You Can’t Stop Twisted Sister In Clearfield

Nor rain, nor equipment issues or anything else prevented Twisted Sister from playing the 152nd Clearfield County Fair Saturday evening. The Clearfield County Fair is one of the country’s longest running fairs. Not only was this the first time Twister Sister played in Clearfield it also marked the first year ever that the fair served beer. Frontman Dee Snider called the people who stayed at home due to a late afternoon downpour a bunch of sissies, as he explained to the overly excited crowd.

Hitting the stage with AC/DC’s “It’s A Long Way To The Top If You Wanna Rock N Roll” playing was quite fitting if you know the history of the band. The band then ignited the crowd by breaking into their traditional opener “What You Don’t Know (Sure Can Hurt You).” The show marked the final one for Twisted Sister in 2012. The band generally only plays about ten shows a year and have nothing else planned until next year. The band sounded so fresh as they broke into their classic “The Kids Are Back”. The band dug out “Wake Up (The Sleeping Giant)”, a seldom played tune off their Love Is For Suckers release.

It was during “You Can’t Stop Rock ‘n’ Roll”, that the lone major gaffe of the evening took place when Snider’s microphone failed to work. The crowd tried to aid him by singing along but were drowned out by the ferocious work of guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie “Fingers” Ojeda. Snider eventually grabbed French’s mic and continued to keep the song going before receiving one of his own that eventually worked. After the song ended he emphasized how you can’t stop Twisted Sister either to an extra roar from the crowd who were not phased by the mishap. Later on Snider commented to the sound man that this was the first time in twenty years he had to say something about the monitor issues in the middle of a show. Despite Dee’s issues with the sound, from out in the crowd it sounded just fine, one of the best sounding outdoor shows I have heard in a while.

Guitarist French also made it a point to let the audience know that Twisted Sister is one of a select group of bands that still tour with its original (best known) lineup intact. It was during “Burn In Hell” that drummer A.J. Pero had his turn in the spotlight with a solid drum solo that ended with him playing a pair of glow in the dark drum sticks. The band continued to crank out song after song until they ended the main set with their MTV classic “I Wanna Rock”. It was during “I Wanna Rock” that the crowd really reached its apex as they would have torn the roof off the venue if there was one.

Back for a quick encore, the band blazed through “Come Out And Play”, the title track from their fourth studio release. Of course it would not be a Twisted Sister show without ending with “SMF”, a song the band wrote and dedicated to their hardcore fan base.

Also on the bill were Great White who played a solid sixty minute set that began with “Big Goodbye” as the opener. The band managed to work in one new song “(I’ve Got) Something For You”, from their latest effort Elation. The crowd came alive at the start of the opening notes of the hard rock classic “Rock Me” that seemed to have everyone singing along.

Opening the show were a pair of New York City based bands. The daughter of Twister Sister’s Eddie Ojeda, Michelle and her band Curbside Hustle got the show kicked off. The show started a bit earlier than the 7pm scheduled start time. Jac & Jill followed, featuring singer Jaclyn Quatela and guitarist Jill Winter. They fuse melodies with riff heavy pop/rock that seemed to go over quite well with the fans in attendance.

The promoter of the Fair outdid themselves putting together a solid night of entertainment. They were able to land a veteran act such as Great White, mix in a pair of up an’ comers and still have Twisted Sister headline the whole thing. Dee Snider and Company probably gained several new fans as they showed the Clearfield crowd what a rock ‘n’ roll show is all about.

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Twisted Sister
What You Don’t Know (Sure Can Hurt You)
The Kids are Back
Stay Hungry
Wake Up (The Sleeping Giant)
I Believe in Rock ‘n’ Roll
You Can’t Stop Rock ‘n’ Roll
The Fire Still Burns
Shoot ‘Em Down
We’re Not Gonna Take It
The Price
Burn in Hell [with Drum Solo]
I Wanna Rock
Encore
Come Out and Play
S.M.F.

Great White
Big Goodbye
Lady Red Light
(I’ve Got) Something For You
House Of Broken Love
Save Your Love
Mista Bone
Rock Me
Can’t Shake It
Once Bitten Twice Shy

Special Thanks to Twisted Sister for setting us up to review the show