Bret Michaels: Takes a Licking, Keeps on Rocking

Bret Michaels rocks the Franklin Theatre. (Photo: Zach Clayton)

It Takes A Licking and Keeps on Rocking.

No, I’m not describing a Timex watch.  I am describing the Bret Michaels show that I saw at the Franklin (TN) Theatre on September 9.  If you follow any rock & roll news, you know that Bret suffered brain hemorrhages, an appendectomy, mini-strokes, and swinging light rigs.  All this in addition to his life long battle with Type 1 diabetes.  Knowing a little bit about the latter, in his 45 years since diagnosis, he has endured well over 50,000 insulin injections and over 80,000 blood sugar checks.  I say all of that to let you know that Bret still knows how to put on a show and keep the crowd growing.

As the lights went out, Guns & Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle” blared from the speakers and the P.A. announcer encouraged the crowd to get on their feet.  As soon as the majority of the crowd was standing Bret & his four-piece band came out and started the show with the Poison hit “Talk Dirty to Me”.

From there until the end of their hour-long set, they basically played what you would expect – a Poison greatest hits set list.  He did throw in Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” & Sublime’s “Love is What I Got”.  He indicated that the Sublime song was what he would listen to as he was doing physical therapy.  He would often provide an expanded introduction to each song, which is always a treat for me to hear why an artist likes or wrote a particular song.

Watch a video clip from the show:
Bret Michaels clip

If you have ever visited Bret’s website, you realize that he graduated magna cum laude from the Gene Simmons’ school of “how to sell anything”.  Throughout the show, they were talking about going to the merchandise table and get your meet & greet wristband.  Since my youngest son has Type I, my wife thought it might be cool to get one – Not $200/each cool, though.  After the show, they auctioned off Bret’s hat & shirt that he wore during the show for charity.

All in all, it was a great show and I was glad we went.  While his scissor kicks may not be as high as in the 80’s, he can still put on a rock show.  All proof that he can take a licking & keep rocking.

Musing in Nashville

Zach