Bob Seger tribute ‘Hollywood Nights’ returns to aquatorium

Hollywood Nights will headline Saturday’s Rockin’ on the Mon concert, with opener Mark Ferrari.

Bob Seger tribute band Hollywood Nights will headline alongside opener Mark Ferrari, an acoustic rock artist, at this weekend’s Rockin’ on the Mon show at the Monongahela Aquatorium.

Gates open for the event 6 p.m. Saturday, and tickets cost $10 per person. As always, vendors for food and more will be available during the evening. The summer concert series runs through the last Saturday of this month.

Ferrari will entertain the early crowd on the main stage beginning at 6 p.m.

Hollywood Nights hit the main stage at 7:30 p.m.

Hollywood Nights, based in New Jersey and Philadelphia, has been around for about 15 years, according to its lead vocalist Rick Murphy. The band includes backup vocalists, saxophone, piano and organ in addition to guitar, bass and drums. Murphy said he sees his fellow bandmates as family and believes they really started to hit their stride in the past few years when it became clear to Seger fans that the legend had indeed retired.

“I think there was a big chunk of Seger that were holding on, thinking Bob’s going to return,” Murphy said.

At age 13, Murphy drummed in a band and most loved Kiss. At a concert for Kiss that he attended then, Seger opened and blew him away, he said.

“He was a flamethrower,” Murphy said. “His voice was a lot different than what I was accustomed to with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley from Kiss. At that point I kinda realized, man, I really want to be a singer. Kiss made me want to be a performer, but Bob Seger made me want to be a singer, songwriter.”

Murphy most enjoys the lyrics of Seger’s work, he said. Those words have meant a lot to him throughout his life.

“Just about all the trials and tribulations of working hard in your life and getting kicked around like all of us have done probably in the past at one point and just not giving up and staying true to who you are,” Murphy said. “And then if you do all that, you got a good chance of being happy. And then when you reach happiness, you look around and make sure you can help other people be happy. That’s what I take away from his lyrics.”

Musically, Hollywood Nights strives to recreate Seger’s music faithfully, but Murphy doesn’t pretend he can sing like Seger, he said.

“I have all the pronunciations and the syllables and the way Bob Seger sang the song, but I don’t try to sing like Seger one bit,” Murphy said. “I just sing like Rick Murphy.”

Hollywood Nights hasn’t played the Aquatorium in a few years, but the band has played it multiple times and enjoys it, Murphy said.

“You got the river right behind you, and then you got the people in front of you. It’s a very unique situation. It’s a unique piece of property,” Murphy said. “And it seems like everyone that comes there, you know those elements create a sense of joy with everybody and relaxation and ready to have fun.”

Ferrari, a Bethel Park resident and musician of about 25 years, typically plays solo but will be joined with a few friends when he performs this weekend. His friends will add electric guitar, percussion and harmonica to his sound, he said. The covers include artists such as Bon Jovi, Matchbox Twenty and 3 Doors Down.

“We even cover like some Lady Gaga, but we do it in our acoustic way,” Ferrari said. “It’s fun.”

He will also play some of his acoustic-driven rock originals. He has three albums with a fourth upcoming and typically records in Nashville, Tenn., he said.

“I write songs about situations, life, things that are going on around me, not necessarily all my perspective on things,” Ferrari said. “There’s so much to draw from in the world to write about. When I write, I try to generalize the message so people can relate to it.”

This also marks the first time Ferrari will play the Aquatorium, he said.

“I’ve been hearing about it a lot over probably the past two years, definitely the past year,” Ferrari said. “It was nice when [the venue] reached out.”