3/7/25 & 3/8/25 'THE RIVER!' FRIDAY & SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE RIVIERA THEATER

'THE RIVER! My trip along the Susquehanna' by David W. Kidd

While I live 2 hours north of Vince and Burke, the bulk our trip to Tonawanda we shared along routes 15 North/86/390/90 through Pennsylvania and New York. They, driving directly north out of DC/VA (through Civil War country), and I, cutting slightly westward (through Harrisburg from the Mason Dixon).

Heading north of Harrisburg is a jaw-dropping 25 mile stretch of river gorges, Route 22! Then, along the mighty Susquehanna into the Allegheny Mountains, you pass several historic towns. Two that stood out were Dauphin which features a 25' replica of the Statue of Liberty! Or the uniquely odd, Liverpool... with its single stretch of massive 200 year old homes and red brick municipal buildings overlooking the river.

“Oh the winds can carry all the echoes home to me…”

During the drive Thursday afternoon, the winds were collectively described as “brutal”. You know it’s rough when everyone shares the same adjective! Doh!

‘Twas definitely a “two hands-on-the wheel” type trip.

And on those mountain roads, one could easily observe which trucks were empty (or carrying a light load) by how they continuously veered onto the shoulder, stirring up dust! I thought of Vince wrestling that box van!

The Boyz always have dinner together our first night in town.

The Riviera Theater is a fantastic venue! First rate across the board!

What a beauty, eh?

Friday night we performed all of RUSH's 1980 classic 'Permanent Waves' in it's entirety. This would be our first time playing 'Entre Nous' and 'Different Strings.' (Two masterpieces in my opinion.) RUSH themselves had never played the latter live, so with no frame of reference, was open to our own interpretation.

Setting up and running soundcheck is more often a challenge than not! Doh! Thankfully we have Dan and Vinny to keep things kosher... not to mention Burke's infinite technical expertise.

Saturday night we performed all of RUSH's 1981 classic 'Moving Pictures' in it's entirety. We had done this once or twice before, just needed to dust off 'The Camera Eye'.

This is RUSH country... an unforgetable experience...

As with our first time at the Riviera, we sold out Saturday night! What a blessing and honor.

Catch the mist!

On Saturday afternoon I took the opportunity to visit the falls. You can feel it’s power even from the state parking lot. From there, it’s hike down long steps to the water line. The mist getting increasingly thick… cold vapor carrying droplets to exposed skin.

The steady roar of the Niagara River is intense, especially beyond “the point of no return.”

The last time I stood on this observation deck was the summer of 1977... (I remember that Spider Man shirt!) RUSH were in England recording A Farewell To Kings at this time...