|
Larry Maglinger
Never a Dull Moment
By G.D. O'Neal
Photos Provided
Rod Stewart has made a career out of never being
dull. From his Young Turk days with songs like Stay
With Me, and Hot Legs to his current hit-making
streak of re-creating standards, it seems as though
Rod
the Mod will remain Forever Young. And as
Rod has achieved the status of legend, his public
performances have dwindled in number limiting the amount
of cities and, ultimately, the number
of people that can experience the excitement of a
Rod Stewart concert.
Known for being the BBQ Capital of the world, Owensboro,
Kentucky is not a likely stop for the
next
Rod the Mod extravaganza. However, those
in need of their
Maggie May fix should look no
further
-
than their own backyard. Owensboro native,
Larry Maglinger has been entertaining fans
for over three
years with his tribute to Rod Stewart.
While tribute
acts have been around for years, Elvis
being the most prevalent, Rod's voice has such a
raspy quality and nuances that (in this respect
like
Elvis) make it uniquely his. When you hear
Larry's
performance, you are hearing Rod; you're
seeing Rod with
the style and the moves, and with his trademark
spiky rooster hairstyle.
-
Starting at the age of fifteen and lasting six
years,
Larry performed with a group called the Mags
which he left
to become a recording engineer in
Madisonville,
Kentucky at Electric Arts Studios
owned by famed
Gospel Music stars, the Happy
Goodman. After
four years and 250 projects,
Larry was
offered a position at Nashville's Woodland
Sound Studios, where he was at the controls
for such
diverse projects as Reba McEntire's major
label debut, Cajun Jo-el Sonnier, a Kellogg's
commercial featuring Tammy Wynette (she was
fighting with
her then husband George Jones) and
Jimmy Buffett.
Armed with his experience in the recording industry,
Larry returned to Owensboro and formed
Custom Audio-Video, Inc; designing and maintaining
some of the most complex communication and
video systems. After maintaining his business for
30 plus years, Larry felt the itch to return to
music.
It was fate that steered him to performing Rod. "I
was out singing to tracks (backing tracks) and I
have a raspy rough voice; someone came up to me
and said, 'you sound like Rod Stewart. You should
do some of his songs.' So I really did my homework,
went to see a lot of Rod concerts; watched
concert footage spanning his career. Then I found
a company in England that would make the backing
tracks for the songs I wanted to perform, so
they would record them almost identical to the
original minus the voice."
|
After two years, Larry decided to do a larger production
and brought in a band. "I wanted to do
a show just like you would see at a Rod Stewart
show." His attention to detail is exact, even down
to
his stage outfits. "It was really hard finding
clothes. I would go
to Vegas and buy things, but it
just wasn't right.
Then I finally found this lady who
could authentically
make them, including the yellow suit
from the Vaga bond tour and just recently, a
zebra striped jacked with satin lapels."
With
all the attention to the aesthetic details, the
big
question is, what about the sound!?! Larry
nails Stewart's
trademark rasp and his in-between-
the songs banter is
definitely reminiscent of the
original.
INFATUATION, the ban d tha t provides
the musical
muscle, is chock full of seasoned professionals
intent on preserving the spirit of the show,
Infatuation: Larry Maglinger's Tribute to 30 years of
Rod Stewart consists of songs from the earliest
to the recent, including Rod's successful foray into
standards such as What a Wonderful World and Moonglow.
With over sixty songs in his repertoire, Larry can
please the most diehard fan, playing the
hits as well as the more obscure album cuts. Gems like
Handbags and Gladrags, Gasoline Alley to Forever
Young and We're Havin' a Party. Larry truly invokes the
spirit of the Scottish crooner, and for two
hours a night, in essence, becomes Rod Stewart.
|
