It was a very hot and dusty day on Friday, August 11 at Rockin’ the Rivers near Three Forks, Montana. REO Speedwagon was the headliner. Starship, Warrant, and Big Brother & the Holding Company were playing that night, too.

This was my first time attending this event (I was there because REO was there), which is in its eighth year. I was not disappointed. As with most outdoors concerts, almost everything goes on. Everything! There were plenty of classic rock fans, mixed with the young fans. It seemed like a very organized event with plenty of food, booze and other vendors on site to visit.

There were several problems near the front of the stage and the security folks did a decent job in keeping it somewhat under control throwing a few folks out and breaking up some fights that mostly started with someone pushing and shoving their way to the front until they met someone who pushed back. I have no idea how many folks were there Friday night, but I imagine around 3000-4000.

REO plays to their crowds. This was a very wild crowd so REO was a lot wilder and crazier. They just came from playing in Sturgis, so they were primed for a good time – and so were the fans.

They played a couple of their new songs, “I Needed to Fall” and “Dangerous Combination” from a soon-to-be-released album. Of course, the crowd got rocking with their set list, which included hits like, “Don’t Let Him Go,” “Take It On The Run,” “Keep On Loving You,” “Music Man,” “Keep Pushin,” “Roll with the Changes,” “Time for Me to Fly,” “Back on the Road Again,” and “That Ain’t Love.”

For encores, they played “Ridin’ the Storm Out” and “157 Riverside Avenue.” When they played “Ridin’ the Storm Out,” they played it with a new energy that I had not seen in years. They played for a total of about 90 minutes and it was well worth the $45 per ticket.

I also enjoyed the other bands that night. Starship (with Mickey Thomas) was pretty good (I had forgotten they even existed) and Big Brother and the Holding Company with their lead singer, Chloe Lowery, really got the crowd into it (she has some pipes and really gets into the music). The BBHC website says, “Evolving out of the San Francisco rock scene of the 1960s, Big Brother was in the forefront of the psychedelic music movement.” Janis Joplin sang with the band in the 1960s. Chloe Lowery carries on the “Janis Joplin” tradition very well.

After being crunched, shoved, and grabbed for a couple sets from being near the front during Starship and REO, we departed for the motel and skipped Warrant. All in all we had a good time at the Rockin’ the Rivers event and I look forward to seeing who they have on tap next year. If it’s REO Speedwagon, count me in….