was busy taking photos, but maybe Kas watched where the stick went and recognized us.

Set list was pretty much as usual on this tour. They didn't do Kas and Patti's sets, Kas told me they don't do them at these festival things. Started with Life is a Lemon, had the crowd in a frenzy from then on. They allowed cameras so I was busy , thankfully I ran out of film before the end so I could really enjoy it.

This band is unbelievable. Most we talked to hadn't seen them on this tour. The audience was the most entranced by Meat and Co. over all the others over the 3 days. In the VIP section they were never standing much, until Meat.

When they got to the sit down part, Kas ran off twice to do something. Meat would bluster and holler at him, very funny. Meat also pointed out how cool Kas's white sleeveless shirt was.

Of all 3 days they really rocked the crowd most.

All photos on this page (except the first one) are by Terry and Jules

Back to Kasim Sulton's Meat Loaf Summer 2002 Tour